Youth Culture in Britain

      Two groups emerged, one identifying with Marlon Brando's image in The Wild One and with the Hells Angels, hanging around transport cafes, projecting nomadic romanticism, violence, anti-authoritarianism and anti-domesticity; the other being non-riders, similar in image but less involved in the cult of the motorbike.

      Heartland rock faded away as a recognized genre by the early 1990s, as rock music in general, and blue collar and white working class themes in particular, lost influence with younger audiences, and as heartland's artists turned to more personal works. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

      3 THE MUSIC OF THE YOUTH 
 

      Music is an essential part of British culture. The need and appreciation for music is evident in the everyday lives of people for it is heard in movies, on television and throughout all forms of audio media. The majority of people also choose to listen to music for pleasure so it is not surprising, considering the bombardment of music one is faced with, that music can be an instrument of social influence and change. Music is a powerful form of communication. It can be personal, political, opportunistic, and can be self-expressive with therapeutic effects due to the release of emotion.

      Music is an indicator of the multi-cultural nature of Britain today. First the Beatles who arrived on the Liverpool music scene in the early 60's creating a huge controversial craze among their fans known as Beatle Mania, then Sex Pistols and Ramones, who inspired British youth with Punk and Led Zeppelin with their invention of Heave Metal. However there are many more different kinds of music (musical genres) that have helped shape British youth.

      3.1 Punk-Rock

 
 

      The noun punk these days usually refers to followers of punk culture and music. Punk Rock was started as a deliberate reaction against the mass commercialism of music. It began in New York in the early 1970's, then unknown artists like Patti Smith, the Velvet Underground, and the Dolls of New York (changed later to New York Dolls) and Television started to do their own thing with aggressive lyrics, confrontational performances and anger against consumerism. Malcolm McLaren having failed to hit the big time in America came to the UK and teamed up with his friend Bernie Rhodes. In London they met and managed The Sex Pistols. Their anarchistic view of the world made them instant celebrities. With spiked hair, tattered clothes, and safety pins as jewelry, they frequented talk shows and publicly badmouthed fellow artists, bands, and musicians. They spoke harshly of the British class system and the subjugation of the working class. They made news for concert violence, spitting at and fighting with fans. John Lydon - formerly Johnny Rotten - became the figurehead for a disillusioned generation, The Sex Pistols proved that you did not need to be able to play an instrument to be in a band - you just had to have something to say [6, p. 71].

      Punk rock bands often emulate the bare musical structures and arrangements of 1960s garage rock. Typical punk rock instrumentation includes one or two electric guitars, an electric bass, and a drum kit, along with vocals. Punk rock songs tend to be shorter than those of other popular genres - on the Ramones' debut album, for instance, half of the fourteen tracks are under two minutes long. Most early punk rock songs retained a traditional rock 'n' roll verse-chorus form and 4/4 time signature. Punk rock vocals sometimes sound nasal, and lyrics are often shouted instead of sung in a conventional sense, particularly in hardcore styles. The vocal approach is characterized by a lack of variety; shifts in pitch, volume, or intonational style are relatively infrequent. Complicated guitar solos are considered self-indulgent and unnecessary, although basic guitar breaks are common. Guitar parts tend to include highly distorted power chords or barre chords, creating a characteristic sound described as a "buzzsaw drone".

      3.1 Britpop

 
 

      Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s. The movement developed as a reaction against various musical and cultural trends in the late 1980s and early 1990s, particularly the grunge phenomenon from the United States. In the wake of the musical invasion into the United Kingdom of American grunge bands, new British groups such as Suede and Blur launched the movement by positioning themselves as opposing musical forces, referencing British guitar music of the past and writing about uniquely British topics and concerns. These bands were soon joined by others including Oasis, Pulp, Supergrass, Sleeper and Elastica [7, p. 133].

      Britpop groups brought British alternative rock into the mainstream and formed the backbone of a larger British cultural movement called Cool Britannia. Although its more popular bands were able to spread their commercial success overseas, especially to the United States, the movement largely fell apart by the end of the decade.

      As the movement began to slow down, many acts began to falter and broke up. The popularity of the pop group the Spice Girls has been seen as having "snatched the spirit of the age from those responsible for Britpop." While established acts struggled, attention began to turn to the likes of Radiohead and The Verve, who had been previously overlooked by the British media. These two bands - in particular Radiohead - showed considerably more esoteric influences from the 1960s and 1970s, influences that were uncommon among earlier Britpop acts

      Britpop has a subgenre called Madchester. This is a substyle of Britpop defined by a percolating sixteenth-note dance groove and chunky guitars. Noted Madchester bands are The Charlatans U.K., Ned's Atomic Dustbin, and Jesus Jones. 
 

      3.2 Glam Rock 
 

      Glam rock was a peculiarly British phenomenon, a style of rock music popularised in the 1970s, which approached music with a get dressed up and be freaky attitude, distinguished by the wild costumes and otherworldly stage acts of the performers rather than any particular aspect of their music. The emphasis was on superficiality and an antethesis to the music of Genesis and Pink Floyd whose music was often referred to by critics as art rock. Glam rock visuals peaked during the mid 1970s with artists including T. Rex, David Bowie, Roxy Music and Gary Glitter in the UK and New York Dolls, Lou Reed and Jobriath in the US.

      What concerns the sound of Glam Rock, this genre was characterized by simple drum patterns played with precision, guitar laden melodies often relying on riffs, a catchy or gimmicky chorus that was written to be memorable and lyrics that can be interpreted many ways - most often sexually [12, p. 68].

      3.3 Gothic rock

 
 

      Gothic rock (also referred to as goth rock or simply goth) is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes. The genre itself was defined as a separate movement from punk rock during the early 1980s largely due to the significant stylistic divergences of the movement; gothic rock, as opposed to punk, combines dark, often keyboard-heavy music with introspective and depressing lyrics. Notable gothic rock bands include Bauhaus, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Cocteau Twins, The Cure, The Sisters of Mercy, Virgin Prunes, Sex Gang Children, Christian Death and many others. Gothic rock gave rise to a broader goth subculture that includes clubs, fashion and numerous publications that grew in popularity in the 1980s [16, p. 190].

      The gloom and doom of Goth is best exemplified by the style's flagship group, Bauhaus. Bauhaus combined a number of influences including punk music, glam rock, and Krautrock even funk and dub to create a gloomy and introspective sound which appealed to many fans left disillusioned by the New Wave that arose in the wake of punk's collapse. Their sound proved influential, inspiring or bringing attention to a whole wave of post-punk groups delving into the intense, gloomy style that would eventually come to be known as gothic rock. Its crucial elements included Peter Murphy's deep and sonorous voice, Daniel Ash's innovative guitar playing and David J's dub-influenced bass. 
 

      3.5 Dance Music 
 

      Many people associate dance music only with free all night parties and festivals (Raves), use of dance drugs (to keep dancing all night long), Acid Houses etc.

      However the first dance music brought to Britain had nothing common with these things. Ska music came from Jamaica. It became very popular there and then traveled across to the United Kingdom when people migrated for economic reasons from the West Indies during the 1950s and 60s. Ska music fuses elements of traditional Jamaican mento and calypso music with a rhythm and blues sound. It was welcomed by the British public for its infectious fun, and quickly became a chart topper. Today Ska is still going but seems to be returning to its roots as more and more bands play full blown traditional ska.

      Bhangra was another music genre, originated as a dance from the farms in the Punjab region of India. Historically the dance was performed to traditional Indian music to celebrate a harvest, or a big village event, like a wedding. But for the past couple of decades Bhangra has also been a music sensation in the UK where it is a fusion of traditional Indian music and modern music styles. Bhangra lyrics generally cover social issues, such as love, relationships, money, dancing, getting drunk and marriage. Bhangra singers employ a high, energetic tone of voice. Singing fiercely and with great pride, they typically add nonsensical, random noises to their singing [12, p. 168].

      Next important musical genre was Soca. Orginated in Trinidad, it is a sort of fusion between Calypso and soul music. It is a lively, energetic mixture of rhythm, movement and the sort of lyrics that get the listeners into a carnival mood.

      Derived from the word technology, the industrial, hard sound of techno, heavy, raw, repetitive beats came to Britain in late 80's. Associated with the rave parties held in warehouses or the middle of a field all add to the 'Techno' culture of rebelliousness. It is characterized by a stripped-down aesthetic that exploits the use of repetition, and understated development.

      House music is a style of electronic dance music that originated in Chicago, Illinois, United States in the early 1980s. It was initially popularized in mid-1980s discos in the United Kingdom. House music is based on four-by-four dance structure, popularized by disco, frequent use of a prominent bass drum on every beat, and may feature a prominent synthesizer bassline, electronic drums, electronic effects, funk and pop samples, often with reverb or delay effects applied to the vocals [13, p. 14].

      Next to techno and house came British Garage music. It was the genre of music that reflects a style as well as a sound, designer labels abound such as Red or Dead. Influenced by Soul, Drum and Bass and House Music it combines rhythm, funk and energy into an easy to dance to mix.  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

      4. MODERN TENDENCIES IN YOUTH CULTURE IN BRITAIN 
 

      Today most of the youth cultures in Britain still exist in more or less widespread way. Of course such subcultures as Teddy Boys are barely represented but such as Punks still exist and shaped into commercial industry without any past ideas and ideals. 
 

      4.1 Hippies 
 

      Ever since the explosion of "Flower Power" in Summer 67, the British people were aware of the Hippy movement, or as it is now more frequently called, "The Underground". Attitudes to the hippies have varied from amused fascination to angry revulsion. Many people have grown more hostile to them over the past two years, as their emphasis on such harmless-sounding words as "Love" and "Beautiful People" has declined, and their tendency to smoke pot has become more widely publicised.

      In Britain the occupation of 144 Piccadilly confirmed the hippies' bad reputation - though the occupiers were not typical of the Underground by any means. TV news announcers put on their frowns for this item, were careful to identify the occupation with soccer hooliganism (both were "violence to property"), and equally careful to avoid dragging in irrelevant details like the fact of empty houses alongside homeless people.

      A wave of horror swept the country at the realisation that there were people who not only wore long hair (and obviously smelt foul, as anyone could see by looking at their TV screens), but actually believed they had a right to live without working.

      The hippy phenomenon is a movement, a set of attitudes, a subculture or a nuisance, according to point of view. It consists of several hundred thousand people, drawn mostly from the working class, in the advanced regions of Capitalism. It is vaguely defined, fuzzy-edged - no one can draw up a hippy manifesto; no one can specify who is a hippy and who isn't. It differs from country to country: in America, for example, there are relatively fewer semi-hippies or weekend hippies than in Britain, for the simple reason that long hair is a much greater obstacle to getting a job in the States than in Europe [16, p. 42].

      Hippies are predominantly under-thirties. They have an unorthodox pattern of drugs consumption - mostly pot, with occasional recourse to acid ("pot" is now common parlance for cannabis(marihuana), and acid for lysergic acid (LSD) and minor use of amphetamines and other pills. hippies possess a typical style of appearance: long hair, casual-to-scruffy clothes, beads, etc. Like all minority groups they have their own language: "mind-blowing" (stimulating to the point of powerful hallucination); "hang-up" (unfortunate disturbance of tranquillity); "fuzz" (policemen), and so forth. Hippies are preoccupied with certain forms of art, for example beat music accompanied by displays of coloured, flashing lights. Hippies often show a greater than average susceptibility to superstition. They are generally against established "organised religion," but fall for all sorts of religious and mystical clap-trap which have an exotic flavour; astrology, transcendental meditation, palmistry, sunspots, or Krishna-consciousness. Lastly, many hippies advocate a revolutionary change in society, though both the manner of achieving this, and the nature of their proposed new system, (sometimes described as "tribal" or "communitarian") are extremely vague.  
 

      4.2 Goths 
 

      The goth subculture is a contemporary subculture found in many countries. It began in England during the early 1980s in the gothic rock scene, an offshoot of the Post-punk genre. The goth subculture has survived much longer than others of the same era, and has continued to diversify. Its imagery and cultural proclivities indicate influences from the 19th century Gothic literature along with horror films and to a lesser extent the BDSM culture.

      The goth subculture has associated tastes in music, aesthetics, and fashion. Gothic music encompasses a number of different styles including Gothic rock, Darkwave, Deathrock, Ethereal, Neo-Medieval and Neoclassical. Styles of dress within the subculture range from deathrock, punk and Victorian style attire, or combinations of the above, most often with dark attire, makeup and hair.

      Gothic rock typically deals with dark themes addressed through lyrics and the music atmosphere. The poetic sensibilities of the genre led gothic rock lyrics to exhibit literary romanticism, morbidity, religious symbolism, and/or supernatural mysticism.

      Goth fashion is stereotyped as a dark, sometimes morbid, eroticized fashion and style of dress. Typical gothic fashion includes dyed black hair, dark eyeliner, black fingernails, black period-styled clothing; goths may or may not have piercings. Styles are often borrowed from the Elizabethan, Victorian or medieval period and often express pagan, occult or other religious imagery such as pentacles or ankhs. The extent to which goths hold to this style varies amongst individuals as well as geographical locality, though virtually all Goths wear some of these elements. Fashion designers, such as Alexander McQueen and John Galliano, have also been described as practicing "Haute Goth". Goth fashion is often confused with heavy metal fashion: outsiders often mistake fans of heavy metal for goth, particularly those who wear black trench coats or wear "corpse paint" (a term associated with the black metal music scene) [4, p. 12]. 
 

      4.3 Emo 
 

      Emo emerged from the hardcore punk scene of early-1980s, both as a reaction to the increased violence within the scene and as an extension of the personal politics espoused by Ian MacKaye of Minor Threat, who had turned the focus of the music from the community back towards the individual.

      Since 80s emo passed long way and several waves of popularity and underground. It broke into the mainstream media in the summer of 2002. In the wake of punk success, many emo bands were signed to major record labels and the style became a marketable product.

      Today emo is commonly tied to both music and fashion as well as the emo subculture. Usually among teens, the term "emo" is stereotyped with wearing slim-fit jeans, sometimes in bright colors, and tight t-shirts (usually short-sleeved) which often bear the names of emo bands. Studded belts and black wristbands are common accessories in emo fashion. Some males also wear thick, black horn-rimmed glasses.

      The emo fashion is also recognized for its hairstyles. Popular looks include long side-swept bangs, sometimes covering one or both eyes. Also popular is hair that is straightened and dyed black. Bright colors, such as blue, pink, red, or bleached blond, are also typical as highlights in emo hairstyles. Short, choppy layers of hair are also common. This fashion has at times been characterized as a fad. In the early 2000s, emo fashion was associated with a clean cut look, but as the style spread to younger teenagers, the style has become darker, with long bangs and emphasis on the color black replacing sweater vests.

      Emo has been associated with a stereotype that includes being particularly emotional, sensitive, shy, introverted, or angst-ridden. It has also been associated with depression, self-injury, and suicide [9, p. 44]. 
 

      4.4 The problem of youth music and culture commercialization 
 

      Music and culture are well-known agents of socialization and carrier of youth. As soon as music and culture fall under corporate control, there is a very serious danger that these functions will be abused. Just as national anthems and hymns are used to reinforce loyalty to countries or religions, multinationals use music and culture to reinforce corporate loyalty. The jingles used in television commercials are an obvious example of this.

      The control of the worldwide culture industry has become increasingly concentrated in the hands of a few very influential multinational corporations over the past several decades. These major powers have been very successful in gaining control of markets all over the world that were previously dominated by relatively small local companies or organizations. An obvious result of these developments has been the global commercialization of subcultures and music, something which has very negative consequences. This commercialization tends to homogenize the diverse musical styles of the world and to marginalize those subcultures that do not fit into the recording industry's preconceptions of what will sell. The ultimate goal of these companies is to make as much of a profit as possible, not to be considerate of the social or artistic issues surrounding subcultures.

      The institution of mass culture, standardization and mass production leads to homogenization and a decreasing number of cultural forms available to audiences. Corporations attempt to institute structured obsolescence and rhythmic cycles of style in order to maximize sales while minimizing costs. As Howard Koval has written, "old ideas are repeated over and over again and thus culture is no longer characterized by diversity but is reduced to the repetition of a relatively narrow spectrum of forms and ideas which change slowly and with great resistance." This use of repetitive stereotypes and mechanical formulae is hardly conducive to free artistic or cultural expression [5, p. 37].

      One of the most important problems with the commercialization of music is that it limits the freedom of musicians to produce music that inspires them and that is relevant to them. It also takes away the power of choice from the public by limiting the options available to them and by conditioning them to respond to consciously manufacturing trends. The cultural independence of different regions of the world are subordinated to mainstream Western culture, replacing musical diversity with homogeneity. The marketing strategies used by the giants of the industry stereotype and trivialize some styles of music and remove them from their cultural context and significance [6, p. 274].