Radio & Popular Music - Week 7 Response

This week’s lecture discussed consumption practices. We debated the increasing choice in consumption, how this can exhibit resistance, and even potentially creative means to consume.

Both readings by Hayes (‘Take Those Old Records off the Shelf’) and Taylor (‘From Analogue to Digital, from Pragmatism to Symbolism’) depict the post-millennial resurgence of hard copies, with Hayes focusing on vinyl whilst Taylor studies cassette culture.

Hayes investigates a specific group of teenagers who remain indifferent to modern music and new MP3 technology, aiming to answer why they choose to consume in a way ‘that openly contradicts the benefits of digital recording’ (Hayes 2006: 52). Taylor studies the resurgence of cassettes in Scottish punk and indie circles, using a set of semi-structured interviews with their members to examine the relationship they have with the cassettes they purchase. His conclusion is that despite the futility of the artefact itself, its ‘post-millennial marriage with the digital download code’ (Taylor 2014: 1) and symbolic connection to specific subcultural circles constructs its value to the buyer.

As Hayes’ reading dates back to 2006 when vinyl resurgence had not yet occurred, his investigation of teenagers’ post-modern fascination with vinyl emphasises their actions as a form of resistance to the capitalist nature of the music industry, who wanted consumers to conform to its digitalisation. He claims that choosing to consume music via LPs has ‘enabled these young people to operate with a reinvigorated sense of agency in an arena of cultural production and consumption largely overdetermined by corporate interests’ (Hayes 2006: 67).

Both readings focus on vinyls and cassettes to have value as a tangible ‘thing’ rather than a file. Hayes highlights the significance of the listening experience; he argues that the active participation of flipping the record over and listening over intrusive noises such as crackles and pops gives the teenagers a sense of authenticity. Taylor understands that only a small proportion of those who purchase cassettes actually listen to them, but the cassette itself is a ‘convenient and cheap way for catering their desire for a physical thing’ (Taylor 2014: 2)

I would be interested to investigate middle-aged music fans that either disposed of or put away their records thinking they were valueless, and interview them in a similar way to Taylor. I would try to understand how they reacted to the decline of vinyl, and if they have taken any action regarding its resurgence. I would also be interested to find out if their listening style changed to fit the digital era (e.g. listening to individual singles rather than the ‘vinyl mentality’ of listening to an album the whole way through.)

Bibliography:

Hayes, D. (2006) 'Take Those Old Records off the Shelf: Youth and Music Consumption in the Postmodern Age'. In: Popular Music and Society, 29:1, pp 51-68

Taylor, I. (2015) 'From Analogue to Digital, From Pragmatism to Symbolism – The Cassette Tape as a Hybrid Artefact in Contemporary Popular Music'. Conference Paper presented at the Westminster-Goldsmiths Symposium for Research in Popular Music, University of Westminster, 24th June.