Despite not growing up within the peak of the 90's or immersing myself in all things Bel Air, I have some how managed to garner alongside many fellow teens a full recognition and appreciation of the vogues of this era. Now unfortunately unlike every other generation prior to the 90's, whom have experienced within their respective years a flux in culture to the years before, it seems like over the past 15 years the basis of youth culture has not really changed at all. Which weirdly enough has managed to generate an indifferent cultural paradigm, identical to the years before, which year after year manages to churn out the same cookie cutter individuals in one incarnation or another.
Some elements of 90's culture in which nothing has changed:
Lets jump in:
-"Sneakers": Lets start with arguably the most un-favorable of them all, sneakers, ( and before you quote me on any nuances concerning my ultimate lack of sneaker knowledge.... I really couldn't care less). Since the early 90's up until the present day the yearning for sneakers has some what remained. With kids begging and trying to justify to their parents to spend around £/$100 on a pair of shoes since. Through Nike's clever ( but some what nefarious) interception of hype through the release of various shoes, they've managed to undeniably commercialize and capitalize upon youth culture as a whole. Think, from Jordan's blatant endorsements within both basketball and in such shows such as The Fresh Prince of Bel Air. Unfortunately the effects of Nike's impact are still present today, with mobs all wearing the exact air force ones to those (self proclaimed sneakerheads) still camping out or staying up way past their bed time just to get a pair of f****** shoes.
- Clothes: Where to start ?, although this one is slightly harder to generalize fully, it's undeniable that it's impact can still be foreseen within the youth styles of today. Firstly and most evidently are the bright and ghastly graphic prints/ slogans that are daubed across all walks of attire, from shirts to shell suits, ( with an special emphasis upon cartoons and company logos). From your Coca Cola inspired sweatshirt to your Bart Simpson top this blatant, bolshie style (often comparable to the walking human billboard) is still here (and isn't likely to budge soon). Moreover the crusty remains of grunge are still present, from flannel shirts, to a greasy beanie mops in co-coalition with that magazine ordered Nirvana tee the realms of grunge seem eternal... From tie-dye to short sides and a high top, neon (similey) rave clothes to Hip hop inspired streetwear, dungarees to bomber jackets and those clueless inspired wardrobes (of blatant materialism), it's evident that the 90's created and has sustained a youth uniform that ultimately hasn't changed one bit from its initial inception.
- Music: Finally lets talk about music. Gladly I can tell you that this one of the areas, (in the most part that has experienced the greatest and most progressive change). Despite however there are still pockets of chart music that are still in line with their initial derivative. Perhaps not as evident everywhere as much as it is within Europe is the revival of Garage and bass-line. These previously polarising urban genres of the time have been revoked and churned out in a "newly packaged" form of dance music, of which is indifferent from it's predecessors which now has the difference of being capitalized by major labels and mangled from its original form to be compatible with the current poppers of today. Moreover it can also be argued that the vogue of boy and girl bands haven't been ousted out quite yet. From The Backstreet Boys to One Direction from The Pussy Cat Dolls to Little Mix, These cookie cutter, manufactured pop princesses and princes have unfortunately remained upon the throne. "Oh but EDM is new", I hear you cry. Let me firstly point out the two initial problems within your point. Firstly EDM is not a thing, just a capitalized and generalized term for some derivative of sh**** house and it's not in fact new, It's really been around since the early 80's in its first incarnation within the form of Acid House. In fact there are many other genres that have just been rebuked and packaged for a new audience( with the worst offender being rap), perhaps its now just time to leave them behind and focus upon the new musical pioneers and producers of today.
In conclusion, is this void in new youth culture and progression just due to a lack of ideas with not a single polarizing movement occurring since. Or is it perhaps due to the diluting nature of the web, not allowing a real or meaningful moment within culture or sub-culture to be created and fostered. Or could it just be the constant state of retro and nostalgia with people just trying to relive and convey to everyone else what was once so meaningful to them?. Either way, myself and others have been conformed to a preexisting culture that has now become overdue and outdated, and perhaps we should now strive for innovation and leave behind the superimposing power of the web behind as the predominant source and medium of culture?
No comments:
Post a Comment