Meta-Music

[winter party person]

So im in an English class called Metafiction that focuses on fiction that's "aware" that it's fiction. Examples of this include "The Princess Bride", "Six Characters in search of an Author", "Scream", "Slaughterhouse Five", "Atonement"; these are all pieces of fiction that comment on themselves in some way. Often they contain overt references to other works of fiction ("Scream" constantly references other horror movies), the author makes appearances in his/her own novel, and they constantly remind you that you are reading a book or watching a film.

 

As an assignment for the class, I have to analyze a pice of Meta-Art and do a presentation on it for the class. The first thing that popped into my head was Being There. The album has many obvious musical influences and references to other music. The "guitar player" line in Misunderstood lifted from "amphetamine". The "Rebel Rebel" riff in Monday. The "Norwegian Wood"-esque guitar part in "Someone else's Song". The Sonic Youth-inspired atonal section of Sunken Treasure. In addition, the album is constantly commenting on itself as a piece of music. Half the songs on the record are about music istelf, and the process of becoming a rock star. "You still love rock n roll". "CHoo-choo charlie had a pleanty good band". "Some songs we can't afford to play." "Hotel in Arizona made us all want ot feel like stars" "I am so out of tune with you." "I got my name from rock n roll." "Sounds like someone else's song." "i'm just a fan." I think that Being There is meta-music.

 

Do people have any ideas that could help me form some sort of thesis about Being There as a piece of meta-music? Any lyrical or musical themes people have noticed in the record that they feel are important? Just want to see if people think I might have something here, or if im way off track.

[hwllo]

So im in an English class called Metafiction that focuses on fiction that's "aware" that it's fiction. Examples of this include "The Princess Bride", "Six Characters in search of an Author", "Scream", "Slaughterhouse Five", "Atonement"; these are all pieces of fiction that comment on themselves in some way. Often they contain overt references to other works of fiction ("Scream" constantly references other horror movies), the author makes appearances in his/her own novel, and they constantly remind you that you are reading a book or watching a film.

 

As an assignment for the class, I have to analyze a pice of Meta-Art and do a presentation on it for the class. The first thing that popped into my head was Being There. The album has many obvious musical influences and references to other music. The "guitar player" line in Misunderstood lifted from "amphetamine". The "Rebel Rebel" riff in Monday. The "Norwegian Wood"-esque guitar part in "Someone else's Song". The Sonic Youth-inspired atonal section of Sunken Treasure. In addition, the album is constantly commenting on itself as a piece of music. Half the songs on the record are about music istelf, and the process of becoming a rock star. "You still love rock n roll". "CHoo-choo charlie had a pleanty good band". "Some songs we can't afford to play." "Hotel in Arizona made us all want ot feel like stars" "I am so out of tune with you." "I got my name from rock n roll." "Sounds like someone else's song." "i'm just a fan." I think that Being There is meta-music.

 

Do people have any ideas that could help me form some sort of thesis about Being There as a piece of meta-music? Any lyrical or musical themes people have noticed in the record that they feel are important? Just want to see if people think I might have something here, or if im way off track.

 

 

this probably wil come out wrong because i'm a little under the weather (ie...drunk/sick) but to me, being there is kind f like the relationship between band and fan. there are lots of references to this outside of what you mentioned, like in kingpin, which is about the lead singer wanting the be 'the man' for the fans. also there is say you miss me which is about the struggles of band members with their loved ones while they are on tour.

 

good luck!

[entropy]

I'd seriously consider The Stage Names by Okkervil River. That might help you out a great deal.

 

Or cop out, and use "Halloween Head" by Ryan Adams. Or just the part where he screams "Guitar solo!" I like to think that song is meta, because if it is, it's acceptably cheesy.

[winter party person]

I'd seriously consider The Stage Names by Okkervil River. That might help you out a great deal.

 

Or cop out, and use "Halloween Head" by Ryan Adams. Or just the part where he screams "Guitar solo!" I like to think that song is meta, because if it is, it's acceptably cheesy.

 

I was thinking about The Stage Names too. I'm less familiar with the lyrics and not sure I get al the references though.

[BigWheeledWagon]

While "Being There" certainly examines themes about the importance of music in Jeff's life and the role of rock in culture in general, I'm not sure the album is self-reflexive in nature in the way the books you mentioned are. While it does incorporate references to other music in a very post-modern way, it doesn't really comment on itself or call attention to itself as a work of "fiction" in the way that certain works of literature such as say, Barth's "Lost in the Funhouse" or some of David Foster Wallace's work. I guess what I'm saying is that while it's about rock music and even the rock business generally, it's not about itself as a piece of music. I know you suggested that the album comments on itself, but it strikes me that it comments on other music or the concept of music -- not itself as a construction of the artist. It doesn't address its own workings (for instance, in the way "Scream" called attention to the genre conventions it chose to follow or subvert), although it does seem to consciously attempt to place itself within a certain tradition \0(Note: "Someone Else's Song," with the lyrics about sounding like what's-his-name and the title lyrics, though, unlike much of the rest of the album, does appear to comment on itself in this way, but again, to some extent, it seems to be less about that particular song or album but more about songwriting generally). That's not to say it's not to say it's not "meta" in some ways. I still think it has real potential for use in your assignment. The most "meta" part of "Being There," I think, is the way that it does examine the relationship between the artist and the listener and at times inverts this dynamic ("The Lonely One"). In interviews, Jeff has often discussed how he feels that the listener creates his own meaning to the songs and is an active participant in his art -- this might be an interesting angle to take.

 

While I can think of a lot music that uses a sort of "pastiche" technique of incorporating other musical references, I can't really think of a lot of music that identifies the artificial nature of its narrative and comments upon itself. I mean, James Brown would command his band to "take it to the brige" (or the aforemention "guitar solo" in "Halloween Head), but it was really just more instructional. He didn't yell out, "This is a bridge, and it will create tension between the verse and the next time we play the chorus again, and don't you find this to be kind of a cliche -- YOW! HUH! Good God now! By the way, I like to yell exclamations to illustrate how much the music moves me." I guess "The Stage Names" is the closest I can think of to doing this. Also, some of Beck's work -- like "Midnight Vultures." Oh, and some of the Beatles work comments on other Beatles songs and on their image, like "Glass Onion" (I told you about the Walrus and me, man . . . Here's another clue for you all, the Walrus was Paul) or "The Ballad of John and Yoko" or even "Come Together" (got to be good looking because he's so hard to see).

[BigWheeledWagon]

I've thought about this some more, and here are those thoughts. I would compare "Being There" to any book in which the author writes about a protagonist who is also a writer -- like say "The Shining" (or pretty much any Stephen King novel). This doesn't necessarily make the book self-reflexive or metaficitonal if the character just happens to be a writer and the book deals with his attempt to write, technique, etc. . . . but if he is, say, a writer with the same name as the actual author, as in "Lunar Park," where Bret Easton Ellis has a character named Bret Easton Ellis who shares the author's biographical information, then it generally shifts towards the metafictional (and "Lunar Park" is in many ways a sort of metaficitonal version of "The Shining" -- it's aware of itself as a work of fiction, it's aware of the role of the author . . . hell, it seems aware of "The Shining" as well). I would say "Being There" is more "Shining" than "Lunar Park" (not as to artistic merit, but metafictionally speaking).

 

I think the problem with using this analysis with popular music is that we as listeners almost always assume the protaganist of any song sung in the first person is the actual singer of the song and is directly about him or her (which would explain a lot of the discomfort some feel about some of the lyrics on "Summerteeth). Given this assumption, though, almost any song that deals with music or songwriting becomes "meta." If we start from the assumption that the "narrator" of the song is a character, though, then this really narrows the metafictional field. Perhaps this tendency to assume the singer is always his own protagonist is the reason popular music hasn't examined the territory of metafiction all that often. The assumed directness of the music may make it unsuitable for this technique as a type of ironic distance or sidestep the need to use it to reach for an extra level of direct connection with the reader/listener.

[Szabo]

Maybe I'm not following you correctly, but I'd check out "Your Were Right" by Built to Spill. I think that's a perfect example of Metafiction in music, but it might be too obvious to be labeled as Metafiction. Hell, this if the first time I've ever heard of Meafiction so I could be way off.

[entropy]

I'd also check out "New Wave" (the song, not the album) by Against Me!

 

I used to love these guys, but the new album doesn't do it for me. However, I think there's a couple tracks on there, the Title Track for sure, that'll help you accomplish that.

[jimjiminy]

I think the problem with using this analysis with popular music is that we as listeners almost always assume the protaganist of any song sung in the first person is the actual singer of the song and is directly about him or her (which would explain a lot of the discomfort some feel about some of the lyrics on "Summerteeth).

 

This tends to be the problem with most modern poetry and narrative, in general. I've enjoyed reading your thoughts BWW. Do you have any particular training in literature or are you just a good reader?

 

...

 

Any way, Noah, I would have to say Being There is probably not a work of metafiction in the standard sense, although it contains elements of metafiction. "Misunderstood" seems to be the most self-reflective piece, but it is not reflecting on the process of its own creation as a song. However, in that song you have aspects of self-criticism, albeit in the form of a fan singing to the singer. You've provided several examples of intertextuality, which is representative of most post-modern texts and also metafiction.

 

I hesitate to call the whole album a work of metafiction, but your thesis could be something along the lines of arguing that Being There uses aspects of metafiction to approach the relationship between the reader and the writer (or in this case, the singer and the listener). I don't know if your project needs any theoretical slant, but Roland Barthe's principle of readerly and writerly texts may help. Jeff Tweedy, as an artist, is certainly aware of the mutual process of creation between author/singer and reader/listener.

 

When I think of metafiction, the following concepts come to mind: self-consciousness; self-reflection on the creative process of the text; the author as protagonist or narrator; mise-en-abyme (texts within texts within texts); intertextualities. Eh...I'm sure there a bunch more, but that may give your approach a bit more meat, you know?

 

My experience is with Brazilian, Spanish American, and Spanish literature. Metafiction is a longstanding tradition ranging from Don Quixote, to Machado de Assis, to Borges, and contemporary writers. Unfortunately, I've only dealt with issues of metafiction with these traditions, and I'm sure it's treated differently in English language works.

 

It sounds like a fascinating project. If you do need to have a strong theoretical approach, I can bug some of my colleagues that have studied metafiction more than I. Good luck and let us know how it goes.

[BigWheeledWagon]

This tends to be the problem with most modern poetry and narrative, in general. I've enjoyed reading your thoughts BWW. Do you have any particular training in literature or are you just a good reader?

 

...

 

I don't know if I'd call it training, but I was an English major in college (though with an emphasis on creative writing). At the time ('95-'99), there was a great deal of discussion about metafiction (the literary prominence of metafiction from earlier decades seemed to have really taken root in popular culture, and at the same time, serious literature seemed to be embracing pop culture on some level). David Foster Wallace was my literary hero (okay, still is), and a lot of the young profs were really pushing the question of whether irony was dead (or should be) in American literature. Good times. Of course, this was also during the time when I discovered the band that we all spend so much time discussing here (it seems like my roommate and I kept "Being There" on repeat in the CD changer for at least three semesters).

 

Anyway, I'm no longer academically involved with literature -- just a voracious reader. I'm just glad that someone thought that I didn't sound like a rambling idiot in my post -- thanks.

[winter party person]

Thanks for the ideas, eveyone. I'm going ahead with the project although people seem to have some reservations about whether BT is "meta-music". As jimjiminy says, it definitely contains elements of metafiction and I think I have a sort of roguh idea for a thesis. Something along the lines of "As a piece of meta-music, Being There challenges the line separating rock star from fan, as well as the line separating innovation from infleunce. Ultimately, these ostensibly opposite entities are dependent on each other."