Lifestylers : Janus' Thoughts Develop (Ch.12d)

(Chapter 12d) Lifestylers

Janus went among them, these young people, some as old as himself but most younger, still teenagers, faced with the freshness of life, and believing in the possibility of choice.  These were ones who had chosen to rebel from the paths laid down for them and to express themselves through the musical arts and individualistic clothing which became a badge describing their variance from Modern Society.  He went among them hopefully pleasantly surprised to find that there were people like this, individuals, who could exist outside the normal society in such evident style, and yet existing within the City.

He wandered through the club, observing these colourful people.  Some of the young men were long haired, others had “cuts” of different styles, a few wore their hair very short, cut almost to the bone of the head.  All of the Lifestylers wore clothes which differed from the normal suits, shirts and dresses of the general populace.

Colours were often wild and varied, reds, greens, orange, yellow, purple, not usually seen amongst the working population.  Some wore black, or mainly black, a group within a group.  Materials of their clothing varied too – some wore leather, others suede, silks and occasionally even rubber.

Janus was enthralled.  As an artist he could appreciate style, as a writer here perhaps was material to be written, a hidden culture flourishing within a grey society, ready to burst out in flowering to inspire the denizens of the grey world, lighting colour to the mediocrity.  Janus had followed the band on the Vidnet, the more artistic ones, in particular, but they were the residue from cultural expressions discovered many decades before society had begun to close in on itself in the grip of commercial interests which grew too big, and the petty legalism which had come to control everything.  He had even enjoyed the pre-packaged bands which had been created by the ever- slicker music industry, which harnessed youthful beauty to reworkings of the past’s produce.

These new Lifestylers’ inspiration came from the Rock music and the Popular Music of the past.  The bands which were playing here were certainly varied and came from recognisable styles of the past.  These lifestylers copied the past and appeared to believe in it, so much so that they were prepared to live it.

Janus was pleased to see that.  He was not one to rejects the past’s art forms and he was pleased to imagine the “maturity” of this hidden movement which embraced the best of the past.  There were some bands which took on the appearance and “attitude” of the Lifestylers more than others who appeared to remain traditional.

The difference in attitude between these bands was merely one of belief, it appeared.  Those who were of the new Lifestylers were strident in their views that the youth should leave normal society and join them, that the “grey suits” were “boring”.  They pretended an acceptence and even promotion of drugs in the lyrics of their songs, which were sometimes banned from the Vidnet for that reason.  This promotion of drugs and the assumption that the young could choose to “leave” the “grey suit world” caused Janus to have doubts about this movement, which he had hardly known existed until now.  It all seemed a little immature.  Drug taking had been discredited decades, even centuries ago, both by the societal establishment and by the musical movement.  To bring it back now seemed to be unwise.  Janus felt himself to be far too rational than to wish to ever take such dangerous risks, and  he would not encourage anyone else to either.  Although he was in agreement with them about the ills of Modern Society, Janus did not see any possibility that large numbers of young people could exist outside of it.  He did not know enough about the Lifestylers and he would be interested to know more and he who had chosen to live outside society also for a time was in empathy with the idea, but he wanted society to change, not to cause the young to avoid responsibility.  Perhaps if enough of the young did “leave” society then society would change.  He caught the idea and it enthused him.

Janus listened to one band who looked very fashionable, following the Lifestylers.  The lead singer jumped energetically holding the microphone to his mouth in the way that older bands had done years before.  It gave him something to do with his hands. His hair was long and dark giving him a presence and appearance of maturity that he might not otherwise have had. 

The lyrics impressed him.  Here was social concern.  Here was desire to change politics for the better.

Young teenagers and under-thirties  roared and clapped with approval at the “revolutionary lyrics” and perhaps equally at the conscious “oppositionism” of the band’s clothing also.

Janus was impressed.  Here was release, excitement.  Listening to this music was participating in something unbound by society’s normal rules.  It was nonetheless a familiar form of release.  They had been doing this one hundred and two hundred years before.  He had had this fantasy before many times and he had become used to the disappointment when he had to leave it all behind to go on the Network to work the next morning.  You could pretend that people were listening to the lyrics; that the audience clapping meant that they agreed with the sentiments of the song; that they would all go home fired up by the words and remembering them all verse by verse; that they would all treat this concert, or this selection on Vidnet as the first day of a new life in which each would pass the message on, converting new people, playing the music to them and talking to them so that they understood the message.  The message seemed a simple one, that life could be fun again, if only you made a choice not to believe in those pompous politicians and those self-serving House Directors.  But there was always work again the next day, and where was the explanation of how you could earn a living in your devotion to the new lifestyle, and how you could come to terms with your work not changing when everything inside your head had?  There were few paying jobs associated with the New Lifestyle.  Certainly the company Houses had not embraced it and the world of money and work remained implacably opposed to it.  The audience seemed at first sight to look very “new lifestyle” in appearance.  But Janus noticed the cracks in this facade early on.  A young teen wore school trousers and he was of the age which would be in compulsory state education.  Another young man wore smart office black shoes underneath his leather and suede clothing.  This was the telltale sign of a youth who had to go to work the next day.

Janus realised with more disappointment that if the bands tried to stage their concert the next day in the afternoon the numbers of dedicated lifestylers who could be present would have dropped significantly.  But how many?  On reflection it was not surprising that some of the audience would be ordinary students and workers.  How could all of these people possibly exist within this society without having a conventional place at school, college, university or House colleges, or be in actual work?  Still he hoped that “Lifestyle” was more than just a name.  Perhaps there were many people here who really did lead a different lifestyle.  The bands for a start.  They were “professionals”.  Today no one could contemplate doing enough practices and rehearsals to put on a show this good in the paltry private time offered to them.  Bands this good had to give up everything and usually hope that they could get some music industry backers to be able to get proper gigs of this sort.  Were these bands here then backed by the money of backers, or were they in some way the product of genuine lifestyle?

Maybe he should join this youth movement.  They appeared to want what he wanted – more human centred lifestyle, a more quality life.  He was conscious that he was a little older than most of the people he saw here.  Surely the Lifestylers movement was not so new.   In music and in fashion and clothing it borrowed virtually everything from previous periods of music culture.  Surely therefore it was a movement passed down from generation rather than a new movement. If so then it should have members who were older, but where were they?  Janus felt a compulsion to find out.  He had been alone for too long.  It wasn’t good for him.  He must join some kind of community.  Maybe he could bring some of his own ideas about society to it, ways to reform it, and appreciation of its weaknesses.