I'm sorry, but this guy is our generation's equivalent of "Angry Man Yelling At Cloud." Shouldn't we be happy that artists can reap financial rewards from their art, instead of being indentured servants to record companies or wage slaves at Starbucks? Is it not a good thing that an artist like M.I.A. has a mainstream hit song with a subversive message?
the most insightful thing i've read about anything of late. someone, and i'm looking at the republicans, has hijacked critical thinking, and made it uncool to express any criticism that can't be bulleted or shouted. therefore, before the conversation can get started, we just get a lot or responses like scary tyler moore's. spare us the terse dismissals.
DCB is a good man. Good being the operative word. When we stop thinking critically about things, we are of little importance as people, we become unwittingly immersed in the machine of profit and greed. I think his bitterness is well-founded. There's a real, collective glut in this country that has trickled down into parts of the subculture. We're far beyond the mallternative stage. It seems to me wise that someone from within would point that out.
In 1993, I asked Mike Watt why he went to Sony (Columbia) and he replied, "did you listen to our Mersh album?" The impression I got was it allowed them to buy better pot. I think Berman overlooks some of the motivation behind these bands we grew up with who long ago started sucking and sold out. They wanted more and better pot.