Lebrun (contemporary French culture, U. of Manchester, Britain) emphasizes the ideological basis and cultural constuctedness of a music culture using sociological and empirical methods that are
advocated by many scholars of popular music. She investigates the cultural identities of a loose group of French artists, producers, journalists, and audiences who regard alternative rock music
as a challenge to vari矇t矇 and reactionary politics, and argues that these identities are the result of social, material, and historical determinants, but also reflect, though to a lesser
extent, personal individuality. Her case studies illustrate instances where quality and protest music products cross over into mainstream, and the problems and sometimes damage it wreaks among
participants. Annotation 穢2009 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)
