Rage!
Well, Christmas rolls around again and the inevitable X-Factor song tops the chart. Or does it? Much has been made of the internet campaing to usurp The Climb with Rage Against The Machine - Killing In The Name, both from the for and against, and even the completely indifferent, but I thought I'd wade in on my side.
First to say, I have nothing against the x-factor winner himself, Joe. He seems like a nice enough chap, if a little like a blank canvas, but that's probably half the point. The campaign is not about ruining his Christmas, it's not a personal assault on him and my opinions are not aimed at him in anyway.
I'll open with saying that I wholeheartedly support the campaign, I have bought the single, but my support is for another reason than most might think. Anyone who knows me knows that of the two songs, Rage is always going to be a favourite of mine, but that is not why I support it. I would be supporting it if they had picked a rap song, a punk track, a dubstep track, the track is immaterial. And thus the argument that both tracks are Sony tracks is also immaterial, it's not about lining anyone's pocket, its about the protest itself.
This is a protest about the freedom of the human spirit and its culture. Historically, culture has been something created from the ground up, the mass populous allowing the best to rise to the top, their democratic opinions combining to form the hierarchy that we called culture, and in a statistical form, the music charts. It was once the norm that a band, any band, would have to work their way up the charts, building a following and a fanbase as they go. But these days, the culture is created at the top and fed down to us, we are told what we should like.
The rise of reality talent show has in theory made it more democratic but in reality has cut down our options to the few presented to us by a small panel of self-selected judges. X-factor is a prime example. It's pitched as an audience led show, with the viewing public picking the winners and losers. But in fact that's very rarely the case. If you think of the tens of thousands of people who audition, we don't get to vote on them. We don't get to vote on the one at boot camp, we don't get to vote on the Judges houses. We only get presented 12 people on which to vote. Our selections aren't an open choice, its a lack of options. And even in the live stage, the judges can still countermand the audiences wishes by having the saving vote. In essence, we are being told what to like and what is good. And this campaign is a reaction to that.
Ultimately there is a large part of society that is tired of being told what to like, tired of being told that this is the best of the music scene. And so we protest. As with protests all over the world, the end point is not the main point. It is about being there. It's about resonating upwards the idea that maybe, just maybe, this format has had its day, that the country is tired of being dictated to. The x-factor shows exist solely to build towards this CD release, they are weekly adverts for a brand, a brand that we are tired of being into.
So go buy the single, spend the 79p, and make them realise that we are still here, we still care and we are angry.
First to say, I have nothing against the x-factor winner himself, Joe. He seems like a nice enough chap, if a little like a blank canvas, but that's probably half the point. The campaign is not about ruining his Christmas, it's not a personal assault on him and my opinions are not aimed at him in anyway.
I'll open with saying that I wholeheartedly support the campaign, I have bought the single, but my support is for another reason than most might think. Anyone who knows me knows that of the two songs, Rage is always going to be a favourite of mine, but that is not why I support it. I would be supporting it if they had picked a rap song, a punk track, a dubstep track, the track is immaterial. And thus the argument that both tracks are Sony tracks is also immaterial, it's not about lining anyone's pocket, its about the protest itself.
This is a protest about the freedom of the human spirit and its culture. Historically, culture has been something created from the ground up, the mass populous allowing the best to rise to the top, their democratic opinions combining to form the hierarchy that we called culture, and in a statistical form, the music charts. It was once the norm that a band, any band, would have to work their way up the charts, building a following and a fanbase as they go. But these days, the culture is created at the top and fed down to us, we are told what we should like.
The rise of reality talent show has in theory made it more democratic but in reality has cut down our options to the few presented to us by a small panel of self-selected judges. X-factor is a prime example. It's pitched as an audience led show, with the viewing public picking the winners and losers. But in fact that's very rarely the case. If you think of the tens of thousands of people who audition, we don't get to vote on them. We don't get to vote on the one at boot camp, we don't get to vote on the Judges houses. We only get presented 12 people on which to vote. Our selections aren't an open choice, its a lack of options. And even in the live stage, the judges can still countermand the audiences wishes by having the saving vote. In essence, we are being told what to like and what is good. And this campaign is a reaction to that.
Ultimately there is a large part of society that is tired of being told what to like, tired of being told that this is the best of the music scene. And so we protest. As with protests all over the world, the end point is not the main point. It is about being there. It's about resonating upwards the idea that maybe, just maybe, this format has had its day, that the country is tired of being dictated to. The x-factor shows exist solely to build towards this CD release, they are weekly adverts for a brand, a brand that we are tired of being into.
So go buy the single, spend the 79p, and make them realise that we are still here, we still care and we are angry.