Shiny Adidas Tracksuits and the Death of Camp and Other Essays

SOUNDTRACK: TV ON THE RADIO-Dear Science, (2008).

The problem with TV on the Radio for me is that their first EP is so damned good that anything else they do pales in comparison.  Having said that, Dear Science, comes really close to topping that EP.  I liked Cookie Mountain (their previous disc) but I felt like they put so many elements into the mix that it detracted from the best part of the band: Tunde Adepimbe & Kyp Malone’s vocals.

And so, on Dear Science, the vocals are back up front where they belong.  This disc is a lot less busy, which may seem a little like selling out, but instead, it just heightens the complexity and originality of the band’s work.  The disc rocks hard but it also heightens some really cool jazz and dance elements.    But it all comes back to the melodies and vocals for me.  And on Dear Science, they pretty much outdo themselves.

And you can dance to it!

[READ: September 30, 2009] Shiny Adidas Tracksuits and the Death of Camp and Other Essays

After reading David Foster Wallace’s essay in this book, I looked at the other articles here and decided to read the whole thing.  And I’m really glad I did.  It’s an interesting book full of, funny and often thought-provoking pop culture articles circa 1996.  As with some of the other pop culture/political books that I’ve read several years after they were relevant, it’s often weird to look back and see what things fully occupied the popular landscape at the time.  And, when a piece is completed dated, it’s pretty obvious, and sometimes unintentionally funny.  But there are many pieces here that are timeless (or at least hold up for a decade), and those are still really good reads.

This book also does a good job of summarizing the tenor of the defunct Might magazine.  A dose of irony, a splash of humor and a lot of criticism of what’s trendy.

The strange thing to me about this book, though is the targets that they chose to go after sometimes.  Rather than critiquing right-wing attitudes or corporate shenanigans (which they do touch on), they really seem to be after pop and rock celebrity.  For instance, there are two separate articles which take a potshot at Eddie Vedder (this was around the time of the Ticketmaster fiasco which didn’t put him in the best light but which could hardly be seen as only self-serving).  This seems rather unfair, unless his sincerity could really be called into question by a bunch of ironic jokesters.  Magazines like Radar and Spy used to do snarky articles like this. I’d always thought that Might was a little better than that.  But indeed, there’s one or two pieces here that have a holier- (or perhaps indier)-than-thou attitude.   Which may have been fine in the 90s but which seem petulant now.

But aside from those, the irony-free pieces are very enjoyable. 

PHILLIP G. CAMPBELL-”Phil Campbell? Phil Campbell.  Welcome to Phil Campbell”

This fascinating piece shows a convention organized by Phil Campbell to invite every Phil Campbell in America to Phil Campbell, Alabama (one of only three towns in the country with a person’s full name).  It’s hokey and awfully silly and yet it is such a neat idea that it becomes utterly fascinating watching these people interact.  The author states that 2 more Phil Campbell conventions had happened since the article was written, which leads me to wonder if there were any more after that. (Oh, Wikipedia says no).

MARC HERMAN-”Notes on the Growing Tiresomeness of Flight”

This piece is actually about drivewaway car companies who loan you a car for free if you’re willing to drive it to where it is needed.  It’s a sunny piece about skirting the rules.  Evidently, these companies are still around.  I wish I had known about them years ago.

DAVID FOSTER WALLACE-”Hail the Returning Dragon, Clothed in New Fire”

Dragon slaying as a metaphor for AIDS (full review here).

TED RALL-”College is for Suckers”

Ted Rall is one of my favorite cartoonists. He’s weird and funny and always makes a point.  I’m not all too familiar with his articles, though.  And this article was unabashedly depressing.  Basically, it states that the money you spend on college is hardly ever recouped and, circa 1996, a liberal arts degree earns you barely more than a high school diploma. I’m not going to investigate his data; I assume he’s not lying.  But I do wonder if things have changed 13 years later.

HEIDI POLLOCK-”The Sudden Unsavory Ubiquity if Faux Ceaser Salad”

This is a funny and, at first, ironic-seeming piece about Caesar salad being everywhere.  Then you realize that you can get it everywhere, even at McDonalds, except that the McCaesar doesn’t have ANY of the same ingredients.  It’s bad enough that no one use raw egg or anchovies (the real ingredients for a Caesar) but some places don’t even use romaine lettuce!  And that is just an empty embodiment of the real thing.

GLASGOW PHILLIPS-”Shiny Adidas Tracksuits and the Death of Camp”

This piece observes the Adidas tracksuit through pop culture from its invention in 1980 through to the Beastie Boys and Run DMC and then its resurgence in the early 90s.  Phillips uses this one article of clothing to observe the state of Camp in America.  It is an admittedly narrowly focused piece but it works quite well.  And it’s funny, too.

CHRIS HARRIS-”Design Intervention”

This is the most aggressively “ironic” piece and really stands out among the others as being overly silly.  The conceit is that graphic designers should redesign the map of the world because if the globe looked nicer, the people who lived there would feel better abut themselves.  Eh.

DONNELL ALEXANDER-”Cool Like Me (Are black people cooler than white people?)”

This was the cover story of the final issue of Might magazine.  And I seem to recall it causing quite a controversy.  Although apparently not enough to keep the magazine afloat.  The piece looks at the coolness that blacks have always had to bring to get through tough situations and how white people have embraced so much of it so quickly.  It’s a funny piece which seems silly at first, but real depth comes to the article by the end, showing a lot of unexpected points of view.

MARC HERMAN-”Are You on the Bus or Off the Bus?”

This is a fascinating look at the, then current, 1996 Rock the Vote campaign.  With 13 years of hindsight it is even more interesting.  Especially trying to imagine what the people interviewed (like the couple at the very end) are doing now (since they’re no longer 20somethings but are closer to 40).  When Rock the Vote first started I never really thought critically about it.  It just seemed like a good idea to get young people to vote.  And yet, seeing the details that Herman points out, you really have to wonder what the point of the whole exercise was.  They basically just want people to sign up to vote but they don’t educate them about the issues, or even why they should vote in the first place.  The one point that Herman never raises, and it is even more cynical than the arguments he does, it that this may have all just been a way for MTV to either appear more involved or important in world events or, more likely, a way to get their logo branded on the elections.  Still, 13 years later I wonder what they’re all up to.  And if they vote.  And if Rock the Vote is still around.  Huh, I guess it is.

MATTHEW GRIMM-”The Zen Rub of Alcohol”

This is easily my least favorite piece in here.  Whether it was ironic or not I can’t tell (which means the irony didn’t work if it was).  The general tenor of the piece sounds like a drunken tool rambling about something that bugs him (and given that the piece is about the glories of getting drunk, I’m not surprised).  The author is pissed because evidently new ads for Haagen Dazs seem to position it as a, god forbid, alternative to booze.  But the author points out that ice cream is no substitute for getting blitzed with your friends.   He (the author) seems like a real jerk.

KEN KURSON-”Jews in Rock”

This is is a funny piece in which the author tries to locate all of the Jews in rock (after spending a childhood obsessing over the Jews in baseball).  I don’t know if this was less obvious in 1995, but it doesn’t seem like Jews are that hard to find in the music biz.  The whole piece is funny but seems way out of touch with musical reality.

PAULA KAMEN-”Paradigm for Sale”

The whole premise–that it pays more to be a libertarian/right wing writer than a left wing/liberal writer–is, of course, maddening but also utterly true.  Sigh.

TRIPP HARTIGAN-”Green Bay”

This strangely affecting look at Green Bay was quite an enjoyable piece.  Basically, the author returns to Green Bay after many years away to find out why anyone would stay there as an adult.  He and two college friends (who still live there) revisit old places and then go to other (even older places) for the first time.  And, amazingly, they get a ton of food at an interesting restaurant for less than $5 each.  It also makes me think of That 70s Show. Oh, and someone mentions wanting to move to Missoula, Montana–which was featured so prominently in Maile Meloy’s new book.

JESS MOWRY-”Wake Up America! There Are Gangs Under Your Beds!”

A wholly ironic (or a least tongue in cheek) article about white kids being affected by black (and therefore gang) culture.  It would be funny if it weren’t so cynically right on.

DAVID EGGERS-”Never Fucked Anyone”

Eggers argues that “to fuck” as a verb implies a violence in the sex act which he has never experienced.  But then he can’t find a better alternative word.  I find this piece to be pretty right on the money.

DIMITRI ERLICH-”Babylon by Bus”

This is a frightening trip through El Salvador–replete with anti-U.S. rioting, poor hotels and almost every other cliche you can imagine.  I started off thinking “Oh, poor-white person travels to scary Central America” but by the end I was hooked and genuinely nervous for the author and his friends.

ZEV BOROW-”The Old Man and MTV”

This is the interview with Kurt Loder that I’d always wanted to see.  Why is he on MTV?  Does he “get” it?  Is he “joking.”  What’s his deal?  I can only wish I had read this back in 1997.

HEIDI POLLOCK-”This Thing About Men and Nail Polish”

This is the second piece by Pollock that addresses a minor piece of pop-culture.  This one is about well, men and nail polish.  She’s happy to see men doing it (did men really use nail polish enough in 1997 to warrant this piece?).  Mostly, though she’s happy to see that women’s accessories are actually cool.

PAUL TULLIS & ZEV BOROW-”Fare Thee Well, Gentle Friend: The Sad, Untimely, Perhaps Even Tragic Death of Adam Rich”

This seems to be the piece that Might is most known for: a fake obituary of Adam Rich (from Eight is Enough). I recollect that people honestly thought he had died after reading the piece.  However, if you read closely, the piece is clearly silly and way over the top.  And the “quotes” from authorities and people who knew him are clearly unlikely.  It’s a funny piece though (and I am quite sure that Rich was in on it).

GLASGOW PHILLIPS-”The T-shirt: More Problems of Signification in American Low Culture (Or, what am I saying?)”

A fascinating look at the history of printed T-shirts.

DAVID MOODIE-”Pardon Me, Mr. Senator…Will You Please Give Me My Goddamn Money?”

An article about “notch” recipients of Social Security.   An odd inclusion here especially since it is so very circa 1995 and no one had ever heard of it.

ERIC WESTERVELT-”The Glorious Climb of the Affluent Recreating Professional”

A funny look at people who recreate all the time: climbers, bikers, hikers, and how much it costs for them to do this new hobby.

BOB MARGOLIS & DAN KING-”The Way We Were: Outtakes from the Haldeman Diaries”

This is a patently silly piece of “left out” sections of Haldeman’s Diary.  It’s a  chance to be childish at a politician’s expense.  The Diaries were published in 1994 which explains why this article was written.

JASON ZENGERLE-”Is Michael Moore the Last, Best Hope for Popular Liberalism in America? (And more importantly, does he have a sense of humor?)”

Zengerle was at the same Michael Moore talk in Cambridge, Mass that I was at.  And he came away feeling the same way I did…more insulted than inspired.  And so, Zengerle tries to rack him down ala Roger & Me to interview him and find out what his deal is.  He uses the same tactics that Moore did, all in the hopes that Moore will appreciate the effort and the humor.  This article is also a valid criticism of Moore as a “leader” and how there is very little in the way if Inspiring Popular Liberal Voices out there.  (There’s also a comment about, now Senator, then comedian, Al Franken).

M. DOUGHTY-”Listener Appreciation: Soul Coughing Front Man M. Doughty Takes a Long Hard Look at His Fans”

M. Doughty writes a funny piece about the type of fans who are aware of his “Celebrity” status.  I am clearly the 4th kind: people “who think bands are too cool to talk to them.”

JESS MOWRY-”Any Further Questions, Mr. Mayor”

A mayor tells Mowry that his books were “good but depressing” and wonders if he’d like to help mayors across the nation with trying to help inner city youth with the problems of their lives.  Mowry’s response is well thought out and articulate but very cynical.  And it is unlikely that it elicited a response back.  He does offer many suggestions, none of which will ever be considered.  Although his argument for lowering the minimum work age is quite valid: how much better would it be for kids who want to earn a living to do so honestly through a real job, rather than through dealing drugs?

TED RALL-”Quit Your Job.  Work is a Sham”

Hot on the heels of his anti-college rant, Rall is back with an anti-work rant.  He makes several valid points about how work is bullshit and wasting 2/3 of your life doing something you hate is soul-sucking.  However, he ends the piece by describing how he quit his job because he was able to do freelance cartooning–something he always loved. So why doesn’t everyone do something similar?  As if we can all be freelance cartoonists or actually make money doing something that we all love.  Those of us with families say no, Ted Rall.  No.   On the other hand, his arguments for restructuring the way employment is handled (shorter work weeks and longer vacations) is a wonderful idea that, sadly, will never be enacted.

R.U. SIRIUS-”The Future of Indentured Servitude”

A look at President Clinton’s Sponsorship Program, which essentially allows poor people to become servants in rich folks’ homes.  I can’t find anything about this anywhere, so I don’t know what it is actually a critique of, aside from Clinton (or President Chameleon) in general.

MARC HERMAN-”Slow Boat to Grenada”

Herman hops a boat in the Caribbean to sail around the waters to Grenada.  An interesting look at life there and the hazards of professional Yachters.

MARTHA McPARLIN-”Ever Closer to the Flame: Ten Days on Tour with David Hasselhoff”

What could have been a snide look at the Hoff turns out to be a bemused (and quite funny) account of Hasselhoff’s mall tour.  Despite the preponderance of cheese associated with Hasselhoff, he remains good natured and a rather fun guy.  A very funny piece.

JIM STALLARD-”Falling Down: The Rise and Fall of Down Boye, America’s First Angsta Rapper”

A preposterous article about a “loser” MC.  The premise is funny, although it goes on a bit much.  It feels like an Onion article.   Again, I’m not sure if there was a “reason” why this article was written or if it was just funny.

DAVID EGGERS, DAVID MOODIE, PAUL TULLIS, ZEV BOROW, MATT NESS, JOE GAROFOLI, MARNY REQUA, NANCY MILLER, RACHEL LEHMAN-HAUPT-”Virtual Enlightenment”

This was the only piece in the book that made me mad.  The central premise is that gullible people are using the internet to find enlightenment with New New Age. Now, who knows what was actually happening back in 1995 and if this really was some crazy happening that was ripe for mocking.  But the tone of this piece is really quite nasty, especially coming from these guys.

I’ve never done any of the things they mock here, so I’m not defending it because it’s “my” thing.  But it’s so weird that they take a stance that “you ” people are gullible (that word pops up again and again).  As if they are so superior to the young people who are involved with these things.

The thing that is most surprising about the piece is that the authors come across as so incredibly conservative  and borderline Christian evangelical.  Or, if not quite that, then like the hall monitor kid who’s not invited to a party and then stands outside saying “You’re not having any fun.  You think you are, but you’re not.”

I agree that there’s a lot of questionable nature about New Age practices, ambient music and everything else they go on about here, but without actually giving suggestions for how else these gullible people can have fun, the article is just a big, ugly nag.  Even the tone of the introduction: “We have had the pleasure of observing…the Nw New Age phenomenon–its most ardent goals and ideals, its most embarrassing follies and mistakes.  We had fun.”  So superior!

The first thing they take on on online paganism.  And fair enough, the chat room that they quote is certainly pretty dumb, and yet where’s the harm in kids joining a chatroom and trying to communicate with people in a meaningful and unironic way.  These kids are looing for a spiritual moment with likeminded folks.  What’s the difference between this and a ouija board?  The authors even dismissively suggest that maybe it’s a way to find friends.  And so what?  What’s wrong with that?

The second example is of a New Age Post-Christian type of church.  And the authors mock the proceedings for all of its hooey, even though it’s not that dissimilar to Christian masses (in fact the proprietors are Christian).  And listen to the authors criticize the guest list: “two-time coma survivor, convicted felon and notorious speedball junkie Jerry Garcia of the Grateful Dead.”  Wow, sorry Mr Gingrich, I didn’t know you were invited to the rave.

The third one is admittedly the most ridiculous. It is a pagan celebration involving cauldrons and fire and as Fucking the Bad Spirits Away and all that.  And it more or less devolves into a pick-up scene at the end.  And the authors bemoan the fact that it cost the gullible participants $10 to get in!   I’m left wondering how many interesting spectacles (with the possibility of a hook up at the end) would cost the authors only $10.  Just go to a bar and you’re easily out $10 and you don’t get a show.  This way, people are with other people who like this scene (weird as it may be).  And again, so what, maybe they are actually enjoying themselves.

The next thing to mock is the 8 people who are paid $50 to sit with a marketer to discuss ambient music.  When some friends of mine and I were in Las Vegas, we were offered $50 for a 30 minute survey about TV shows.  I was never going to watch any of the shows they asked us about, but hell $50 for giving my opinion..I’m there!  So, when the smart-ass particpant #8 tries to shit all over the parade, what makes him (or her) think he’s so much better than the other seven people there?  They all got $50 bucks, so what if they were honest about it and so what if they like ambient music?  This section also had the most egregious “your music sucks, mine is great” attitude.  I admit that most ambient music is pure drivel.  Yet they choose to mock Future Sound of London, a band that has actually done some interesting things in the genre.  Nyah Nyah, your music sucks.

Finally, the last story concerns a Superrave.  Participants pay $25 to get in (How gullible!) and the $25 for a hit of ecstasy (illegal drugs, the authors would never do illegal drugs!).  And for this the participant get a spectacle that lasts over 5 hours (in the article they say, hey, there’s only 5 hours left until the afterparty).

I’ve never been to a rave, and I’ll never go to a rave.  I’ve never done ecstasy.  This isn’t my sceen.  And I can see showing legitimate concern for the participants with dehydration and potentially questionable drugs and scams etc.  But to call the people who go there gullible because they spent the money for this is crazy.  $50 fora party that lasts all night long and makes you happy?  (Rave partcipants talk about feeling happy for days and weeks after the rave…sure its artificial, but still, feeling happy’s not so bad).  Let’s compare this to the above Zen Alcohol article.  The guy there talks about drinking 8 beers and hanging with your buds.  Well, you’re pretty much out $50 right there.  And, I’d all but guarantee you aren’t feeling as happy as the kids at the rave.

So, the basic gist of this article is that old fashioned values: Christianity, alcohol and rock & roll are good.  Anything new and different is bad.  What a great attitude for a hip alternative magazine!  Especially since I feel fairly certain that a few years later one writer or another might embrace Wicca after Buffy the Vampire Slayer made it okay to do so.

Thankfully, it’s only this article that is so mean-spirited.  The rest of the book is much more fun.  And, even if it is horribly out of date, I still enjoyed reading it.