Personal Musings from a Struggling Music "Journalist"

For those of you who don't know, I started this blog in part because I'm taking a Blogging & Journalistic Branding course this semester. My assignment for this post was to critique a recent post from one of the music blogs I've been following. As I dug through all of my favorites, I noticed something...

BLOGGERS HAVE LOST THEIR VOICE.

Yes, this post is going to sound cynical.

Many music blogs are now dedicated to delivering news. There's no reaction or explanation. Most importantly, there's no discussion.

How did this happen? Music overload. Hundreds of genres are supported by thousands of average users creating songs in GarageBand. This isn't to say that it's all garbage, because I also think that we are blessed to live in an era where technology allows anyone to be an artist. Unfortunately, this constant flow of new music has overwhelmed even the most genre-specific blogs, leaving sites to report without commentary. 

Maybe it's because the art of writing is being overpowered by the convenience of images and video. I told you this would sound cynical, but in my defense I fully support awesome reviewers like Anthony Fantano, BIGQUINT INDEED, and the Daily Guru.The process of advertising and search engine optimization doesn't help individual users either, as I'm sure there are hundreds of others like me writing their thoughts down. 

(Or maybe I just haven't found what I'm looking for. If you know of something I'm missing, let me know in the comments!)

It's hard for me to critique any of the people who ARE sharing their voice, as I'm such an amateur myself (an amateur with very little self-esteem, hence the lateness/lack of posts). However, I think the idea of broadcasting your opinion is scary to even the educated listener. The ultra-critical, right-or-wrong attitude of review suppliers like Pitchfork create a lot of pressure for the novice reviewer. Starting a blog is work, sure. But it's also a written account of how a piece of art makes you feel, and that's a very vulnerable position to willingly force oneself into.

Maybe, some social networking site in the future will perfect a community where "music nerds" like myself and others can gather and share real opinions and reactions. For now, I'm uncomfortable critiquing the work of what I hope to someday consider my peers. All I can do is stick with this, write what I think, and keep on listening.