[Editor’s note: From time to time we will be featuring the work of Indie Rooney, a music aficionado who’s been around the record store a few times and has plenty to say about the contemporary music world. This is his first column.]
Bah! So whatever happened to lo-fi? Used to be, you could move to Olympia, drop a guitar on a paint bucket, record it on a speak-and-spell, and have it out on K in a week. It was charming. We paid money for it and liked it!
Bah. These days “lo-fi” means you’re a virtuoso genius who thinks making a recording that sounds like garbage is an “artistic choice” full of “cred.” No! Lo-fi means you sound and play like crap. Time was, if you learned to properly play an instrument you were a “sellout” (remember “selling out?” There’s another column!). Now it means, you’re a “musician,” and people “expect quality,” and they won’t bother to download your free album unless you “play well” like a “musician.” Scare quotes also were cool!
