“A BIG, BEAUTIFUL MESS”: COLLECTIVITY, CAPITALISM, ARTS & CRAFTS AND BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE by Ian Dahlman Bachelor of Arts (Hons.), Psychology and Comparative Literature & Culture University of Western Ontario, 2005 London, Ontario, Canada A thesis presented to Ryerson University and York University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts in the Program of Communication and Culture Toronto, Ontario, Canada, 2009 © Ian Dahlman 2009 Library and Archives Bibliothèque et Canada Archives Canada Published Heritage Direction du Branch Patrimoine de l’édition 395 Wellington Street 395, rue Wellington Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Ottawa ON K1A 0N4 Canada Canada Your file Votre référence ISBN: 978-0-494-59032-4 Our file Notre référence ISBN: 978-0-494-59032-4 NOTICE: AVIS: The author has granted a non- L’auteur a accordé une licence non exclusive exclusive license allowing Library and permettant à la Bibliothèque et Archives Archives Canada to reproduce, Canada de reproduire, publier, archiver, publish, archive, preserve, conserve, sauvegarder, conserver, transmettre au public communicate to the public by par télécommunication ou par l’Internet, prêter, telecommunication or on the Internet, distribuer et vendre des thèses partout dans le loan, distribute and sell theses monde, à des fins commerciales ou autres, sur worldwide, for commercial or non- support microforme, papier, électronique et/ou commercial purposes, in microform, autres formats. paper, electronic and/or any other formats. The author retains copyright L’auteur conserve la propriété du droit d’auteur ownership and moral rights in this et des droits moraux qui protège cette thèse. Ni thesis. Neither the thesis nor la thèse ni des extraits substantiels de celle-ci substantial extracts from it may be ne doivent être imprimés ou autrement printed or otherwise reproduced reproduits sans son autorisation. without the author’s permission. In compliance with the Canadian Conformément à la loi canadienne sur la Privacy Act some supporting forms protection de la vie privée, quelques may have been removed from this formulaires secondaires ont été enlevés de thesis. cette thèse. While these forms may be included Bien que ces formulaires aient inclus dans in the document page count, their la pagination, il n’y aura aucun contenu removal does not represent any loss manquant. of content from the thesis. I hereby declare that I am the sole author of this thesis. I authorize Ryerson University and York University to lend this thesis to other institutions or individuals for the purpose of scholarly research. Ian Dahlman I further authorize Ryerson University and York University to reproduce this thesis or dissertation by photocopying or by other means, in total or in part, at the request of other institutions or individuals for the purpose of scholarly research. Ian Dahlman ii “A Big, Beautiful Mess”: Collectivity, Capitalism, Arts & Crafts and Broken Social Scene Ian Dahlman Master of Arts, Program in Communication and Culture Ryerson University and York University 2009 Abstract: The aim of this thesis is to critically examine the emergence of new forms of collectivity in Canadian independent popular music. A case study was conducted centring on the Toronto-based collective Broken Social Scene and its label Arts & Crafts, and original interviews were conducted with Stuart Berman, Charles Spearin, Jason Collett, Jeffrey Remedios and Brendan Canning. An analysis of the major labels and a history of the sensibilities of independent artists establish the habitus of an independent artist at the end of the 1990s. The particulars of Toronto’s music scene show the organic origins of the band’s collectivity to be in process-based composition and performance. Broken Social Scene’s political economy and internal dynamics suggest that Arts & Crafts acts as an aegis for the group’s membership and processes. Finally, Broken Social Scene’s metaphorical self conceptualization reveals the important structuring role the paradoxical affect of love plays for the group. iii Acknowledgements First, I would like to thank my family. Mom and Dad, I could never have done this without your unwavering support, thank you for helping me pursue my passions. To my brother Keith, thank you for the sympathetic ear, the shared love of the music, and the unyielding minesweeper procrastination. I also owe a great debt to my thesis supervision committee. To Rob Bowman, thank you for all the fantastic advice, your guidance allowed me to go into these interviews feeling calm and prepared. I also must absolutely express my gratitude to you for a passing distinction you made between the Beatles and the Rolling Stones one day in class, little did I know how infinitely illuminating thinking about process and product would be. To Steve Bailey, thank you for the beers and genial discussions at the Only Café, a pleasure that always left me thoroughly engaged and impassioned. To Angela Blake, thank you for your critical eye and accommodating nature. The faculty at Ryerson and York’s Communication and Culture program deserve affectionate praise, and particularly two individuals were indispensable. To Jennifer Brayton, thank you for your unparalleled generosity, it allowed me to not only share my research but also get feedback from people across the country. To Murray Pomerance, thank you for your incisive intellect and curiosity, and for inspiring and challenging me like no one else at ComCult. The support and warmth was always felt, and I look forward to a long and rewarding friendship. All my friends and colleagues deserve boundless thanks for all the beers and venting, especially in the name of the glorious sport of dodgeball! To Andrew DeWaard, thanks for the stupendous edit buddy, trading revisions like the good ol’ days of undergrad; it is remarkable, miraculous, divine providence! To Jennifer Johnson, thank you for everything big and small, for being my muse and my escape, and for letting me develop my thesis continually between us, this would not have been nearly as good nor as fun without you. Thank you to the staff at Arts & Crafts, particularly Stephen McGrath – you got me so much and I kept asking for more, thank you for your inexhaustible patience and efforts. Stuart Berman, Charles Spearin, Jason Collett, Jeffrey Remedios and Brendan Canning, thank you for the brilliant interviews, you were all so warm, welcoming and genuinely engaged that it made my job easy; I hope that I captured your sentiments faithfully and that you enjoy the following pages. Finally, thank you to Broken Social Scene itself – your 2005 Hillside performance planted the seeds for this thesis, and your music is a never-ending source of joy and inspiration. I can’t wait to hear where the big, beautiful mess leads next. Funded in Part by a Grant from the Canadian Media Research Consortium and the Robarts Centre for Canadian Studies iv Table of Contents Introduction ........................................................................................................................ 1 Chapter One: The Music Industries and Major Labels .................................................... 18 Chapter Two: Independent Sensibilities .......................................................................... 44 Chapter Three: The Formation of a Collective ................................................................ 63 Chapter Four: The Political Economy and Dynamics of a Collective ............................. 86 Chapter Five: What is a Collective, How is Broken Social Scene? ............................... 115 Conclusion ..................................................................................................................... 133 Appendix: Interview Catalogue ..................................................................................... 140 Works Cited ................................................................................................................... 141 Discography ................................................................................................................... 146 v List of Images Image One: Sticker from the cellophane wrapper of You Forgot It In People ................ 63 Image Two: Still from music video for “Almost Crimes” (You Forgot It In People) ... 102 Image Three: Cover art for Broken Social Scene............................................................ 121 Image Four: Broken Social Scene t-shirt print ............................................................. 121 Image Five: Back cover for Broken Social Scene .......................................................... 129 vi Introduction some boys I know they speak with broken mouths I have to sit inside their stomachs to find out what they’re really about -“Stomach Song” (Feel Good Lost) Write, form a rhizome, increase your territory by deterritorialization, extend the line of flight to the point where it becomes an abstract machine covering the entire plane of consistency. -Gilles Deleuze & Félix Guattari, A Thousand Plateaus (11) To introduce Broken Social Scene, the Toronto-based independent rock music group, it is perhaps best to begin with a moment – a window upon the collected musicians. On November 8th, 2005, after an interview on KCRW’s Morning Becomes Eclectic radio show1, the band began preparing to perform an acoustic rendition of their song “Ibi Dreams of Pavement (A Better Day).” Kevin Drew, one of the co-founders of Broken Social Scene, wipes his brow and lets out a heavy, sigh-laced “OK, here