Patti Smith photo courtesy of Ourtrueintent.com; Grizzly Bear photo by Sophie Urquart; Karen O photo by Leigh Johnson
Tear Down That Wall
Issue #41
The “anarchy indie jubilee” of All Tomorrow’s Parties brings fans and bands closer than ever.
By Sarah Collins
Published: September 1st, 2009 | 4:37pm
Whether it’s in front of the stage or across the autograph table, the fourth wall is designed to keep fans and musicians apart. But maybe that’s not ideal. Maybe fans and musicians are meant to be one and the same. Early punk pioneers like Iggy Pop and, most notably, Patti Smith fought against the very concept of rockstars. Now a new generation of festivals is connecting fans and artists, and the All Tomorrow’s Parties film documents the falling of the fourth wall.
The Ultimate Mix Tape
When Barry Hogan founded the All Tomorrow’s Parties festival in London ten years ago, there wasn’t much going on in the festival circuit. “There was Glastonbury and Reading, and I just felt like it wasn’t very fan friendly or even artist friendly,” says Hogan. So he decided to do something about it. He created a festival where fans and bands could mingle as one, and let artists create a lineup with the bands that inspired them. “It is people’s record collections playing on the stage, it’s like making a mix tape for your friends,” says Hogan. Past curators include Portishead, Sonic Youth, and the Breeders.
Every year for the past 10, the festival has taken place in an out-of-season holiday camp. Fans and bands rent chalets and live — and play — together for the weekend. “We don’t have VIP areas,” Hogan says. “You can walk around and see your favorite bands.”
The Festival on Film
All Tomorrow’s Parties, the recently released documentary chronicling the festival, opens with a handheld camera closing in on Kevin Shields. A man turns around and says, “That’s Kevin Shields over there. Holy Shit! My Bloody Valentine? Kevin Shields!” The speaker? Marty Crandall from the Shins.
The artist as fan exemplifies the spirit of ATP. “The great thing that separates ATP from other festivals is the lack of divergence between the musicians that perform at the festival and the people that are attending the festival,” says Jonathan Caouette, the co-director of ATP. Caouette used amateur footage and fan performances to capture the breakdown of the fourth wall. “I felt representing the fans was no different than representing some of the bands,” he says. “It’s a celebration of music.” Caouette even took the title of co-director, instead of director, to give credit to the fans who contributed footage.
The Fall Continues
The success of the ATP festival has led others to question the fourth wall. After two years of letting Hogan curate a stage, this year’s Pitchfork Music Festival further removed the barrier by letting fans pick the set lists with its “Write the Night” series. This trend in festival programming also represents a desire by the artists themselves to be closer to their fans. M.I.A. has long incorporated voices of regular children into her music, and Beth Ditto is lending fans her style with a recently launched clothing line.
Caouette claims that the fourth wall is already gone, and the future will be the fifth wall, where the line between fact and fiction will blur. If the fourth wall is gone, no one is more responsible than the godmother of punk, Patti Smith. To pay proper tribute to Smith’s pioneering efforts, ATP ends with her screaming, “The future is now!” — so close to your face you’d swear you were there.
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