Earlier this week, for a variety of reasons that aren't worth explaining here, I was sitting in the offices of one of the Big Four. It was my first, up-close and personal experience with a major record label and looks like I'll be spending a little more time there. I share this unnecessary piece of personal information for two reasons 1) to be quite honest, it was exciting and 2) as a way of introducing a problem that I spend a lot of time thinking and talking about.

Just how relevant are these ridiculous little bands we cover? Really.

This is really an off-shoot of an elucidating conversation I had with someone about Tokyo Police Club. I referred to them as a "big band" without thinking what I was saying. Shit. They have 10 songs. They sell out in certain "hip" parts of the East Coast but put them in Columbus, OH on a weeknight and they might get outdrawn by an INXS cover band. And yet, they are a slam dunk in New York. Whether you like them or not (their music is not on trial here), you have to concede that they are a big indie draw. But just how much does it mean to be a "big indie draw?" How important are these bands?

Let's talk record sales for a second. It's been a solid year for some of the bigger "indie" bands like The Shins (debuted at number one on Billboard, biggest Sub Pop album without the name Nirvana on it), Interpol (who debuted at four and sold something like 100k week one copies), and Spoon (cracked the Billboard Top 10 in week one). But what about these other smaller bands with smaller labels, less distribution, fewer PR people? How many albums does a band like The Essex Green sell? They're not exactly tipping SoundScan despite having one of the best albums of 2005-2006. I would bet if they sold 15,000 albums all-time that would be a huge release and a financial success for everyone involved. So basically, if the same number of people as attend a minor league baseball game buy your album, you can be a big deal. A big deal to certain people. How out of touch is that?

In the grand scheme of things, an album released on any of the majors needs to move a serious number of units to be successful because of the amount of money invested in the entire project. Of course, a major label release should have a greater chance of success for all those same reasons. But, it's undeniable that music you and I would never buy, would never even think of buying, is what everyone else is buying. Does that make us smarter? Do we know more about music because we think The Plain White T's are brain-dead? Are we cooler? Edgier? Or are we just completely out of touch with whatever everyone else is into?

Look at this weeks Billboard Top 10. Is there any record there you own? Okay, girls own the Winehouse record but the rest of us, is there anything there I could even convince you to buy? T.I.? Let's talk rock. Linkin Park? Nickleback? Bon Jovi? What. The. Fuck.

So where are we left? Going nuts over "huge" bands that 99 percent of the country wouldn't know or wouldn't care about even if they heard them. Tell me Animal Collective is going to move units in Jacksonville? Broken Social Scene selling albums in Topeka? Don't think so. But here in New York, these bands make people's worlds stop on a dime. Just how many of you are buying Arcade Fire and LCD Soundsystem tickets tomorrow at noon? I am. But would someone in Salt Lake City do the same thing for a show that isn't happening until October? Would that show be an event on the same level in Kansas City?

We live in a kooky little bubble with a set of likes and dislikes that sets us diametrically opposed to the rest of the known universe. Now, does that make us smart or really fucking dumb? I couldn't tell you, I'm trying to get tickets to the sold out Tokyo Police Club show in New Jersey. I mean, they're playing with Ra Ra Riot and Vampire Weekend. Does it get any bigger?

Here, not really. Almost everywhere else, more than yes.

Labels: elitism, what the fuck are we doing