Globalism vs Music

busy busy busy

2004-05-27T20:19:00.000+10:00

sorry guys, i know i havent posted in ages. My bad.

Anyway, after my lively discussion with old mate Jean in yesterdays tute I feel like i have refined my topic. So now im focussing on the issues surrounding keeping it real and authenticity in the online realm. What are your thoughts on this? Im probably goign to examine message boards for my primary research.

I was thinking about linking in or focussing on globalisation and how the forces of globalisation along with file sharing are eroding the importance of authenticity and keeping it realin hip hop.

What are everyones thoughts on this? Which topic sounds the best or should i link both?

Globalisation... Is it such a bad thing? A post dealing with the topic of glocalisation

2004-05-15T11:03:00.000+10:00

From Jeans suggestions about searching "glocalisation" I have encountered a really interesting point. Glocalisation draws on the forces of Globalisation but on a local level. In that it refers to the changes that the forces of globalisation cause at a local level, thus the term - Glocalisation. A really great article called Glocalisation: globalisation plus localisation makes some very good points about globalisation and the way that is has been misinterpreted as being an entirelly bad thing. I drew this quote from the article linked above...

"...they equated globalisation with 19th century colonialism. They failed to see that, in the late 20th century, globalisation was not political conquest but economic partnership, creating unprecedented opportunities for the poor to rise. "

The article also highlights many other interesting points regarding 'localisation', this being the way in which local groups and governments can contribute from the grass roots level in shaping the direction of a country be it macro economically or on a social level. Well worth a read.

Look out for those folding chairs...

2004-05-12T16:18:00.000+10:00

Note to everyone who has ever had a lecture in a room with folding chairs... DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE THEM!

The story goes a bit like this... I rock up to an Education lecture straight after the MSTU tute this afternoon and I take my seat as usual. The story takes a turn for the worse however when I decided that one minute before teh lecture starts I would spend my time more wisely by sitting on the library computers. So I get up to leave but then realise I am the on the chair closest to the wall and that there are another five people between me and the aisle. So, in my infinite wisdom, I come up with the excellent plan of climbing on my folding chair over into the row behind me and thus escape two hours of boredom. So I stand on the chair and lift my leg, at this point my foot moves slightly towards the rear of the chair thus sending the chair back into its folded up position.

My leg falls down the slot now created between the now folded chair and the row behind me that I was halfway through climbing over. I flail around trying to catch my balance and in the process back hand the girl who was sitting next to me that I don't know, causing her to spill the coke she was drinking at the time of my brief flail. I then decide to count my losses and blame my idiocy on being drunk before quickly leaving the lecture theatre.

So the moral of this story...never underestimate the embarresment potential of those folding chairs...oh and the lecture theatre was S304 (downstairs in the social sciences building).

When is a local scene, 'local'?

2004-05-12T06:35:00.000+10:00

I'm actually saying something original, I think?! So a little bit of hush...

While I was sitting on the desk at the Hotel I work at last night, doing the highlight of my week - the 8pm to 2am shift, at around midnight I had brain wave.

So local scenes.... how can we credit a local group of musicians as being a "local scene"? If the basic theory of globalisation is correct the majority of music and bands would draw upon other influences from overseas and be effected by the all powerful forces of globalisation.

So that to be a local scene, am I correct in saying, you have to be totally original? But then every local scene has its own distinct charecteristics that can only be found in that particular scene/subculture.

I think the point I'm trying to make is that even though a scene may be classed as 'local' it quite possibly, if not 100% original, be the local manifestation of say a style of music from another country and this also ties in with my old mate Globalisation ----> which drives this whole process of creating scenes through word of mouth, file sharing and the networks that teh forces of globalsiation create between different people in different countries etc etc

Ok, that probably made no sense as I have just had three hours sleep, apologies.

Shite how classy is this?

2004-05-11T12:42:00.000+10:00

Wow, blogger seem to have really pulled their fingers out and redesigned the whole layout, it looks mad!

On another note, is it just me or is always the same people posting comments and looking at one anothers web pages?

Prosecution is not the answer!

2004-05-07T11:54:00.000+10:00

I found a great article on File sharing and how it has to be made legal. Its from a group called the "Electronic Frontier Foundation" and is really worth a read if you are interested in file sharing. I think the article makes a really good point that prosecuting 12 year old girls, is definetly not the answer. Click here for the article.

"Sept. 12, 2003 | The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) has finally launched its campaign of lawsuits against the 60 million Americans who file-share. And already, we've seen the first casualties -- a 12-year-old girl and her mother in New York must pay $2,000 they don't have in a hastened settlement; a 71-year-old grandfather in Texas has to hire a lawyer to defend himself and his grandkids; a single mother in Colorado searches for legal advice she can't afford. These are the horror stories of the current copyright wars."

I also have updated my course weblog links and added the EFF to my links.

..."i feel the vibe, I'm so alive, within this abstract fusion..." ~Currently listening to...Abstrakt Fusion - Zephyr Timbre

Comments back up but in a wack place

2004-05-06T17:04:00.000+10:00

Comments back up and it only took me ten minutes, mad. My comments are in a weird place though so just keep in mind when reading a post that the comments for that particular post are at the top of the post before the text.

Oh and just so you know I bought a $300 Callaway golf club today for $25, so I'm pretty stoked. Just thought you would like to know.

New

2004-05-06T16:51:00.000+10:00

I've changed the layout something fierce. Therefore I'm going to have to put the Haloscan Comments back in so at the mo there are no comments but stay with me. Give me a day max.

... "the deer in you has gotta get us through..."~Currently listening to...Deer in You - Gerling

Filesharing and its role in relation to music and globalisation

2004-04-30T17:00:00.000+10:00

Filesharing, is it such a big evil thing as the record companies want us to believe? Should we 'filesharers' be taken to court over downloading the latest Vines album, just because we are poor students and can't afford the $20? Or moreover should the record companies move with the times and realise that the Compact Disk is a dying form of music distribution and explore the advantages offered by filesharing and online communities?

All these questions are interesting ones which I would love too see people debate or put forward their own views on - I'm not holding my breath though :P.

It is however a well known fact that file sharing is here to stay, and there is little the major record labels can do to bring down peer to peer networks such as Kazaa, Morpheus and WinMX. I found an article on the way in which these peer to peer networks are constructed. It also highlights why the creators of Napster were taken to court and forced to close Napster Version 1. It is an interesting, if heavy, read if you are into this type of technical stuff - I found it invaluable in helping me understand the way in which these file sharing networks, which have played such a huge role in globalising music, work.

..."if you could see yourself, then what would you find?"~Currently Listening to...
Black Lung - The Butterfly Effect

The Internet as a Globalising Force

2004-04-30T15:21:00.000+10:00

The role that the internet has played in dismantling many cultural and distance based barriers between people of different races and religions is undebatable. Intertwined with this is the role of file sharing and in turn the role that file sharing has played in increasing the distribution of music from different cultures throught the world.

I have just ripped an excert from a really great site, The Globalisation Guide which discusses the role of the internet in terms of globalisation, both from a pro globalisation view point and also an anti globalisation view point. Even though this does not explicitly talk about music and globalisation it is important I think to recognise the role that the increased proliferation of the internet has had in increasing circulation of music.

Pro globalisation

"Many within developing countries see the internet as an opportunity to gain access to knowledge and services from around the world in a way that would have been unimaginable previously. Internet kiosks, mostly facilitating email with overseas relatives, for example, are springing up in many parts of Africa.

The internet may also facilitate opportunities for economic development in industries such as tourism.

The internet and technologies such as mobile telephony allow developing countries to leapfrog steps in their development of infrastructure. A poor land line telephone system in the Philippines, for example, is being rapidly bypassed by mobile phones with internet access.

Globalization has drastically improved access of technological latecomers to advanced technologies and, to the extent that technological upgrading is important for development, it provides a unique opportunity for low-income countries to raise per capita income. Research shows that improved access to technology imports is improving the demand for skilled labor in many low-income countries"

Anti globalisation

"Although the internet started off as a communal medium for sharing information, principally among academics, it is increasingly becoming the tool of transnational corporations to market their information products around the world.

Because it is rich countries generating most of the content on the internet, it becomes a form of cultural imperialism, in which western values dominate. English is the language of the internet.

The internet is also creating new gaps between the rich and the poor. Rich countries have much greater access to the internet and communications services generally. We are moving from an industrial age, in which wealth was created by manufacturing, to an information age in which wealth is created by the development of information goods and services, ranging from media, to education and software. Poor countries are not taking part in this information revolution and are falling further behind."

..."I sit back, and crack a six pack, from the plastic, on my quest to get spastic"~ Currently Listenting to...
Toowong - Brad Strut Featuring Len One and Lazy Grey

And the light bulb lights up...

2004-04-30T14:01:00.000+10:00

I just had a mad idea. From now on I'm going to post down what music I'm listening to at the time of the post - just to make my Blog that little bit different.

"I guess I've got some things to ponder" - Derek Zoolander

2004-04-30T14:00:00.000+10:00

Since my post yesterday I have been thinking about the topic of Globalisation and Music, and how it is very very broad. So I decided last night over a couple of pints of Becks at Fin MaCools, Keperra (my local) that I would continue the same focus of hip hop and rap into this assignment.

When you think of a true gloablising music form, rap and hip hop easily spring to mind. Think Nelly, 50 Cent or Tupac and you have "gangsters" rhyming about topics which have affected them. The increased popularity that these artists have garnered overseas is outstanding, considering the topics they comment on were in the first place, very localised.

A question I would like to ask is: are groups and artists such as Run DMC and Grandmaster Flash, Nelly and 50 Cent's music; 'ghetto-centric' [A term I invented :)], meaning centred around the experience of life in an American ghetto or were these groups formed as merely money making enterprises and in turn, is their music completely devoid of any meaning whatsoever?

I personally believe that the answer really depends on the group or artist you are referring too. Today we have groups and artists on each end of the scale. We have mainstream rappers whose music is devoid of any meaning other than to rake in the moolah, eg 50 cent. But you also have main stream Hip Hop and Rap groups that remain reasonably commericaly succesful yet still rap about their own experiences, eg The Streets .

What are everyones thoughts on my ideas regarding this?

..."last night was some beerlarinous, done our way" ~ Currently listening to... Don't Mug Yourself - The Streets

Globalisation and its Influence on musical styles

2004-04-29T20:03:00.000+10:00

Globalisation has over recent times become a phrase easily thrown around and can easily be associated with capitalism, third world exploitation and environmental degredation. It is too easy however to focus soley on these negative effects of Globalisation and ignore the positives, although limited, that this process has brought.

For example the forces of globalisation have influenced musical scenes and subcultures, for example we now have the Icelandic four piece group Quarashi who describe themselves as "an eclectic blend of rap, punk, and hard rock that displays an incredibly wide array of influences". It is interesting to note the way in which Globalisation has brought a wide array of musical styles from around the globe together, and in turn these styles have created the style of music which Quarashi pride themselves on.

The bands website hasnt been updated in a fair while but is still worth a look if you are interested in this type of thing.

Also the band has an official Blog which the group members post on quite frequently, and is well worth a look.

As I looked on the "How to" sheet that Jean typed up I realised that the example used was of Icelandic Hip Hop, Dammit! - I promise you I thought of this post before I read that example. :)

2004-04-29T19:20:00.000+10:00

Wow, it actually worked...

This is my first post, so welcome to my Random Bloggage. I'm planning to use this blog to help with my research and just to post random stuff.

Also, I'm planning to use this blog to help me pass MSTU2000.