Mod revival
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Mod Revival | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins: | Mod, punk rock, Ska, Northern soul |
| Cultural origins: | mid-late 1970s, London & South East England |
| Typical instruments: | Guitar - Bass - Drums - Some brass |
| Mainstream popularity: | Mainly late 1970s-early 1980s, with some continuing interest |
| Derivative forms: | Big influence on Britpop, British Ska revival |
| Regional scenes | |
| London, "Home Counties", pockets in northern England, e.g. Huddersfield | |
| Other topics | |
| Timeline of punk rock | |
The mod revival, (also known as punk mod or mod punk), was a music genre and subculture in the late 1970s and early 1980s, mainly centred in south England.
The revival's mainstream popularity was relatively short, although its influence has lasted for decades. The mod revival movement post-dated a Teddy Boy revival, and mod revivalists sometimes physically clashed with Teddy Boys, skinheads (a successor of mods), casuals and punk rockers.
Contents |
[edit] 1970s
The late 1970s mod revival combined musical and cultural elements of the 1970s pub rock, punk rock and new wave music scenes with influences from 1960s mod bands such as The Who and The Small Faces. The revival was largely spurred on by the band The Jam and the film Quadrophenia, which romanticised the original 1960s mod subculture
Whereas the original mods looked forward (although maintaining nostalgia for British cultural icons), the mod revival was a conscious effort to harken back to an earlier generation. Like their 1960s mod predecessors, revival bands were often self-consciously British (i.e. using Union Jack flags and the Royal Air Force roundel). Mod revival band members were usually from working class backgrounds, or aimed to appear so. Many involved in the mod revival wore less peacockish, colourful, and dandified clothing than the 1960s mods. Many later mod revivalists wore jeans and Fred Perry tennis shirt outfits instead of suits.
Some mod revivalists were mostly interested in live performances by contemporary bands, and others focused on DJ events featuring recordings of 1960s music. Bands associated with the mod revival include The Chords, The Purple Hearts, The Merton Parkas, Secret Affair, The Lambrettas, The Jolt, and The Scene. Although not strictly a mod revival band, The Vapors, were often seen as allied with it, and were championed by Bruce Foxton of the Jam. In Northern England, the Huddersfield band The Killermeters produced the anthem SX 225, and formed the nucleus of a small local mod revival scene.
[edit] 1980s
In the early and mid 1980s, a scene closely linked to the original mod ethics grew up around the Shepherds Bush nightclub Sneakers, run by Paul Hallam and Richard "Shirley" Early. The club featured rare RnB and soul music, as well as smart tailor-made clothing. Another main player was Eddie Piller, who went on to create the acid jazz movement of the late 1980s.
In the mid 1980s, there was a brief mod revival centred on bands such as Makin' Time, The Scene, Small World, The Risk, The Moment, The Untouchables (from the US), The Jetset and The Prisoners, many of whom were featured on a Countdown Records compilation album . Fanzines such as Eddie Piller's Extraordinary Sensations and Chris Hunt's Shadows & Reflections helped generate interest the mod revival scene.
The northern soul scene underwent a change of pace in the mid 1980s — with slower RnB-style records becoming popular at all-nighters at clubs such as Top Of The World in Stafford and the 100 Club in London. Some revival mods became interested in psychedelic rock music, as well as rare UK and United States garage rock music. This interest was partly sparked by companies re-issuing recordings by bands such as The Action and The Creation.
Many revival mods joined the scooterist scene, which led to the scooterboy phenomenon of the 1980s. Several mods enjoyed a mixture of the two styles, although some scooterboys renounced any previous involvement with the mod subculture. The mod revival also had some crossover with 2 Tone and ska revival subcultures of the late 1970s and early 1980s, best known for bands such The Specials, The Beat, The Selecter, and Madness. Often these bands wore mod-like clothes, and their roots in black music paralleled that of the original mods.
[edit] Legacy
Paul Weller of The Jam went on to form The Style Council, a mid-1980s soul-influenced new wave band. After the breakup of that band, Weller established a commercially successful solo career. The 1990s Britpop movement was influenced by the mod revival, both in music and fashion. In the 2000s, some indie rock acts, such as The Ordinary Boys, Rinaldi Sings and Mark Joseph, have been influenced by the mod revival.
[edit] Notable mod revival bands
- The Jam
- The Merton Parkas
- Secret Affair
- The Scene
- The Chords
- The Lambrettas
- Purple Hearts
- The Moment
- Untouchables
[edit] External links
- The Mod Revival The story of the Mod Revival, by Chris Hunt, published in the New Musical Express Mod special edition, April 2005
- The ModPopPunk Archives Information and sound samples
- Mod Revival Information, photos and forum
- Mod-ernworld Information and photos
- Mod Radio UK Online mod radio (1960s & revival)
- The 1979 Mod Revival Article by Garry Bushell
| Mods |
|---|
| Music |
| 2 Tone • Acid Jazz • Beat music • Blue-eyed soul • Blue Beat • British Invasion • Britpop • Freakbeat • Garage rock • Jazz • Mod Revival • Modern soul • Motown • Northern Soul • Power Pop • Psychedelic rock • Reggae • R&B • Rocksteady • Soul music • Ska • Stax Records • Trojan Records • White soul |
| Clothing |
| Ben Sherman • Bespoke tailoring • Brogues • Carnaby Street • Fred Perry • Harrington • Levi's • Loafers • Parka • Sta-Prest • Suit |
| Other topics |
| 1960s • Blowup • Casuals • Great Britain • Pete Meaden • Mods & Rockers • Pop art • Quadrophenia (film) • Rockers • Roundel • Scooter (Lambretta / Vespa) • Scooterboy • Skinhead • Suedehead • Swinging London • Speed (drug) • Subculture • Teddy Boy • Twisted Wheel • Union Jack • UK subcultures • Youth culture |
| Punk rock |
|---|
| 2 Tone - Anarcho-punk - Anti-folk - Art punk - Celtic punk - Christian punk - Cowpunk - Crust punk - Dance-punk - Deathcountry - Death pop - Deathrock - Electro rock - Emo - Folk punk - Gaelic punk - Garage punk - Glam punk - Gothabilly - Hardcore punk - Post-hardcore - Horror punk - Jazz punk - Mod revival - Nazi punk - New Wave - No Wave - Noise rock - Oi! - Pop punk - Post-punk - Psychobilly - Punk blues - Punk Pathetique - Queercore - Reggae rock - Riot Grrrl - Scum punk - Ska punk - Skate punk - Streetpunk - Synthpunk - Taqwacore |
| Other topics |
| Protopunk - DIY ethic - First wave punk musicians - Second wave punk musicians - Punk subculture - Punk movies - Punk fashion - Punk ideology - Punk visual art - Punk dance - Punk literature - Punk zine - Rock Against Communism - Straight edge |
