The Rock Snob is dead, killed by technological advance:

But there's a dark side to the iPod era. Snobbery subsists on exclusivity. And the ownership of a huge and eclectic music collection has become ordinary. Thanks to the iPod, and digital music generally, anyone can milk various friends, acquaintances, and the Internet to quickly build a glorious 10,000-song collection.

Comments

[Johnny Debacle]

Isn't this the opposite? The iPod strengthens and empowers music snobbery everywhere. Where before a huge part of having obscure taste was just being able to get your hands on obscure music, now it's much much more available, it's easier to hold and to share music with iPods, MP3's and advances in content cross platform portability.

Thus rock snobs can form packs of wild rock snobbery and they are freed from the bonds of plbenian tastes since the obscure is more readily available relative to the mainstream than ever before. The so-called long tail is pushing individuals to have greater specificity with respect to what they consume, more tailored more to their unique tastes than ever before.

The exclusion, the contempt and general snobbery will still exist, if in evolved forms. Actually having the music or obtaining it will no longer be a barrier, but having snobbery approved taste will be ever more exclusive but having snobbery approved taste will be ever more exclusive. And that, to me, JD, was always the core of being a Rock Snob. It was about not only knowing that you have a greater taste than any other, but also being willing to wield said taste to make others feel belittled and unwise. This type of clubbery is still alive and well, ye of poor taste.