Almost Famous
Austin Convention Center, Friday 16
What do rock critics really like to do? Besides scam promo CDs, schmooze their way into clubs, and live as much like musicians as possible without actually being one? They like to talk. The annual South by Southwest rock critics’ confab this year was titled “Almost Famous” and pondered gonzo journalism as it was in the heyday of Hunter S. Thompson and Lester Bangs. The question was, can a rock critic be gonzo and still make a living wage in these days of dollar-driven rock publications? Texas Monthly‘s Evan Smith led the discussion with No Depression‘s Peter Blackstock, Spin‘s Alan Light, Newsweek‘s Lorraine Ali, and author Michael Azzerad. Although it was a mildly compelling subject — the panel name sexily suggested something more alluring — the five merely discussed the pros and cons of writing for an industry in which the sales of country music alone in 1999 were greater than sales for the entire industry in 1973. There was little dispute between the panelists, who generally agreed that with so many media outlets available, a writer can be as gonzo as possible, but with a more limited audience in these multimedia days. Light questioned the notion that record companies provided the bulk of Spin‘s ad dollars, saying that fashion provided a bigger slice of that pie. The most salient point seemed to be what happens when a writer rebels. Ali cited Jim Derogatis, critic for the Chicago Sun-Times, as one who went against the flow and paid for it professionally (Derogatis was fired by Rolling Stone several years ago when he objected to a cover featuring talent-free Jenny McCarthy). The panel wasn’t without its high points: one bleach-damaged blonde announced herself at the mike with “you know who I am” while the faces on the five panelists showed they clearly didn’t.
The web edition of this story was updated 3-20-2001
This article appears in March 16 • 2001.