Yes, folks, there is a soft and gentle side to Bacon’s Rebellion — a side that is sensitive to the arts and culture in Virginia. Part of the Bacon’s Rebellion manifesto is to liberate Virginia’s artists from the cultural hegemony of the New York/Hollywood axis that determines who makes it into the Big Time and who does not.

Virginia has many musicians and artists who are every bit as talented as the “product” (think Britney Spears, Hannah Montana) cranked out by the New York/Hollywood star-making machinery. (If you’re into country music, I suppose you can call it the New York/Hollywood/Nashville star-making machinery.) In the winner-takes-all economy, the winners get fabulously famous and fabulously rich while those of equal talent labor in lifelong obscurity. Thanks to the digital revolution, however, it is increasingly possible for local artists to bypass the star-making establishment.

I don’t pretend to know much about Virginia’s music scene, but I do stumble across talented groups from time to time, and I do what I can to give them a little visibility. My latest discovery is Rotoscope, an alternative band from the Washington area. The band has a great song, “Under the Milky Way,” which you can listen to on MySpace. You can also download some of the band’s more progressive music on iTunes. Check out Rotoscope and lend these Virginia boys your support.