"And so many of the kinds of labels you get stuck with don't really tell the story; Progressive, Art Rock, Noise Music, Downtown - it ends up being a struggle to stay out of debates that other people are having around you"

This quote by Fred Frith speaks with the difficulty of being labeled and classified in the music industry. He recommends that the labels we are offered, such as Progressive, Art Rock, Noise Music, and Downtown, do not always properly reflect the music we develop. He also implies that it can be tough to stay out of debates that other people are having about our music, as these labels can be used to specify us and our work. This quote speaks to the challenge of being an artist in a world that is continuously attempting to categorize and label us. It is a suggestion that we need to not let these labels define us, which we should strive to develop music that is real to ourselves and our own distinct style.