Is there even a counterculture today? Let alone to be found smoking and drinking behind dive bars while rejecting obvious labels?
Feels like that kind of energy has moved entirely online and/or indoors now. Meatspace is for somatic-hedonists now.
Feels like music/dancing/sports are now for people interested in those specific things qua themselves, not as signaling consumption marking an entire life posture. PBRās descendants today are just beers for those who like beer. No larger significance.
id say the signaling via consumption act has expanded to an even larger range of activities (its no longer PBR etc) but thats also pointed out in the piece, that once everyone is aware of something being a signal, its time to move on
Ok I guess I donāt actually buy it. It strikes me as similar to the Bowling Alone argument (which was roughly āmainstream culture is deadā). I think both mainstream culture and counterculture simply took on unfamiliar refactored forms.