the.com/the scene
whichever room currently decides what's cool, until it decides otherwise.
means a self-selecting group of people, venues, and tastes that generates its own trends, slang, and hierarchy before outsiders notice.
from from theatrical staging, a scene was literally a set piece; by the 1940s jazz world it meant the whole social backdrop around music, and by the 60s it meant any tight subculture with its own rules.
self-destructinga scene dies the moment mainstream media names it
geography mattersmost scenes need one specific street or club
gatekeeping engineinsider slang exists mainly to filter outsiders fast
for instance
cbgb punk — bowery dive bar, nyc 1974, birthed ramones and talking heads
seattle grunge — sub pop label turned flannel and feedback into 1991 global sound
detroit techno — three high schoolers, belleville 1980s, invented an entire genre
manchester madchester — hacienda club, late 80s, acid house met indie guitars