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There's nothing new at all about World Wide Web sites dedicated to popular
and not-so-popular musicians. Frequently, they are created by dedicated
fans, and range from embarrassing adulation to a considered critique of an
artist's work. Increasingly, the musicians themselves are becoming involved
-- some agree to reveal choice tidbits about their upcoming releases
to the editors of fan sites, some even set up a Web presence of their own,
complete with links to the major online CD stores. Rarely, though, has the
publication of artist information been taken as far as in the case of
Robert Fripp's DGM Diary on the Discipline Global Mobile Website.
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Fripp's diary -- which indeed receives lengthy new entries almost daily -- makes
for some interesting, and extended, reading: visitors to the Website gain
unprecedented access to almost all events in the artist's life. Fripp is a musician
with great experience: he has spent about thirty years on the guitarist's
stool in the cult band King Crimson, and is a guitar pioneer, inventing the
tape loop system Frippertronics (with Brian Eno) in the 70s, and later its
digital successor, Soundscapes. Readers of the diary can follow the trials
of life as an 'aspiring musician' (as Fripp sees himself) who is
constantly in search of ways for King Crimson to reinvent itself once
again, and they find first-hand reports from the studio sessions and live
concerts of the band as well as its many off-shoot 'ProjeKcts'. There are
also frequent reports on the mixing and mastering of upcoming releases of
new as well as archival live recordings.
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Additionally, however, we also gain unique insights into Fripp's personal
life -- his marriage with actress/singer Toyah Willcox, his family history,
and his personal philosophy of 'Guitar Craft' (which despite the name goes
far beyond finger practices and is influenced by the views of Gurdjieff and
Bennett). Such breadth, and Fripp's tendency to philosophically examine
even less-than-crucial details, might strike readers as nothing but an
exercise in exhibitionism, but any artist of some standing will find
themselves under intense public examination anyway, particularly on the
rumour-filled Internet (even a cursory glance at the King Crimson
mailing-list Elephant Talk will show that its members are especially
prone to intrusive scrutiny of Fripp's life) -- better perhaps then to
let the subject of such scrutiny add his voice. A large part of Fripp's diary
entries is therefore often dedicated to commenting and replying to
ET postings, often highlighting Fripp's fondness for frank words and
cutting sarcasm. Anyone interested to follow the interplay of fame and fan
expectations with an artist's psyche will find the DGM Diary a
rich source of material.
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Perhaps the most interesting aspects of the diary, however, are its
insights into Fripp's position in (or more precisely, outside) the music
industry. Severely burnt by his dealings with the corrupt E'G Records
label, Fripp set up his own record company Discipline Global Mobile (DGM)
in the early nineties. Combining his philosophical views with the need to
publish his work and make a living, Fripp's intention for DGM was to be
that rare creature in the music business -- an ethical company, where the
musicians and not the executives make the money, and where artists retain the
copyright of their work. Artistically and (to some extent) financially
successful, DGM today operates mainly by mail-order on and off the Net; the
Fripp diary allows readers to follow the day-to-day operation of the
company as well as its long-term goals, and adds some very candid views on
the sorry state of the music industry that prompted DGM's creation. Fripp
regards DGM as a model for other music companies, and in communicating its
business practices the diary is vital -- for anyone from researchers into
the music industry (and the use of the Internet in music marketing) to
(more or less) humble fans of the music, it's fascinating reading.
And it should be force-fed to record label executives.
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Details
Robert Fripp: DGM Diary. http://www.disciplineglobalmobile.com/news/diary2.htm.
Published continually.
Part of the Discipline Global Mobile Website, http://www.disciplineglobalmobile.com/.
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Citation reference for this article
MLA style:
Axel Bruns. "Aspiring Musician: Robert Fripp's DGM Diary." M/C Reviews 27 Oct. 1998.
[your date of access] <http://www.uq.edu.au/mc/reviews/words/fripp.html>.
Chicago style:
Axel Bruns. "Aspiring Musician: Robert Fripp's DGM Diary," M/C Reviews 27 Oct. 1998,
<http://www.uq.edu.au/mc/reviews/words/fripp.html> ([your date of access]).
APA style:
Axel Bruns. (1998) Aspiring musician: Robert Fripp's DGM Diary. M/C Reviews 27 Oct. 1998.
<http://www.uq.edu.au/mc/reviews/words/fripp.html> ([your date of access]).
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![[image]](http://www.elephant-talk.com/images/fripp.jpg)