How indie rock scenes develop

The excerpt below is part of a review of the book, "Site and Sound: Understanding Independent Music Scenes." Holly Kruse.New York: Peter Lang, 2003. 188 pp. ISBN 0820455520.

The review author is Sean Ebare, Simon Fraser University

Canadian Journal of Communication - Vol. 29, No. 3 (2004): "Kruse observes the close association of a genre ('indie' rock or pop) and independent music scenes, noting how these musicians see themselves as part of a shared tradition of music practice constructed in opposition to, or 'refusal' (p. 117) of mainstream modalities of music production and exchange. Kruse also finds that the gendering of activities common in the mainstream commercial music industry is also partially reproduced in independent rock music scenes, despite common Romantic claims to the contrary. As well, this section introduces her critique of Bourdieu: specifically, his observation of the relative importance of 'physical space' over that of 'social space' in the social construction of identity. Kruse argues that a unique feature of independent rock music scenes is the close social relationships that are extended over a wide (national) space, a phenomenon that would diminish the importance of physical space. Yet, she also observes that physical space plays an important role in narratives of independent music scenes, with many subjects telling of 'scene-defining spaces' (p. 129), such as independent record shops and pubs.