|
Even though alternative and other rock-derived genres have been a staple of Barbados’ music industry for years, they’ve been overshadowed by the likes of soca, reggae, dancehall and dub. Soca has been championed by Crop-Over and other Caribbean festivals, while reggae, dancehall and other Jamaican offshoots are powered by the strong legacies of Bob Marley and the many other internationally recognised superstars which have emerged from Jamaica.
Alternative, on the other hand, has had to fight against the public view that it is not indigenous to the region and has no legitimacy on the musical landscape. Still, neither is hip-hop, yet it has found a strong foothold in Barbados, aided perhaps by the popularity of media outlets such as BET.
As a derivative of rock, alternative has also had to fight the court of public opinion which maintained that rock is the stronghold of deviant youth all over the world. However, as one local alternative musician pointed out, rock in Barbados has not had the associations of violence and deviant behaviour which has plagued the genre in other countries. “It’s not as if we go about sacrificing black-belly sheep at live performances or anything!”
To the casual observer, it may seem that there is not much growth in the alternative sector of the local industry. After all, in comparison to other genres, few local alternative tracks receive radio airplay, and fewer local alternative albums are available for purchase. However, even though rock is far from being a mainstream genre, local alternative music has been gaining popularity, and there are some progressions in that sector of the music industry.
Alternative-based artists are carving out a niche for themselves, booking gigs at popular bars, clubs, hangout spots, and hotels, where visitors and locals alike soak up the alternative music vibe.
One artist who is generating such a buzz is Jomo Lord, who initially made a name for himself 10 years ago with his track Understanding Joseph. Jomo recently reintroduced himself to the local scene with his debut album Free, which fuses rock/alternative with various genres. Interestingly, the balance which the album strikes has appealed not only to hard-core alternative fans, but also to persons who might not necessarily consider themselves to be fans of the genre.
New rock band Masala, and acts such as Garlex, Unplugged and Driftwould, have also been increasing their fan bases. Critics maintain that the ceiling for success for local alternative acts is extremely low, but hard-nosed alternative fans point to the growing success that local band Kite is having. Firefly, a track from Kite’s first album Up In The Air received international airplay on the CBS show Ghostwhisperer. The track was aired less than three weeks after Kite signed a publishing deal with Riptide Music who brokered the Ghostwhisperer deal. Kite’s album, which is available for download at 42 different digital download sites including CDBaby.com and iTunes, has had sales from international destinations, including the US, South Korea, Australia, UK, Canada, and Japan. Kite is currently working on a second album and is also planning to release a video for at least one of their tracks.
The acceptance by an international audience of a somewhat overlooked genre on the island should put a different spin on things. Alternative music is one of the most overlooked genres in the local industry, yet Firefly managed to secure airplay on a major international network. Some may argue that Firefly’s success was a fluke, unlikely to be repeated by any other local alternative artist any time soon. After all, Barbados is not known for its alternative music. But before Rihanna, Barbados wasn’t known for pop/R&B either. Could musicians such as Kite or Jomo Lord be one step away from a major international breakthrough? Who knows? Maybe with a bit more airplay, a few more ops to play their music for live audiences and a bit of luck, such a breakthrough could be right around the corner. As far as performing ops are concerned, fans of local alternative music got the chance to hear some of the genre’s best musicians at a rock show held at The Plantation in October. Roadhouse, Driftwould, Jomo Lord and The Gorilla Joe Band, and newcomers Masala came out in full force to show what they had to offer, and set the stage for future rock-themed events. For the industry to develop further, local bands will have to invest heavily in recording music for airplay, and DJs will have to be willing to give local alternative musicians the spins necessary for their music to become familiar to the public. Annie, lead radio personality on Mix 96.9 FM is well known for playing a wide variety of music during her shift, including rock and its derivatives. Annie (who was featured in the last issue of CiRCUIT) notes that contrary to popular belief, many Bajans do enjoy alternative music, and that the affinity to the genre is held by a wide cross section of Bajans from all walks of life. A few other radio DJs have also started to spin local alternative tracks on air. Few will venture to argue that alternative music can evoke the kind of reaction which genres such as soca, reggae or dancehall can produce at party outings in Barbados. However, opportunities seem to exist for artists, writers and producers to at least explore using alternative and other non-Caribbean genres to break into the international market. Even if alternative music does not achieve the same popularity as indigenous Caribbean genres, there is a market outside of the region, and it might be worth investigating opportunities for exporting a unique brand of Bajan alternative music.
|
