The influence of subcultures on fashion can not be overestimated - it is not worth once again to expand on what role fashion, glam rock, punk and Vivienne Westwood parties of the 70s, hip-hop and or grunge of the 90s played in this. Many designers from the mid-1960s to the present day are inspired by the style of individual communities united by a cultural code, ideology and appearance (the fashion industry has always strived to unite people in this way). Now, quite non-obvious examples have come into play. We talk about not the most famous, but influential subcultures - from Mexican cholos to psychedelic adepts of the 1970s - and how they influenced today's fashion trends.
Text: Alena Belaya
Cholo
The roots of the cholo subculture are in the younger generation of immigrants from Mexico who settled in the United States a generation or two ago. Initially, the term was used to refer to the local population of South and Central America, but in the 1960s, "cholo" began to refer to the working class Mexicans living in the States and representatives of their civil rights movement Chicano Movement. Actually, at the same time, in the 1960s, the designation "cholo" was picked up by criminal youth and began to be used for self-identification - this is how an independent subculture was formed.
At first, only guys belonged to cholo, they wore baggy pants, alcoholic T-shirts and sports sneakers (still among the popular cholo brands are Dickies, Ben Davis and Lowrider), but girls gradually picked up the style. In fact, the female version of the cholo differs only in make-up: arched tattooed eyebrows, lips outlined in dark pencil, cat eyes arrows, plus a characteristic hairstyle with a high pile above the forehead and a manicure that Lena Lenina herself would envy.
Cholo as a subculture took a lot from underground hip-hop, so Chola girls, for a sweet soul, hang themselves with golden trinkets of varying severity (but guys, by the way, not really). Gradually, from the urban culture of low-income areas of Los Angeles and San Diego, the cholo subculture became the mainstream, which was picked up first in pop culture (one of the first by Fergie and Gwen Stefani), then in fashion. As a result, stylist Mel Ottenberg sculpts a chola girl out of Rihanna, Dazed & Confused magazine shoots in the spirit of cholo, and designers dedicate collections to chola girls - remember at least Rodarte and Nasir Mazhar of the spring-summer 2014 season.
LGBT hip hop
LGBT hip-hop, or homo-hop as it is also called, appeared at the dawn of the 1990s in California. Initially, homo-hop was not positioned as a separate musical direction, but served to identify the LGBT community in the hip-hop scene. The term itself was introduced by Tim'm T. West, a member of the Deep Dickollective team. Loudly asserting itself in the 1990s, homo-hop died down for a while at the beginning of the new millennium (with the possible exception of the documentary “Pick Up the Mic” featuring the main homo-hop artists of our time), only to be revived with the advent of the 2010s.
The new generation of hip-hop artists not only did not hide their non-traditional sexual orientation (Frank Ocean was one of the first African-American performers to come out, and Azealia Banks does not hide her bisexual inclinations), but also actively supported LGBT people, often in texts. -movement. It is noteworthy that initially homo-hopers generally did not have any special distinctive signs in terms of clothing, and straight artists flirted with drag culture: from Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five to World Class Wreckin’ Cru. Nevertheless, some conservatives are sure that Kanye West and Trinidad James performing in skirts are the result of the spread of the gay movement in the hip-hop ranks, and no worse than Rihanna twerking in microshorts and bike shorts. Le1f- a living example of discrimination against masculinity in general and in hip-hop in particular.
Men's fashion in recent years has been generally striving to gradually blur gender boundaries - from the main conductor of street culture to the luxury industry, Ricardo Tisci, who took male models to the catwalk in skirts, ending with the latest men's shows. For example, Loewe under the new creative director Jonathan Anderson or the absolutely beautiful Christophe Lemaire, after watching which the girls make impressive wishlists.
Casuals
Casual was formed in the British subculture in the late 1980s, when football hooligans ditched fan uniforms in favor of designer pieces and expensive sportswear in order to attract police attention as little as possible. The style that casuals began to exploit appeared much earlier - back in the days of teddy fights in the 1950s and mods in the early 1960s. Having collected and digested the subcultural heritage of their predecessors, casuals have developed their own visual formula: Fiorucci straight-cut jeans, adidas, Gola or Puma sneakers, Lacoste polo shirt and Gabicci cardigan.
It is believed that the London hooligans were introduced to the European street fashion of that time by fans of the Liverpool football club, who accompanied their favorite team on all European trips and brought heaps of clothes from expensive sports brands (at that time - adidas or Sergio Tacchini). In the late 1990s, football fans gradually moved away from the original casual look, and expensive designer brands, in turn, removed from sale things associated with casual (in particular, Burberry faced a problem with their signature cage).
The movement began to experience another rise from the mid-2000s, and in our time, casuals are not even always devoted football phantoms, but the bow is still the same as it was at dawn: skinny jeans, a Palace T-shirt, a classic Reebok model. This image (let's designate it as “laconic and neat”) can be seen today on Topman mannequins, and on the catwalks of Burberry Prorsum and Paul Smith, and in the subcultural context, lad casual is called a substitute for heritage exploiting ultra-masculinity and sloppy hipsterism.
We have already talked about how great the influence of sports on modern fashion is: things that were originally intended for classes in a fitness club now fit quite organically into the urban environment, and heels are giving way to comfortable shoes like sneakers, sneakers and slip-ons. The history of the interpenetration of fashion and sports can be observed from the middle of the 19th century: in 1849, the Water-sure Journal published an article urging women to abandon the heavy crinolines that were fashionable at that time in favor of clothes that would give more freedom of movement. Two years later, the famous feminist Amelia Bloomer appeared in public in a knee-length skirt and wide trousers like Turkish harem pants, later named after her - bloomers.
However, bloomers experienced a real boom only in the 1890s, when women began to master the then popular cycling. Further, echoes of the sports theme appeared in the collections of Gabrielle Chanel (the same jersey material and models inspired by tennis uniforms), and Elsa Schiaparelli (her Pour le Sport collection), and later Emilio Pucci (ski clothes), Yves Saint Laurent (hunting suit, notably the Norfolk jacket), Azzedine Alaya and Roy Halston (top like bikini top), Karl Lagerfeld (surf-themed 1991 spring-summer collection for Chanel), Donna Karan (dresses from the early 1990s- x from neoprene) and many others.
Separately, in this chronology, it is worth highlighting the 1970s - the era when sports became an important and fashionable part of the lifestyle. By the end of the decade, everyone was literally obsessed with aerobics and jogging, not only for objective health reasons, but also because it was considered sexy, and fashion, in turn, became the platform where sports and sex merged into a single whole. So, in the field of fashion design, they began to actively use fleece, lycra, terry, polyurethane, parachute fabric, and girls wore plastic visors as a fashion accessory.
With the beginning of the new century, sport still ran like a red thread through fashion collections almost every season, but the next serious wave of popularity came in 2012, which many associate, in particular, with the London Olympics. Collaborations of sports brands with fashion designers began to appear with enviable popularity: adidas with Stella McCartney, Jeremy Scott and Mary Katranzu, Nike with Ricardo Tisci, and the catwalks were clearly influenced by sports style - just remember the collections of the same Stella McCartney FW 2012/ 2013 and SS 2013, Alexander Wang for his own brand in SS12 and this spring for Balenciaga, Givenchy as the main promoter of sweatshirts of all stripes, Prada and Emilio Pucci for SS14. In general, the list is endless. One thing is obvious - everything together has led to the fact that today sportswear is massively perceived inseparably from everyday life.
Psychedelia
Psychotropic drugs became a part of subcultural life in the USA and Great Britain in the mid-1960s: in general, the ideology of psychedelic adherents was expressed in opposition to the Western world of consumerism and, naturally, an attempt to escape from reality. After the “Summer of Love” that happened in 1967, the counterculture finally took shape in the hippie movement, which elevated not only the principles of peace and love, but also the widespread use of psychotropic substances, such as LSD, into a cult.
Staying in a state of altered consciousness, in particular, implied an exaggerated perception of colors, textures and pictures and significantly influenced the formation of a typical hippie image and the development of graphics: acid shades, smooth, as if flowing silhouettes, and textured fabrics were used. By the way, the popularity of the traditional Indian paisley pattern was explained by the same thing - during the drug trip, multi-colored "cucumbers" formed into cool pictures. In a word, all the dressing tricks served to make the psychedelic experiences even more spectacular.
Paraphernalia boutiques in New York and Granny Takes a Trip in London served as the main conduits of psychedel fashion, where they sold pieces designed by Thea Porter, Zandra Rhodes, Jean Muir and Ozzy Clark. The rave movement of the late 1980s, with its acid-colored T-shirts, hellish tie-dye and plastic jewelry, can be considered a legacy of psychedelics - all these tricks were once adopted by both Franco Moschino and Gianni Versace.
Psychedelic aesthetics has also not bypassed the fashion of the newest time - for the most part in the form of neon flowers, which since 2007 began to appear in collections with enviable constancy. However, not only them: if you think about it, the much-loved (today, however, not so much) kaleidoscopic digital prints are nothing more than echoes of psychedelic-friendly ornaments of the 1970s, as well as the return of tie-dye and 70s style generally. In particular, the widespread use of optical prints in this year's autumn collections.
Young people never want to be "like everyone else." It is not surprising that it was in England, which gave the world the highest quality rock in the world (and then pop music, of course, but this is a different story), that the very concept of “subculture” was born in the 50s. Although the “subculture” usually expresses the exact opposite of the ideas of morality and the laws of society, young people who wanted to express themselves also needed to somehow distinguish “us” from “them”, dividing according to musical, fashion and even life preferences. This phenomenon became especially widespread after the end of the war, when 70% of the young and cocky joined one group or another.
TEDA (or TEDDY)
Teds (in the Soviet Union, also known as "dudes") appeared on the wave of popularity of rock and roll in the 50s. Especially, of course, American rock and roll and British stars like Adam Faith and Cliff Richard. The style of clothing they chose was “Edwardian”, which meant: well-cut knee-length coats, pipe trousers, velvet collars, suede (or patent) pointy boots and lots and lots of hair gel to “get the right” cook. The ted girls wore pleated or pencil skirts, jeans rolled up to the knees, tight white shirts or T-shirts, elegant little handbags and cravats. Not surprisingly, the Teds, even from less wealthy families, became regulars at the tailors in Civil Row.
FASHIONS (or MODERNISTS)
In the 60s, the Tads were replaced by Mods, choosing as their style a mix of jazz modernists of the 50s and the tradition of not very wealthy people to dress more expensively than they can afford. Basically, the Mods aimed to look like middle-class businessmen. They wore exclusively Italian or custom-made clothes, cut their hair in Vidal Sasun salons, and drove Vespa scooters. In fact, the Mods were the forerunner of modern hipsters. By the way, we owe the fashion for skinny girls to them, who erected the Twiggy twig girl as an icon of style. Fashion for miniskirts, knee socks, and baggy sweaters / jackets - too.
As for musical preferences, for the Mods, the authority was black jazz, ska, well, and a couple of whites - what is there, let them be - for example, Small Faces, The Who and Kinks. The real mods introduced (sorry for the tautology) the use of methamphetamines, which allowed them to hang out all night long without leaving the dance floor.
RASTA
But we must not forget that not only whites have lived in England for many centuries. Afro-Caribbean Londoners of the late 60s chose Rastafarianism as their style. Most likely, of course, in spite of the whites - they can, but are we worse? Therefore, the streets of large cities were flooded with people with dreadlocks, dressed in something incomprehensible, but always bright, smoking ganjubas and loudly listening to reggae. То есть, пытались убедить окружающих, что ни фига они не то, что называют «вест-индийскими иммигрантами», а самые что ни на есть настоящие ниггеры со своей офигенной, бро, культурой. Unfortunately, such an open demonstration of their national identity often led to skirmishes and petty slaughter, and eventually gave rise to a current of ... Skins.
SKINS (or SKINHEADS)
You won't believe it, but initially, in the mid-60s, Skins appeared as a white alternative to Rust. Boys and girls from working-class (and only working-class) neighborhoods so admired the freedom of rastafarians that they also listened to reggae and ska. They just dressed differently: instead of bright clothes - straight indigo jeans (exclusively democratic brands Levi's, Lee or Wrangler) or what used to be called slacks, they wore only heavy Dr. Martens, and their hair was shaved bald, regardless of gender. Actually, where does the name come from - “leatherheads”. Just as an element of style, plaid shirts, denim jackets, thin suspenders and rolled up jeans were present, which became a kind of “calling card” of the style. Much later, football fans, known for their intolerance towards everything, in particular, towards people with a different skin color, hair length, joined the skins, and then this began ... By the way, if anyone is not in the know, white groups began to enjoy particular popularity among them, like Slade and then Madness.
HIPPIE
Peace and love, peace and love! Swinging from side to side, with a stupid stoned smile, the biggest pacifists in the world - hippies. Emerged in the mid-60s as a logical continuation of the American beatnik movement, the hippies reached their heyday in the early 70s. Initially protesting against puritanical church morality, the hippies propagated the desire to return to natural purity through love and pacifism (or indifference). One of the most famous hippie slogans: "Make love, not war!" And then there was the famous summer of love in 1967 in the form of the Woodstock festival, and a couple of years before that, the Isle of Wight festival began to function. They did not want to work and serve in the army for ethical reasons. Thanks to the Beatles, Buddhism was chosen as a religion (you can’t spoil your karma), drugs - LSD and other hallucinogens (to make the world seem more beautiful), and music - psychedelic rock (which gave rise to the use of hallucinogens).
PUNK
Oh, these young and reckless! Anarchists and gouging! Appeared in the mid-70s, as an alternative to any possible society in the world. Coming out, like many, from working-class districts, they positioned themselves as a “lost generation”, identified with alienation and anarchy in its extremely aggressive manifestations. The tone was set by Johnny Rotten of the Sex Pistols, in order to finally fix the image of renegades and renegades for the punks, they also had to dress accordingly: torn jeans, spiked boots and, most importantly, unimaginable mohawk hairstyles of all colors and shades. Malcolm McLaren, the group's manager, and his girlfriend Vivienne Westwood, who is now called the "grandmother of punk style", added fuel to the fire of fashion, releasing a whole collection of clothes for punks. As for the music that has grown into a whole trend, it must be admitted that for true punk, the worse the sound and the louder the cacophony, the more pleasant it is for the ear. The punks didn't bother learning to play instruments - you know which end to hold the guitar or drumsticks is enough. Although, it must be admitted that the punk band Clash recorded at least one, but a real hit.
NEW ROMANTICS
Emerged in the early 80s as part of the "new wave", the current had a noticeable impact on the development of the English pop and rock scene and was the only visible alternative to the ascetic and rough punk culture. Although it is difficult to call a “subculture” a direction that does not carry any social protest, but only glorifies glamor, bright styles and hedonism. Oh yes, exquisite clothes, unimaginable makeup, unusual hairstyles - that's glam rock in all its glory. By the way, David Bowie and Roxy Music, and then Spandau Ballet and Depeche Mode were considered the prince of the "new romantics". It is thanks to the "romantics" that music videos have become similar to what we see today. Unfortunately, it was the "new romantics" who introduced the fashion for androgynous men and no less asexual women, as well as the pretentious aristocracy, which we now call ... hmm ... naked show off (?)
GOTH
Appearing at the same time as the New Romantics, the Goth movement emerged directly from punk culture. Gothic rock - this completely non-auditable music, was born precisely thanks to these people who prefer to spend most of their lives in cemeteries, rolling their eyes and, if intellectual development allows, reading Edgar Allan Poe's poem "The Raven" from memory. Black clothes, black hair, dark make-up and piercings in all possible and impossible places are welcome. The basis of the movement is a passive protest against the prevailing cultural stereotypes, but the Goths have no single worldview. Although the Goths themselves position themselves as "non-militant", many sincerely believe that representatives of this subculture drink the blood of innocent babies at night.
CASUALS
The hand does not rise to write "casuals", to be honest. But who are they? Derived from the working class, of course, who appeared in the early 80s, they preferred to dress “like everyone else” (and this happens), but in clothes of good expensive brands like Fred Perry, Pringles, Ralph Laurent and Burburry. So what is their unusualness and subculture? Oh, this is a separate caste. A cast of football fans who don't want to be associated with skins. But the essence, to be honest, is the same. Football fans are known for their anti-social behavior - fighting during matches, throwing house checkers on the field and massacres after playing with fans of the opposing team. Of course, the police pay attention to the "ultras" dressed in the "colors" of the club and clothing brands popular with the English working class, such as Lonsdale, Ben Sherman and Dr. Martens. To avoid the close attention of the police, some of them stood out in a separate "caste", starting to dress in a civilian designer clothes (casual dress) or sportswear of expensive brands.
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“Fashion”, without exaggeration, is an incredible “cultural” phenomenon of our century.
You can always remain a “fashion”, the main thing is to move on an unbeaten path, constantly discovering new layers in music, clothing, literature and cinema. “Taking the most worthy from everywhere, they sought to create something previously unknown, something that cannot leave anyone indifferent. It is not surprising that among the mods themselves, the most worthy was considered the one who had the most exquisite wardrobe, the most interesting collection of records, the best library, the most developed mind. In terms of style, and fashion came from the so-called upper-working and lower-middle class (that is, from families of professional, highly paid workers and employees) - this is Dressing Up, brought to the absolute. In 1963, The Beatles exploded into music culture and "invented sex." Around the same time, fashion began to take shape as a purely teenage subculture with its own traditions, ideas and idols. The reason for all this is the post-war economic boom that England experienced in the fifties and sixties. As a result of the boom, young people have some free cash in their hands, and young minds are at the mercy of previously unknown problems - where to spend all this?
Both the Teddy Boys and the Beatniks found something to borrow from the first: from the first they inherited a heightened interest in the smallest details that turned almost into a mania, as soon as it came to fashion, thanks to the second, the stylishness of the “mods” acquired a clear minimalist bias. Combining these two components, "fashion" and got their own unique sharp image. The average Englishman, accustomed to more insipid things, had difficulty digesting this. “When everyone in England sang about free love, which was very ambiguous, fashions also turned out to be troublemakers - but for exactly the opposite reason. The feeling was that they were deeply indifferent to this problem. I think mods were by nature too self-centered to pair up.”
The search for mods for their own style was not limited to borrowing alone. In many ways, they went "from the contrary." Motto - "Moderation and accuracy!" Narrow-collared shirts, fitted suits, always white socks and neat hairstyles (usually “French” style). The last money was spent on getting the latest Italian fashion - whether it be clothes or a scooter - the main means of transportation for mods, unlike rockers. Moreover, the appearance was determined not only by material possibilities, there was also a lot of subtleties that prescribed what was possible and what was not (for example, such severity - with a certain width of the trousers, the distance between them and the boots should have been half an inch, and with a slightly larger width - already a whole inch ). The slightest oversight - and you turned into a universal laughing stock.
The main word in the “mod” lexicon was “obsessed”, borrowed from the “cult” mod novel by Colin McCleans “Absolute Beginners” (1958). This obsession was also in music - they absorbed like a sponge and modern jazz, and blues, and soul, it is unknown how leaked from black musicians in the States, and absolutely exotic things, like Jamaican ska music. Thus, a cross-cultural dialogue of subcultures was carried out. Moreover, the “mods” adopted from the blacks not only music, but also the jargon of the Jamaican “rudiz” and some other elements of style. They imitated Prince Baxter, the creator of many songs about the Rude Boys. In 1965, Baxter's song "Madness" caused a boom among mods - hence the name of the leading British band "ska". In the 1960s, the first multi-racial clubs appeared - "Ram Jam" in Bristol and others. Popular culture, having digested the "mod" radicalism and mixed it with the British beat and rhythm and blues, brought The Who and Small Faces to the top of the commercial success. Really innovative ensembles such as Action, Creation and The Eyes were left behind.
The image of “fashion”, thanks to the press, soon became really fashionable among a huge number of teenagers and, with its mass character, prepared a short-lived phenomenon that would be called “Swinging London” in the mid-sixties. In 1963-65, the famous confrontation between rockers and mods began in the seaside cities of England, and up to a thousand people sometimes participated in mass fights on both sides. If later ethnic minorities appeared as an enemy among the “skinheads”, then there was a struggle between social groups within society (rockers were, as a rule, from the lumpen strata of society, and listened to hard rhythm and blues, such as the Rolling Stones and "Kinks"). In connection with the mass distribution of the image, “real fashion” dissolves in the crowd in the literal sense of the word. In addition, with the release of the “Generation of Flowers” on the stage, the values have completely changed. And as Kevin Pierce wrote: “When everything was blown to the wind, those who once stood at the very source preferred “self-immolation” to “looting”. But their very spirit, the true mod spirit, turned out to be immortal. And the best proof of this is the punk "explosion" that broke out in the 70s, behind which one sees the shadow of old mods.
By 1979, when punk began to slow down, interest in what lies behind the very concept of “fashion” awakened with renewed vigor. This was largely due to the famous British musician Paul Weller and The Jam. But it just so happened that Weller went to his mod peak for ten years, finally connecting Debussy, The Beach Boys surf rock and The Swingle Swingers modern jazz on the last disc of the Style Council group. This is how Mod's obsession was molded into a new art form.
Modov's subcultural "Renaissance" in the 1978-1980s brought a new rise in the popularity of the Jamaican "ska" and "bluebit", as well as the songs of "rudiz". These times were not so good. 1979 Not long after the Winter of General Discontent, Thatcher came to power. Unemployment rose. This affected the appearance of punks, who became the reincarnation of old mods. There was no trace of the former neatness. The graceful lines of the fashionable Italian suit were replaced by semi-military khaki outfits tailored without much refinement. However, this casual style allowed for some variety. One of the options: a very thin tie, a cardigan, bleached pipe jeans, white socks and powerful shoes. Calling what is happening “the revival of mods”, “the press and researchers of youth subcultures did not understand one obvious thing: if there was any funny moment in this “revival”, then it was a moment, nothing more, but at the same time there was a whole process of learning, learning new things. And very, very many people were involved in this process.”
The eighties became the time for the subculture of “mods” to search for new forms. The music became more and more sophisticated. This process was fueled, on the one hand, by the re-release of the Negro “soul” classics of the 60s, and, on the other hand, by the activities of underground bands like The Jasmine Minks and The Claim. Fashions increasingly entered jazz territory, which, in the end, led to the creation of the famous Acid Jazz company. Eddie Piller, one of the co-owners of "Acid Jazz", in the early eighties dealt with a "mod" magazine, and a little later connected several "mod" record companies on one label (recording company). And now, in the nineties, without any exaggeration, you can call all this “funk jazz” a living embodiment of the very spirit of the old mods.
Well, what is happening in the nineties with the “mod” style is already just rampant pluralism and democracy. Even the word “mod” itself is no longer amenable to precise definitions. Thirty years of dominance of youth culture with an endless change of "epochs" and "styles" has done its job. There are so many “Mods” now that it is not possible to make an accurate description. The current music explosion in the UK has also contributed to this, the rise of the so-called “Britpop” - a musical direction in which rock bands (Oasis, Blur, Supergrass and Cast) have actually returned to the rhythm and blues sound of the “mods” of the sixties, only slightly making the sound heavier and faster, responding to the demands of the public, who want the music to be more politicized and aggressive. There are "Garage" mods in "psychedelic" shirts in poisonous colors, there are acid-jazz mods with sideburns and all in fancy white. There are Blur-mods (by the name of the group) in the "Adidas" suit. There are Mixer Mods, R&B mods, and Northern Soul Mods. Please note that within each of the named "units" there are "suborders". So, hardcore-style “mods” can be divided into at least four more categories! But with all this diversity, there is something that unites “fashion-96” with its predecessors. It also has its own "Zeitgeist" - that is, the spirit of the time, marked by certain political trends. A few years before that, “grunge” dominated the minds of young people. Not very attractive aesthetically, he became a sign of his difficult and stressful time. The new “fashions” gave their own stylistic response to this “aesthetic of decline and destruction”. The sporty style of the “new wave” and the elegance of the “new glam” are closer and dearer to them. The English beginning is beginning to take its toll. Here is what Adam, owner of Jump The Gun, a store in Brighton that sells products exclusively for mods, has to say about this: After a period of marked American influence, we are once again returning to traditional British values. Fashions, being a typically British phenomenon, is the best fit for these new needs.”
Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine
Sevastopol city humanitarian university
Faculty of Philology
Individual work on the course "History of England"
on the topic: "Youth subculture in modern Great Britain"
Completed:
Checked:
Content:
1. Introduction...................... ......................... ..... ............................. ............... .......3p.
2. The concept of youth subculture…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………….
3. Reasons for the emergence of a subculture…………………………..……..... 6p.
4. Classification of subcultures (table)…………..…………..……..…….. 8p.
5. The most common subcultures among modern British youth…………………………………………………………………….10p.
6. Conclusion…………...………………………………………………………………………. ... ............... 25p.
7. List of used literature……………………………...…….. 26p.
1. Introduction.
- Poets, actors, artists, in my opinion, are the real architects of change, and not scientists and politicians-legislators who approve the change after it happens ...
(c) William Burroughs
Scientists are trying to explain the reason for the appearance of subcultures by economic, social, cultural reasons, they derive this problem from the conflict between fathers and children, etc. All the existing many explanations do not once again indicate that this problem is quite complex, and ongoing research suggests that there is no unambiguous answer, and is not expected in the near future.
The relevance of this topic lies in the fact that subcultures appear constantly, and in the future we will encounter them, in order not to be afraid of this, we need to try to understand them.
A subculture is a community of people whose beliefs, views on life and behavior are different from those generally accepted or simply hidden from the general public, which distinguishes them from the broader concept of culture, of which they are an offshoot. The youth subculture appeared in science in the mid-1950s. Since traditional societies develop gradually, at a slow pace, relying mainly on the experience of older generations, insofar as the phenomenon of youth culture refers mainly to dynamic societies, and was seen in connection with "technogenic civilization". If earlier culture was not so clearly divided into "adult" and "youth" (regardless of age, everyone sang the same songs, listened to the same music, danced the same dances, etc.), now the "fathers" and "children" have serious differences in value orientations, and in fashion, and in the methods of communication, and even in the way of life in general. As a specific phenomenon, youth culture also arises due to the fact that the physiological acceleration of young people is accompanied by a sharp increase in the duration of their socialization period (sometimes up to 30 years), which is caused by the need to increase the time for education and professional training that meets the requirements of the era. Today, a young man ceases to be a child early (according to his psychophysiological development), but according to his social status, he does not belong to the world of adults for a long time. "Youth" as a phenomenon and sociological category, born of industrial society, is characterized by psychological maturity in the absence of significant participation in the institutions of adults.
The emergence of youth culture is associated with the uncertainty of the social roles of young people, uncertainty about their own social status. In the ontogenetic aspect, the youth subculture is presented as a phase of development through which everyone must go. Its essence is the search for social status. Through it, the young man "exercises" in the performance of the roles that he will later have to play in the world of adults. The most accessible social platforms for specific activities of young people are leisure, where you can show your own independence: the ability to make decisions and lead, organize and organize. Leisure is not only communication, but also a kind of social game, the lack of skills in such games in youth leads to the fact that a person considers himself free from obligations even in adulthood. In dynamic societies, the family partially or completely loses its function as an instance of socialization of the individual, since the pace of changes in social life gives rise to a historical discrepancy between the older generation and the changed tasks of the new time. With the entry into adolescence, a young man turns away from his family, looking for those social ties that should protect him from a society that is still alien. Between a lost family and a society not yet found, a young man strives to join his own kind. The informal groups formed in this way provide the young person with a certain social status. The price for this, often, is the rejection of individuality and complete submission to the norms, values and interests of the group. These informal groups produce their own subculture, which differs from the culture of adults. It is characterized by internal uniformity and external protest against generally accepted institutions. Due to the presence of their own culture, these groups are marginal in relation to society, and therefore always contain elements of social disorganization, and potentially gravitate toward behavior that deviates from generally recognized norms.
Quite often, everything is limited only by the eccentricity of behavior and violation of the norms of generally accepted morality, interests around sex, "parties", music and drugs. However, the same environment forms a countercultural value orientation, the highest principle of which is the principle of pleasure, enjoyment, which acts as an incentive motive and the goal of all behavior. The entire value network of the youth counterculture is connected with irrationalism, which is dictated by the recognition of the actual human only in the natural, that is, the dissociation of the "human" from the "social" that arose as a result of the "monopoly of the head." The consistent implementation of irrationalism defines hedonism as the leading value orientation of the youth counterculture. Hence the morality of permissiveness, which is the most important and organic element of the counterculture. Since the existence of the counterculture is concentrated on "today", "now", then the hedonistic aspiration is a direct consequence of this.
2. The concept of youth subculture.
The concept of youth subcultures was initially applied by sociologists in Western Europe and the United States only to the criminal environment. Gradually, the content of the concept expanded and began to be used in relation to the norms and values that determine the behavior of a certain social group of young people - thus, the concept of "subculture" was associated with the concept of "cultural paradigm", that is, the set of ideas and rules that gives a kind of matrix of behavior in different situations. However, while studying this matrix, scientists came across facts that forced them to question some ideas that previously seemed self-evident. For example, the English scholar Grant McCracken, in his widely acclaimed book "Plenitude: Culture by Commotion", describes his conversations with various groups of teenagers (goths, punks and skaters). The researcher found that differences in clothing, fashion, etc., that is, external differences, indicate internal differences, namely: differences in values and their gradation. Some of the observers, he noted, believe that the actions of adolescents are guided by the desire to gain recognition from their peers, and everything else (clothing, language, musical tastes, demeanor, etc.) is just "monkey" necessary for belonging to a group. This point of view comes from the notion of youth culture as a natural sequence.
Another point of view comes from the fact that the subculture is a confrontation, which is that the cause of diversity in the adolescent world is an expression of inter-age and class hostility. This position is developed, for example, by the book of American researchers Sue Widdicombe and Robin Wooffit "The Language of Youth Subcultures: Social Identification in Action" (New York, 1995). Teenagers enter a hostile world. This point of view was defended, in particular, by the authors of one of the first significant books on youth subcultures, the British Stuart Gell and Tony Jefferson, in the book Confrontation Through Rituals: Youth Subcultures in Post-War Britain, published in London in 1976.
3. Reasons for the emergence of a subculture.
Why do subcultures arise?
The most common answer is this: to resolve contradictions in the mainstream culture, if it proves incapable of providing a new generation with an effective ideology. A subculture takes shape in its own style of behavior, in language, clothing, and rituals capable of creative development.
The relationship between the "main" culture and "deviations" is trying to define the theory of subcultures as a scientific discipline. It works in the conceptual field of cultural studies, based on specific sociological research and other humanitarian disciplines. Marxist theory denies subcultures, considering youth subcultures as an ideology designed to mask the antagonistic contradictions of capitalist society and replace them with the confrontation of generations.
Close to the Marxist views of supporters of the theory of social conflict.
Social action theorists emphasize the behavior of the individual in his contacts with others. In this understanding, subcultures are seen as a system that regulates the implementation of the interests and needs of young people in society.
There is no doubt that each of us happened to walk down the street, ride the subway or just watch TV and see people who are somehow different from others. These are informals - representatives of modern subcultures.
The very word informal, informal means unusualness, brightness and originality. An informal person is an attempt to show his individuality, to say to the gray mass: "I am a person", to challenge the world with its endless everyday life and lining up everyone in one row. Scientifically speaking, a subculture is a system of values, attitudes, behaviors and lifestyles that is inherent in a smaller social community, spatially and socially more or less isolated. Subcultural attributes, rituals, and values, as a rule, differ from those in the dominant culture, although they are associated with them. The English sociologist M. Break noted that subcultures as "systems of meanings, ways of expression or life styles" developed by social groups that were in a subordinate position, "in response to the dominant systems of meanings: subcultures reflect the attempts of such groups to resolve the structural contradictions that have arisen in a broader social context". Another thing is culture - a mass phenomenon - a system of values inherent in most of society and a way of life dictated by society.
We will make sure that subcultures are a huge bright world that reveals to us all the shades of life. To do this, we will briefly analyze each subculture.
4. Classification of subcultures.
| Description of subspecies |
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| Muses- calic |
Subcultures based on fans of various genres of music. |
Alternatives |
fans of alternative rock, nu metal, rapcore |
| Goths |
fans of gothic rock, gothic metal and darkwave |
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| indie |
indie rock fans |
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| Metalworkers |
fans of heavy metal and its varieties |
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| Punks |
punk rock fans and supporters of punk ideology |
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| Rastafans |
reggae fans, as well as representatives of the religious movement Rastafari |
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| rockers |
rock music fans |
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| Ravers |
fans of rave, dance music and discos |
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| Hip hop (rappers) |
rap and hip hop fans |
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| Traditional skinheads |
ska and reggae lovers |
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| Folkers |
folk music fans |
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| emo |
emo and post-hardcore fans |
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| Rivetheads |
Industrial music fans |
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| junglists |
Fans of jung and drum and bass |
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| Image- you |
Subcultures distinguished by style in clothing and behavior |
visual kei |
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| Cyber Goths |
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| Fashion |
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| Nudists |
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| dudes |
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| teddy-boys |
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| Military |
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| Freaks |
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| Political and worldview |
Subcultures distinguished by public beliefs |
anarcho punks |
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| Antifa |
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| RASH skinheads (redskins) |
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| SHARP skinheads |
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| NS skinheads |
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| Beatniks |
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| Informals |
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| new age |
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| Straight Agers |
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| Hippie |
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| Yuppie |
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| By hobby |
Subcultures shaped by hobbies |
Bikers |
motorcycle lovers |
| Writers |
graffiti fans |
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| tracers |
parkour lovers |
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| hackers |
Fans of computer hacking (often illegally) |
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| For other hobbies niyam |
Subcultures based on cinema, games, animation, literature. |
Otaku |
Anime fans (Japanese animation) |
| bastards |
Using the jargon of bastards |
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| Gamers |
Fans of computer games |
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| Historical reenactors |
role movement |
Fans of live role playing games |
|
| Tolkienists |
Fans of John R.R. Tolkien |
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| Therianthropes |
- |
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| Furry |
Fans of anthropomorphic creatures |
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| Hooligan |
The identification of these subcultures is often disputed, and not all of them are classified as such. |
Rude-fights |
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| Gopnik |
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| Lubera |
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| Ultras |
Highly organized, very active fan club members |
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| Football hooligans |
5. The most common subcultures among modern British youth.
Skinheads. (Skinheads)
Paradoxically, the lumpen subculture of “skinheads” (skinheads) was considered to be initially racist, even “fascist”. As already mentioned in the chapter about the Jamaican Rudiz subculture, which settled in London, skinheads took from their black peers not only reggae music, but also style and jargon. It got to the point that in one of the party books of stagnant times, the author reported that reggae is “a product of the skinheads subculture, aggressively racist music, etc.”. True, then, the same author unexpectedly characterizes it as a heavy metal analogue of a military march (hence, he did not hear anything), but calling the praise of the African race white racism is too much. It is interesting that for “skinheads”, an analogue of our “lubers” and “gopniks”, it was the “East”, revered by “hippies”, personified by immigrants from South Asia (“Paki”), endowed with all conceivable and inconceivable vices. By the way, in England, where the “Pakis” were the main victims of racism, and in Germany, where they are Turks, and in France, where they are North African Berbers and Arabs, black immigrants quickly adopt the lifestyle of the indigenous population and do not cause such irritation, as stubbornly Muslims who stick to their customs.
In 1964, the Mods, especially those from the lower strata of society, instinctively felt, with the beginning of the days of Swing London, a real threat to their existence as a separate subculture. While the "mod style" was copied and embellished by thousands and thousands of young people, a small contingent of "real" people decided to turn their backs on mass culture, hardened their image and moved back to their roots. Also rejecting the dominant culture that pop music has now become, the skinheads draw their inspiration from the music of the rudiz - ska, bluebit and rock steady (see page 70). Dominant "psychedelists" and "hippies" become for them not only traitors to the "Mod's precepts", but also class enemies. Having neither their own cultural elite nor the opportunity to realize themselves in a mass culture oriented towards middle-class youth, the skinheads feel like outsiders and withdraw into their conservatism, based on the old values of the working outskirts. Their style, now Dressing Down, now fully corresponded to aggressive self-assertion on the streets of large industrial cities: heavy boots (usually with a steel cup-shaped toe) with high lacing, wide trousers with suspenders or cropped (rolled up) jeans, rough jackets, white T-shirts, shaved heads.
From 1965 to 1968 in the history of "skinheads" there is an "incubation" period. But already in the middle of the 68th, they already appear by the thousands, especially adoring outrage at football matches. Their style was just the opposite of "hippie". Instead of non-resistance, they took on the cult of violence, “extinguishing hippies”, homosexuals (Turner, on the contrary, in contrast to liminal personalities who had a lack of expression of sexual characteristics, here there is just an emphasis on sexual characteristics in individuals oriented to the structural state of society) and “packs” , whom they considered and consider to be degenerates. However, "Public Opinion", in contrast to the domestic times of the "heyday of Lubers and Kazan" (eighties), was not on their side.
Some of the “skins” soften the image a little, even slightly let go of their hair and, because of their suede jackets, become “suede skins” (in 1972 they were also called “smoothed”). It is complemented by black windbreakers, wide-brimmed hats and, oddly enough, black umbrellas. But this direction, which in fact returned the “skins” back to 1964, due to the flourishing of the “glam” style in music and fashion, quickly withered and soon completely disappeared.
When in 1976 the Punks appeared on the scene of youth subcultures and an open confrontation began between them and the Teddy Boys, who were experiencing a short-term revival, it was time for the skinheads to choose which side they would take in street clashes. Most of the young skinheads, mostly urban, joined with the punks, while the rural minority supported the Teddies. Punks and skinheads seemed to be on opposite sides of the street style barricades. After merging with the “skins”, a funny metamorphosis took place - they began to listen to punk rock, shaved heads now adorned with a punk mohawk, but the clothes remained the same. The new subculture was named “Oi!” (i.e. “Oh!”). Two years later, a split is planned in the “skins” camp, connected with a cooling off towards the “blacks” and the beginning of pogroms, which they explained as a traditional class expression of their dislike for “newcomers”. The fact is that in the late eighties, a stream of immigrants from the Caribbean poured into England, and the economic crisis created intense competition for jobs. And if the orthodox "skinheads" continued to feel sympathy for the "rudiz", "Oi!" openly join the ultra-right – the “National Front” and other political groups. Thanks to the press, soon all “skinheads” begin to be called racists and fascists, and only a few think about the original roots of skinheads and how it all began.
In the popular in the eighties in the UK movement "Two Colors" and the movement close to it "Rock against Racism", most of the punks, "rude boys", part of the skins and the second generation of "mods" united. In the United States and Great Britain, just a few years ago, a group calling itself SHARP (Skinheads Against Racial Prejudice) appeared, declaring itself louder and louder. Its founder in England, Rudy Moreno, stated: “Real skinheads are not racists. Without the Jamaican culture, we simply would not exist. Their culture mingled with that of the British working class, and it was through this fusion that the world saw the Skinheads.”
Goths.
Goths are representatives of a youth subculture that originated in the late 70s of the XX century on the wave of post-punk. The gothic subculture is very diverse and heterogeneous, but the following features are characteristic of it to one degree or another: a gloomy image, interest in mysticism and esotericism, decadence, love for horror literature and films, love for gothic music (gothic rock, gothic metal , death rock, darkwave, etc.).
The history of the subculture is ready
The main priority in this subculture is a peculiar worldview, a special perception of the surrounding world, death as a fetish, which can be considered one of the signs of belonging to the Goths. But do not forget that Gothic appeared thanks to music, and to this day, it is the main unifying factor for all goths. The subculture is ready - this is a modern trend that is characteristic of many countries. It originated in the UK in the early eighties of the last century against the backdrop of the popularity of gothic rock - an offshoot of one of the post-punk genres. And the gloomy decadents of Joy Division, Bauhaus, Siouxsie and The Banshees can truly be considered the founders of the genre. Later gothic bands of the 80s: The Sisters Of Mercy, The Mission, Fields Of Nephilim. And it was they who formed their own special gothic-rock sound, but this subculture does not stand still, there is no static in it. Everything, on the contrary, is in dynamics, in which life and death, good and evil, fiction and reality are combined. By the beginning of the 90s, new styles of gothic music appeared - ethereal and darkwave (melancholic psychedelia), dark folk (pagan roots), synth-goth (synthetic gothic). And by the end of the 90s, gothic fit perfectly into such styles as black, dead and doom-metal. Now the development of gothic music is mainly associated with electronic sound and the formation of a "dark scene" - combining gothic electronic and industrial bands, for example, Von Thronstahl, Das Ich, The Days Of The Thrompet Call etc. This subculture is diverse and heterogeneous, because it cultivates individuality, but we can also identify common features for it: love for gothic music (gothic rock, gothic metal, death rock, darkwave), a gloomy image, interest in mysticism and esotericism, decadence , love for horror literature and films.Idea uniting ready
The Gothic worldview is characterized by an addiction to a "dark" perception of the world, a special romantic-depressive outlook on life, reflected in behavior (isolation, frequent depression, melancholy, increased vulnerability), a special perception of reality (misanthropy, a refined sense of beauty, addiction to the supernatural), attitude to society: rejection of stereotypes, standards of behavior and appearance, antagonism with society, isolation from it. Also characteristic features of the ready are artistry and the desire for self-expression, manifested in the work on their own appearance, in the creation of poetry, painting, and other forms of art.Their religion and symbols
One of the features of the Gothic perception of the world is an increased interest in the supernatural, in magic and the occult. A tradition attempting to revive Celtic magical rituals, or an occult tradition, is based on Scandinavian paganism. Therefore, there are a lot of pagans and even Satanists among the Goths, but for the most part they are people attracted by gloomy religious aesthetics - outward manifestations, who are not "real" Satanists. There are also Goths who study a wide variety of ancient philosophies: from Egyptian and Iranian to Voodoo and Kabbalah. But in general, most of the Goths to one degree or another are Christians. As you can see, there is no single Gothic tradition. Gothic aesthetics is extremely diverse in terms of the set of symbols used: you can find Egyptian, Christian and Celtic symbols. The main sign is the Egyptian ankh, a symbol of eternal life (immortality). The connection with the Goths is obvious here - initially the goth subculture arose thanks to the vampire aesthetics ("Nosferatu"), and who are vampires, if not "undead", that is, "not dead", living forever. Christian symbolism is used more rarely, mostly in the form of ordinary crucifixes (only with a more stylish design than usual). Celtic symbolism is found in the form of abundant use of Celtic crosses and various ornaments. Occult symbolism is quite widely represented, pentagrams, inverted crosses, eight-pointed stars (symbols of chaos) are used.The image is ready
The Goths have their own recognizable image, which has recently undergone significant changes. No matter how Gothic develops, two main elements remain unchanged: the predominant black color of clothing (sometimes with elements of other colors), as well as exclusively silver jewelry - gold is not used in principle, since it is regarded as a symbol of ordinary, hackneyed values, as well as the color of the sun ( silver is the color of the moon).Varieties ready:
Goth vampires. The most modern and fashionable variety is ready. These are usually very closed characters who are offended by the whole world. The most pleasant pastime is to tell a friend about the newly invented method of suicide or to think about your sores.
Goths - Punk Goth. Style ready-veterans. Iroquois, safety pins, ripped jeans, leather jackets. Almost 100% punk.
Goths - Androgyn Goth. "Sexless" Goths. All makeup is aimed at hiding the gender of the character. Corsets, bandages, skirts, latex and vinyl clothing, high heels, collars.
Goths - Hippie Goth. The style is characteristic of pagans, occultists or older Goths. Baggy clothes, hoods, raincoats. Hair of natural color, freely flowing, with braided ribbons. Amulets, but not metal, but wooden or stone, with the image of runes and other magical signs.
Goths - Corporate Goth. Goths working in large companies and forced to dress in accordance with the corporate style. Office wear, as close to gothic as possible. No makeup, minimal jewelry, everything is strict and black.
Goths - Cyber Goth. It's newer. Cyberpunk aesthetic. Active use of techno design: gears, pieces of microcircuits, wires. Clothing is most often made of vinyl or neoprene. Hair is shaved or dyed purple, green or blue.
Punks (English punks) - a youth subculture that arose in the mid-70s in the UK, USA, Canada and Australia, the characteristic features of which are love for punk rock music, a critical attitude towards society and politics. The name of the famous American artist Andy Warhol and the band Velvet Underground, which he produced, is closely associated with punk rock. Their lead singer, Lou Reed, is considered the founding father of alternative rock, a movement closely associated with punk rock. The popular American band the Ramones is considered the first band to play "punk rock" music. Damned and Sex Pistols are recognized as the first British punk bands.
Ideology
Punks adhere to various political views, but for the most part they are adherents of socially oriented ideologies and progressivism. Common beliefs are the desire for personal freedom and independence (individualism), non-conformism, the principles of "do not sell", "rely on oneself" and the principle of "direct action" (direct action). Other strands of punk politics include nihilism, anarchism, socialism, anti-authoritarianism, anti-militarism, anti-capitalism, anti-racism, anti-sexism, anti-nationalism, anti-homophobia, environmentalism, vegetarianism, veganism, and animal rights. Some individuals related to the subculture adhere to conservative views, neo-Nazism, or are apolitical.The appearance of punks
Punks are distinguished by their colorful outrageous image.
- Many punks dye their hair in bright unnatural colors, comb it and fix it with hairspray, gel or beer to make it stand up. In the 80s, the mohawk hairstyle became fashionable among punks. They wear rolled up jeans, some pre-soak jeans in a bleach solution so that they go red stains. They wear heavy boots and sneakers.
Biker jacket - was adopted as a rock and roll attribute from the 50s, when motorcycle and rock and roll were inseparable components.
The clothes are dominated by the "DEAD" style, that is, "dead style". Punks put skulls and signs on clothes and accessories. They wear wristlets and collars made of leather with spikes, rivets and chains. A lot of punks get tattoos.
They also wear torn worn jeans (which they cut themselves on purpose). Chains from dog leashes are attached to jeans.
The ravers are a vibrant and huge youth subculture, clustered around "mobile sound systems" like the Spiral Tribe and many others. Something obsessed with “techno-music” gypsies with only one difference - they are only for the weekend, a kind of “Sunday ravers”. In many ways, they are the children of the Thatcher era, coming from the now wide sections of the middle class, which has grown significantly in recent years. Young people at the center of rave culture may sound like hippies, look like punks, but they also display post-Thatcher autonomy and independence. Only a few of them work, the rest prefer to live on unemployment benefits or donations distributed at raves. In the United States, such people were conditionally called “Generation X”, because it seems almost impossible now to fit the new generation into some kind of theoretical framework. These are young people, unaffected by the business boom of the eighties, who did not see any interest in public life, preferring to become outsiders. The British version can also be called "Generation E" (from ecstasy - the most popular drug of the nineties, the most powerful stimulant that creates a long-term feeling of contentment and euphoria).
To match this drug and music - monotonous and hypnotic, saturated with monotonous, shamanic trance rhythms. It all started in the summer of 1988, when “acid house” music, “black”, a radical version of disco, which, in addition to purely technical achievements, had a huge influence on the black traditions of rap and disc jockey (DJ) entered England from the States from the States. break practice (rhythmic failures), which then grew into a huge and influential techno culture in the country or a “scene” with many sub-styles. Techno - muddy pulsations of discos in huge hangars, where “cyberpunks” are given to the waves of space. Techno is the folk culture of degenerate overpopulated metropolitan areas. The cult of anonymity, depersonalization is brought in it to the limit. The bulk of techno groups are fundamentally indistinguishable. The appearance of a sampler in technical musical equipment, with the help of which almost anyone can make their own music from someone else's pieces, opened a new era in the development of subcultures. The summer of 1988 is also called "the second summer of love." For a few it was a return in a transformed form of hippie philosophy. Others reproached the ravers for total hedonism, drug propaganda and disregard for the older generation. The following year, what started as an underground scene turned into a massive "commercial" rave with up to 20,000 participants. In many ways, the rise of the popularity of raves was facilitated by the conservatives, who passed the law “On Strengthening Responsibility for Organizing Paid Gatherings”. Raves became difficult and expensive to organize. Economically speaking, supply was stifled as demand increased. As a result, the road was opened for those who wanted to politicize this largest youth movement since the sixties. “People used to just want to dance, but now they're increasingly answering the question, why are they banned?” says Fraser Clark, publisher of alternative rave magazines. The musicians representing this subculture borrowed much from the ideology and image of the hippie (removing long hair, but leaving colorful clothes), supplementing it with new age ideas, such as chaos theory and economic radicalism. They see ego needs and materialism as the main social evil. Their motto is "No Money, No Ego". At the same time, they resolutely insist on their apoliticality. They took the idea of total freedom from the punks, saying that the only reason they are underground is because the government forces them to do so by their laws. Like the first punks, ravers and cyberpunks develop their own technical distribution channels for “techno”, only on a much larger scale. Independent studios release so-called “white labels” (that is, discs without manufacturer names), singles without cover, which disperse to clubs, which are experiencing a real boom even now, and specialty stores. At the same time, both radio and international record companies were left out of work, which were unable to quickly respond to rapidly changing musical styles. Buying techno labels, that is, record companies, is almost impossible - music does not require large expenses, it is easy to record. The Crime Act of 1994 reduced the possibility of free raves to almost a minimum, but attempts to organize commercial ones also often fail due to local authorities - this happened this year with the largest techno festival "Tribal Gathering". The future of this subculture in the light of the current changes in the youth environment seems to me vague. From my point of view, as a movement, both musical and stylistic, it has exhausted itself, fatigue and apathy set in. Part of the ravers joined the "new age", the rest turned into club ravers, returning after parties to everyday reality. They became the dominant culture, turning temporarily declining rock back into a viable, truly alternative force to society.
Junglelists.
Junglelists (from the English Junglist; often, in accordance with the East End Cockney dialect, pronounced jang-ga-list) is a drum and bass-inspired youth subculture that emerged in the UK in the early 1990s and is currently moment being one of the main movements of the country.
The appearance of a "real" jungle player is sportswear (T-shirt, hoodie or loose shirt, baggy pants, sports shoes) and, unlike rappers, no gold jewelry of all kinds. Behavior and speech adopted from ore-fights.
The main feature of the jungle movement is its multinationality. It exists not only in the UK, but all over the world, including Russia.
Grunge. Indie kids.
Several factors contributed to the emergence of a new indie subculture in the UK in the mid-eighties:
- The end of the punk era. Temporary domination of the music market by popular music, mostly dance music, which offered nothing but an empty but pleasant pastime.
The beginning of another “style war” is the predominance of the snobbish ideas of the “New Romantics” in “The Image of Another”, which suggested Dressing Up. Introducing this image to the mainstream market implies an immediate search for an “alternative”. Moreover, the “War of Styles”, namely the style confrontation between indie kids and ravers, is the first in history within the subcultures of the middle class.
Among the economic reasons is the continuing rise in youth unemployment.
A keen understanding that London, in fact, ceased to be the musical capital of the world, and England again returned to the times of the fifties - the constant export and borrowing of cultural trends from across the ocean.
They wore stylish Italian jackets, loved jazz, ska and scooters, but hated rockers and were ready to use fists and clubs. Amphetamine was then legal, and how often and with gusto they used it was one of the reasons it was eventually banned. They were called "mods" and this youth subculture has influenced all of us much more than you might think (even if you've never heard of them). Looking at these dudes, boors and show-offs now, one can only be surprised at how strange and delightful the 60s were.
Who are mods and why is anyone interested in them at all?
Mix stereotypical street punks and caricatured hipsters, add ugly-beautiful scooters and a pinch of illegal stimulants here. If you combine everything in the right proportions, you get British fashion straight from the swinging 1960s.
The mod subculture originated in London in the late 50s, flourished in the 60s, and died shortly before the 70s. At their peak, these working-class and lower-middle-class people were as recognizable as the Rolling Stones and the Queen Mother. Frankly, many then laughed at them - the image came out too bright and stereotyped.
Mods have elevated stylish Italian suits and boots to a cult. They said to themselves that the mod would rather save on food to buy clothes than vice versa. Another recognizable feature of the subculture was the scooters, on which mods plowed nightly London, like a horde of Genghis Khan surrounded by exhaust gases. The reason for such love is in the same desire to look luxurious. Scooters have been associated with Italian films and style. In addition, unlike motorcycles, they were covered with panels, thanks to which fashion items did not get dirty, and a more comfortable fit allowed them not to wrinkle.
However, despite the craving for glamor and love for jazz, ska and rhythm and blues, these mods at heart remained the same guys from the proletariat. Stylish fitted jackets did not prevent them from flaunting broken teeth and carrying a switchblade knife in case they met with rockers.
Rocker trying to push fashion on the road
Rockers and mods hated each other so much that often after amphetamine dances they amused themselves by hitting each other in the face and spoiling two-wheeled vehicles. They listened to slightly different music and liked different clothes - for fights and hatred, this is enough.
Jazz and beatniks resonate with the punks:
Origins of mods
Fashion is such a textured and multifaceted subculture that, of course, it could not come from nowhere and suddenly go nowhere. The exact year of appearance of mods is known: 1958. It was then that several extremely important trends matured among the British youth and bore fruit.
Mods had two sources from which they drew their strength and style. Firstly, these are classic beatniks, gloomy poets and nonconformists, mad at existentialism, cool jazz and pessimistically looking at all modern social relations. The first mods learned a lot from the beatniks, at least in terms of love for Italian cinema and overly pretentious music incomprehensible to the older generation.
teddy-boys
Another subculture heavily influenced by fashion is the so-called "teddy boy" from the 50s. These working-class guys were spending their last money on fancy suits and boots, otherwise remaining even closer to the gopniks than the mods. They tried to look like they belonged to the elite, but to the upper class they seemed like troglodytes wearing a parody of Edwardian outfits. In any case, teddy boys wore fashionable things for their time and fought. Mods, with some reservations, did the same - on the face of the continuity of generations.
Swinging London breeds mods
But how did such incompatible subcultures as beatniks and teddy boys ever intersect, and even mix? The most powerful tectonic shifts in society in the 1950s and 1960s are to blame for this. After the Second World War in Britain (as elsewhere) there was a population explosion, and the number of young people in the country increased dramatically. In addition, after the relatively poor and total hardships of the 1940s and early 1950s, an economic boom followed.
From a gloomy, smoky post-war capital, London has transformed into a colorful epicenter of fashion. This era in the life of the city went down in history as "Swinging London". Britain had barely recovered from the effects of the war when fashion boutiques, pirate radio stations and new cinema inspired by continental Europe and Hollywood appeared in major cities. In addition, new standards of beauty appeared and the sexual revolution began. The standard of style then became Twiggy, who was called the "queen of mods."
It turned out to be a funny picture: there were a lot of young people in the country who did not know where to apply their energy, but their parents had enough money to provide them with leisure, and even give pocket money. If only all this noisy crowd at least for a while dumped somewhere and left their old people alone. And she dumped: the guys and girls were thrown into the streets, into record stores and pubs (documents were not checked then, it was enough to look “grown up”).
What could you spend pocket money on in the 50s if you are young and hormonally unstable? For stylish clothes, records and scooters - in general, that's all. Drinking in a bar turned out not to be such an interesting activity: pubs then closed quite early, and young people had to find a place where they could have fun until the morning. Round-the-clock coffee shops turned out to be such a refuge. In addition, these establishments often had music machines, and mods invaded them, putting on their own records and listening to them under stimulants (sometimes coffee, sometimes cheap drugstore amphetamines).
Definitely, this generation had a much more interesting time than their parents' generation.
Music the mods listened to
For any more or less modern youth subculture, music is as important as appearance. It sets the style and helps in self-identification. The history of mods' musical preferences is florid, as is the 50s and 60s era.
The Who as mods
Initially, when the mods were more urban snobs than hooligans and revelers, they were madly in love with the ultra-modern at that time cool jazz and bebop. The very name of the movement comes from the term “modern”, where “modern” is not a philosophical category or style in art, but simply modern jazz. For uncomplicated, albeit pretentious, guys, “modern” and “mod” began to simply mean “modern”, that is, “cool”, “stylish”, as opposed to the word “trad”, that is, “traditional” and, therefore, “ old man's.
Soon, the minds of mods, which were growing in number, began to occupy R&B (which was then very different from now) and soul.
After some time, when the movement grew and new trends appeared, ska began to be considered incredibly relevant and cool. The metropolitan dudes were impressed by the fact that this newfangled Jamaican phenomenon had not yet become popular - it was not played on the radio, the townsfolk knew almost nothing about it, and initially it was made only by visiting Jamaicans from a marginal environment. It was a real underground, in which you had to show yourself on the board in order to pretend to be at least a little rummaging around. Also, originally made for dancehalls, ska, with its freshness and vivacity, probably harmonized more strongly with amphetamines, for which fashion had a soft spot in both the jazz and rock and roll eras.
When the mod subculture became widespread, and the number of stylishly dressed young rascals on scooters gritting their teeth became critical, they also had their own national icons. The Who, Rolling Stones, The Yardbirds Small Faces and The Kinks worked for the mod audience, largely following their clothing and behavioral preferences. The fact that their music somehow became too suspiciously close to the music of the rockers they hated did not bother anyone anymore.
By the end of the 60s, the movement had already completely blurred and became nothing more than a seasonal fashion trend, dissolving into a crowd of schoolchildren. Popularity ruined mods. Yes, and they themselves have matured, found a boring job, created a stable cell of society and switched to psychedelic rock. Except that occasionally some of them played old records with cool jazz and ska, remembering their youth and, out of habit, looking at all this rock and roll and pop music with disdain.
Scooter obsession
One of the main (and noisiest) attributes of mods were scooters. They reminded the owners of the heroes of Italian films, so Vespa and Lambretta became the most popular brands. In addition, such transport made it possible to soil stylish things to a minimum. The fashion for parks, which still exists, comes from there. These vent jackets, used by the British Air Force, not only kept you warm during the trip, but also protected expensive mod jackets from dirt.
The scooter has quickly evolved from a convenient means of transportation to an item of cult status and a means of self-expression. If rockers loved to modify their motorcycles from the inside, improving performance and replacing parts, then mods loved to turn their stunted metal horses into painted and crazy installations.
Dozens of rear-view glasses, British flags, sticky gum labels - a scooter couldn't just be a scooter, just as a mod couldn't wear "just a jacket" or "just listen to music."
Wars of mods and rockers
Even when fashion became commonplace, it was only in London and the south of the country. However, by the mid-60s, everyone in Britain knew about them, when, together with fashion rockers, they made a rustle in the once sleepy resort towns south of the capital.
The conflict between rockers and mods was largely class based. The Mods wanted to look like they were all from London's wealthy middle class, while their opponents were portrayed as rambunctious outsiders, vicious American movie bikers and dangerous outcasts. Given that the capital's dudes were also not fools to fight, clashes were inevitable.
Rockers made motorcycle raids on mod clubs, mods did not remain in debt and started out of town on their scooters to beat motorcyclists. The biggest skirmish was the Brighton Massacre, which took place from 18 to 19 May 1964. Then on the Easter weekend, a large group of mods went to the beaches of the resort towns to have a grand party there. A few days earlier, another similar attempt had failed - a smaller squad of mods had been brutally beaten by raiders from local rockers.
Rockers and mods jostle on the road. Both are incredibly happy with the process.
The second time, the mods went not only in larger numbers, but also armed with switchblades and clubs. On the spot they were met by an ambush of rockers who rushed at the enemy with chains and knives. The fight that broke out provoked several major battles in four more cities in the south of the country. A horde of mods rushed to the aid of their own from London, here they met local ambushes.
The police, not ready for such battles, could not extinguish the conflict for a long time - both sides were mobile and the troops of both factions moved randomly from city to city until they were exhausted after two days of constant skirmishes. The wave of violence subsided and the policemen were able to detain only 60 people, which was a drop in the ocean of fighting.
It is not surprising that after that, hysteria began in the country at the suggestion of journalists: mods began to be considered fiends and inveterate gangsters. It is possible that it was thanks to this that the movement, which was already at its end at the time, lasted a few years longer - fashion again became associated with coolness and the underground, and not with schoolchildren on scooters.
End of an era.
Mods turn into skins
Mod (left) and hard mod (right)
By the mid-60s, fashion had become such a popular phenomenon that mutations in it were simply inevitable. It was also inevitable that young people, sooner or later, would lose interest in this phenomenon due to the fact that it had become mainstream, and would find something more underground.
At the peak of popularity, the number of dandies on Vespas in London exceeded a critical mark and it became fashionable not to be a mod rather than to be one. An alternative to the soured movement was the flow of hard mods. These guys still considered themselves stylish fashion connoisseurs and scooter lovers, but they emphasized their masculinity to a greater extent and emphasized their origins from working families. Instead of extravagant hairstyles, they began to shave their heads baldly, instead of Italian shoes, they began to wear heavy boots.
Hard mods called traditional mods "peacocks" and soon distanced themselves so much that they became their own subculture. In the late 60s, they received the nickname “skinheads”, which is better known to us. These guys were much more into ska and reggae than mods, were more willing to get into fights, and had more respect for honest British beer and Jamaican cannabis than pharmacy amphetamines. Later, in the 70s, many of the skinheads became radicalized, carried away by neo-Nazism, and already in this form they became best known in our country and across the ocean. But this is already too far from mods history.
In the 70s and even 90s, there were attempts to revive mods, called "mod-revival". However, they subsided rather quickly. Scooter pads, parkas and Italian jackets were not as relevant as mod lovers would like. Although echoes of it rush through the British and American scene to this day. The mod movement died to become a fodder for more modern subcultures and trends. Though some of those original style buffs still get together to ride scooters, show off, have a drink with fellow older rockers and reminisce about their youth.
