ENGL 475: Postmodern Literature (Fall 2004)

As we were talking about in class, the concept of an artistic media creation, done by the closet individual, is not that far off. Albeit, the book cites remarkable filmaking prowess basically unparalelled in terms of creation power (where characters are indistinguishable from CGI), we aren't that far off of such hapstance. For example, the proliferation of "bedroom production" software such as ProTools and Reason has allowed for closet musicains to delve into the more electronic/urban modes of music (namely electronica and hip-hop). To cite such a technological revolution, we can look at DJ Danger Mouse, who released a blend mix known as "The Grey Album" (a mix between The Beatles White Album and Jay-Z's Black Album). The artist was quickly sued by the RIAA but his music's proliferation onto the internet was bolstered by underground support. It is now a widely spread album (on a single day of content disobedience, garnering over 100,000 downloads) and the artist has gained some levels of underground celebrity.

More and more artists are doing online remixes...you can find us at websites like internetdj or planetacid, where music is created for the sole purpose of online uploading. It is a more pure medium, where the review of the avid listener is the only reason for the creative process. Those who excell ascend to electronic noteriety.

However, in terms of music-media, the proliferation of professional production equipment is still 5 years away from allowing the true bedroom producer to create industry grade music. Danger Mouse, although doing the work at his home on a PC, had utilized an E-mu SP 1200 sampler (~$800), a Wurlitzer and various vintage organs, an Ensoniq ASR-X sampler, a Roland XP-60 keyboard and various software suites (Acid Pro, Pro Tools).

A growing trend in music production is the proliferation of large and clunky stuido equipment that used to cost $$$, into more compact software packages. Nevertheless, the software is expensive and hard to find, but soon, as it seeps into the underworlds of the internet, there will be more and more excellent bedroom production. It is inevitable.

This form of "bottom-up" information seems to be a pretty important theme in the book. Bigend basically seems to want to exploit the underground "coolness" of the footage as a marketing method. Well... it has already been done, in one way:

Bungi, a gaming software company owned by Microsoft, is about to release Halo 2 for the x-box. Back when they released their first trailer of the game they put ilovebees.com under the x-box logo instead of the normal URL. If you go there you get a fake site that seems to have been hacked, and if you do a little research you get a whole developing storyline (which I think is pretty much over now). This very cheap campaign has generated quite a lot of buzz with particular people.

I’m sure that this faux-underground style of marketing has been done elsewhere, and I expect to see more of it in the future. Its cheap, and the “underground” aspect gives it a certain credibility that it would not otherwise have.

http://www.japander.com/japander/schwarz.htm

there ya go. celeb-marketing association goodness.

I just wanted to post the lyrics to a sonic youth song off their new album entitled "pattern recognition," its a dope song and I think it's lyrics really tie into the novel.

Pattern Recognition

I'm a cool hunter making you my way
Like a brand name you'll replay

I will know you
I won't show you, yeah yeah
You're the one
You're the one
You're the one
You're the one

Heat-seeking missile freak
Black magick
Scared to speak
I will know you
I won't show you, yeah yeah
Will you buy me a shaky heart
Let's forget has torn me apart

I will know you
I won't show you, yeah yeah
You're the one
You're the one
You're the one
You're the one

Can you sell me
Yesterday's girl
Cuz everyday I feel more like her
Oh baby baby
Please don't go

Pattern recognition
Is kind of slow
Like a cool hunter watch the disarray
Keep your secret foolish head away
I will know you
I won't show you, yeah yeah
Close your eyes and feel the fun
Pattern recognition's on the run

Yes, they're Gibson fans, and have been for a while: check out some of the lyrics from Daydream Nation.

yo, anyone whose into this book should check out David Cronenbergs film "Videodrome", the films all about being obsessed with footage with unknown whereabouts, and is both ridicuosly sweet and creepy at the same time. Cronenberg is on some next level shit considering the movie was made in 1983. For real this movie is legit and should be viewed by all. P.S Deborah Harry from Blondie is in it which makes it all the more legit. Cronenberg takes it to the limit in all his films and this shit needs to be viewed.