Newcastle Music Scene

It is very good condition that Newcastle have the capacity to grow up many genres of musicians. Many different kind of media or social activity can help and support local musicians.

 

I believe the popularity of media in the are affects the capacity of growing musicians. Otherwise musicians have to go to bigger city to play. Freepapers are also strong back up for musicians. There are many kinds of them in Newcastle.

Background and the locality is very important for musicians. I want to know about Newcastle music scene more and more.

All-time hit number

Time never affects those which all-time hit numbers.

Any time I find someone playing music in the pub they always sing at least one Beatles song and often most of people like it.

Those songs maybe really divided from other songs; completely perfect music and go across the wall of music genres.

These days, the genres of music is getting more and more complicated and they are losing clear boundaries in between and it is difficult to choose which one to follow… But early time super-hits were in the mainstream of the sub-culture at that time and almost everyone followed it so that could produce this all-hit songs. However these days it has become so complicated and almost anyone has different taste and sometimes it is in between some genres.

Can musicians these days compose ‘mega-hit music’ in the future? It’s going to be very difficult…

Age and music

There are a lot of kinds of genre and musicians these days and it is really difficult to say which music is what. However, what you listen to is hard to change sometimes.

When Avril Lavigne came to Newcastle the audience was almost young kids like 18-20 years-old but when the Beautiful Girls came to Newcastle the audience was bit older than that like 20-25. When I went to Morpheth to see Jazz festival the audience was like mid 20s and any age older.

Like this, by age, the music you listen to may be changes with what you expect to the music. Lounging time, meaning of something, love, reducing stress, or imaginative time, they may be depends on what age you are; many high-school kids listen to punk or rock that give you the emotion breaking something. I spent same time like this, however me myself changed slowly to more skilful music like jazz-rock or blues-rock and sometimes chilling out music. But at somewhere my music taste stopped changing somehow. I still listen to 90s rock and some genres that I really like but do not try to find out new genre. Maybe passing younger age and about around 22 the personal taste of music will be fixed in your mind because your life may not dramatically change after those ages. What you need and what you feel will be formed by then and your personality may be established by then.

As I’ve written before, music can be adapted into you lifestyle as an equipment. This may be true; in younger age some people try to show off with what they listen to but by taking ages music will turn to more meaningful thing and support your personal time.

But at this time, some music is separated from this. Some very famous musician like the Beatles their music is loved over the generations and can be fit in to any situation or atmosphere. Why is it? I will write about this next time…

Communication with fans

Powderfinger is one of the biggest band in Australia and often come to Newcastle. I went to their live couple of times. They manage fans really good I felt.

In this June they started a new movement; they let audience to choose their set list.

When I go to concert I feel it’s like obvious business; the vocalist tries to communicate from on the stage to talk to audience sometimes but it is just a shout. they play songs on the stage and done…

The voting for the set list selection is done on the internet and the audience can expect to listen to what they want at the concert.

Powderfinger themselves says “that was one of the dumbest thing we’ve ever done…” (Rolling Stone issue 679 2008 ) but what audience want is maybe different. Feeling getting closer to the band and having same time with their music is the most important thing to the audience.

The voting for the set list selection is done on the internet and the audience can expect to listen to what they want at the live concert. Releasing CDs is the main way of providing songs however the live on the stage should be the ‘total coordinated performance’ I think. Place, set list, stage direction, or anything, they all are the components of the whole performance.

Music is amorphous art and every live performance can give different experience to audience even playing same song on the stage.

Equipment of your style

I was walking by the shore to the Nobby’s beach from the station. It was very good day but was bit chilly. But there were a lot of cars pulled up by the shore and playing music loudly with huge speaker and sitting in the bonnet with wearing singlet and shortie… Listening to strong beat hip-hop and trying to hook each other… So ridiculous and just showing off…

 

I don’t like too loud music for nothing. But next moment, I just passed them and realised one thing; they are using the music as equipment. Big car, big speaker, loud music, and rough style, they are parts of their outlook and they are trying to make it as their identity but it is just like equipment. This may be much later way of music consumption I believe. Music used to always need a place to be listened. A concert is played in the hall, records could be played on record player, and radio could be listened in a room. But after walkman or car-stereo was released the style of music is dramatically broadened and fit in to your lifestyle. One of the most recent items is iPod and its commercial word is “Wear your music!” Because music does not have particular shape as an art however this lets people to transform the style of consumption or portability.

Japanese banana?

 

I hope this title won’t be offensive.

 

Check the Japanese band called ELLEGARDEN and their song called ‘Space Sonic’ on You Tube. Then move down to the article below.

 

I went to the pub in Newcastle few weeks ago. I found a Japanese amateur band was playing. They said ‘next song is Japanese song. We hope you like it.’ They started singing but the lyric was in English…

They said it’s Japanese song… The audience was feeling the same as I thought I think…

 

Couple of decades ago, Japanese was ironically called ‘banana’ because outside is yellow but the inside is white…; inside is Americanised or westernised.

However, the band sang in English somehow but the sentence even doesn’t make sense, pronunciation is even wrong, and can’t understand why they sing in other language which they don’t speak.

 

Why?

Music is, in some parts, reflection of identity. Language and culture is also features of identity. But those Japanese bands compose music in English…

There may be longing for American culture from the right after WW2, Japan has grown up quickly by taking a lot of western culture and products so may be it came from there. Also Japanese did not have popular music before that time so they just started trying to copy it.

 

But can it be a part of their identity? By copying wester style makes them look cool? That may be big point to argue about…

 

Rocking in the pub

 

I don’t know much about Newcastle music culture unfortunately, but I just give it a try.

One of the most important Australian music cultures is, I believe, live music in the pub.

Most of the live music in the pub is Rock or folk songs, actually Rock is the most…

There are a lot of famous pub rock songs in Australia and they are also sold as omnibus CDs.

Any professional musicians start playing in the pub or small studio.

 

The world-famous Hard Rock band AC/DC which formed in Sydney is also started playing in the pub. Maybe no one knows but their rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young started playing in Newcastle!!

Also Cold Chisel, Yothu Yindi, or The Church, they all started in local pub.

What is the meaning of pub rock in Australia? What does it call to people?

 

Well, playing in local place is very meaningful because they can share the local topic or local sub-culture in the place.

‘Place’ means a lot; space is a physical room that let you do something however ‘place’ is the room that involves your mental action, background, or cultural features. Playing local pub involves their things from everyday life and it calls a lot of sympathy from the local audience.

 

Australia had involved in to Vietnam war in early 70s and after that there were many depressed people and they put the unforgettable experience, loss of humanity or whatever, on to their songs and got sympathy in the pub where they share any feelings. Khe Sanh? Well, that’s heaps experimental song. Who can disagree to that song?

 

Even these days, pub music has a lot of meanings.

Why don’t you try to find out musicians’ background or feelings shared in the place when you go to the pub!

Reflections

I have just read Kate’s last post and think she raised a number of good points. I agree with her in that after doing this assignment, I have come to see that the Newcastle music scene is not under-represented on a local level. Perhaps on a state or national level, yes, but does this matter? I guess it does but I certainly think it’s more important and beneficial for everyone involved that it appears that local media does have an interest in the local music scene. With organisations like the ABC and their Music Awards, music is discovered and acknowledged on a local level, and then these organisations help the music to broaden their audience. I think that is really important, at least in terms of the Newcastle scene anyway – as long as people are interested and care about the music on a local level, then hopefully the rest of it will fall into place.

Admittedly I’ve not been as involved in the Newcastle music scene as I would like to be (note to self: must make the effort to head to a gig every now and then) so I hope to address this in the future. Since the last Music & Culture assignment I have kind of been obsessed with trying to discover new music and ‘think outside the box’ in relation to what I listen to, so it would appear that this assignment has given me the perfect platform! I’m with Kate in saying that I am glad that the Newcastle music scene is so healthy, not to mention proud of all the forces that care enough to make it happen, from the venue owners to the consumers, from folk like those at ABC radio who work so hard to unearth new talent, to the musicians themselves, for their talent and hard work in honing it, and their dedication to their craft.

OK, I’m signing off as well.
Until next time – ciao!

Ellie.

The Co-Ordinator’s Blog

While looking around and reading about the ABC Music Awards for my last post, I came across The Co-Ordinator’s Blog, written by…yes, you guessed it, the co-ordinator (who’da thought?!) of the Music Awards, Natasha Schaad. It looks like it has only been started recently but is interesting in that it gives a bit of insight and ‘behind the scenes’ action into how the awards are progressing. Natasha’s latest entry indicates that the talent is certainly still alive and kicking in and around Newcastle. There is also an entry about Local Music Month, which again strongly demonstrates ABC’s committment to unearthing local talent, for which they should be applauded. As Schaad mentions, Local Music Month involves eacg 1233 program playing tracks daily from local artists, ones that have not been unearthed yet, or have previously been finalists or winners in the Music Awards.

Again, this is a site that I will come back and have a look at again, and I’d recommend it to anyone who is interested in finding out more about local musicians. There are heaps of resources out there, but the ABC are right up there in terms of passion, and encouragment of local artists. So check it out. Three cheers for the ABC, I say!

ABC Newcastle Music Awards

I was reminded today about the upcoming Newcastle ABC Music Awards. I have heard about these awards but never really knew much about them, so I looked into it and found yet another splendid way of acknowledging and ‘getting out there’ the huge range of music talent in Newcastle.

 

According to the Award’s website, the awards are held each year with the aim of encouraging and supporting local talent in the Newcastle and Central Coast area. Any artist can enter, as an individual or part of a band (or both), as long as the music piece they are submitting is an original work. Entries can be submitted across many different genres, including urban, heavy rock, soundtrack, instrumental, jazz, pop, blues & roots, country, contemporary, folk and alternative.

The judging panel, comprised of 1233 ABC Broadcasters, genre and music industry specialists and musicians (who have obviously not entered the competition themselves this year…that goes without saying!), looks at song entries in terms of composition (structure, arrangement, lyrics and melody), performance (instrumental and vocal skills) and overall appeal. It is noted that radio ‘playability’ is also considered but is not a factor that ‘breaks the camel’s back.’
The Top 10 songs from each category are selected by the judging panel and listed on the ABC website, as well as being put on to a CD which is sent off to the Finalist Judges.

Judges give each song a rating out of 10 and the 5 songs that amass the most points form the Top 5 in each category. The winners are then announced at the awards ceremony which will be held on November 6th.

In addition to a winner in each genre category, there will be 3 major prizes given out, for the ABC Music Artist/Band of the Year, APRA/ABC Music Publishing Songwriter of the Year, and the 1233 Tour Support Prize.
The prizes for each of these are quite substantial – the Songwriter of the Year will receive $1000, the Band of the Year receives a recording deal with ABC Music valued at $5000, and the 1233 Tour Support Prize awards $1233 worth of tour support including half a day with an established music publicist.

I was really glad I looked into these awards; as I said I have heard about them in previous years but never really paid too much attention to it. We have talked in this class before about the struggles up-and-coming artists face in getting their music ‘out there’ and heard by the people that matter. Simon Frith himself recognises this problem, stating, “Individual artists and performers are rarely in a position themselves to get their work to the public. They need to contract other people – agents, promoters, publishers, record companies – to organise and promote concert tours, to manufacture scores and records of CD’s” (2001, p.34).
I think these awards are brilliant. Not only does it give any original* artist – regardless of background or genre – the chance to enter the competition and get their music out there, but it is actually a competition that matters and makes a difference. Even just being named as a finalist means your music will go on a CD to be heard by people that matter (i.e the judging panel, comprised of industry players). Also, all entrants are being asked to send their MySpace address, so their entry can be linked to their page. This is a great example of the awards organisers adapting to technology and the needs of its consumers and has advantages for both sides – the artist is able to publicise themselves that little bit more, and respondents have the chance to easily find their MySpace page and listen to more of the artist’s music.
The winners of the major prizes are lucky enough to get more than a piece of paper and a bit of cash – they get put directly in contact with people who have the ability to turn their talent into real success - get the album recorded, publicised and out there, or record a video.

I also really like that there is a huge emphasis on keeping these awards local. The entry form stipulates that entrants must be residents of Lake Macquarie, Newcastle, the Upper or Lower Hunter or Port Stephens, and to have lived in the area for the last 6 months (at least) or for at least 7 of the past 15 years. This shows that obviously the organisers are concerned with helping Newcastle-raised or based artists get their music out there, which is fantastic, and it also shows that media organisations in Newcastle, the ABC in particular, have faith in the talent and quality of music coming out of this area, and are keen to help that music reach its full potential. That, my friends, is something pretty cool indeed, and I will be making sure to follow the progress of the awards this year!

 

* While entries into these categories must be original, there is actually an award that has been introduced this year to recognise the talent of cover bands. I’m still undecided as to whether I’m a fan of cover bands or not, but I think this award is a fantastic idea. I was about to go into the reasons why, until I looked again at the site and realised I couldn’t say it better than the organisers:

“Newcastle is, unashamedly, a real Cover Band town, and many talented musicians earn an honest crust by playing the Greats and Favourites in pubs and clubs around the region. It takes considerable musical skill and creative nous to make a good cover, and many musos play covers to pay the bills – thereby funding their own original musical endeavours and honing their own songwriting, musical and performance skills. It would therefore be fair to say that (albeit indirectly) the covers scene in Newcastle is supporting local original music!”

 

Reference:

Frith, S. (2001). ‘The Popular Music Industry’ in Frith, S., Straw, W., and Street, J. (eds.) The Cambridge Companion to Pop and Rock. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press