Keep Windsor Weird
It was late Saturday night. I was dead awake and needed something other than infomercials and Scooby-Doo reruns to watch so I turned to PBS. On it was one of my favourite programs, “Austin City Limits”, a show that showcases musicians from around the world who converge on the capital of Texas to play live. The first act was a band called “My Morning Jacket, a personal favourite of mine, so I stayed tuned, trying not to turn the television up too loud. After an incredible performance, the lead singer, Jim James said to the audience over their fervent applause, “Just glad to help you all Keep Austin Weird”. At first I thought it was the ramblings of an irreverent rock star from Kentucky, but I was intrigued. It sounded to me like a slogan of sorts, so I jumped onto the internet and did a bit of research.
I’ve known about Austin Texas and its burgeoning music scene for a while now, since my days of going to Dr Disc almost daily and looking through the discount record bins. I’d often buy albums just because I liked the artist’s name, or the name of the record, and more often than not, these artists would either be from Austin, or they cut their teeth playing at the “South by Southwest Festival”, or simply “SXSW”. Basically, sxsw is a weeklong onslaught of live acts that play in the city’s many live venues. It brings in thousands of tourists into the city and gives the local economy a huge amount of dollars. Austin has more live venues per capita than any city in North America, and young bands from all over the world travel there to try and get signed to a record deal.
Austin also has a large arts community, supported by the Austin Independent Business Alliance who came up with the slogan (yes, it WAS a slogan after all) “Keep Austin Weird”. This slogan supports the notion that Austin is a place that is friendly to small independent businesses. Many of these businesses are owned by artists, craftsmen and the like, and the A.I.B.A. was started as a defence against large corporate chains that help in phasing out indie businesses and as a promotional vehicle. The slogan first appeared as a bumper sticker but caught on so well it is now the city’s unofficial motto.
Now you may be thinking, “Brendan, you silly goose, you are talking about Austin Texas, a huge city in the United States, how could we ever possibly even think of ever having a snowball’s chance in hell of having anything like that in Windsor?” My answer is simple, yet complex. Windsor is ideologically similar to Texas in many ways. In fact, true believer, Austin probably had it a lot harder than we ever did, as they are smack dab in the middle of good ol’ gun totin, tabbacky chewin, we-don’t-like-your-kind-round-here, city-boy, Texas. As for us, we are smack dab in the middle of good ol’ gum chewin, SUV drivin, let’s-all-go-to-the-malt-shoppe, when I grow up I’m going to work at Ford’s, Windsor. Simple, yet complex.
Often, I’ve been critical of the downtown bar scene. I believe I’ve used the phrase “They come over here from Michigan to use our city like a low-rent hooker”, once or twice in previous posts, but something dawned on me. Instead of fighting the bar scene, I think people should start opening live music venues downtown. I grew up around musicians, and they constantly told me how few places there were to play in this city, so they inevitably had to go somewhere else (the artist exodus) to get any notice or to make something of themselves. If we had just a few more places for them to play, I know something good would come of it. Music is the purest form of communication, and perhaps it is the most effective form as well. We need to start somewhere, so let’s use the infrastructure we have and start supporting business owners who have live acts in their clubs. Let’s also push for tax incentives for owners who put local live acts in their venues.
The value of the local music scene is something that is essential to any artistic city. The musicians will be a vital cog in the wheel in the years to come, we just need to support them and support the venues that showcase local talent. What’s the worst that could happen?
We just might have a great time.
Here’s a few links to check out if you too are awake late one Saturday night, and don’t feel like learning about the wonders of the Sham Wow.
http://www.ibuyaustin.com/ - Austin Independent Business Alliance
http://sxsw.com/ - South by Southwest Film and Music Festival
Tags: arts, Creative Class, culture, Entrepreneurs, festivals, independant retail, local business, Local Music
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at the creative cities conference in detriot a few weeks back there was a session on music scenes in cities and the vice president of Austin City Limits was on the panel, along with the producer of DEMF in Detroit and a few others. the session discussed how “local music scenes can shape community identity and help to retain and attract talent…to nurture, promote and leverage the value of your local music scene”.
Basically the message was this: celebrate what you have, what already exists in your own community! instead of looking outside the city for talent, nurture, promote and SUPPORT what is already there!
We really have some great stuff in this city and places like Phog Lounge and Milk do a great job of providing space for local artists and are great places to check out local talent.
But you and I already know that. Generally people who read these sites already know that. It’s the rest of the population that needs to get with the program.
I wish more businesses in this city would realize that local arts and history is one of their best weapons to fight the chain stores. It allows them to differentiate themselves from the bland chain stores.
Another idea to support local arts is a “feed the artist” campaign. Local restaurants and artist could get together to display and sell works by local artist at the many restaurants in the city. This is another win-win situation.
Ummm… pc and Edwin, “the free ride is over”.
it sure is ME. but maybe instead of always looking to government we look to ourselves. let’s initiate our own change. people like tom lucier are already doing it and it’s up to us to support them.
let’s face it. our municipality aint’ gonna help us. that’s a fact. it’s a sad fact, but a fact none the less. and until that changes (and hopefully it will) let’s encourage people with talent, creativity and ideas to set up shop here. austin works because you have private individuals, organizations, businesses that have come together to create and support that scene.
btw Edwin i love the idea of local art in restaurants.
The Star had an article in Friday or Saturday paper about the gallery and studio “boom” around Pillette and Wyandotte.
Friday’s here is the link.
http://www.canada.com/windsorstar/story.html?id=db025ec0-5985-4821-9d64-8c5a2654e823
The desire of the artists exists, now we need to support them every chance we get.
Dead awake?
hahaha, yes Chris, that is a Brendanism.
pc, I agree, many people who do read this website already are aware of how important the music/art scene in Windsor is. Who this article is directed at are the closet Scaledown readers, the people who you would never expect to be reading this site.
I hope that our ideas will start permeating their minds, and influencing their actions because they know we are right and that what we say is the truth.
“They come over here from Michigan to use our city like a low-rent hooker”
LOL *sniff* ehhh*wipe* aha *sniff* lol..mmmmm lol *wipe*
that has to be one of the best phrases i’ve ever heard in my entire life brendan. i literally have tears in my eyes lol oooohhh boy.
i don’t even know what i wanted to say now, but i agree with you whole heartedly. i also grew up around musicians. as a matter of fact, i had many-a sleepless school night, grade school night that is, due to my dads band crankin’ out tunes in the basment till all hours of the morn’.
can you in anyway recall a band by the name of “Stumblin’ Blind” ? he was in quite a few, but that’s the one i remeber most.
Yes, as a matter of fact I do recall that band, Aaron. : )
And, James, I read that article, its really a good and positive thing! I wanted to show Councillor Gignac that people don’t need “free rides” to survive.
Obviously artists don’t need the “free ride” but the city shouldn’t be turning their backs on them like they do now. Where is the municipal support?
It is true that the artist community has not worked well together and has been a hodge-podge of starts and stops. If they can have a cohesive effort to show that art is a very important aspect of city life then they will be have succeeded in making their work sustainable.
The same can be said of many groups, ME; the environmentaists are extremely fractured (fundamentalists/realists), as are the cyclists (competitive/recreational/utilitarian) For some reason, when there is a larger collective “group”, it always seems to divide itself into smaller, less cohesive units focusing on one particular aspect of the bigger picture without working together with the others. It’s almost as if the fun of being counter-culture is the driving factor, and when something picks up momentum and wide-spread interest it’s no longer “cool” and counter-culture. That’s something that must be overcome if real reform is to be seen.
Look what the Harperites have accomplished by “uniting the right”! Yes, there are still certain small “c” conservatives who have been left out in the cold, but as a whole they are cohesive and actually running this country! (I know - I never saw THAT coming!)
These groups must join together to accomplish their goals, ourselves included! It’s time to start building bridges instead of moats.
speaking of this topic, im outta the loop on whats going on with the capitol theatre? is it up and running again? this creative node is the anchor to a linked art corridor to thrive, please concentrate on this and put these stupid ideas such as a canal to rest.
Brendan, are you serious?!?!? that’s awesome! if you recall details, he was the lead guitarist, long red hair, probly a set of red hi top cons, and a bad ass les paul!
that’s so cool