Rock It Yourself

Robert Hilburn’s assessment of the British music industry, “House of the Setting Sun” (Sept. 26), couldn’t have been more off the mark.

Any reduction in the number of “big” acts out of Britain lends itself not to a lack of talent, nor to the pernicious hyping influence of the British music press.

The fact is that the dream of the post-punk era has almost been realized: Music has become something people are creating for themselves --in their homes, in small studios, released with a wing and a prayer by smaller and smaller labels. This is the direct result of a vibrant dance-oriented movement that has its roots in the mid-’80s and that now extends well beyond just “raves” and “techno.”

The British youth audience has for the most part had it with heavily promoted big-name acts. British tastes have become more diverse, eclectic and fragmented than ever before. As a result, it is impossible for record companies to develop and market domestic acts the way they used to.

The same thing will happen over here, mark my words. I’ll take bets that in two years, Nirvana, Soul Asylum and Alice in Chains will have had their day, precisely because American audiences will recognize what British audiences already know--that it is impossible for a band to aspire to “alternative” status while nestled comfortably in the bosom of the music Establishment. And now that we have the technological means to create our own sounds, we no longer have to rely on the tastes of others.

There may not be a Kinks, Beatles, Stones or Bowie hailing from our shores, but I for one think that the music scene at home is more exciting now than it has been since 1977--and I’m an old rocker.

OLIVER BUTCHER, Pasadena