Do-it-together media

I've been harping on on my website*  about the cultural worth of DIY media, and about innovative independent music business models. But as we move beyond basic 2.0, I correct myself: do-it-yourself media eventually should give way to do-it-together media. 

That was no brain-wave. I stole that thought from a website of Unconvention, an initiative that claims to do exactly that for the "grassroot music scene."

I had nothing to do with Unconvention, besides an interest in the music and ideas of some of the independent artists involved.

I still have nothing to do with Unconvention. But it just happens that I found my way to the website, heard clips of some new acts, heard them recommended by artists I already like and hence trust, witnessed an online initiation for an interesting new band, ("four musical savants generating controlled chaos") and found more music and ideas that I intend to be interested in and freely recommend.

But what just happened here? In just a few days, a community working together, energised by the digital tools available, effectively decided that some young people with a couple of guitars, a drum and a tune were worthy of being Music, and for a wider audience.

Collaboration was always an important aspect of the free culture movement. The ability to build upon another's work was a desirable consequence of free creation. But now, it seems to be becoming a part of effective creation itself. And I'm not talking the collaboration on Wikis, but on creating mainstream multimedia. 

So now who's scorning "the Cult of the Amateur"?


* One ought to be allowed to use one's blog for shameless self promotion.

Excuses for limited blogging in August

1. Free culture - Creative Mind project - the website I built as my final masters project and the purpose of my existence since April.
Still trying to fix IE formatting issues. (Any web developers reading this know where I'm going wrong?)

I've had some great feedback, I've met more smart people and my Twitter feed is getting hard to keep up with.

2. Various distractions.

Sleep....

Erm....

....

Well...

Oh! And Brighton - Travelled far to see the Kissing Cops by celebrated street artist Banksy. For no particular reason. Except that it was there. You think he painted it because the wall Was There?

There it was, preserved from potentially overzealous councils and profiteers. While some might dismiss Banksy very distatefully, it was Art, standing by trash cans and restaurant leftovers. The graffiti around was as, if not more striking; but those remain blotches on the city walls, relegated to being examples of public nuisance and anti social behaviour.