Insecurity @ The Disco

Am I the only one who doesn't understand the current Panic @ The Disco craze (read fad)? From what I can tell, this band is the latest manifestation of the "artsy pop band". Artsy because their style has a SLIGHTLY off-beat quality to it. Pop, because 90% of each song is really just like the rest of the top 40. This type of band is broadly appealing, and notable, because it provides "fans" a cultural marker to project what listeners think of as desirable personality traits. To their peers, saying they're a fan of Panic @ The Disco immediately communicates, "I'm original enough to like offbeat bands". While this sort of psychology underpins much of music-buying behavior, and much buying behavior for that matter, this genre holds a particular irony, in that the fan is attempting to communicate that they are not a run-of-the-mill type of person, while citing a band that is wildly popular.

A contrary point of view may be that these people just like the music, and that's all. It's possible, but I think it's more likely that those who truly enjoy the music for the music, and not for its symbolic quality, represent a very small portion of the whole. I say this because there is an ENDLESS supply of bands who sound like Panic @ The Disco. However, it's only Panic @ The Disco that enjoys such a level of success. My conclusion is that at some point, this band was tagged by the music community as culturally relevant, and somehow more original than it's peers. The result, in many cases, is that once this distinction is digested by the masses and not just by the few, those who originally propped up the band as a dedicated base fade away, having their own issues of musical personification.

So, perhaps I understand the Panic @ The Disco craze completely. I'm just dissapointed that my radio won't stop playing music that is popular simply because people are so painfully insecure.

Special Exercise 1: Ask five insecure friends who their favorite band is and a) tally those who select a band that falls in to this category, and b) name Panic @ The Disco.

Special Exercise 2: What is your favorite band? If you had to think of how your answer would be judged, you would have answered that same question with Radiohead eight years ago, and I'd be willing to bet you have a Jetta in your garage.

Technorati Tags: Panic at the Disco, Pop Culture, Image, Fads, Alternative, Alt-rock