Alright, so indie rockers/hipsters have adopted everything ‘redneck’ and made it cool. Trucker hats, Pabst Blue Ribbon, giant sunglasses, overalls, cowboy hats, …the list goes on.

Let’s forget them for the moment. Let’s focus on the music they (I) revere. I believe that the mainstream music scene is in the midst of a revolution. Slowly but surely, more and more people are realizing that what’s passed for “music” on MTV and most radio stations in the past several years is crap. Immediate evidence of this can be found in the newfound popularity of Modest Mouse. While they have been popular among the underground/indie rock scene for a while now, they now have a song (Float On) that has been on MTV and radio stations across the country.

The station I grew up with, 99x (wnnx99.7fm) in Atlanta, has recently adopted a new format. They now play a mix of good 90′s altern/rock, bubblegum punk (a misnomer, for sure…another post, another day), and great new rock n roll that has previously been reserved for hipsters, indie rockers, and other folks who wouldn’t take the crap that the major 5 labels fed them all too often. 99x’s list of “upstart bands” (basically, bands they’ve just started playing) include Modest Mouse, Interpol, Franz Ferdinand, The Streets, The Music, The Rapture, Jump, and more. This is the station that just a few years ago was focused on playing crap like Nickelback. The employees at 99x have taken their station out of the grasps of whatever giant parent company used to own them (maybe viacom?), and now the station is completely programmed and owned by folks who actually live and work in atlanta. Eat that, Clear Channel. And, imagine this. It’s still one of the most popular stations in the city.

Life is a little more grim up here in North Carolina — the “alternative rock” stations are playing shitty music that was released a couple years ago, the “rap” stations play shitty “gangsta” rap about $$, ho’s, and fortys, …need i go on?

I imagine a future not too far off where people as a whole listen to music for music’s sake, rather than listening to music because they like how the person dances or looks. Is that too much to ask?

Signing off for now, because it’s 2:30 in the AM. Thanks for reading.

Iraqi women try to help Americans see the country through their eyes

JP sent me this article — you should check it out. It presents an interesting viewpoint on the US/Iraq situation. Basically, this woman’s life has changed so much for the better — as has everything that she knows. She understands there is still violence going on in Iraq, but that it is so much better overall now that Saddam Hussein is no longer in power.

People debate on whether we (the USA) should have removed Mr. Hussein from power, based on money, legitimacy, etc. At least some good has come of it, right? It seems that the Iraqi people are better off ruling themselves than being ruled by a tyrannical dictator.

John Kerry says that he would not have invaded Iraq (let’s leave the fact that he voted for the war beside the point). Assuming that he had gotten the same evidence that Hussein had weapons of mass destruction, would he still have left it alone? Whose duty is it to save folks from tyranny? Other countries? The UN? The US is currently backing a UN resolution to help aid agencies get into Sudan to help end the mass genocides that are occurring there. Should we have let that continue as well?

Anyways, I feel I’m rambling now. Some stuff to think on.

Check out the station that I used to manage: the student voice of wake forest university, Wake Radio (only online).

It’s a fantastic station that is growing up very quickly. check it out!