25 outubro 2002

VITAMEDIAS
Loving, making, also critiquing music: Only natural? Or naturally conflict-prone?
Those who can, do.
Those who can't, usually end up writing about it.
But in Philadelphia, those involved in the original-rock scene are increasingly doing both: Several established figures in local media are involved in musical endeavors that are thriving locally and, in some cases, nationally. Their success is raising questions about the once-clear separation between creators and commentators.
When people covering a subculture are involved in it as artists, how do you guard against potential abuses? Does media affiliation benefit a fledgling outfit?
Those are the types of issues few anticipated when they first strapped on a guitar or picked up a notebook, says Joey Sweeney, the acidic Philadelphia Weekly writer who leads The Trouble With Sweeney, an alt-rock band that has earned favorable notices in Spin magazine and elsewhere. "It's not something you think about right away, but it's there, and it's happening more and more. Ethically, it's a field of land mines."