things move around

I think I’ve figured out the way hype really works.

Traditoinal theory is obvious: band is hyped, people buy, people convince themselves they like since the alternative is to admit they were duped. People say “we like”, hype perpetuates. That’s the traditional theory, but I don’t buy it. That might have worked in the wide-eyed old days, but since peole got savvy to the theory, it doesn’t work like that any more. It works like this:

Band is hyped. Some people buy (see above), but most people don’t buy. Most people ignore the hype and self-congratulate. Hype is never true. Hypebole is by definition OTT. People know what hype is, these days. So they wait, until just past the cusp of the hype, until the media turns its palsied eye to some new morsel. Then, as the hype wanes, people buy (or download). People know the band will suck, since the greater the hype, the greater the suction of the hypee. But they can deny themselves no longer, so they buy (or download). Then the genius, the true effectiveness of modern hyperbole, is revealed: the greater the hype, the more a mediocre band exceeds one’s expectations. Judging by the hype, I thought Bloc Party would really, really, really, really suck. Instead, they just really suck. In fact, I think this could be a grower which ends up just sucking. Until such time as it gets a second listen, I’ll give it this: it’s better than Kasabian. But then so is the sound of?a?lion eating your legs.

Bloc Party tracks elapsed while writing this post: 3 1/4.