I'm enjoying this topic too. Actually a lot of people in the industry thought JS wasn't as good as it used to be, and claimed that the sale and the move from Manc to London was the changing point, but I couldn't see that myself. I worried when they sold it as I knew they would have to be more accountable financially to someone. Some of the mag titles pulled should have stuck things out in this time of recession in the dance industry (eg Muzik, which was backed)... I know what Alex describes as arrogance, that gets to me too. Here in Aust our press is much more amateur (we have mainly street press) but I think there's less of that arrogance. I also really think that Q mag needs better dance (and more so urban) writers though, they are way out of line on most things in the review section. I think a lot of people in this scene are suspicious of 'fashion' but a little of that is OK as after all fashion generates change. When you look back nostalgically on the last 30 years a lot of the things you tie in with a certain time were fashions and are now 'classic', whether it be disco, early hip-hop, techno, whatever. I don't like when it's artificially induced as is the case perhaps in the English press these days, but I do like to have the excitement of something new, hip, in. I like it in terms of trendspotting. Flux is OK. But as to the future of the press, and mags, one thing that has proven influential here is a dance site www.inthemix.com.au which is updated every day with reviews, stories and news, but I think what gets people in is forums where people can share their thoughts on everything. It's more interactive. But nothing beats a magazine that you can read on a tram or in bed.
---------- >From: [EMAIL PROTECTED] >To: 313@hyperreal.org >Subject: Re: (313) Fw: Jockey Slut mag >Date: Tue, 3 Feb 2004 9:01 PM > > >>The decline of >>the UK dance music press continues - discuss. > > good topic! (but I'm sure the rest of the world doesnt care!) > Well, for a start, the way JS worded this press release makes it sound like > this is hardly the decline of the magazine, infact, quite the opposite! > Seems they're heading for world domination or something! > > far cry from Johnno and Paul's little office in Ducie House! those boys > went a long way in a short time. > > Tom - would be pretty interested to hear your views (although I'm sure > you're pretty busy). It looks like there will still be alot of content to > the magazine, and they're expanding further - which I guess they've been > doing for ages anyway in a smaller sense. > > I mean, as soon as they sold the title, it was always going to lose a sense > of where it started out, and I felt it 'declined' a little from there. > (only in my mind though, and I'm a minority - they just made it appeal to > more people). It's a shame but I haven't read it for some time anyway > really, as well as all the other music press - but I guess they lost people > like us ages ago, and doesn't the rest of the world detest the uk music > press anyway? > > I think the uk music press only really has itself to blame. (and I dont > mean the small freelancers pushing the stuff they like) There always seemed > to be such arrogance (or that is how it came across to me). > e.g. "What you should listen to this month", you SHOULD do this. They > always seemed to assume music lovers wanted the next thing pushing on them. > why not just provide information? reviews, interviews etc, instead of > tabloid style journalism. I stopped reading music magazines because they > actually wound me up. really. I really used to get actually wound up, and > not many other things wind me up. > > anyway... > > don't even know what my point was, just trying to coax mr magic feet into > posting his view... > > alex > _________________________________________________________________ > > --------------------- End of message text -------------------- > > This e-mail is sent by the above named in their > individual, non-business capacity and is not on > behalf of PricewaterhouseCoopers. > > PricewaterhouseCoopers may monitor outgoing and incoming > e-mails and other telecommunications on its e-mail and > telecommunications systems. By replying to this e-mail you > give your consent to such monitoring > > >
