Three people on the lawn near Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Three people are sitting on the lawn near Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California.

South side of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

South corner of front of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California.

Night view of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Night view of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California.

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California. Looking southeast.

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Two people seated on the lawn in front of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California. Stamped on the back: Bill Agee Photography, 700 Carnation, P. O. Box 612, Cornia Del Mar, CA 92625, (714) 675-9096.

Helicopter landing in front of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Helicopter landing on the sunken lawn in front of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California.

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California, March, 1979.

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California, looking southeast.

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Night view of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California.

Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Entrance of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California.

Chapman University signage and Memorial Hall, Chapman University, Orange, California

Looking east from North Glassell Street to Chapman University signage and Memorial Hall, Chapman University, Orange, California, ca. 1991.

Steeltown scene : genre, performance and identity in the alternative independent music scene in Hamilton, Ontario

This thesis examines the independent alternative music scene in the city of Hamilton, Ontario, also known, with reference to its industrial heritage, as "Steeltown." Drawing on the growing literature on the relationship between place and popular music, on my own experience as a local musician, direct observation of performances and of venues and other sites of interaction, as well as ethnographic interviews with scene participants, I focus on the role of space, genre and performance within the scene, and their contribution to a sense of local identity. In particular, I argue that the live performance event is essential to the success of the local music scene, as it represents an immediate process, a connection between performers and audience, one which is temporally rooted in the present. My research suggests that the Hamilton alternative music scene has become postmodern, embracing forms of "indie" music that lie outside of mainstream taste, and particularly those which engage in the exploration and deconstruction of pre-existing genres. Eventually, however, the creative successes of an "indiescene" permeate mass culture and often become co-opted into the popular music mainstream, a process which, in turn, promotes new experimentation and innovation at the local level.

Steps of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange

Students on the entrance steps of Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange.

Memorial Hall, Chapman University, Orange, California

Memorial Hall, Chapman University, Orange, California, looking southeast.

Rainbow over Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California

Rainbow over Memorial Hall, Chapman College, Orange, California, 1986.