Saturday, April 26, 2008

My new genre

It occurred to me that one of the biggest issues I've had with creation is the sense that I've been trying to copy some kind of magic from other people, and ending up with nothing original, and consequently nothing of significance.

It's like copying a person or their style: you might do it well, and you might sound or look good, but if you're not doing it for yourself how are you really making a truly intimate connection?

I like rock and roll, and classical music, and jazz, and blues, and a bunch of other stuff. I have some kind of connection and enjoyment playing and singing those styles, too. But is it something original and fundamental to myself? I mean, all the British blues bands played blues music throughout the 60s and onwards, but who can say they were really singing the blues for themselves? How can white, middle class people (think Mick Jagger here) sing real soul music when they're not black, don't know what The Struggle really is, and are just mimicking something they don't really understand?

Plenty of black bluesmen played from their hearts. They played music because they had to, not because they wanted some special sound that was cool or attractive. And all the people that followed suit with their copied styles and adopter genres did the same. They turned originality into a product.

And so I don't want to do that. I can't be bothered to follow some already established style. I want to find my own voice, whatever that is.

But right now I have to go and make a film. Shooting starts at 10am

Mind you, the fuckers are always late...

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