I need to address something, get something off my chest, air some things out that’s been bothering me for a minute:
Lots of bad tattoos and looking like you don’t give a fuck does NOT make you an alt-porn girl.
Lens filters and shallow/hollow attempts at being artsy does NOT make you an alt director.
Or better yet, alt-porn worthy.
I am a big fan of alt. Huge fan of hot girls with a ton of dope ink and attitude. (Here is my recent obsession: Charity Laurus.) What makes her/them great is the look as a whole, and if you pulled the different pieces away that makes them “alt,” they can each stand up individually on their own. Charity is very pretty, very sexy, has some incredible ink, in some interesting places, and was born in England. The only downside is that she is married, but that has never stopped me before so…
But like any subculture, it eventually starts to eat itself. The underground is starting to go mainstream. And I’m not one to hate and think that’s inherently a bad thing. I’m fine with more of the good stuff. There was a great progression of the alt stuff. Suicide Girls spawned God’s Girls. Belladonna spawned Stoya. Gregory Dark spawned Eon McKai.
That’s fine.
But apparently we have reached saturation point. Somewhere it got twisted. The gritty, real and rawness morphed into the idea that the only thing required for the camera was tattoos and thinking you were the shit. Wrong.
More and more, both online and in movies, I feel like I am starting to see girls with little of the alt redeeming values. Not inherently pretty, bad tattoos, and lack of exuding any sexuality. Their edginess is manufactured. There’s even some of the celebrated forefathers/foremothers that I scratch my head and can’t quite figure out how they have made it so far in the industry. (One good friend suggests it is because they are better businesspeople than performers, hence being able to sustain some longevity. It is probably a valid argument.)
In any event, she is what is right about alt-porn. But it seems like what Belladonna was the first to set off, Joanna Angel was the first to harness and Gregory Dark was one of the first to tap into, has now reached a saturation point. And it’s not always done well. (Jack the Zipper, I’m looking at you…)
I often wonder if the minority masses are fooled and buy it, or if they are just too sheepish to say: STOP! THIS SHIT BLOWS!
In either case, I want to say something.
STOP! THIS SHIT BLOWS!
Not all of it. There’s always some new alt-porn blog to check out, but can we please reign it back in a little? The crazy part is as much as alt has blown up, it still hasn’t completely blown up. It’s not at the forefront, it’s not one of the top niche markets (in comparison to other niches), but can we as fans or industry correct it before it hits the next level? Bring some authenticity AND sex appeal back.
If I am sick of the lack of substance now, I can’t imagine how bad it will be if/when alt goes pop. Think it can’t? Remember the underground punk scene? Ever hear of Hot Topic?
I rest my case…
