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So, I know I’m totally late to the topic, but Corinne and I have been talking about Arcade Fire’s best album Grammy, and looking at the different reactions online. I think it’s the perfect litmus test for determining Hipster vs. Evangelist.
I’m an evangelist. As my poor friends and family know, when I find a band I like, I push it on people. I’m sure it gets annoying, but I can’t help it–I want everyone to have the chance to enjoy the stuff that I enjoy. (Marketers like me, because I do the same thing with brands that I like)
Hipsters, on the other hand, get off on knowing what others don’t–insider knowledge is a powerful form of social currency. So they need to build walls to shield their favorite bands, restaurants, and craft breweries from the masses. And when the masses break through the wall, the hipster has to move on to the next thing.
So the litmus test is this: Were you excited about the Grammy win, or bummed out by it?
Stoked. Stoked for sure. And I’m sure I’ll sound hipster-king but, I felt like the Grammy win was a win for The Funeral for me. Their awkwardness in accepting the award was the best part for me.
I was sad which makes me sad. Oh well.
Given Arcade Fire beat out the likes of Eminem, Katy Perry, and Lady Gaga, I’m happy for them. I suppose their win speaks to the fact they are mainstream enough to win a Grammy (for album of the year, at least) but they seem to have a not-so-mainstream feel and demeanor, which is cool.
I agree wholeheartedly with this post, Kyle. I certainly went through a period of my life where I was a mega hipster with music. In my last years of HS, I protected bands like Modest Mouse and the Make Up from people because they were MINE, and my ownership made me better. What ended up happening, though, is that I listened to a lot of music that I didn’t even really like because it created this false sense of importance… as if my liking something as weird and inaccessible as Quasi, or Rocket From the Crypt would make my opinions more viable. I still have a LOT of horrible CDs in my collection from this period.
I’m writing a response to this post on my blog… I have a lot of thoughts that I’m trying to organize.