Epiphany
"What are you, a functional programmer?" -CS Andrew, 11/22
After repeatedly falling asleep while trying to read about the rise of hegemonies in ancient Japan, I noticed, as I exited the library, a flyer for the upcoming Hive show in Ida. They're billing it as a showcase of Hyde Park hip-hop. This got me thinking about the Scene. You know, the Scene. I mean, here's this group, it's just three guys, has been the same three guys since we were all first years. They may not put on shows often, but they're always free and they've got a good rep. But the fact is, they're a fringe group.
As I walked home, I was struck by the fact that most of the HP scene has been consolidated under the banner of Mr. Hyde Records into a scene hegemony, headed by Loren Jan Wilson, who effectively plays the part of a musical Ancestor-God-King. Over the past few years, most of the various groups have been absorbed into his sphere of influence. I never saw it before, I told myself, because I was a part of it from early on. We even, it seemed to me, had the typical hegemonic attitude of making order out of chaos; we subjegated the outlying barbarians, saved them from themselves. This is, of course, a bit overdramatic, but still, to me at least, quite striking.
On some level, I think I already knew this, at least to the degree that I knew there were factions, I was part of one, I wanted ours to win, and furthermore I wanted to be prominant within the heirarchy of that faction. The grim question is "What have we done?" I cannot bring myself to believe that we have done something inherently wrong, and yet.... By gathering the sources of creativity and individuality into one place, are we in fact stifling their capacity for individuality? And what of succession? Will this, like so many other hegemonies, be divided by civil war with the passage of its ruler? A scene divided against itself, to paraphrase, cannot stand. And what of the mandates of that ruler? Before these thoughts occurred to me on my walk home, I had seen a flyer asking for basses to join Rhythm & Jews: my first thought was that I didn't have enough time; my second, that Loren despises a cappela. Now, I trust Loren to be fair and practical towards all genres, but what of his heir (assuming that he ever leaves, and that the Mr. Hyde hegemony survives that departure)?
Granted, I was supposed to be the one to succeed him as head of the label, but there is more to this than the label itself. Look at the way every major band is within his influence. Shorelandband has been within the Mr. Hyde domain for a year now, even more so now that I, a loyal Mr. Hyde trooper, started as unofficial Chair. Look at the way that the musicians and HPmusic listhosts, even the music groups on the Facebook, are pale mirrors of the Mr. Hyde Records message boards. Things seemingly independant, like the Hive or, say, a non-Mr. Hyde comp, use those message boards to promote themselves. The exceptions? WHPK is the only one that comes to mind. I cannot think, any longer, that my antipathy towards WHPK is solely rooted in their formatting style (which I still maintain as reason enough to dislike them).
I have chosen a side.
Hegemonies have always relied on the fact that their footsoldiers believe, or at least can convince themselves, that they are doing what is right and good. The question is, what keeps an empire from becoming The Empire? Not the mall. You know what I mean. Final Fantasy VI. Star Wars. Where does support for those within the group turn into suppression of those outside it?
I don't think I'll attend a concert here in quite the same way ever again.
Comments have closed.