Sometime in the mid-1990's music seemed to cease being music and become "pop". Less than a handful of artists have emerged in the past few years as "artists" .... and not pop creations.

Sure, there have always been commercially created bands, singers, and fads, but when did almost every single popular face rise from the streets on the shoulders of media moguls. The days of garage bands and indie groups are gone. The only "independent" groups that exist on any somewhat known level were made known before the pop-revolution.

Even those groups and singers who have been around the block and still choose not to sell out completely to the record companies can't take it any more. Rage Against The Machine, Wu-Tang, Pearl Jam, Fiona Apple, Lauren Hill, The Grateful Dead, Eric Clapton, Dave Matthews Band, U2, etc, etc .... are having to give way to the packaged feces of the pop factory: Limp Bizkit, Britney Spears, NSync, Lil Kim, 3LW, etc. ad naseum. This is not to say previously retuputable artists aren't giving into the money machine as evidenced by Aerosmith, Metallica, Sting, and others.

But I don't give a shit about someone's opinion of "selling out". I could care less if some artist sells out. Who gives a rat fuck what someone does to make a buck, but what I care about is the music. That is, if there is any real music left out there. I don't give a shit what Steven Tyler does to make his buck, but what that it does mean is that the real musical expression by true up-and-coming artists is being squashed like gay couple at a Christian Coalition meeting.

What it means is that the fields of opportunity are no longer fertile hills on which people can plant their seeds of talent. The record companies, their lackies, MTV, industry magazines, radio comglomerates, and so on are buying up the land and planting rows upon rows of the same garbage.

They force-feed us this shit so hard that when we stop to taste it we find out that it's pure and utter fecal matter. There is nothing more disgusting than tasting the shit sandwich of N'Sync's latest crap-ballad in your mouth.

So what are we left with? What are we to do? We can go to the indie music store, the civic media center, the local record shop and search through boxes of small-time bands til we find that true talent out there. We can go to the local concert series week after week to discover those un-cultivated artists. We can work our ass off to find those willing to express themselves through their music. Those who give enough of a damn to play with soul. We can stuff the tasteless shit of MTV back in their face and do what is necessary to keep our freedom of speech.

Because without freedom of speech we have the government or companies telling us what to say, what to watch, and what to listen to. Oh shit, the companies already do! Take back our radio, take back our music, take back our music television, and take back our freedom of speech. And the next time you see your feces-drenched local radio station doing a live remote feed, go up to the booth, tell them they play garbage and spit a big ol' juicy one for me.

To be continued......