By: Jessica Hopper
[Editor's Note:Are you a musician? Is your group having issues? Ask Fan Landers!
Critic Jessica Hopper has played in and managed bands, toured
internationally, booked shows, produced records, worked as a publicist,
and is the author of The Girls' Guide to Rocking, a how-to for teen ladies. She is here to help you stop doing it wrong. As***********@gm***.com" target="_blank">Send your problems to her — confidentiality is assured, unless you want to use your drama as a ticket to Internet microfame.]
Dear Fan,
There is a boutique amp manufacturer who I've had a relationship with
for seven years who makes amps that I love. They give me a huge
discount on amplifiers and ask nothing in return. I've visited their
shop a few times, and that's where my problem starts. The owner of the
company has politics that I can't stand. Not just differing views, but
really extreme, uneducated and uninformed. And they definitely aren't
shy about it–there are posters all over the shop, bumper stickers on
the company vehicle, constant talk radio blasting vitriol. I've been
thinking about getting a new amp lately because every time I play
through my current amp I just think about this person's politics and get
bummed out. What should I do?
Your pal,
“Rick”
]
Dear Rick,
What a timely question for this divisive election season! It's good you
are thinking about what you are lending your reputation to. We've all
been eager young gear hounds at some point, seeking out an amp head
because our hero/heroine had one on stage. Given that you are in an
internationally touring noise band with a dedicated fanbase of
audiophile weirdbeards/fellow musicians, your set-up is of particular
interest to them.
Companies know that even passive endorsements are incredibly
powerful–perhaps even more so than direct endorsement. I remember a
decade ago when Red Bull started striking deals with midwestern emo
bands (most notably Get Up Kids) for them to put cans on top of their
amps on stage, to appear they were drinking them during their shows.
[
I think that if it's bothering you and on your mind whenever you are
playing, you need to honor your conscience and trade it in for something
that is agreeable. It sounds like you can do your homework and find a
small manufacturer that is in line with your political orientation. Your
focus should be on your performance, not whether you are tacitly
funneling money to someone who could be funneling it into a scholarship
fund for Glenn Beck's Patriot Camp.
There is some icky biz behind the scenes. Guitar Center is owned by Bain
Capital, so we have all collectively paid into Mitt Romney's Cayman
retirement fund by buying picks. Gibson Guitars settled a case last
week, though admitted no wrongdoing, after the DOJ caught them importing
illegally harvested timber from endangered trees.
I don't think it would be a productive use of your time to tell this
guy that you are done using his amps. It's election season, rhetoric is
high, you'll probably just get into a fight that there's no winning. The
better bet is when you do get a new set up and are invariably asked
about it by fans and friends, be explicit about why you switched. Word
will get around and that'll be enough to undo whatever good will and
interest you helped them cultivate.
Yours truly,
Fan
As***********@gm***.com" target="_blank">Send your problems to Fan Landers
Follow us on Twitter @OCWeeklyMusic and Like us on on Facebook at Heard Mentality
