DO NOT PRESS.

Doktor Sleepless is a relatively new comic by Warren Ellis, and the latest issue (#5) has hit at an interesting time. It's also filled my brain with TOO MUCH STUFF. I'm going to try and dump some of that stuff on here.

In the current issue, our titular anti-hero, the self-styled mad scientist Doktor Sleepless, whilst hijacking a dead man's radio broadcast, makes some very interesting points about authenticity as a branding tool, citing Richey Manic, Naomi Klein and Bob Dylan along the way. Anyone who has ever been sixteen has this intrinsic understanding that if something is 4REAL, if an artists integrity appears unquestionable, then it is the height of cool. Then you get older and realise that this authenticity was sold to you, and you bought it because you were a teenager, and what the fuck did you know.

This isn't really the Doktor's point; the point is more about identity, about making your own, about deciding what authenticity means, if it means anything, and how it applies to you. Y'know, as you inhabit your own specific skin. See also: grinding.be

Godspeed You! Black Emperor also appear in the Doktor's lecture, and this is why the timing is interesting, as we've had this have-they/haven't-they/give-a-fuck back-and-forth this week about whether or not GY!BE actually exists any more. The answer appears to be a long-winded, "Well, maybe, but probably not", and I find the whole thing comes back to brand, identity and so-called authenticity.

Drowned in Sound kicked the whole thing off, quoting GY!BE and A Silver Mt. Zion linchpin Efrim Menuck, who said, "The last American tour that Godspeed did was in the run up to the current war in Iraq. For what Godspeed did, it was very difficult for us to work out a way for us to communicate directly with the audience about what was going on. We would talk to people after the shows, or we could make announcements from the stage but so much what Godspeed was, was one-way communication. And I had an existential freak-out about that."

Essentially what we're talking about here is the abandonment of GY!BE and the evolution of ASMZ into Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La band, which is a frankly ugly project. I actually walked out of a Silver Mt. Zion show in 2006 because I couldn't bear Efrim's tuneless yelping, or his smug banter. To me, it's as if the statements and impact made by GY!BE's music; by their independence from the conventional workings of the music industry; by their sleevenotes, even, were not enough voice for Efrim, who apparently needed to inflict upon the world his actual voice. Yeah, thanks for that.

Of course, there's nothing wrong with creating new identities for ourselves, and musicians are as chameleonic a breed as any. I'm not going to begrudge the man for wanting to be his own mad scientist, but my opinion is it's more about ego than communication. We can stretch it back a bit to the Manics; Richey knew his limits as a musician, but was an incredible lyricist and understood the impact of a well-crafted identity. Were the Manics any more '4REAL' when dressed in their mum's clothes than they were in military uniforms? Were Richey's manifestos for the band or for himself? On stage, he was never leading the band, but it was his self-destructive tendencies that propelled them, and ultimately his self-destruction that pushed them into the spotlight. Of course, they've never been the same since, and even though Richey was never The Frontman, the eye is still drawn to that empty space on the stage when they perform.

My point, I suppose, is that you don't need a microphone in your hand to communicate or to make an impact. You don't even need someone else to sing your words for you. Music can reach audiences in ways you might never have expected. It's also great for getting peoples attention; just look at 65daysofstatic, who use their liner notes, mailing list and their visual collaborations with MediaLounge to communicate beyond the immediate impact of their music.

So, now you've read all that, some related music. If you want to know why Big Bill Broonzy is here, I suggest you go read Doktor Sleepless.