Soul Doubt
I didn’t think any photos included in this post would actually accentuate how I feel. The words pretty much speak for themselves. I decided, instead, to put some of my favorite YouTube videos of songs from bands I really enjoy that have either ’sold out’, according to some people, or have faded away.
It seems now I finally understand. Selling out is that one, final crime, isn’t it? Oh, but it never hurts the musician; it only hurts the fans. Countless bands have never sold out. Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd claim that they have not. Dylan only recently could be suspected of it. But so many bands have, and they know it. Let’s define selling out as simply as possible:
Selling out: When a musician or band uses their music to gain money or some other item.
There, is that good enough? If this is the definition, then why are we, as fans, concerned about something we didn’t make being used as a product to raise money we don’t deserve?
This only made sense to me recently, when I began to think about the bands and musicians I listen to, and when I thought about the issues I face as creator and editor of this blog. There are times in life where one feels very complete or very comfortable with their schedule. You can feel surrounded by friends, do the same thing every week and know, for the most part, what will happen in the future. But if you take something away, say a best friend, then that castle of comfort has crumbled and, if you aren’t so good at recovery, can stay in shambles.
AM! house show in 2009. Sold out...?
So, I looked back on why it bothered me when Against Me! signed with Fat Wreck and then with Sire, or when Bright Eyes became so popular even though I had already heard five of his albums. It bothered me because it felt like they had left me. These aren’t superstar groups, indeed, I could play the same chords they did and it usually felt like I could come up with the same types of lyrics. And it’s important to note the types of bands or musician who can cause such anger in selling out. It’s an anger stemmed from bands that have been communicating with us for so long, in sharing our same fears and doubts and just spitting it out, mouth frothing in angst, without the help of fancy producers or purchased writers. Against Me!, Green Day and any other band that started out small and were socially conscious will never be able to connect with us, the fans, on the same level that they used to. And that’s what hurts so much when it happens. It’s like they just stood up and walked out. They’ve traded in a shitty Epi acoustic for a shiny Gibson they’ll never have to pay for. They’ve traded us in. They’ve sold out.
But it’s not their fault. It’s just our reaction. And we have to move on.
Because, bands and musicians don’t have a choice. There are only two paths that music leads you onto: die quickly or slowly fade away. Both choices suck, because one means, like Hot Water Music or The Need Machine, I’ll never see them live again. Or like Against Me! and Weezer, they never really connect the same way they used to. But we have to move on, because just as we choose different routes in our life, they have chosen a different route for theirs. But stay calm. They’ve already sacrificed for us. They’ve already created that perfect song or album for us to connect with. They did know, at one time, what it was like to be a common person, struggling through life and government. And deep down, I’m sure they still know what it’s like, it’s just harder for them to write songs about it now that their lives have changed. They’re living life a little differently than us now. But I have a feeling, that when we’re all older, or if you already are older, those artists, Clapton, Dylan, Gabel, Oberst, you and me, we’re all going to be playing those old songs we used to love and connect with. The musician may have sold out, but those songs and those feelings never will.
Which favorite bands of yours do you think have sold out!? Tell me in the comments and we’ll both listen to some of their tunes! Stay tuned tomorrow for a post by Vodes!
The concept of selling out is a difficult one. I would define it more clearly as “Compromising your music or your fans for the sake of money or treating your music as a commodity rather than as art.” This extends from the axiom that art is shared, commodities are sold so when, say, Metallica starts a crusade against a piece of technology that seeks to make it easier for people to listen to their music, it is easy to see how that can be seen as selling out. But I think, sometimes, change can be seen as selling out. If a band signs with a label that is better able to promote their music, that may not be selling out. What band doesn’t want their music to be heard by more people? But if said band wants to be promoted more only to rake in the monies, that is selling out. It’s a fine line that may be hard to judge. One can only look at a band’s words and actions to see if they contradict… or you could just forget about it and enjoy the music.
I am claiming that being a sell out may rest in other issues, ones which delve deeper than the on-the-surface issues of selling out. I agree, that just signing with a major label is not grounds for disowning a band. However, musicians know what follows behind striving for a larger audience. Get that audience, and you get yourself a completely different world. I believe that this completely changes a band or musician, and that fans recognize this. Bands like AM! and Weezer and Bright Eyes embodied a band that could be really good, but just comprised of normal people who have issues like we all do. They won’t be able to connect the same way now that their audience has expanded, the tours have gotten larger, and the money has started to roll in. They may have similar issues to sing about, but they’re not experiencing what the standard American could be experiencing anymore, and just knowing that makes their ability to speak to the audience so much more difficult. I believe that even if the words and actions don’t contradict, lifestyle vs. words and actions does contradict. I think listeners are affected by that.
While its true that the new experiences that come with being a popular band could change the meaning of their music, the same could be said for any major life change. Sure it may be a little hypocritical to try and write songs about the problems of the common man when they don’t have the same problems but who’s to say that that they can’t remember these problems and write about them? Would you have all writers stop writing songs, books, films about teenagers once they turn 20?
And its unfair to say that a band could sell out just because others found them. They have little control over how many people decide to listen to them. I prefer to think of selling out as something that a band does and not something that is thrust upon them.
The difference between a major life change in someone’s life, i.e. changing jobs, moving to a new city, birth of a child, loss of a loved one, and the life change involved in having mainstream success are too different. Isolation, constant touring, interviews, photo shoots, video shoots, recording; this is the life of a popular musician, no working man or woman can truly relate to that. And you’re right, that type of lifestyle has its own issues, and song writers can always write stories or use memories, but I don’t believe it could ever be the same as when they were in that moment. I think that stands for all musicians. I believe there comes a time where you just can’t write a good sad song, because you’re way too happy in life, or can’t make a pop hit because you’re far too angry. You may say that shouldn’t stop someone from writing songs about things like that, and you’re right, they shouldn’t, but the connection between song and audience will not be as strong.
I do think bands attempt to sell out for a larger audience, I was not trying to say they sold out because people listened to them. Selling out is always something a band does. But selling out is also something a fan feels, regardless of whether or not the musician is responsible. That was what I was trying to convey with this post.
“why are we, as fans, concerned about something we didn’t make being used as a product to raise money we don’t deserve?”