Western University Scholarship@Western Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository 4-18-2013 12:00 AM Distinguishing the 'Vanguard' from the 'Insipid': Exploring the Valorization of Mainstream Popular Music in Online Indie Music Criticism Charles J. Blazevic The University of Western Ontario Supervisor Dr. Matt Stahl The University of Western Ontario Graduate Program in Media Studies A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the equirr ements for the degree in Master of Arts © Charles J. Blazevic 2013 Follow this and additional works at: https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd Part of the Critical and Cultural Studies Commons Recommended Citation Blazevic, Charles J., "Distinguishing the 'Vanguard' from the 'Insipid': Exploring the Valorization of Mainstream Popular Music in Online Indie Music Criticism" (2013). Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository. 1236. https://ir.lib.uwo.ca/etd/1236 This Dissertation/Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by Scholarship@Western. It has been accepted for inclusion in Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository by an authorized administrator of Scholarship@Western. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. DISTINGUISHING THE ‘VANGUARD’ FROM THE ‘INSIPID’: EXPLORING THE VALORIZATION OF MAINSTREAM POPULAR MUSIC IN ONLINE INDIE MUSIC CRITICISM (Thesis format: Monograph) by Charles Blazevic Graduate Program in Media Studies A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts The School of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies The University of Western Ontario London, Ontario, Canada © Charles Blazevic 2013 ABSTRACT This thesis explores recent transformations in the way mainstream popular music is valorized in online indie music publication Pitchfork. Indie music culture has traditionally defined itself in opposition to mainstream popular taste, through social and aesthetic differentiation mechanisms grounded in connoisseurship and DIY ethics.