Oh look, some DJs have got naked.
Dance music is a hedonistic business; DJs like to have fun, getting naked is fun. And what? But it seems that an awful lot of people don't see it that way, with swathes of the dance music internet currently getting its G-string in a twist about the relative merits and morality of Seth Troxler and Nina Kraviz being filmed with their kit off. In a nutshell, when Seth is filmed jumping about with his tadger out, everyone thinks it's SIMPLY HILARIOUS, but when Nina is filmed in a bubble bath, it starts a shitstorm comparable to a grenade in a septic tank.
Maybe this is good, though. Among all the froth, furore and FWOAARRRRGH-ing, it's handy to be reminded of certain core facts of life, notably that sexism and misogyny exist, everywhere. A woman's body, any woman's body, is always an object to be stared at and judged, regardless of whether she's clothed or naked, behind a set of decks, in a bath or just walking down the street. She's damned if she does and damned if she doesn't; judged for showing off and judged for not showing off and always expected to act according to the whims of people who clearly dislike her. Meanwhile, if a man shows off his body, buff or pudgy, it's on his terms. He defines whether it's sexy, humorous or whatever and whether people find it hilarious or dumb, you're not likely to find anyone questioning the validity of his career just because they've seen his moobs.
The Troxler vid is nothing new: a cheeky, chubby chappy flaunting everything is in the “grand” tradition of Ron Jeremy, Har Mar Superstar and now The Southern Comfort Guy and, sniggering aside, it's “allowed” to be considered sexy. Compare and contrast with Beth Ditto, who for every fragment of positive press she got, was subjected to furious tirades, hatemail and threats of violence, purely for daring to let it all hang out. And that's the point here. This isn't just about a few snitty comments, it's about a virulent disgust that many, many people have at femininity in all its forms, a constant, angry, policing of how women are and aren't permitted to behave and implication that any who are successful are essentially nothing more than glorified strippers and hookers.
Dance culture, in this respect, is the best of worlds and worst of worlds. Of course it has its roots in the anything-goes sexual and gender fluidity of the original disco and house movements and there is no question that in certain respects it is ahead of the rest of the world. After all, we count Annie Mac, Mary Anne Hobbes, Heidi, Cooly G, Eclair Fifi, B. Traits and more among our leading lights and rising stars and only a fucking idiot could accuse any of them of having got where they are on anything but their musical talent. In terms of wit, personality, style and all the rest, they can stand with the best in any type of music from any era.
But still, in the 21st century, it is a massively male dominated industry and with even the most enlightened young man capable of a personality switch when presented with an eightball and a bunch of podium dancers, the most base kind of lad culture is never that far from the surface, as evinced by the snotty, tedious judgement that goes on over body image and talent whenever a female star puts her head (and/or other body parts) above the parapet. So let's thank Seth, not just for giving us yucks, but for once again bringing double standards to light and reminding us that it's a messed up world out there. Surely we should be better than this by now?
We recently had Seth Troxler in The Lab. He didn't get his testicles out but dropped some pretty deep tunes. Check the set below.
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