ROXY MUSIC
Laissez faire or Every Man For Himself?
Things ain't what they used to be, if they ever were. But in rock "n" roll, it has become increasingly apparent in the Seventies that where once was Something now loom trackless voids. Take, for basics, the whole idea of the rock band — groups in the Sixties from the Stones to the Monkees were characterized by a one-for-all-and-allfor-one camaraderie, mates making a stand together, living and dying in allegiance both to the music and their own group chemistry.
Needless to say, things have changed just a bit since then.
The archetypal Seventies band views the making of rock as a corporate venture, with musical commitment and fraternal loyalty so far behind the hunger for superstardom and moneyas to seem almost corny. There is a curious new brand of caveat emptor implicit in the very raising of professional standards: dedication and expertise are taken for granted, resulting in a curious dispassion. Even the rococo is cut and dried. The ambiguities and tensions that have always made rock vital dissipate in surrender to the perfect Product.