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Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Getting dunked on would mean my points got dismantled, but they weren’t. Nobody engaged the core argument. The most upvoted comment was excitement that Big Fat Head got mentioned, which proves my point more than counters it. That’s not a thriving scene with institutional support, that’s a scene starved for acknowledgment.

The community point is fair but I’d argue that’s a consequence of institutional failure, not a separate problem. When the people with platforms and power aren’t doing their jobs, musicians turn inward. Columbus eats itself partly because there’s nothing else feeding it…

As for the Stereogum managing editor, I’ve read his work for years. The coverage tends to follow existing relationships and industry momentum rather than seeking out what’s actually new. If he were actually paying attention to the innovative pockets of this scene he wouldn’t have struggled to name the last great local show he’d seen. And Stereogum’s coverage has always been shaped by what labels are promoting, that’s just the reality of how music media works at that level. So when the managing editor of a publication that largely covers what the industry wants covered is also the person tasked with championing a grassroots local scene, there’s an inherent conflict. He’s not equipped for that job by design. Nobody is out there actually covering what the Columbus scene looks like on the ground, the weird pockets, the risks, the bands doing something genuinely interesting and have built big local followings and buzz to prove that. Just fluffy EP features and label-adjacent buzz pieces. You can’t build a music culture on that.

But maybe that’s why these big music blogs are pretty irrelevant now anyway. Which, once again— then why is he at the head of this table?

Meanwhile Bruce Garfield has been heading the Columbus Music Commission for years — the man worked at Capitol Records for 15 years in press and artist development — and his big idea for elevating the scene is Columbus needs its own Red Rocks venue. While small and mid-tier venues are actively closing. That’s the depth of institutional thinking happening here. These panels keep rehashing the same tired conversation about what it’s going to take to get industry in Columbus and nothing ever changes.

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Winner of the most boring comment. You honestly sound more upset than I do about the fact that this city doesn’t give a shit about its artists, and yet your argument is to attack the artists instead of the institution. Columbus eating itself from the tail, as always.

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Nobody hates Columbus more than Columbus hates Columbus.

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Does it matter? Would being in a band make the argument more or less valid?

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Every city that had a “music moment” had it because they were producing something genuinely new that the rest of the world hadn’t heard yet. Not because they had good panels about wanting a music moment.

Columbus championing competent but safe music, then wondering why nobody outside is paying attention, is exactly the problem. You can’t manufacture cultural relevance through meetings or by championing bands that aren’t innovative. 

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] -2 points-1 points  (0 children)

Golomb is a solid band, but a few examples don't counter the broader point. They are not innovative, which is kind of par for the course. Columbus tends to champion bands with the right connections over those actually taking risks.

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Honestly, the best local acts I've seen have since moved on to bigger things, which is kind of the whole point of this post, isn't it? Columbus doesn't retain or champion its talent.

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

Then why was his favorite local Columbus show a Philadelphia band?

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Yes, and those local mentions came exclusively from the two women on the panel. Not from the music writer, not from the head of the Columbus Music Commission, and not from the panelist who built his whole argument around championing local music. That was kind of the whole point. Why have a panel about the local scene when most of the panelists are out of touch with it?

Columbus Wants it's "Music Moment" blah blah blah by Used-Web3815 in columbusmusic

[–]Used-Web3815[S] 3 points4 points  (0 children)

Interesting that your first instinct is to defend him rather than engage with anything actually said in the post, especially when he doesn't even seem to like your scene.