BRITPOP What is Britpop A type of

BRITPOP

What is Britpop? A type of music that was made famous during a “ 1 st wave” by bands such as Oasis, Pulp, Suede and Blur. It started in the early nineties and finished in 1997 when Princess Diana died. In recent years there has been a “ 2 nd wave” of Britpop bands such as The Zutons, Kaiser Chiefs, The Feeling, Razorlight, Keane, Radiohead, The View, The Fray. The music is characterised by British bands that use: • distorted guitars • a lack of lead guitar • simple vocal lines • lyrics about everyday life. This is the only thing that distinguishes them from other bands during that era.

Where did Britpop come from? “The Eighties were naff. Naff politics and naff music – Thatcher, Wham and Spandau Ballet. The charts were full of posers, and British popular culture generally felt like synthetic rubbish. I sat in suburbia, smoking, listing to The White Album and Let it Bleed; waiting for something to happen” John Dower, Live Forever

Britpop and its influences Listen to the music & choose 3 phrases that best describe what you hear 1970 s Late 1980 s Early 1980 s Reaction against establishment Punk Blues x folk Simple Angry Electric guitar 1990 s Grunge 1960 s Repetitive beat Off beat barre chords Busy bass line Rave x indie End of post war strictness

1960’s - The Beatles were the most influential band of the 20 th Century Their music was a cross between folk and blues and used rhythm guitars. They moved away from music that focused on lead guitars. They often use people and places in their music: Michelle, Eleanor Rigby, Penny Lane, Strawberry Fields Britpop uses the guitar driven sound that has no lead guitar. It often people and places: Layla, Don’t look back, (Oasis) Charmless Man (Blur)

1960’s - The Who are one of the most influential groups in rock music. The aggressive music was made by the combination of Pete Townsend (guitarist), John Entwistle (bass) and Keith Moon, (drums). • The music was written for rebellious British youths called Mods, it expressed their feeling that older people "just don't get it". • He reportedly wrote “My Generation” on a train and is said to have been inspired by the Queen Mother who is alleged to have had Townsend's hearse towed off a street in Belgravia because she was offended by the sight of it during her daily drive through the neighbourhood

1970’s - David Bowie represents a type of music that was a reaction against the establishment. Other bands include the Sex Pistols, The Clash (Punk) and Madness (MOD). • The music was related to Reggae and Ska which was often about repression and freedom • The music often sounded very angry and sometimes included shouting. • The music used syncopation – the main chords were played on beats 2 & 4 rather than 1 & 3. This was done in part to help create an angry sound. “The importance of being Idle” (Oasis) is an example of playing off beat.

Early 1980’s – U 2 were a popular Irish band in the early 1980’s and had good success in the charts. During the 80’s there was greater emphasis placed in being an individual and that one person can make a difference. In 1985 Bob Geldof organized a worldwide series of concerts called “Band Aid”. Chart topping bands/artists performed at to raise money for the African famine. The song: "Do They Know It's Christmas, " became the best-selling U. K. single of all time, and inspired a similar 1985 U. S. single "We Are The World. " Geldof was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize and was knighted by the Queen.

Indie = independent records Not a genre or style but a group of different bands that had signed up to small record label that were typically run out of homes or garages and sold by mail-order or a through a chain of independent record shops. Originally Geoff Travis set up a record shop in London selling only local bands music – a network of similar shops was established. The music they sold was nicknamed “indie”.

Late 1980’s - Rave In the late 1980’s rave culture hit the UK with the birth of acid house music. Manchester became the rave capital. The Stone Roses and Happy Mondays were frequent ravers and started to incorporate some of the features into their Indie style music.

Early 1990’s – Grunge Attack! • The key thing that led to the rise of bands like Oasis and Blur was what was happening in the USA: GRUDGE! What is Grunge? - type of rock music that uses very heavy distortion, strong guitar riffs and heavy drumming - it grew out of Seattle with bands like Nirvana and Pearl Jam

What happen then? A number of things all collided at the right time to help bring Britpop to the forefront: 1. When Kirk Cobain died (suicide/murder/drug overdose) a vacuum was opened in the record industry that needed to be filled. 2. The UK was on the verge of major political change – a new sense of optimism. 3. British bands were writing music that was British.

On the verge of major political change …

Politics & Social Issues reflected in music: Listen to “Cigarettes & Alcohol” by Oasis, what is the message that they are trying to get across? - the appeal of cigarettes, alcohol, drugs and partying as a remedy to the triviality of working class life. Look at these Lyrics: "Is it worth the aggravation to find yourself a job when there's nothing worth working for“ “You could wait for a lifetime … to spend your days in the sunshine So you might as well do the white line". - Do you think that the song sets out to hold up these activities as some positive ideal?

Politics & Social Issues reflected in music: Listen to “Live Forever” by Oasis , what do you think the song is about? - It’s about old friends laughing at jokes and stories that puzzle them. - Lyrics: "We see things they'll never see" - Backlash against Nirvana’s song: “I Hate Myself and Want to Die

Politics & Social Issues reflected in music: Listen to “Country House” by Blur, what do you think the song is about? The song is about a man who retires to an expensive country house to escape the pressures of the city and loses the idea of normality. Although this isn’t about one person it is interesting that there was a long history of bitter rivalry between Oasis & Blur – this song is about Noel Gallagher who moved to the country from Manchester – you can hear the words “He’s got Morning Glory” which was the title of an Oasis album.

Politics & Social Issues reflected in music: Listen to “Rock ‘N’ Roll Star” by Oasis , what is the message that they are trying to get across? • refer to his dreams and aspirations to become a rock star • his hopes to move away from Manchester Noel Gallagher said: "I'm pretty much summed up everything I wanted to say in "Rock 'N' Roll Star", "Live Forever" and "Cigarettes & Alcohol", after that I'm repeating myself, but in a different way".

How to write a song in the style of Britpop …. Structure Match the words with their correct definition: Intro The part that is repeated. Outro The part that builds the “story”. The words change each time. Middle 8 The bit at the end that usually fades out. Very important for radio. Bridge Two to four lines that build into the chorus. Chorus Usually between ½ bar – 2 bars that link the verse and chorus or middle 8 Verse The introduction. Pre-chorus Eight bars of instrumental

Song writing in the style of Britpop Task 1: Design your structure, using an intro, outro, verses, choruses, middle 8 s and bridges. This may change later on as you add lyrics Write how many bars each section is going to last for in these boxes

Play through these chords: C Dm Em E F G CEG DFA EGB EG#B FAC GBD G/F Em/D C/B B Bm Am FBD DGB BEG BDF# BDF ACE Decide which ones you are going to use for each section:

Write your lyrics: Social Statement ~ writing about human failings & political issues The Need to Escape ~ writing about the need to escape from routine Friendship ~ reflecting a personal statement Read some newspaper articles, highlighting some key words that you can use in your song