August 2011
17 posts
My latest “Why We Fight” column, at Pitchfork, is a touch more confessional than usual.
I really appreciate Nitsuh using the first person singular so much in this piece. It’s a pretty successful gambit for crossover music writers to indulge in a lot of “We Are All [Much-Discussed Musician]” and “We Are The [Some Old Horseshit The Writer Really Likes] Generation” blather. It seems easier to get media attention if you announce you represent a larger population. But I prefer it immensely when the writer stands on their own, admits to something and lets us decide if we can relate. Whether or not I actually want to be “suckered in more easily” like Nitsuh does, I can appreciate him describing the impulse. If he assumed we all did, I’d have to note that not everyone’s career depends on promoting the music of children and collegiates.