by Mary Stokes on February 5, 2010
Over the last three weeks, I don’t think there has been anyone has been left untouched by the dramatic and heart-breaking pictures, news and interviews coming out of Haiti since the Earthquake struck. Here in the UK the emergency response was swift and the media attention meant the appeals were never far from our minds. Now however, the news has moved on, the news anchors have come home and even though the work still goes on, interest in the relief operations is dwindling.
But what does this have to do with you? Surely this is Music Blog? And you’d be right, of course. But as I’ve proved in earlier posts, music plays an integral role in our social and political lives. As a result, it is unsurprising that when looking to renew interest in a cause, thoughts turn to charity singles and benefit concerts.
There’s been a mountain of publicity already about certain projects, but I wanted to take this moment to introduce our UK readers to another event, which is just as worthy if less well-known.
For the last 2 weeks I have been volunteering for a charity called Action Against Hunger. Originally a French organization they have been present in Haiti since 1985 and were one of the first to launch an emergency response following the earthquake on January 12th. Now, however, the time has come to think about restoring the infrastructure to ensure a long-term future for the country.
The result: A Night For Haiti
Featuring a host of up and coming indie acts and some of the most talked about names in the UK music scene, the event really does look like it’s going to be one of those one-of-a-kind nights. The Boxer Rebellion (who’s latest release was No.1 Alternative album on iTunes) and London songstress Eliza Doolittle are due to perform live, with DJ sets from the incredible Foals and New Young Pony Club.
So if you are in London, and fancy a fantastic night out, which will also benefit those most desperately in need across the Atlantic, I can’t stress this event too much. Normally I view benefit gigs with suspicion, but having been around while this one was being organized, it shows me that they can be done well, with 100% of proceeds actually going to the specific appeal.
If not, please take a look at their website, and watch out for the review in a couple of weeks!
Normal service will resume next week – hopefully with news about an upcoming trip to Abbey Road! *Squeals with delight*
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Mary Stokes - Meet MeLocated in the UK, music has been part of my life for a long time. I'm a classically trained violinist but have a wide range musical knowledge.
by Jillian on February 3, 2010
Between the Internet and my iPod, I’m beginning to feel a bit guilty about the music I’m not listening to. I used to be so dependent on the radio to turn me on to new bands and artists; to expose me to the new tracks everyone would be singing at the parties over the weekend, but let’s face it, the radio is falling behind now.
It’s pretty scary to me. As a student interested in public media and music, radio seems like the perfect field for me to work in–ten or twenty years ago. Today, working in radio hasn’t even crossed my mind. It is slowly going defunct right before my own eyes. I’ve also come to realize that I am partially responsible for this; we all are. The downfall of the radio is a direct result of the popularization of personalized media. Instead of getting in our cars and changing through the stations to find a song that is appealing to us, we simply hook up our MP3 players or throw in our favorite mix-CD and listen to what we have already determined that we enjoy.
Of course, on the small scale of life, this is great. It simplifies our search, it pleases our interests, and it makes doing so much easier. On the larger life scale, there are some new concerns to address. All of this new technology has the capability to separate us into a bubble of our own personal (already-acquired) musical tastes, somewhat permanently, but if used correctly, these technologies have the potential for so much more. There are already a few great programs, such as the iTunes store and Pandora music player, that trace your interests to what else would be relative to you and make suggestions for filling your library. This, is wonderful (I am a huge fan of finding new music this way) but nonetheless, it is still restrictive. These suggestions are based on music you have already acquired or expressed interest in, thus, the new suggestions are similar, and therefore are not all that new at all.
I am already starting to see this deconstruction of access to music in the world surrounding me. Word-of-mouth amongst friends seems to be the most popular, most reliable source for current music, and that shouldn’t be with all of the great tools we have acquired through the Internet. Still, my major concern remains with radio. My own lack of dependency on the airwaves concerns me, yet I will get in my car today, turn up the volume on my stereo, and only listen to the 21-disc that I created with my laptop’s music library. I am restricting myself to my own interests, and thus not truly allowing my interests to expand anymore. Perhaps it’s just the newest Catch-22.
What do you think about all of this? Are you still listening to the radio as much as you used to?
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Jillian Polak - Meet MeA young aspiring writer who enjoys all kinds of music, and additionally loves meeting bands and musicians.
