Altered Zones

Watch out guys: MTV's finally figured out how to use the Internet. Yesterday, they launched a new web series called Weird Vibes. The latest project from New York Noise creator Shirley Braha (legit), Vibes is a 30-minute show that features music videos, artist interviews, indie rock trivia, and loads of tongue-in-cheek blog-slang, popularized by Hipster Runoff. Taglines like "R U Vibing?" and "WEIRD VIBES IS FRIENDS WITH BUZZBANDS IRL" race across the screen as WV uses the blog vernacular in a way that's yet to be seen from a major media outlet.

But here's the catch: the show's actually kinda funny. While effortlessly poking fun at indie band culture, WV channels some of the better HRO posts with a satirical spin that's not far removed from The Colbert Report. The show's bound make internet dweebs chuckle a bit-- or at least provoke a smirk or an eyeroll from cyber fuddy-duddies-- but will undoubtedly leave lamestreamers scratching their heads with its insider cool kid content, which is a good thing. What makes this exercise in the absurdity of hype even more alluring is its affiliation with MTV-- a network known for devaluing the music it promotes in an exploitive, flashy fashion-- and in that way, Weird Vibes' playful approach to pop (sub)culture evokes the same charm of MTV's glory days. Let's just hope the joke's not on us. --Ric Leichtung, Altered Zones via MTV Hive