There’s a saying in the academic world: “Publish or Perish.” If you want to maintain relevance in your field you need to be constantly ‘creating’ and getting your work in the eyes of the public. Now, in this case, the work is peer-reviewed and highly curated, so the quantity vs quality argument is moot.
The point is that regular output is highly valued, and one must continually be moving forward.
I think the same holds true for the creative realm. Sure, there are some acts that can milk the same tracks for decades without issue (hello, Rolling Stones!). Or there’s the AC/DC model where you make new tracks that sound exactly like your old tracks, aka “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Let’s face it, we can’t all be Bowie, and start/lead the trends for two thirds of our careers. And – sighhh – they might be annoying as hell, but [gulp] even bloody U2 at least mix things up.
Source: vjbrendan.com
We all have the choice of whether or not we continue to create.
I’ve touched on this theme before, but what prompted this latest musing is that I caught a bit of Billy Corgan’s interview this week on Triple J.
In his lament of the perceived lack of enthusiasm from the Adelaide Soundwave audience, he explored some potential reasons behind it. Aside from the predictable ‘blame Adelaide audiences’ angle, he very thoughtfully suggested that perhaps rock n roll ain’t what it used to be…
“Rock’s at its best when it’s pushing new ground and so what that tells me as an artist and as an observer is rock needs to go back to a dangerous place to get the kids excited.”
“Maybe it’s easy to just blame the people of Adelaide for not showing up to, say, the Soundwave festival like the promoter would have liked, but at the end of the day, maybe it’s down to the bands not providing the kind of music and entertainment and cutting edge culture that gets kids out in droves.”
Whatever you think about the Smashing Pumpkins, at least Billy continues to explore new territory with band.
It was also clear in his interview that he wasn’t saying artists should be gimmicky for the sake of it, or try new things merely in hopes of hitting the mark with an audience. They should do it because they are freakin’ ARTISTS, and creating is what they love to do.
There’s no better time of year to see this idea in action. Three words: Adelaide Fringe Festival. Want wacky? You got it. Want something you’ve never seen/heard? You’ll find it. Want a new experience? They’re everywhere. The whole festival is fuelled by (most) artists who are pushing boundaries, or at least trying something new in their own M.O.
The We As Art, We As Artists come up with something new each time
I’ll tell you firsthand that this can be exhausting. It’s far easier to do what you always do. As an artist though, why would you want to?
After one of our many late rehearsals recently, our band was talking about how much we’d decided to take on for our latest Fringe show. Every year we end up in the same position – a last big push to get it all ready in time. The same phrase inevitably arises: “Who’s crazy idea WAS this??”
And then we ask, “How would we feel if we were just practicing and presenting our regular set?” Bored. To. Death. Not to suggest we don’t love our usual tracks (!), but for Fringe, we do indeed relish the challenge of moving beyond our comfort zone. If it works, great! (It generally does, thank goodness). Regardless, we know we will be entertained by the process, and we will grow as artists.
Fringe is one thing, but it’s never too late to innovate.
Get dangerous. Go there. Just try it.
Wouldn’t you rather get an adrenalin hit from a roller coaster than turn in circles on an artistic merry-go-round?
Billy & Bowie would.
– Dr. Elizabeth Reid
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