A brief history of Objectivist-related music

This has been a long, long time in the making.... I'm going to focus mainly on music made by Objectivists since those artists hardly get noticed at all. There is also the matter of music made by comparatively better known artists who happen to write songs which at least imply some artistic affinity for Objectivist ideas. Naturally, the artists that fall into these two groups come to use ideas with decidedly different mind sets, There could be a potential overlap of their respective work ethics or even working affiliations, but it is still too early to expect much collusion as of now or even in the near future.

It's also worth saying something about the (meta-)trends that have arisen. It might even be too early to say that there is some strong principle(s) which Objectivist artists happen to be following outside of what's involved in simply being Objectivists. I will try to consider some possibilities in that respect anyway. If philosophy depends on history for certain aspects of conceptual development, then something similar can be said for the development of the arts. There are also aspects that are very specific to music, but I'm getting a bit ahead of myself with those related premises. Considering the age of Objectivism as a cultural force (whether in theory or in practice) and considering the sparse but ever-growing number of musicians interested in Objectivism, I think now is a good time to commit an overview for the record. Also, while I don't claim to be aware of absolutely every possible (quasi-)Objectivist musician, I have enough knowledge of this history to make some informed comments. I want to make one other last stipulation. I will be discussing artists who are established; otherwise, it would be nearly impossible to catalog such artists. By the term "established", I mean to indicate a selection of the artists who have track records as working professionals on the order of at least several years. Also, they should have made albums by now, or they should appear to have that capability. (Of course, I am aware of the idea that albums as physical recordings as manufactured up to now may fall by the wayside in the next few years. I am leaving that technological concern aside since it's not relevant to my overall purpose.)

Unsurprisingly, there are still not too many artists to reference as Objectivist or Objectivist-friendly. At the same time, I think the steady growth in the number of new artists is something of a cultural barometer itself. (I tend to have a generally positive evaluation of this growth as I hope to make evident.) I certainly encourage any readers to help me "fill in the blanks" as it might be appropriate.

I would have to start off with the time I attended my first full-blown Objectivist conference in 1995. It so happens that there was a group which periodically performed in the atrium outside of the major classrooms. MUSIC BY ANTHEM has had more than one configuration, but they have always taken on a classical style in general. Chelle Fulk is one of the driving forces behind the group, and she had a good long run with the MP3.com webservice while that existed. Also, she and the group do have CDs for sale. While I am not fully versed in their repertoire, I can testify to their prowess and good taste. From that conference onward, things got interesting; I have come across a wider array of artists covering most of the popular contemporary styles.

Stephen Siek is a classical pianist. I am not sure, but I believe he is mostly self-taught. He has performed what I consider to be some lesser known works of various master composers. I have witnessed his live performances at least twice, and I can only say given my (still) limited knowledge of such work that he has performed as admirably as could normally be conceived. If I may be so bold, I don't think I would be alone in considering him as possibly being the person who most likely brings to mind the character of "Richard Halley" as far as musical talent and knowledge is concerned.

Continuing in my loose chronological order of exposure, I can refer you to some other musicians who have also performed non-classical music in some interesting and impressive ways. Going back to that life-changing conference of 1995, I very accidentally met what would be one of the best friends of my life. Tom Shannon also happens to have been not only one of the first (if not the very first) Objectivist to work in progressive rock, he also was one of the most versatile and proficient musicians I've ever had the fortune to experience. (I will have you know that before I attended this conference I have worked with well over a hundred musicians in my experience as a concert engineer, and very few of those people could match the caliber of work that Tom delivered.) At one point, he was featured in four different groups at roughly the same time! Progressive rock fans in the Southern California area may actually recognize the name of an impressive cover group. SUPERNATURAL ANESTHETISTS aka CINEMA SHOW performed much of what is considered the "Gabriel-era" portion of GENESIS' body of work. I said at the time and still maintain that they played that music with note-for-note perfection. I would also place their respective performances up against any GENESIS cover group as well as many young progressive rock groups in general. Sadly, the group not only lost Tom Shannon via an untimely death. CINEMA SHOW also lost singer/drummer Shaun Guerin who himself worked with several different artists of great respect.

Tom had previously worked with and would eventually continue to work with many other artists in different types of configurations. One of the most unique and personally important groups that he worked with was BAG: THEORY. As was the case with CINEMA SHOW, BAG: THEORY didn't operate from an Objectivist perspective. It must be stated that BAG: THEORY's claim to fame was their on-the-fly improvisational ability. While their resulting music may not appeal to many Objectivists, there is no denying the great technical ability of each of the group's members.

Finally, Tom Shannon was likely most proud of the work that he did for his own group DEATH & TAXE$. Admittedly, this group's work was experimental by any standard, but Tom specifically helped bring a quality and breadth of musicality to his prog-metal group which very few bass guitarists anywhere could. Also, DnT as the group is affectionately known may be the very first group to be driven by explicit Objectivist intent. That is, not only was much of the music written, produced, and performed by an Objectivist, but much of the lyrical content and associated concepts were Objectivist as well. As a trivial fact, the very name DEATH & TAXE$ comes from a reference in Ayn Rand's _Atlas Shrugged_, so there was no mistaking Tom Shannon's personal general intent. (I have to say that I only endorse the work that the band did while Tom was alive. Sadly, the nature of the group and its related work has changed substantially, and the new version of the group bears virtually no interest in the prior agenda which Tom Shannon was largely responsible for. Your best bet is to look for their first two CDs.)

As far as I'm concerned, I have given you the major players up until a few years ago. With the advent of the Internet, the situation has changed substantially. As Objectivism has proliferated online, there has also been a related shift towards producing independent music for an online audience. (Sometimes this actually happens without the related stocking of albums in "brick-and-mortar" stores.)

Another group which has also recently performed at an Objectivist conference and is very sympathetic to rational philosophy is FENWICKS. They do have at least one album released, but they are likely better known for their live performances. Given their transnational personnel configuration, it's not too surprising that they have toured across a fair portion of America at least. Their music is mainly ska-oriented, but they also mix in elements of pop, post-punk, and funk.

At this point, I am left with highlighting some mainstream groups who have at least been highly regarded by Objectivists. None of the following groups should be considered as Objectivist-oriented per se, but they happen to have expressed some ideological sympathy even if only indirectly.

It's almost a cliche to mention one group as far as their Ayn Rand-related notoriety is concerned. I think RUSH still deserves mention in this context even withstanding their drummer/lyricist's abandonment of pure Capitalism and egoism. It could be argued that for roughly the first half of the band's 30 plus year career RUSH represented the lone voice for Objectivism in pop music. Considering that the rock music suite "2112" was directly inspired by Ayn Rand's book _Anthem_ (as well as the "1812 Overture"), that song has been greatly inspirational to contemporary musicians around the world. It has also been among a handful of songs which helped to promote Ayn Rand's work for the awareness of many young people (including the greater awareness of this writer!) Their work from the late 1970's deserves special note. The sheer progressive/symphonic musicality and the themes of their _Permanent Waves_ album still remains one of the most inspiring rock records ever released.

I feel obligated to mention one other group which many Objectivists have lauded. OINGO BOINGO has offered a unique if somewhat eccentric take on pop/rock music. Given their tight arrangements and highly rational and critical lyrics, they would seem to demand the respect that they have received. Bandleader Danny Elfman has gone on to a very successful career in movie soundtracks, so his interest in complex compositions has only grown.

Beyond the already-mentioned artists, I find that Objectivists tend to gravitate towards music that has a certain uplifting and/or powerful quality regardless of lyrical content. Interestingly, these groups tend to fall into two camps. Some Objectivists prefer spending some of their listening time immersing themselves in overtly powerful rock anthems. Some of their favorite groups could be categorized as heavy metal. I've heard these fans mention groups such as LED ZEPPELIN, METALLICA, KING CRIMSON, and IRON MAIDEN. On the other hand, there are quite a few Objectivists who prefer listening to ethereal or ambient pop groups. These fans have mentioned COCTEAU TWINS and THE POSTAL SERVICE among others. Again, all of these groups tend to provide the sort of value that a movie or book might provide if it has bad philosophical premises and good mechanical delivery.

Once again, I want to stress that this isn't meant to be an all-encompassing history of Objectivist-related music. I just wanted to feature the artists who I would consider to be those who are among the strongest performers in a comprehensive sense.

What can be gathered from my history here? I think that it's clear that Objectivist musicians and fans alike value creativity and intensity in their ideal music. To be more specific, Objectivists originally valued classical music, but they have come to appreciate most any style of music that features great creative originality and technical brilliance. Specific tastes may change some as aesthetic and technical trends proceed, but the core values will likely stay the same.