More fieldnotes - SWITCH OF TOPIC

In the last two weeks or so, I had the current student president of AMOJI send out my questionnaire about the club to the members. I've only gotten a handful of responses, but from what I have so far, I feel the need to change my topic/thesis a little.

At the beginning, I thought it would be interesting to find out exactly why there were so many students, particularly those in AMOJI, attracted to the visual aspects of musical artists and their performances. More specifically, I was thinking fashion, makeup, how the singing/dancing/thrashing looks. Personally, I thought the one overarching characteristic all the music videos and clips from live shows share was the extreme emphasis on appearances and visual aesthetics. The band members were more often than not clothed in a clash of chains and buckles, leather black, white, with occasional bright colors here and there. They always wore makeup: dark eyeliner and shadow, colored contacts. Their hair defied gravity, always looked like it had taken hours and an entire team of stylists to style. When these bands started playing on stage - and especially in music videos - they looked like they commanded the world. There was confidence in these bands that set them apart. They didn't just move with the music; they commanded it with every strum of the guitar, every grip of the microphone stand. Everything was so staged, each movement so precisely planned, that it was amazing. Their music came to life through their looks, through their attempts to look and feel beyond the ordinary.

Or, well, at least that's how it was for me. To a lot of these current members of AMOJI, there isn't anything too "unique" about the bands and music that is shown during the club meetings. Their reasons for participating fall more within the realms of a social youth culture, rather than a musical one. It is a place for these kids to hang out after school, meet new friends, and not do homework. While the music is definitely something they enjoy, it is not the primary factor for a lot of the members.

And then, there was the whole appeal factor that was missed altogether. I left that question open-ended because I really wanted to know what made these kids want to go to the club meetings, week after week. With the exception of the founder of the club, none of the interviewees made any reference to the way the artists look. It may be just poor questioning on my end, but I am surprised that no one had mentioned it. The email that got sent out had this introduction:

"This is part of an ethnographic project for my Musical Youth Cultures class. I've chosen to study AMOJI as an example of student-led youth culture; in particular, I am interested in the appreciation for the aesthetics/visual appeals of performers, since that was what originally drew me to the club. I know that AMOJI has undergone changes throughout the years, so of the questions below, please answer whatever is applicable to you. I am interested in anything you have to say about AMOJI, regardless of whether or not it is related to music."

I guess a lot of the kids just didn't read that first sentence. I did say that I wanted them to answer openly, and tell me how they perceive the club to be, regardless of whether or not it has to do with music, because, well, if they're not there for the music, their responses don't exactly help me. And I didn't want to be biased. I wanted to really know who was there for the music, and who wasn't.

Anyway, from here on, I think I will switch my focus from visual appeals to language barriers. A lot of the interviewees mentioned this "feel" the music has. This, too, is interesting. AMOJI is a club that emphasizes international rock and alternative, which means that a lot of times, the songs are not in English. Yet, people still enjoy the music.

Here are a few more bits of interview responses to the question "What's so appealing about the perfomers?" all related to the "feel" of music:

From "Dan":
"Their music makes you think, and it is based on things that you may not relate to, but that can inspire you."

From "Kay":
"The music, for me. The sound of the vocalist' voice, the guitar, the beat. Also, the personalities of the band members, particularly LM.C. They are such dorks, haha. It's nice to know that popular musicians are just normal people too. Asian artists tend to have tons of behind the scenes + fun footage, so they give their fans a good glimpse into their lives."

From "Shauna":
"They have an awesome sound and actually put feeling into their music. They write songs about real things, real problems, not about getting money or sex or killing people. They inspire me to make good music myself - I play guitar and try to write songs, but it doesn’t really work out - and I feel connected to the lyrics, identifying with the things they say."