Coolness leaves me cold (first splurge)

Hello Dear Reader,

This is I suppose my first outing in the truest sense of a blog, in that this is not an uploaded historical article, review or composed (to a degree) inclusions. This is a thought that has struck me today and that I elect to share with you.

I aim to make this a bit more focussed and brief in comparrison to other content, how succesful that will be in this splurge attempt is as yet unknown.

So the topic. Coolness, the thought of being deemed "cool" or thinking oneself as "cool". This is something that raises the heckles of my inner workings to the forefront based purely on its relation to a strongly derided observation of the modern world.

To be deemed cool or to act cool or think oneself as cool is not a new thing. Back in the fifities and perhaps the one person that springs to mind instantly, when seeking to personify coolness was of course the rebel without a cause, James Dean. James Dean to many embodies the concept of coolness and rightly so. The roles he played, his clearly abundant aesthetic appeal that existed with a tempered disgregard for authority and conformity as so common that resonates a leads to such a distinction. Jimmy Dean of course was blessed with another significant gift of those willing to achieve such an accolade; he died young. He therefore is forever held in the memory as the youthful embodiment of coolness as recalled today.

Others of notoriety that are emblazoned with the cool or legend tag also seemingly have a few traits in common. People such as John Lennon, Kurt Cobain, Jim Morrison and Jimi Hendrix are all deemed legendary or perenially cool. This collection of people all challenged authority, pushed boundaries, had abundant talent and died young, thus cementing their reputation. After all the forebearer to this approach has still got some dedicated followers and there is debate as to whether he even existed. I shall not comment on that for now, but perhaps the best path to being deemed cool is to follow the Christ approach.

So kids if you want to go out on a Friday night and be truly perceived as cool it is quite simple. Your time should not be devoted to selecting the perfect fashion ensemble or coiffing your hair just right. Instead you should develop some talent, have some conviction, principles to which you stay true to and also if possible die at an early age.

I of course jest and I am not advocating that the youth of today, in attempting to define their sense of self should live through anihilation till death presents its comforting end.

What I do see in my travels and experiences is what to me is a false society. I truly believe this is established and continued by the modern media and perhaps society at large. The world is to me a much safer place than it used to be. Well that may not be strictly true especially if the fear mongering media is absorbed to the core. There are numerous erroneous deplorable acts that take place, what I mean by its safe nature. Is that the media presents a much greater corporate interpretation of the globalized homogenuous world to which we reside.

Any person in any town sips a Starbucks, eats a McDonalds and absorbs some of the most banal, formulaic music as promoted by vacuous television and radio presenters. Individuality seems to erode as time goes by. This saddens me, but as a person who is heavily affected by music and as music is intrinsically links into the concept of coolness, this is where my focus is guided.

I elect to not listen to music on the radio or music television and I suppose this could be deemed ignorance on my part. This is something I am entirely true and guilty of I hold my hand up, but that said this is a self defence mechanism as I find so much of modern music entirely and vehemently detestable.

I believe I may have said this before but music is confined in genres and pigeonholes and I guess that serves a point, however the only genres that really matter are music that is "real" and those that are not.

It is an easilly identifiable thing whenever you watch a performer or band, absorb the music, the arrangement and lyrics. Keenly also view the performers and ask yourself two simple questions did that feel real or contrived? And did it move me?

If the answers are yes then you have found "real" music if more likely though the asnwer is know you have been subjected to the usual unit shifting plodding dirge that fills the music output at present and seemingly for too long a time now.

This little veerance away from the concept of coolness has relevance I assure you. The music scene(s) that exist and are absorbed by the youth of today are so safe, placid and unimaginative that it is therefore impossible for people to not be affected by this banality. And it is all too often apparent to witness.

I welcome those that challenge the norm and those that push boundaries. I also more than anything welcome those who act as they truly are. That is the true sense of coolness. or perhaps put another way, people should ignite the passion that burns within them. So interestingly I suppose I am concluding that the best way to be cool is to have an all consuming burning pasison. So be yourself, don't contrive to be anything else and let the fire inside rage and then you will be cool.

Stu