Arcade Fire
I thought the Arcade Fire was anti-hype, a new band for a new generation. But they appear to be the same sold-out pricks as Good Charlotte and the rest of the egotastic bands, the only difference being they’re on an INDIE label.
Oh, don’t get your knickers in a twist. Of course their music is more real than that of the evanescent wannabes, but the sell…it appears curiously the same.
I mean who cares if the band is on an indie label if the act is sold JUST LIKE it’s on a major label.
Why the fuck does the Arcade Fire need a gargantuan story in the "New York Times Magazine"? Is this really gonna reach the target audience? Or SNL… Is that really the cutting edge anymore? Shit, everywhere I turn there’s a story on Arcade Fire, the hype is deafening, and in many instances, the band is complicit, can’t they say NO?
In a world where Britney shaves her head and EVERYBODY knows within hours does an indie band truly need a scorched earth hype campaign to reach its audience? Is the problem that the band’s fans DIDN’T KNOW the record was out? And by trying to reach newbies, does the Arcade Fire SHORTEN its career?
God, I thought the younger generation of musicians were supposed to be net-savvy. If something is good, EVERYBODY in the target demo is aware of it momentarily via txt, IM, even old-fashioned e-mail. And, of course, there is WEB-SURFING! But NO, Arcade Fire is using the old traditional methods to bang the message of the release of its new record.
This is fucked up. We’re supposed to be living in a new world. But we’ve got the Shins and Arcade Fire playing by the OLD rules. God, they make Clap Your Hands Say Yeah look positively new school. The Net broke CYHSY, and although there is straight media hype, MOST PEOPLE STILL FIND OUT ABOUT THE BAND ORGANICALLY!
That’s how you break a band, word of mouth. Not via top-down carpet bombing.
If I’m into a band, do I look to the ponderous "New York Times Magazine" for info? NO! I’ll go to pitchforkmedia.com, which BROKE Arcade Fire, if you remember, or stereogum or hypemachine or some music blog.
If I find little Susie down the street is into the same band I am, because the deafening hype made her aware, does that make me MORE of a fan or does it make me wonder if I need to move on?
These are important issues. Because ever since the advent of overhype, with MTV, band careers have become ever more brief. Only the oldsters, who developed organically, when you couldn’t get on television on a regular basis, can tour a decade after they emerged, never mind three or four.
Who gives a shit what the Arcade Fire record sounds like. NEXT!
