Explain ‘visual kei’ and ‘punk’

PUNK is an anti-rock music force that emerged in the 1970s. PUNK is translated as "punk" in mainland China; translated as "punk" in Taiwan, and "collapse" in Hong Kong. In the West, PUNK in the dictionary means (slang) hooligans, trash, prostitutes, pedophiles, inferiors, etc. (although its meaning has changed to a certain extent now). It has been 25 years since "PUNK" magazine was first founded by Leg McNeil in 1975, and then the Sex Pistols formed the trend of this music. To understand PUNK’s impact on the world and indoor spaces, we must first understand the meaning and development of PUNK.

The essence of PUNK lies in destruction. Complete destruction and complete reconstruction are the so-called true PUNK spirit.

Origin of Punkpunk

PUNK INTERIOR

PUNK is an anti-rock music force that emerged in the 1970s. PUNK is translated as "punk" in mainland China; translated as "punk" in Taiwan, and "collapse" in Hong Kong. In the West, PUNK in the dictionary means (slang) hooligans, trash, prostitutes, pedophiles, inferiors, etc. (although its meaning has changed to a certain extent now). It has been 25 years since "PUNK" magazine was first founded by Leg McNeil in 1975 and then became a trend in this music by Sex Pistols. To understand PUNK’s impact on the world and indoor spaces, we must first understand the meaning and development of PUNK.

Britain in the 1970s

The word PUNK was coined by the British. At that time, the post-war Britain was experiencing economic depression and high unemployment, while the United States was experiencing The booming development of Hollywood movies has indirectly caused the UK's film industry to plummet; in terms of music industry, the UK is also in a sluggish state. Progressive poetry-style rock music is popular in the United States. A solo of more than ten minutes pays great attention to music. Technical expression, and the progressive rock music of the year gradually became commercialized and became a mainstream ground product. At that time, the representatives of progressive rock included YES, GENESIS, KING CRIMSON... In fact, since the 1960s, rock music has gradually entered a sad situation. For the sake of commercial interests, bands and musicians have increasingly lacked the sensitivity and complaint that rock music should have.

The overwhelming power of "collapse"

The label signed by Virgin Records in 1975 - "SEX PISTOLS" (Mainland translation: "Sex Pistols") was the starting point of PUNK. The record sleeve of their album "GOD SAVE THE QUEEN" boldly sealed the Queen's mouth with "SEX PISTOLS". Their bold style was unprecedented (and the British band JAPAN in the New Romantic period also blew up Mao Zedong's pretty portrait in a music video). They completely vented their inner resentment, both for their future and society. An accusation. This is the birth of PUNK.

Suddenly, PUNK became a craze, because PUNK is a popular culture, which can be easily identified with (based on the social problems in Britain at that time), and people can find a way to vent; and Hong Kong At that time, Xu Guanjie's song "Half a Category" was also influenced by PUNK's culture. It described the mentality of a wage earner, which shows PUNK's cosmopolitan nature and compatibility (didn't you see that "Half a Category" was sold to a large audience?)

Music of three chords

PUNK is the deformed product of the uneven compression of materials and desires, ideals and environment. Sensitivity to materials is an important concept of PUNK. They make you feel a kind of restless aggression and aggression, and are not easily satisfied with everything, so PUNK's music mostly involves sex, drugs, violence, etc.

PUNK in "Three Chord Theory" is a very democratic ROCK N' ROLL; trichord means that a song is composed of only three chords (chords), without modification at all, directly, PUNK expresses what they want to say powerfully and nakedly. PUNK does not have long speeches, only 2-3 minutes, which is completely contrary to the mainstream of the year.

Because of the simple popularity of PUNK, many PUNK BANDs have sounded their first notes in the streets, in cars, and warehouses. Music is no longer a profound knowledge, because PUNK has a strong credibility. Participation has made PUNK music popular and has a positive role in promoting rock music.

The evolution of PUNK

Although PUNK is so negative and extreme, it finally wrote an important page in the history of world art. The emergence of PUNK is not only in the music world, but also affects fashion, graphic images, video and interior decoration. A writer, Malcolm Mclarer, said "If punk was just about music this thing would have died years ago" "punk is the most important event in post-war Britain." PUNK may also give a vague meaning to the new romance (POST- MODERNISM) A little translation.

PUNK has evolved so widely that we may not realize it. It has transformed into a kind of performance art, a kind of thought, and even a kind of life. In terms of graphic design, the album covers of SEX PISTOLS triggered a craze for "co-paste". Posters, magazines, etc. at that time were all laid out in this way, which had a huge impact on the future design industry.

In terms of fashion design, people may always misunderstand that those with PUNK hair are PUNK friends. That is very wrong! In fact, the PUNK trend must have been experienced by young people in the 1980s. Anita Mui’s outfit back then Dressing up is all influenced by PUNK LOOK. People think that Miss Mei leads the trend, but in fact she also follows the trend! PUNK LOOK is often a rebellious style. In the 1980s, boys wore gel hair, a pair of narrow jeans, and a An unbuttoned white shirt and a walkman with a headphone attached to the waist are already a PUNK LOOK. (Unfortunately, Hong Kong people have only learned other people’s outlook, but they listen to Chinese pop music on their headsets

Visual rock, the English name is Visual Rock. It originated in Europe and the United States in the 1970s. Visual rock is With the advancement of the times, people no longer limit themselves to auditory satisfaction but pursue visual impact. The development of science and technology, and the popularity of televisions, video recorders, and DVD players also promote the arrival of visual impact through clothing and makeup. To express their music, bands often dye their hair different colors and wear unusual clothes. There are often one or two members in these bands who wear feminine clothes. From a musical perspective, visual kei is European and American yin-yang rock, glam rock, and exaggeration. The inheritance and development of rock music include "Boy George" and others in Europe and America.

Japan is the most fertile soil for visual kei rock. Japanese visual kei is influenced by European and American "Glam Rock". Founded in the late 1980s under the influence of the New Wave, they can be said to have learned the essence of European and American visual kei. Their makeup is not only bolder and more charming, but the quality of their music is by no means at the level of wit. The Japanese are superior in orchestration, arrangement, creative spirit and business operation.

Visual music is not only rock music, but also has many types, such as pop rock, heavy metal, and gothic rock. , classical/baroque music, etc. There are shadows of visual kei bands in Europe and the United States. Although they are relatively prosperous in Japan, there are many visual kei bands that have attracted the attention of major record companies. Gradually breaking away from the ranks of visual kei and evolving into a mainstream band, visual kei has become a tool for them to attract attention.

Authentic visual kei music should be a close combination of clothing and music types that complement each other. Exaggerated shapes should not just serve the music, but should be integrated into one. In the current music scene where HIP-HOP and R&B dominate, visual enjoyment is just a sign, and discovering the beauty in the essence of music is the most important.

Visual Kei in Japan

Visual Kei is ubiquitous in the Japanese music scene, and there are few male singers who do not appear in bold and androgynous visual kei outfits.

The reason is that, first of all, Japan has had a "monster worship" mentality and the existence of "geisha" since ancient times, and its acceptance has its historical roots. Secondly, young people in Japan pursue freshness and excitement, especially young women. They are most attracted to the most exciting products, and the attractiveness of seductive visual kei artists to them is self-evident. Imitating visual kei artists can make them the most dazzling and cool center of attention. This should be regarded as a vain expression of pursuing magnificence. Thirdly, the Japanese people have the highest pressure in the world. The pressure of the younger generation comes from school, family, society and other aspects. Visual music is the ideal tool for them to escape and vent.

In the early days of the development of visual kei in Japan, it was divided into two categories: "demon school" and "aesthetic school". Currently, the orientation of Japanese visual kei rock bands tends to be diversified. The famous LunaSea band is a representative of heavy metal, GLAY's music style is more popular, and the Rainbow band is both British and psychedelic.