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Regarding the March 1 column about the Grammys:
I disagree with the idea that Arcade Fire’s win at the Grammys is a ploy by the music industry to take over indie subculture. Arcade Fire is a well-established indie rock band that has produced three excellent albums. “The Suburbs” happened to do exceedingly well for an indie album, debuting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and remained a consistently great album from start to finish. The Grammy was awarded to the strongest album in the category, a difficult thing to do when you’re only allowed to nominate five albums for the honor.
Also, with respect to the comment about covers, they can be great songs in their own right. Have you heard Jeff Buckley’s rendition of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah”? It was slow to catch on after its initial release, but it is now generally considered one of the best recordings of all time. Buckley injected his own meaning into a song that was already good. That’s the art of a cover. Glee took “Don’t Stop Believing” and turned it into a mega a cappella sing-along. When was the last time such a choir-influenced number stormed up the pop charts? The TV show gave a new meaning to an old favorite, which is what a good cover should do.
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Alex Clifton is a junior majoring in English and humanities.
