MY FINAL LETTERThe site never officially "closed", but the original staff (all of whom started at the site while in their later teens) just happened to grow up, get involved with other things (jobs, college, etc.) and eventually lost the enthusiasm to continue writing news and keeping tabs on bands' show dates. Since the original staff lost time for the site, we handed out jobs freely to enthusiastic volunteers, but that didn't do much in the way of keeping the site running. In fact, it sort of was the iceberg that sank us.
The original staff talked about some ways to enhance the site, but all of our efforts got roadblocked somehow... eventually it just fell flat. Looking back on it, there were probably more efficient ways to run the site, but considering that we were all amateur teenagers with ambitions greater than our abilities, I'd like to say "thanks" to my co-workers for keeping the site strong for that first year, and wish them the best of luck in thier future endeavors.
Also, a nod of acknowledgement to the Wizrocklopedia and their outstanding professionalism, for not only running thier site smoothly and efficiently, but for making such phenomenal site improvements over the past four years. Well played, guys. You've really earned your spot as the #1 source for Wizard Rock.
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Now, as mascot and representative for WizardRock.Org, I was pretty censored in what I was able to say, to not burn any bridges between my boss Nefret and the bands she built the site for. However, as I'm resigning as mascot and ready to embark upon my own independent journey, I'm sure that you viewers and fans are mature enough to dissociate me and my words now from the site I used to speak for.
Deal?
Alright!
So, that being said...
The enthusiasm I once felt for wizard rock had sort of dwindled a couple months after the last Harry Potter book was released... After all, when there's no more speculation about an ongoing story, there's little left to draw from... Of course, you can still show your love for a book, write from the perspective of a character, etc... In fact, there's a lot of bands who have managed to keep the same energy as they had when they started. And on that same note, there are a lot of bands who have used it all up. Now, I'm not gonna be a DOUCHE and point out who's still got it and who doesn't... but for the most part, I just personally think the magic in the music has grown dull.
HOWEVER, what eats at me the most, though I might just be the only one seeing this (as I'm about two feet taller than most of you), is that it seems to me as though many bands have lost sight of thier original purpose: to inspire kids to read. From my perspective (and again, I can't speak for everybody), this genre sort of self-destructed once the media started getting involved...and even now, it seems as though most (not all, but most) of the on-going wizard rock bands are in it as some sort of offbeat indie trend... Once you start choosing hip $10-a-head venues over libraries, it's no longer about leading kids to the path of literacy.
I think that Joe and Paul DeGeorge are nothing short of heroes for coming up with the idea that writing songs about books and playing inside libraries is a really good way to energize children and teenagers and, hey, even some adults...to pick up a book and be excited about reading. After all, with video games and texting becoming trendier than playing outside, something needs to be the key to crank little imaginations into motion: why not let it be music?
I must have not been the only one impressed by the DeGeorge's notions, because copycat bands started emerging by the hundreds... unfortunately, the humble DIY merch tables and crowds of lit fans sporting house ties Sharpie-drawn scars has evolved... into trendy commercialism and pseudo-intellectual cliques of 20-somethings sporting "YOU SOOO DON'T GET US" attitudes. The day I saw that was the day the magic died.
I'll have some good memories of this all, but for now, I'm hanging up my tie and taking flight... I might reinvent myself somehow: change up my colors, get a new look, and you might see me as a different cartoon dragon in a comic book or flash cartoon a couple years from now... Or, I might just disappear forever. But I'm retiring from the "wizard rock ridgeback" thing.
Anyhow... my fate isn't really that important. This post is really about this genre you humans have associated yourself with and what it originally was about (some of you are new and never saw it for what it used to be, some of you are veterans but might not remember).
Anyhow, the wind's picking up and I've got to sign off and spread my wings.
I hope to see you in a library someday.
ROCK AND ROAR,
Rocky
