Alternative Rock Music

This chapter arose from a research project (Cheung, 2010) reporting on a linguistic study of song lyrics by Hong Kong musicians who composed in English. The study aimed to reveal the use of metaphor, both as a rhetorical technique and a linguistic phenomenon, in a small lyric database I compiled. The motivation of the project was both a linguistic and an educational one, in that the awareness of metaphor may improve language learners' reading comprehension and capacity to produce creative writing (e.g. Cardoso, 2005 ; Hashemian & Nezhad, 2007). Th at said, the original study did not address the broader topic of how the musicians, many of whom have English as a second language (ESL), position themselves in what Benson and Chik (2012) refer to as the "language question" in the Hong Kong popular music scene. Specifically, the language question refers to how language choices-Cantonese, Mandarin, English or a blend of these-potentially influence production and consumption of Hong Kong popular music. While English is one of Hong Kong's official languages and the main medium of instruction in tertiary education, as well as in English-medium primary and secondary schools, Cantonese remains the de facto language among the locals across everyday and institutional contexts, including the entertainment and music industry. In view of this, it would be necessary to investigate the factors contributing to their choice to use English, perhaps as a strategic move away from the "mainstream" music scene. In the following, I first explain briefly how language choice might be influenced by the development of Hong Kong popular music. Th is is followed by an explanation of the concept of "metaphor" and its relevance to an understanding of the language question. I then report on the findings from a corpus study of metaphor in English lyrics in Hong Kong independent (or "indie") music and those of a recent qualitative study in which indie musicians were interviewed and their lyrics examined. To conclude the chapter, I discuss the significance of the two studies in understanding how Hong Kong ESL users shape their identities through language. I also point to three potential directions for future research on Hong Kong independent music.

This book examines the post-1960s era of popular music in the Anglo-Black Atlantic through the prism of historical theory and methods. By using a series of case studies, this book mobilizes historical theory and methods to underline different expressions of alternative music functioning within a mainstream musical industry. Each chapter highlights a particular theory or method while simultaneously weaving it through a genre of music expressing a notion of alternativity―an explicit positioning of one’s expression outside and counter to the mainstream. Historical Theory and Methods through Popular Music seeks to fill a gap in current scholarship by offering a collection written specifically for the pedagogical and theoretical needs of those interested in the topic.

“This study of ‘insurgent’ modes of popular music in the last third of the 20th century accomplishes quite a feat.  It yokes together a wide swath of sub-genres and styles--including reggae, punk, hip hop, alternative rock and country—through the lens of what the authors are calling “historical theory,” in order to chart a different, more comprehensive pathway through the annals of pop music history.  Shonk and McClure achieve an enviable balance of accessibility and scholarly depth, making this volume ideal for introductory college courses as well as more experienced researchers seeking a quick guide to specialized topics.”

--Pamela Fox, author of Natural Acts: Gender, Race, and Rusticity in Country Music; co-author of Old Roots, New Routes: The Cultural Politics of Alt.Country Music

This article considers the impact of time-based signal processors on the shape of alternative rock recordings. The concept of musical shape is considered here as both textural and gestural. In this instance, texture pertains to the interactions between the component parts of a multitrack recording and gesture relates to applications of processing by the recordist. Drawing on examples by the Jesus and Mary Chain, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Mazzy Star and My Bloody Valentine, the impact of time-based signal processors on the shape of the recordings is elucidated. Scholars, including many of those involved in the Art of Record Production forum, 1 have established the recording studio/workplace, sound recording and production technology, recordists, as well as techniques/process as being the contextual cornerstones of record production study. However, the foregrounding of these factors in music analysis is less common, and to that end my method has focused less on social aspects and reception – that is, how audiences, critics and cultural commentators respond to recordings – and more on the impact of these oft-overlooked factors on the music itself. In popular musicology and music analysis, work focusing on technological and/or processual matters is still in its infancy, due in part to what Stephen Cottrell (2010) has noted as the relatively recent development of phonomusicological

Yhteisartikkeli Juhani Mistolan kanssa Turun alueen postpunk/taiderock/indiekentästä ja sen historiasta. Allekirjoittanut äänessä Ret Marutin, AD:n ja Mustan kohdalla.

HUOM! Tämä teksti on ns. final draft eli viimeinen käsikirjoitusversio, joka on käynyt läpi vertaisarvioinnin ja hyväksytty. Viittaukset ainoastaan julkaistuun versioon teoksessa  Toisen soinnun etsijät.  Turkulaisen populaarimusiikin villit vuodet 1970–2017. Toim. Pertti Grönholm ja Kimi Kärki. Turun Historiallinen Arkisto 70, Turun Historiallinen Yhdistys 2017. ISBN 978-9527-0450-77.

János Kőbányai, writer, sociologist, photographer in the 70's and 80's documented by camera the hungarian beat-, rock- and punkbands and their audience. The exhibition, selected from about 10,000 photos, was only open for 3 days due to the Covid epidemic. Therefore, in addition to the introductory essay, we also provide some photos from the catalog. – text: in hungarian and english

From Mick Jagger’s feminine strut to the out-of-this-universe style of Ziggy Stardust, rock music of the late 20th Century had a definite fashionable edge to it which denied masculinity and instead teetered on the feminine, embracing an androgynous look, and equating a “softer” image with an abundance of sex appeal. The preference for androgyny among male rock stars did not simply arise from thin air, however.  Instead, this style of presentation and performance followed a complicated trajectory: male singers with androgynous personae emerged from glam rock, which in turn had risen from the ashes of punk. Adding to this stew of influences was the incorporation of gothic fashion, which shares its own parallel roots with glam rock and encourages androgynous performance. From these fashion and music foundations materialized the glam goth style of Placebo front man Brian Molko, whose androgynous presentation is a commentary on gender performativity as it relates to rock and roll. Molko’s fashion sensibility preceded the rise of current menswear trends, and the reverberation of his non-normative style can still be felt in both the performance and fashion worlds. Goth glam style has influenced current fashions in both Eastern and Western cultures, as well as helped to trigger a larger turn towards gender ambiguity in rock as a performance tactic.

"Tengo el espíritu, pero perdí las emociones", bramaba en el primer disco de Joy Division. El alma de la agrupación británica trabajó en un hospital de enfermos mentales para robar drogas y condujo al punk hacia una habitación ártica, cerrada y oscura. Hace 25 años, el hombre que reemplazó el lema "jódete" por el "estoy jodido" se colgó del techo de su casa.

L'obiettivo della presenta tesi consta in una ricerca approfondita nell'ambito della musica indipendente italiana degli anni Novanta, a partire dalla fine degli anni Ottanta tramite le sperimentazioni Post-Punk e successivamente New Wave, fino ai primi anni del nuovo millennio tramite l'Alt-Rock ed il Post-Rock. In particolare attenzione è posto il lavoro effettuato dal gruppo  Marlene Kuntz, di precipuo interesse nell'ambito delle novità apportate al genere ed alle modificazioni effettuate negli anni successivi al loro maggior successo tramite un lavoro di riarrangiamento dei loro brani musicalmente più importanti, in un contesto più intimo e lontano dalle scelte originarie del frastuono del genere.

Written as a member of the Goldsmiths 2017 Spatial Biopolitics Collective in the soon-to-be published book, "The Crack-Up" approaching from various angles Deleuze and Guattari's invocation of F. Scott Fitzgerald's short story of the same name. Taking a relatively literal analysis of Fitzgerald's use of the term in relation to alcoholism, this paper extends the line of narcoanalytical inquiry into the socio-cultural, economic and biopolitical implications of cocaine and - of course - crack, itself. Where crack(-up)/s appear, that would normally be thought to divide, so apparently do folds and dissolves at the level of space, time and subject/object. Accordingly, the revelation of divisions but also connections where one had previously thought none to be begins to suggest that an inherently flawed - cracked - system of capitalist perpetuation and perpetuity may indeed contain within its own lines of flight.

"People pay to see other people believe in themselves." is a famous quote by Kim Gordon, the bassist, and vocalist of the legendary band Sonic Youth and it refers to the purpose and function of live music performance. Does the quote suggest the question: believe in themselves to be what? And Gordon´s answer to that (which is manifest in her body of work, both musical and visual) is a rather interesting one and it has to do with her ambiguous position between genders, her gaze that alternates between female and male and never settles for either; she herself sees the gender in rock & roll as “androgynous”.
Coming from an art background, Gordon started in the early days of punk rock as one of the first significant female (alternative) rock musicians to come out of not only the New York music scene but also worldwide. She is a very special figure in the history of (alternative) rock music, who was and is strongly associated with the phenomenon of the “Riot Grrrl” movement and feminism in rock music, even though she never explicitly subscribed to it. She is simply a “Sonic Youthian Girl”, as the Spex magazine called her in 1993, that fits none of the categories of their classification of female musician “types” and hence deserves a category of her own.
And this special position she holds is connected to what she herself calls the “gut level”, which could be described as the special “material” quality of her lyrics, that is displayed in the very unique interplay of words and sounds that is the music of Sonic Youth. This material quality, this specific energetic charge of her words is what makes them work on a level, that is neither (just) intellectual nor emotional and that allows us to approach her elusive concept of gender, that could be described as fluid and: “unobvious”. The article analyzes these aspects of Gordon´s lyrics using the methods of cognitive stylistics.

‘Is there anyone out there?’ is the title of a single released in 1986 by Mighty Mighty, a band based in the city of Birmingham, UK, and which achieved some success as part of the then burgeoning independent sector (Hesmondhalgh, 1997; Ogg, 2009; King, 2012). The lovelorn lyric captures youthful romantic angst but was more recently coined as a rhetorical challenge in the title of an exhibition. This exhibition sought to document aspects of the city’s music scene by focussing on the ‘Click Club’, a venue brand and alternative ‘disco’ night founded in the same year as this release by entrepreneurs Dave Travis and Steve Coxon. ‘Is there anyone out there?’ was a means of asking who was out there who might know about and contribute to an understanding of the Click Club and indeed, was there anyone else who would be interested in this as the subject of an exhibition?

The exhibition ‘“Is There Anyone Out There?': Documenting Birmingham’s Alternative Music Scene 1986-1990’ took place at the Parkside Gallery, Birmingham City University, in May 2016. In a mould now familiar to popular music heritage practice then, it was a means of retrieving the intangible culture of the Click Club and celebrating its 30th anniversary. For the author, by no means incidentally an original attendee, involvement in the origination and curation of this exhibition presented a number of research opportunities regarding popular music heritage.  It allowed an exploration of the club’s wider place in the culture and economy of the city and assessment of its significance for original attendees. As an experience and exploration of curation as public history practice, developing the exhibition also prompted questions about the nature of visitor engagement and responses to music heritage as concept and event.

This chapter first outlines some salient historical detail about the Click Club and the origins of this exhibition, which lies in the formation of an online archive and community. The process is contextualized in relation to current scholarly perspectives on popular music heritage, archives, history and memory as a reflection on curation as research method. The chapter then explores empirical encounters with this music heritage activity. It seeks to understand the nature of the experiences this exhibition offered in terms of the memories and sensibilities engendered that are particular to this historical case, a wider music culture and its heritage practices in general. The primary question concerned with experience here asks: what is the affective nature of the sounds, artefacts and mediations of the past and how do these have meaning for consumers?

Similarly to rock music, the rock memoir has long been considered a male genre by both the general public and publishers. It might well be claimed that throughout the years there have been many seminal female rock performers, yet only a few of them gained well deserved recognition and engaged the minds of wider audiences. The history of rock had been predominantly a (his)story until 2012 and the publication of Patti Smith’s Just Kids, a female rock memoir which paved the way for many other women thus far silenced by the male-oriented genre. This paper seeks to delve into some of the female rock narratives in order to analyze the ways in which their authors construct their stories and their authorial selves. It also points to those territories of the music industry and the rock memoir which female performers strive to enrich or reclaim by the acts of writing and performing.

Los Bichos fueron uno de los primeros grupos de rock alternativo e indie que surgieron en España en los ochenta. Liderados por Josetxo Ezponda, Los Bichos mostraban influencias de The Velvet Underground o Nick Cave, y suponían una propuesta novedosa dentro de la escena española, convirtiéndose en icono de culto para generaciones posteriores. Los Bichos poseían características que autores como Matthew Bannister (2006a) atribuyen al indie anglosajón: el archivalismo (la obsesión por el coleccionismo de música) y la construcción de un canon alternativo mediante él, y la utilización del ruido y la estética lo-fi. Bannister (2006b) señala que los grupos del indie anglosajón articularon una masculinidad que utilizaba la melancolía y el victimismo para rearticular el patriarcado. Este discurso es observable en el caso de Los Bichos. El objetivo de este artículo es analizar cómo Los Bichos articularon el discurso de género señalado por Bannister a través de su música, su imagen y su performance, utilizando material hemerográfico y canciones del grupo como Verano muerto o To know me is to love me. Para ello, se utiliza una metodología interdisciplinar que combina los estudios culturales, de género y la musicología aplicada a las músicas populares urbanas.

Son  pocos  los  ejemplos  de  grupos  de  rock  que incorporen  mujeres fuera    del    papel    de    cantante,    siendo    éstas    relegadas    a    instrumentos “acompañantes” como la batería o, especialmente, el bajo.  No  ocurre  así  en  el caso de Dover,  donde  encontramos  que  las  hermanas  Llanos  no  son  solo  las guitarristas  del  grupo,  sino  también  las  líderes  y  encargadas  de  la  composición de las canciones, lo que otorga a esta banda un doble interés desde la óptica de los  estudios  de  género.  En  este  artículo  se  busca  analizar  el  caso Dover atendiendo  a  una  combinación  de  los  estudios de  género  con  la  musicología propia  de  las  músicas  populares  urbanas.  Así,  se  tratará  de  indagar  en  la utilización  de  la  guitarra  eléctrica  por  parte  de  las  integrantes  de  la  banda, discutiendo  la  transgresión  que  esto  pudiese  implicar.  Por  otro  lado,  se ha atendido  a  cuestiones  relacionadas  con  el  ámbito  armónico,  aplicando  la propuesta de análisis de rock alternativo de Chris McDonald, al tema  ‘Devil came to me’ del álbum de mismo nombre publicado en 1997 y con el que la banda alcanzó su mayor número de ventas.

Una de los hitos más delirantes de la historia de la música pop fue el 14 de agosto de 1995, cuando la prensa inglesa, desde la BBC hasta los diarios sensacionalistas, cubrieron como gran tema país el lanzamiento de los respectivos nuevos singles de Blur y Oasis.Aunque los implicados reconocerían después que tanto escándalo por un single nuevo fue un montaje de sellos y prensa, también funcionó com coronación mediática del BritPop.

2015. In: Ignácz, Ádám ed. Műfajok, stílusok, szubkultúrák. Tanulmányok a magyar populáris zenéről. Budapest: Rózsavölgyi és Társa, 181-192.

A címben feltett, látszólag naiv kérdés a zene-, illetve általában a kultúrakutatásban jól ismert alternatív-populáris, művészi-szórakoztató, mainstream-underground, autonóm-heteronóm szembenállással kapcsolatos elméleti dilemmákra utal. Előadásomban a 21. századi magyar alternatív zene szférájához kapcsolódó jelenségeken keresztül vizsgálom a zenei műfajkategóriák konstrukciójának diszkurzív, mediatizált és kollektív-társas folyamatát. Vizsgálom egyrészről az alternatív rock és a népzene olyan típusú összefonódásait, amelyet legismertebb formában a Csík zenekar képvisel. Röviden reflektálok továbbá az alternatív közszolgálati médián keresztül történő „mainstreamesítésének” specifikus, a „művészi zene” diskurzusára is támaszkodó folyamatára, kimondottan az újrapozicionált MR2 Petőfi Rádió szerepére összpontosítva, beleértve a Red Bull Liszt Remix és az MR2 Szimfonik projekteket. A bemutatott példák elméleti hozadéka a populáris zene tudományos vizsgálatához elengedhetetlen dinamikus és kritikai reflexió hangsúlyozása a műfajok, stílusok kategóriáira és azok használatára vonatkozóan.

В статье рассматривается влияние творческого наследия Шекспира на современную альтернативную рок-музыку. Автор отмечает особое значение феномена шекспиросферы для развития современной массовой культуры.
The article examines the influence of Shakespeare’s creative heritage on contemporary alternative rock music. The author points out a special importance of the phenomenon of the Shakespearean sphere for the development of modern mass culture.

Este trabalho propõe discutir o uso ou a ausência, acertos e possíveis erros, estratégias e as ferramentas de comunicação utilizadas no rock independente brasileiro centrando a pesquisa em dois selos1 de renome do cenário brasileiro. Um, o Midsummer Madness, com mais de 25 anos de existência; e outro, a Balaclava Records, mais recente, que busca novas ideias para o mercado com bases oriundas de um comportamento mais empresarial e menos artístico. O foco aqui é analisar como ambos, separados por décadas de nascimento, trabalham a comunicação com seus públicos (em geral, o mesmo), um tipo de imagem institucional e com a imprensa. Lembrando que selos indies por definição são formados no lema do punk rock o DIY (“Do It Yourself”), e assim, possuem poucos fundos e pouca mão de obra disponível.
Serão analisados possíveis paralelos entre eles e alguns dos selos mais emblemáticos da história da música indie como a 4AD e a Creation Records, dois selos ditos “de autor”. Se estes serviram como “modelo” para os brasileiros e como o pioneirismo de Ivo Watts-Russel e Alan McGee (respetivamente os chefões da 4AD e da Creation) ajudou a impulsionar o surgimento e a manutenção dos aqui estudados. Neste sentido, comentar-se-á o trabalho de divulgação, de formação de imagem e conversa com o público e a imprensa, e no que acertariam/falhariam nessas questões. Sempre levando em consideração as dificuldades citadas acima e assumidas quando se trata de um projeto indie.
Palavras-chave: indie, comunicação, imagem, mercado.

Héroes del Silencio ha sido una de las bandas de rock más destacadas del panorama musical español de los noventa. En el presente trabajo hemos abordado el estudio de su producción atendiendo al discurso de género subyacente en ella. Así, hemos podido observar una relación entre dicho discurso y las prácticas musicales y performativas llevadas a cabo por el grupo a lo largo de su carrera. Héroes del Silencio comenzaron enmarcándose dentro de un estilo cercano al pop que presentaba una masculinidad no hegemónica, cercana al concepto de boy expuesto por Freya Jarman-Ivens e Ian Biddle (2007). Más adelante, el grupo reorientó su propuesta hacia un rock más duro, calificado de “épico” por la crítica y parecido al de ciertas bandas anglosajonas
del momento, como U2. En ese proceso, Héroes de Silencio configuraron una identidad de género cercana a lo que Connell (2005 [1995]) denomina como masculinidad hegemónica, con una performance que encajaba dentro de los patrones del cock rock. La inclusión dentro de las escenas del rock hizo que la banda se centrara en aspectos como el directo o la incorporación de elementos sonoros como la guitarra eléctrica con distorsión. La legitimación de Héroes del Silencio dentro del rock se vio dificultada por el empleo de artificio que comportaba el estilo de canto de Enrique Bunbury. Este artificio era un factor disruptivo de la masculinidad, ya que ésta se supone, como señala Halberstam
(2008 [1998]), de carácter natural o no construida. Igualmente, hemos
considerado relevante analizar cómo la feminidad era presentada por el grupo, ya que estos la articulaban según la visión normativa de ella. De este modo, el caso de Héroes del Silencio nos ha sido útil para observar cómo, como señala Connell (2000), las estrategias del patriarcado permean las escenas culturales a nivel global.

R.E.M. es una institución en la música pop contemporánea. Una banda que pasó del circuito college (universitario) directo a las multiventas, sin transar absolutamente nada. Y en plenos noventa, mientras las nuevas bandas imitaban su música y actitud, decidieron jugar un poco con la distorsión y la electrónica. R

The current Bulgarian alternative music scene is divided internally and externally by various factors. After 1989, Bulgarian alternative bands intentionally moved astray from pro-Russian affiliation and Bulgarian musical idioms and quickly adopted the English language as a basic composing language. This situation was enhanced by the super image of Western bands and their unreachable international success and geographical distance. This created a kind of aura around foreign musicians and their music, a status of non-approachability where they are never to be criticized, their melodies never to be altered. This attitude is based on many psychological factors and led to the current state where the alternative scene in Bulgaria has morphed into a schizophrenic place which praises any foreign material while severely scrutinizing any Bulgarian songs and artists. The abyss created in this way lures bands into playing covers also due to the gradual and persistent club domination over the years and clubs' lack of responsibility towards forming a stable club audience and club community. All of these factors led to the alternative music's decline in Bulgaria and the identity emigration of the Bulgarian alternative music scene. Introduction The current Bulgarian alternative music scene is one divided internally and externally by various factors. Internally it suffers from lack of leaders and mentors to communicate change and new symbols between different rock alternative generations and build a stable rock community. The chaotic reinvention of what alternative music stands for through the years led to three separate generation emigration waves among musicians. These can be categorized as physical, virtual and identity emigration waves and they continue up to the current moment. Externally what divides the alternative music scene in Bulgaria is the prevailing mainstream music in the media and in the musical reality TV formats, concerts of big international stars combined with numerous musical festivals abroad with qualitative line-up. Despite the fact that according to Walker limited resources and scarcity can provoke creativity [1] in the recent years the alternative scene has shrunk rather than matured in Bulgaria. This resulted in an even greater state of imitation on the alternative scene rather than bands exploiting the situation to their benefit. This identity emigration led to a schizophrenic state which is the problem that the following article dwells upon. The article also poses the questions of how and when Bulgarian identity became unappealing to the local alternative scene, how music is used to create imaginary worlds and musical autobiography and finally how clubs in Bulgaria further facilitate this escapism by their playlist choice and club suggestion. The methods used are of complex nature and an interdisciplinary approach is applied. The current research is based upon a three-year doctoral anthropological terrain conducted in the period 2014-2016 which includes inclusive observation, attendance of more than 100 events and concerts on the alternative Bulgarian scene, case studies, in-depth interviews with more than 70 representatives of the alternative scene such as active and non-active musicians, event managers, PRs, journalists, club owners and audience. The article summarizes some of the final conclusions from the doctoral

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Pourquoi Jarmusch a-t-il eu besoin de faire un film de vampires ? Qu’a-t-il de nouveau et d’original à dire sur ce vieux thème ? Je montre dans cet article la manière dont Jarmusch marie son amour du rock « alternatif » avec le thème vampirique, et la manière dont l’un renouvelle l’autre.

The relationship between Laibach and Rammstein is a dialectical one, which no serious interrogation of either band can, at this point, ignore. The bands share a musical and aesthetic palette, and an affiliation with a totalitarian aesthetics produced through a performance of Germanicity. The link between the two groups opens a space from which it is possible to identify ongoing conversations on the intersections between power, ideology, capitalism, and popular culture, specifically pop and rock music. How the two groups – one wildly successful on the global mainstream rock stage as well as the goth/industrial music scene which spawned it;  the other a darling of critics, intellectuals, and assorted cultivators of angst – connect and intersect provides the semblance of a debate; one that hangs between Laibach’s rigidly constructed identity as embodiment of critique, and Rammstein’s identity as globally successful German rock band and brand.

The current club situation in Bulgaria is one that started unfolding in the late 1980s with the gradual fall of communism and the emergence of many alternatives to the official mainstream bands. What followed after the abrupt end of the regime was an emigration wave of musicians followed by the opening of various clubs and bars and the first steps of music business together with the launching of many independent music projects. What the article examines is the way English language has invaded this particular sphere of entertainment influencing band names, bar names, and lyrics. The article is examining the reasons that lie behind this peculiar and persistent Bulgarian identity crisis, the accompanying identity emigration, English language saturation, and how these factors came to shape the current Bulgarian alternative music scene. A semantic and linguistic analysis of the names of the most popular clubs and bands will be provided and a few conclusions as to the reasons behind this overall trend will be offered supported by findings from the science of suggestology, sociology, and anthropology. The methods used are inclusive observation, anthropological interviews, rich ethnographic materials, and other methods.