Web 2.0 is not for nerds anymore

Is it a sign of the times that a nightlife column title bears the word "tech"? Yes, there's no getting around it, Web 2.0 is not just for the creepy IT guy anymore and our music scene can be bettered by it. I've made my living here from a word just now accepted in Webster's dictionary ("podcasting") and can vouch that never in the history of entertainment has the power been so much in the hands of those who care about it most–us.

Let me explain using the local music scene as an example. In the time before Web 2.0, you heard from a friend of a friend that the band playing that night was good, and you'd go simply based on hearsay. Or, you might have run down to the record store, bought the album, taken it home and listened to it–but that in itself was a three or four hour process. Nowadays, you simply hear about a band, go to their MySpace page, download a few tracks, and then make up your own mind. It's called "unbundling," meaning that you no longer have to buy an entire CD, hell, even an entire song. Within minutes of hearing about a new act, you can go online, look up their most popular song, skip to the middle and decide for yourself if you like the hook. The process of approval has become ridiculously dumbed-down.

Even as I type this, in my Final Cut window is raw footage from a project that Collin Crowell (Managing Editor of City Weekend) and I have begun, filming live bands here and getting the public's voice commenting on the acts before and after the show. In a month, if we can get PK-14 back down from Beijing, you'll be able to (shameless self-promotion here) go onto the City Weekend Blog, watch the footage and then decide for yourself if this is something you'd dig. Simplicity personified.

This is one side of the coin, what's being done for you, the music fan. As a true fan though, knowing how easy it is to tape decent videos on digital cameras, use iMovie and upload your movie to YouTube, means you can help create a community, one that will benefit both the band themselves as well as people looking to catch a good gig. Web 2.0 is moving from experimental to essential and f*ck it, if we're going to be run by robots soon, we might as well benefit music-wise.

• Aric Queen