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As Music Gets Apathetic, I'm Looking for Other Creative Outlets

Lately I've been obsessed with today's musical climate. Too long have I agonized over this sentiment, trying to reconcile whether "it's just me" or if music has evolved into a new beast with unusual behaviours I no longer understand. But I've decided: Modern music, I am done with thee. What keeps me going is the knowledge that people are still putting their souls into things. How do I know? Because it is in our human nature to create.
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Alamy

Lately I've been obsessed with today's musical climate. Too long have I agonized over this sentiment, trying to reconcile whether "it's just me" or if music has evolved into a new beast with unusual behaviours I no longer understand.

As is well documented on my blog, I feel as though apathy has taken over music, especially in "indie" rock. And although I must continue to conduct myself within the music industry's walls, I am merely moving about its hollow carcass as a means to an end. So instead of continually raging against the music machine, or, alternately, risking being that crusty old hipster at the back of the dubstep show, I will put it out of my mind. Modern music, I am done with thee.

As a result, I have turned my mind to creativity on a global level. What keeps me going is the knowledge that people are still putting their souls into things. How do I know? Because it is in our human nature to create, it is what separates man from beast. Except maybe these guys.

I've found a new creative optimism in technology and the wonderment of science. Undoubtedly fraught with its own demons of commercialization, to me the tech world still wears a virginal shroud, an unpretentious Eden yet to be explored. Programming, artificial intelligence and robotics are elements that represent, to me, the possibility for expression and reflection of humanity in infinite ways. Not to mention space exploration. It's partially why I've started writing fiction, specifically speculative fiction: for the creative freedom.

How do I jump from there to here? From music to tech, in one simple step? I'm not sure I can answer that, but as a mother of a seven-year-old with another along the way, the future is, quite simply, more meaningful. Dare I say, more relevant?

Next weekend I'll be taking my family to Montreal's inaugural Mini Maker Faire. Having followed some of the activities at the flagship Maker Faires, I am beyond pumped to go. Labelled as a "festival of invention, creativity and resourcefulness," I can only imagine the range of ideas -- from crafts to Arduino-controlled machines -- individuals catering to their imaginations and simply creating for creation's sake.

For a long while, music was fun, an exploration. But somewhere along the way it became a one-dimensional business that lost its naïveté. I long for those carefree days, but know it will never be 1998 again. In our current tech-drenched world, storytelling and expression exist in a multiverse. And as music continues to evolve, I can rest easy knowing that there is a place where I can continue to to the same.

Upcoming Canadian Faires:

Montreal Mini Maker Faire (Parc Olympique): August 25 & 26, 2012

Calgary Mini Maker Faire (East Village Riverwalk): September 8, 2012

Ottawa Mini Maker Faire (Shopify Lounge): October 13 & 14, 2012

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