Liner notes
An exploration of local print music journalism in Perth’s indie pop/rock music industry
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.1558/prbt.v16i1-2.23973Keywords:
music journalism, music promotion, local mediaAbstract
This article explores the role of free editorial coverage of local contemporary music in localized print media. The discussion here centres on activity which occurs in Perth, Western Australia, with a particular focus on the coverage of indie pop/rock music in three publications. The analysis presented here draws upon semi structured research interviews undertaken with editors of Drum Media Perth, X-Press Magazine and The West Australian. As this article argues, local print music media plays a key role in the promotion of local music activity as a cohesive ‘scene’ and industry to local audiences while also making a contribution to broader national music and media culture. In turn, this article also briefly comments upon recent debates about the climate of music journalism in Australia, as well as developments in this sector, such as the uptake of digital outlets.
References
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Lobato, R., and Lawson Fletcher. 2013. ‘Prestige and Professionalisation at the Margins of the Journalistic Field: The Case of Music Writers’. In Amateur Media: Social, Cultural and Legal Perspectives, ed. Dan Hunter, Ramon Lobato, Megan Richardson and Julian Thomas, 111–24. London: Routledge.
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Pedro, J. 2014. ‘Alternative Journalism in Madrid’s Blues Scene’. IASPM@ Journal 4/2: 55–70.
Shuker, R. 2008. Understanding Popular Music Culture. London: Routledge.
Stratton, J. 2005. ‘Pissed on Another Planet’. Perfect Beat 7/2: 36–60.
—2008. ‘The Difference of Perth Music: A Scene in Cultural and Historical Context’. Continuum 22/5: 613–22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10304310802311634
Straw, W. 1991. ‘Systems of Articulation, Logics of Change: Communities and Scenes in Popular Music’. Cultural Studies 5/3: 368–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09502389100490311
Tomatis, J. 2014. ‘This Is Our Music: Italian Teen Pop Press and Genres in the 1960s’. IASPM@ Journal 4/2: 24–42.
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Toynbee, J. 1993. ‘Policing Bohemia, Pinning up Grunge: The Music Press and Generic Change in British Pop and Rock’. Popular Music 12/3: 289–300. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0261143000005730
True, T. 2011. ‘Music Journalism is the New Boring: A Response’. Online: http://www.collapseboard.com/everett-true/music-journalism-is-the-new-boring-a-response/ (accessed 8 October 2015).
Andyr. 2009. ‘Tall Tales and True’. Online: http://messandnoise.com/features/3562969 (accessed 8 October 2015).
Bennett, A., Jon Stratton and Richard Peterson. 2008. ‘The Scenes Perspective and the Australian Context’. Continuum 22/5: 593–99. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10304310802304449
Brennan, M. 2005. Writing to Reach You: The Consumer Music Press and Music Journalism in the UK and Australia. Queensland: Queensland University of Technology.
—2007. ‘This Place Rocks! The Brisbane Street Press, Local Culture, Identity and Economy’. Continuum 21/3: 433–44. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10304310701460722
Frith, S. 1981. Sound Effects: Youth Leisure, and the Politics of Rock ’n’ Roll. New York: Panthenon Books.
Groth, S. 2010. ‘Introduction’. In Off the Record: 25 Years of Music Street Press, ed. Simon Frith, xi–xiv. Queensland: University of Queensland Press.
Johansson, O., and Thomas L. Bell. 2009. ‘Where are the New US Music Scenes?’ In Sound, Society and the Geography of Popular Music, ed. Ola Johansson and Thomas L. Bell, 219–39. Aldershot: Ashgate.
Jones, S. 2002. ‘The Intro: Popular Music, Media, and the Written Word’. In Pop Music and the Press, ed. Steve Jones, 1–15. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Levin, D. 2014. ‘A Critic and Manager Go Head-to-Head about Music Journalism in 2014’. Online: http://fasterlouder.junkee.com/a-critic-and-manager-go-head-to-head-about-music-journalism-in-2014/837413 (accessed 8 October 2015).
Lindberg, Ulf. 2005. Rock Criticism from the Beginning: Amusers, Bruisers, and Cool-headed Cruisers. Peter Lang: New York.
Lobato, R., and Lawson Fletcher. 2013. ‘Prestige and Professionalisation at the Margins of the Journalistic Field: The Case of Music Writers’. In Amateur Media: Social, Cultural and Legal Perspectives, ed. Dan Hunter, Ramon Lobato, Megan Richardson and Julian Thomas, 111–24. London: Routledge.
Mast, Andrew. 2015. ‘A Final Word’. The Music, 1 July: 1.
McMillen, A. 2009. ‘In Depth: An Australian’s Input’. Online: http://drownedinsound.com/in_depth/4137403-an-australian%E2%80%99s-input (accessed 8 October 2015).
Pedro, J. 2014. ‘Alternative Journalism in Madrid’s Blues Scene’. IASPM@ Journal 4/2: 55–70.
Shuker, R. 2008. Understanding Popular Music Culture. London: Routledge.
Stratton, J. 2005. ‘Pissed on Another Planet’. Perfect Beat 7/2: 36–60.
—2008. ‘The Difference of Perth Music: A Scene in Cultural and Historical Context’. Continuum 22/5: 613–22. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/10304310802311634
Straw, W. 1991. ‘Systems of Articulation, Logics of Change: Communities and Scenes in Popular Music’. Cultural Studies 5/3: 368–88. http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09502389100490311
Tomatis, J. 2014. ‘This Is Our Music: Italian Teen Pop Press and Genres in the 1960s’. IASPM@ Journal 4/2: 24–42.
Townsend, B. 2014. ‘Should Music Critics Fucking Get a Real Job?’ Online: http://somethingyousaid.com/2014/03/15/music-critics-get-real-job/ (accessed 24 November 2015).
Toynbee, J. 1993. ‘Policing Bohemia, Pinning up Grunge: The Music Press and Generic Change in British Pop and Rock’. Popular Music 12/3: 289–300. http://dx.doi.org/10.1017/S0261143000005730
True, T. 2011. ‘Music Journalism is the New Boring: A Response’. Online: http://www.collapseboard.com/everett-true/music-journalism-is-the-new-boring-a-response/ (accessed 8 October 2015).
Published
2015-12-17
Issue
Section
Articles
How to Cite
Ballico, C. (2015). Liner notes: An exploration of local print music journalism in Perth’s indie pop/rock music industry. Perfect Beat, 16(1-2), 71-86. https://doi.org/10.1558/prbt.v16i1-2.23973
