Why Beards Are So Popular in the Indie Music Scene

Photo of dudes with beards by Nate "Igor" Smith

​According to Jack "Skippy" McFadden, head talent buyer at Union Hall and the Bell House, as told to the New York Times: "Beards are like the 2009 version of the anti-guitar solo. In the early '90s, indie bands like Pavement and Sonic Youth made guitar solos obsolete, it was embarrassing to play something that evoked Whitesnake. Today, beards are a way of hiding behind a certain confidence and saying, 'Hey, I'm not a clean-shaven, TV-happy, American-Idol type, I'm more a warm cuddly artist who needs to not attract more attention to the fact that, yes, I'm cute, but I'm a little dirty, kinda like it's 1974.' Also, do you know how much it costs to shave?" Decent theory, actually, though still a terrible practice. Plenty more in the Q+A about actually important stuff, about where the money from your ticket goes, and why talent buyers are called talent buyers, if you're interested. [NYT]