Underground Music and the "R.E.M Method"

In the world of underground music, a world dizzily and perpetually pursuing success, there is much talk about following the "R.E.M method." What the R.E.M method is is a series of rules and hints (legendary R.E.M, of course, illustrated them) that are the fountain of youth, the Philosopher's Stone of indie success. It is said (in hushed voices in smoking bars and sweaty clubs across the nation) that if these rules are closely followed, and the perfect equilibrium of underground cred and mainstream appeal is reached, any band can rise quickly to success. However, this method in reality is not as mythical and enlightening as it is in rumor. It is in fact rather vague and simplistic. Sign with an indie label backed by a major one to preserve underground cred but gain great distributing deals (deceive your fans, nice Mr. Stipe). Utilize the power ballad but call it something else. Never talk about your lyrics; make them vague and obtuse so as to be interpreted freely, adding a needed mystique to an indie artist while generating curiosity in mainstream press (or maybe it just takes focus of the music, who knows...)

Call me crazy, but these don't seem like pearls of wisdom or droplets of enlightenment. These seem like underhanded methods, ways to make very mainstream music but gain a very underground audience, an audience notorious for its purity. And frankly, I would seriously doubt that R.E.M used or would endorse these "methods." (Although frankly, in my opinion the power ballad nomenclature and lyrical weight observations are right on. I've never been a huge R.E.M fan...)

R.E.M gained mainstream success in the same way any band gains mainstream success, through a mixture of dumb luck, sheer ambition and sellable music. R.E.M's music was, at the time, what the record industry needed. The only "method" R.E.M employed was the ambition to get their music to someone influential within the record industry, an industry stuck in a rut and salivating over new, groundbreaking artists.

And therein lies the real R.E.M method. What underground artists lack today is the ambition to bring their music to the masses. In a culture so obsessed with selling-out, new, groundbreaking bands either are afraid to, or feel they can't, get their music to listening ears. And that's the problem. In a scene so obsessed with purity (this is punk, that's not, he's a sell-out, you're not, who's a poseur, who's not), bands are boxed in. Not only can they not seek out bigger audiences, bigger distro deals, and bigger labels, but they are also imprisoned in the kind of music they can make. Artists are afraid of experimentation, afraid to bring new sounds, new influences to their music for fear of being labeled "sell-outs." And music that is afraid of experimentation is music that is stagnant. The underground is no longer a scene for important, groundbreaking music. It is a scene of judgement and closedmindedness. And music can not flourish in that kind of environment.

What R.E.M did was not selling-out, nor was it offering their music up to be raped by a selfish record industry in return for success. It was rather carving a path into mainstream music without sacrificing the music or its message. It hijacked the mainstream by bringing radically new music to thousands of people without dulling it or making it more commercially acceptable. (Incidentally, there is a much better band called Anti-Flag doing a similar thing, leaving the punk label Fat Wreck Chords to sign with major label Columbia while maintaining their angry, politically charged message.)

In honor of my critique of underground music, I'm going to mention three bands I just discovered earlier today. Right under the dashboard in my (and yours too, probably) Blogger account, there are the pages of three bands. If you haven't checked them out, you really should (I've posted links below). They belong to something called "Cordless Records," which is a small record company affiliated with record giant Warner Bros that offers its artists the credibility and intimacy of an indie label but the weight and professionalism of a major one. (Remember that step in the R.E.M method? Maybe its on to something...) Anyway, these are three very unique, very gifted bands that have managed to carve out their own identities within their respective scenes.

Die Mannequin--http://diemannequin.blogspot.com/--is a melodic punk-metal band with a female singer and some interesting melodic/chordal structures.

Dangerous Muse--http://dangerousmuse.blogspot.com/--is a cool rock-powered electronica duo with an interesting rock/new wave sound. Kind of like underground favorites Kill Hannah.

Throw the Fight,--http://throwthefight.blogspot.com/-- the weakest of the three, is straight up Warped Tour post-hardcore with the obligatory annoying melodies and hackneyed guitar playing. Some awesome riffs though.

Thanks, and check out the music!