Raves Go Mainstream
Oct 25th
(Last names excluded due to interviewees request for privacy)
America has been hit with the trend of neon clothing, fast-paced electronic music, and elaborate light shows. With the increasing popularity of electronic music, a new era of music festivals and raves have been created. The rave culture has existed for quite some time but they have now emerged from underground. Electronic music is readily available and attendances at these events continue to increase as the culture becomes widespread.
There are multiple events based upon this rave culture in America. There’s Electric Daisy Carnival Festival, New York’s Electric Zoo Festival, New Year’s Eve Together As One Festival, Ultra Music Festival and even more events such as Coachella and Bonaroo (both of which are based on the appearance of multiple bands), and these are the music events that are more widely heard of. When it comes to attending an electronic music festival there are certain aspects that are easily identified and especially particular apparel. The usual attendee will be wearing anything from a bathing suit top, neon furry boots, metallic spandex; pretty much anything along these criteria will fit.
Bridging the Gap: Mash-Up Artists and Copyright Law
Nov 24th
In 2003, Danger Mouse, a.k.a. DJ Brian Burton, took music samples from the Beatles’ “White Album” and edited in Jay-Z’s vocals from his “Black Album,” creating the “Grey Album.” This record became one of the first mainstream mash-up albums, and Rolling Stone Magazine called it “the most talked about musical event of 2004.”
Mash-ups, the genre that the “Grey Album” is a part of, fall into a legal middle ground. Downloading, sampling, and distributing recording artists’ music violates copyright laws, which are still trying to catch up to this new technology. Sampling and remixing music isn’t a new phenomenon, but only recently became a complicated legal issue. The music industry is now suing its consumers, despite the fact that few current laws regulate this kind of music sharing.
(“What More Can I Say” by DJ Danger Mouse)