Culture, Subculture and Counterculture Flashcards
Define Culture
the wider social and geographical historical practice of a musical community
Define Subculture
smaller groups within the main music culture, a mixture between the main culture and less popular culture.
Define Counterculture
resists and rejects mainstream and/or music community
Why does Punk fit in with sub/counterculture?
It is one of the genres which go out of their way to reject all the practices of mainstream music.
What was the Punk movement about?
Bands being able to create the music that they wanted without conforming to the norms.
Where does the word Punk derive from?
It originated from the renaissance term for prostitute, it was a word to describe someone who was of a low status. The punk era took the word and made it a badge of honour, they wanted to see who could become more “punk” than the other, become of a ‘lower status’ than the other.
What are some of the key characteristics of Punk music?
- Songs were very short
- Songs were about playing as loud and as quickly as you can.
- Solos and extended instrumental techniques were discarded
- The main focus was on the lyrics was on having no future, because this was an easy sell to the youth and people who followed the music, and on pure rebellion.
What kind of ethic did Punk music have?
The genre has a DIY ethic, with the music being limited to being performed in pubs and home recordings.
Who was one of the most famous Punk artists?
The Sex Pistols
One could argue that as a result of all their success the band has become mainstream, making punk music become a culture as their music is something that is so widely followed by so many people, and is uses as a reference for a lot of punk musicians.
Who managed The Sex Pistols?
They were manufactured by Malcolm McLaren.
The fact that the band had a manager again discredits them as a band who were trying to reject mainstream practices as this is something that would typically been seen in pop music, having a manager to guide you to worldwide success.
Do all sub and countercultures eventually become mainstream?
With the popularity that bands such as The Sex Pistols and Iron Maiden gained from their Punk and New Wave movements, it forced the genres to conform to the practices of mainstream music, which meant that new subgenres were constantly being created in order to create a community which “resists and rejects mainstream and/or music community.”
