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The Big Takeover > essays

The Fight Against Passivity

by Jack Rabid
23 November 2005

Technology is a strange thing. When we founded The Big Takeover in 1980, I’d never even seen a copy shop let alone a Xerox machine, with the exception of the one at my local public library. (And for a dime, it would spit out a poor-quality copy in around 40-50 seconds. You could actually hear the gears cranking and see the light beam going back and forth six times over the sloped glass underneath the leather cover per one image. And yes, our mag first "sprang," err, lurched, to life on that dang thing, via 100 copies of a single typed page that took freaking forever to complete.) And given the time and effort it has taken to do a much longer publication, for the last 23 of the our 25 years, our magazine has appeared only every six months, a long time for sure to wait to address a readership.

Any of you who have been familiar with the magazine and my work as its founding editor and (to date) chief writer should expect more of the same, only obviously 182 times more timely and faster, I guess. (And if you haven’t seen it yet, I hope you’ll check one out. It’s close to 300 pages.) I expect to pass on text that I didn’t or don’t have space for in the magazine, along with fresh musings and reporting on the music I hear and see, the issues that surround it, and the people who I know or admire who are involved in it. There will also be tips on what is upcoming that is worth checking out, or what just happened that is worth recounting. And where it feels appropriate, just like the in the magazine’s editorial pages, I may include some non-music related topics; though for now I don’t know if I have a real comfort level for doing that in the context of BigTakeover.com as opposed to the print mag. Maybe just a little. Maybe not!  

We could debate the merits and ultimately more-appreciated worth of that which you can’t have all the time, any time; and how our culture now, more than ever, fails to fully value what it has until it loses it. It’s been a running theme of my writings for a quarter century now. But be that as it may, now that informational technology has made it possible to "beam" the printed word to all points of the glove at the speed of light (imagine if the stressed-out riders of The Pony Express could see this), I intend to post here the news, views, and some reviews that I formerly couldn’t on a frequent basis. In any case, I intend my blog (what an awful sounding word that is, by the way. It sounds a lot like "blah blah blah," i.e. mindless self-centered spewing of no import, and that’s precisely what some blogs I have read have been like! What a turn off. I will make every effort to avoid that!!!) to be completely in the spirit of my writings in Big Takeover and other journals. I hope it is useful, entertaining, educational, informative, and with some luck, humorous when the opportunity is there. Hopefully, it will partially document one person’s life consumed with music and art as the expressions of a thinking, feeling, and creative life, in the hope of inspiring more and greater involvement.

If watching TV is the ultimate passive activity, and if in my view too many use the Net to just reinforce their enforced passivity rather than inspire greater participation and knowledge, then I want to do the opposite and make readers more interested and more curious and more desirous of more and greater experience. And I want to encourage readers to take more plunges into more artists that aren’t always the most seriously marketed, but perhaps deserved to be. I hope that a lot of you get that and more out of what I post here – wish me luck!

Filed under blog intro

Comments

goodluck, boss.


— michelle    2005-11-23 03:48    #

Jack,

Let me be the first (well, second…Michelle beat me to the punch!) to congratulate you on the website’s new look. I nearly spilled my corn flakes this morning when I opened the site and saw the new format!

Mark


— Mark    2005-11-23 18:18    #

Trust me. You’ve already obtained your goal to inspire greater participation – not just in terms of using the Net in a more agressive way – just in general. Thank you!


— Jerry    2005-11-24 06:51    #

excellent site…i will look forward to getting my BigT fix more often….


— Jason Shanley    2005-11-24 16:29    #

Jack,

Best of luck with the site, and continued success with (and thanks for) the magazine; of which I have ALL!! You da man!


— Ron    2005-11-24 17:33    #

I like this first edition and have a feeling I will be returning here at least once every week. Thanks for all you do.


— Mike Clarke    2005-11-24 23:47    #

Hey Rabid…congrats on the new site. Looks WAY good, and it went live on my birthday! Alright…


— Tim B.    2005-11-25 00:06    #

wow! i haven’t visited in awhile but the site looks great. i’m still getting through the interpol issue but it’s great so far. i made a livejournal community and a last.fm group so if people want to join, they should. they’re both under the big takeover :)


— amy    2005-11-25 18:50    #

Great new looking site. A terrific idea to include your weekly top ten! I’ll be looking forward to the new issue.


— Tony    2005-11-27 16:33    #

I’m liking the new look of this site. Lots of good stuff. I enjoying it. (Take that, Pitchfork!)

BTW picked up the deluxe edition of the latest Bob Mould CD a week ago and have been warming up to it. Nice to know that you’re considering it for your album of the year.


— Chris    2005-11-27 22:32    #

Glad to have the website back, Jack. It looks great.


— Matt    2005-11-28 01:28    #

Love the new site Jack! I have missed the BT; I accidently let my subscription lapse (I used to trade you Springhouse cds for my subscription, guess I ran out!)

Awaiting some left of the dial streaming sounds…!


— bill    2005-11-29 12:00    #

I’ve been into music since I was 5-6 years old. I’m 36 now. I remember hearing the beautiful sounds of The Who, Patti Smith, Black Sabbath and Led Zeppeling coming from my older brothers room at night when I was in bed. Music has always moved me in a way that nothing else has and is probably one of the most important things in my life at the moment. Anyways, I just discovered The Big Takeover magazine earlier this year and was blown away with what a music magazine should be. I’m just pissed that I didn’t discover The Big Takeover earlier. Oh well, I plan on buying all of the back issues eventually.


— Robert    2005-11-29 16:06    #

The new site is fantastic. I will be visiting often.


— Joe    2005-11-29 20:16    #

good luck guys! this site has the potential to be the best modern rock site on the web. take it to them!


— alternapop    2005-11-30 02:26    #

Jack,

The Big Takeover has long been an excellent source of knowledge for everyone from casual listeners, to dedicated musicians, looking to delve into the world of music. To have a website to further the BT experience is more than could be asked for. Congratulations on the new site, and on 25 years of the Big Takeover.


— jd    2005-12-01 16:44    #

Beautiful! Great job Mick! Jack… you are the eternal inspiration.


— mary    2005-12-02 01:14    #

I discovered your magazine fairly recently (Issue 51 – Westerberg!) but that one issue is all it took to make it my favorite music mag (I don’t buy any others now). Your spirit and sense of community were immediately evident and I’m sure that will continue to be true on the web version. By the way, I never thanked you for the cd-r and personal note you sent me with a BT back issue. It meant a lot! So Thanks!!!


— Angel    2005-12-03 01:21    #

oi jack! the new site looks great… congratulations everyone, keep up the good work.


— rb korbet-wootton    2005-12-07 06:02    #

The new site looks great. Looking forward to another 25 years of the Big Takeover.


— Mike    2005-12-14 17:49    #

Hey Jack,
If you are looking for old Mutton Birds music, check out this website; www.areligionofakind.co.uk/ It has numerous live Mutton Birds and Marshmellow shows to listen to. I am sure you know about it, but just in case. Regards my friend, Jim Knepper.


— Jim Knepper    2006-11-20 09:54    #