Back in high school I remember driving my '93 Buick Century around the 757 sporting stickers from my favorite bands while blasting them through the stock speaker system. And I wasn't alone. Everyone seemed to rep an artist or group or groups along their bumpers, trunks, and rear windows. Dropkick Murphys. Blink 182. Dave Matthews. 311. Sugar Ray. Everyone had someone and wanted others to know it. You'd see a band you loved and would roll up next to the person at a light, give an understanding nod and turn up your respective speakers. It was a community of fans united through temporary automotive tattoos.
But during my Easter road trip, I noticed that no one seems to do this anymore. When I started thinking about the cause, I came up with a theory. In our culture of digital immediacy where no one seems to own complete records from an artist or group, much less an entire catalog, we seem to have lost the devotion to artists that we had just a few years ago. This is a tragedy. And it's a trend that the music industry is noticing as well. Records are becoming more a collection of singles than a cohesive group creating a sustained emotional journey through 50 or so minutes of listening.
My charge to you is: Support artists and buy complete albums. Experience art and don't settle for immediacy. Buy CDs. Buy vinyl. Fall in love again. And shout it loud.
