Jump to content

Anti-folk

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
This is an old revision of this page, as edited by 68.38.199.110 (talk) at 23:11, 6 January 2006. The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Anti-folk (or antifolk) is a genre of music related to punk rock and American folk music that originated in the mid-1980s in New York City.

Anti-folk had its roots in punk rock, and is still considered by some to be an active subgenre within that scene. By a loose definition, Anti-folk combines the raw, abrasive, and frequently politically charged attitudes of the punk scene with the sounds of American folk tradition.

Anti-folk, as appropriated by Beck on albums such as Mellow Gold and Stereopathetic Soul Manure, mixes the musical style of folk music with punk, as well as ironic and often nonsensical lyrics. This genre takes the earnestness of politically charged '60s hippie music and subverts it into something else: music that sounds raw and authentic, but mocks the seriousness and pretension of the established mainstream folk scene and also mocks itself. In Anti-folk, self-mockery and self-aggrandizement have somehow fused, just as political commentary fused with poppy love songs in the sixties.

The Moldy Peaches, Ani DiFranco, and Beck are considered influential artists in this genre, and are primarily responsible for its popularity. Contemporary anti-folk music is popular in many parts of United States and has also made its mark in the UK and Europe, chiefly because of Rough Trade records, the Moldy Peaches, and Jeffrey Lewis, but also in large part due to self-sufficient music communities, venues, and many touring international acts building friendships and musical partnerships. The New York City anti-folk scene mostly revolves around the Sidewalk Cafe, a club in the East Village that hosts shows and an open mike night called the Anti-Hootenanny, hosted by songwriter and seminal Anti-folker Lach. Also notable in the community is Olive Juice Music, a collective and label centered around a recording studio run by Major Matt Mason USA, and Luv-A-Lot, a homemade label run by the prolific Dashan Coram.

Anti-folk is a parent genre of other microbrew classifications such as Urban Folk and Counterfolk. Some performers, such as Dufus, Need New Body, and Man Man, have split with the scene and moved on. But is it a "genre," a "scene," a "community," or just a bunch of songwriters that like to hang out with each other? Most people involved would say it's a frankenstein combination of all of the above.

In recent years Antifolk has spread beyond the US. The UK antifolk scene (largely centred around London and Brighton) is rapidly developing its own identity with a spectrum of acts ranging from the bold narrative territory of David Cronenberg's Wife to the dirty lo-fi humour Filthy Pedro and from JJ Crash's political undercurrents to Paul Hawkins' edgy and tragicomic tales of social alienation. AFUK-affiliated acts such as the Mink Troubadour Kamikaze Squadron and Emmy the Great have begun to gain national radio airplay while AFUK favourites Milk Kan seem well-placed to break through into the mainstream consciousness.

There is arguably an active Anti-Folk scene in Australia. Centred around inner-city Melbourne, a collection of artists including The Lucksmiths, Darren Hanlon, Jodi Phillis and The Mabels play bitingly witty songs with accessible melodies that take a lot from 60's pop. The most internationally successful is The Lucksmiths. The Australian breed of anti-folk differs from the American in that the themes are often more ironic and self-refferential and tangible. In this respect, they bridge anti-folk with post-modern music. Melbourne's Candle Records is the home of many of these artists.

Some examples of anti-folk performers:

See also

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Anti-folk&oldid=34172193"