Folk music
With the arrival of music halls in the newly industrialized mid-19th century, folk music gave way to popular music and ordinary people of the Western world were first offered music as a mass commodity packaged and distributed for the purpose of earning a profit. [Jun 2006]
People (20th century): Joe Boyd - Nick Drake
Folk Is Not a Four Letter Word (2005) - Andy Votel, Various [Amazon.com] [FR] [DE] [UK]
The Hangman's Beautiful Daughter (1968) - The Incredible String Band [FR] [DE] [UK]
The absorption of Nick Drake into the British pop canon was effected some time ago, but recognition for the Incredible String Band has been slower. -- Adrian Shaughnessy, Wire Magazine, Feb 2004
Folk (music)
Folk music, in the original sense of the term, is music by and of the people. Folk music arose, and best survives, in societies not yet affected by mass communication and the commercialization of culture. It normally was shared and performed by the entire community (not by a special class of expert performers), and was transmitted by word of mouth.During the 20th century, the term folk music took on a second meaning: it describes a particular kind of popular music which is culturally descended from or otherwise influenced by traditional folk music. Like other popular music, this kind of folk music is most often performed by experts and is transmitted in organized performances and commercially distributed recordings. However, popular music has filled some of the roles and purposes of folk music where it has replaced it. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Folk_music, Feb 2004
Psych folk
Psych folk or Psychedelic folk is a music genre which began through the blending of folk music and psychedelic music in the 1960s. It is generally acoustic or mixes acoustic instrumentation with other influences. Chanting, early music and world music influences are sometimes apparent.
Early examples of psych folk bands were Syd Barrett, The Incredible String Band, and Tyrannosaurus Rex.
It has continued to be performed up to the present day. Other notable psych folk artists are Robyn Hitchcock and Current 93.
Since the 1990s, Elephant Six Collective, with bands like Neutral Milk Hotel has been known to release psych folk records.
The latest generation of psych folk artists in the early 2000s include Animal Collective, DeVotchKa, Faun Fables, testface, Sun City Girls, Dame Darcy, Kemialliset Ystävät, Devandra Banhart, PG Six, Pothole Skinny, Tower Recordings, Eyes and Arms of Smoke, and Deek Hoi. (See New Weird America.)
Another type of folk that incorporate world music, strange sounds and trippy lyrics include psych folk's more esoteric-oriented and hermetic-centered cousin: Apocalyptic folk. While these genres are similar, the latter two appeal more to followers of darker music, while psych folk is more favoured by psychedelic music followers in general. This relationship could be considered very analogous to the similar subject matter but different treatments.
Michael Gira has also assisted in a sort of psych folk revival. Gira named his newest project Angels of Light after San Francisco hippy Hibiscus's transcendental theatre group of the same name and is responsible for guiding the career of new psych folk rising star, Devendra Banhart. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psych_folk [Feb 2006]
New Weird America (2000s)
Espers (2004) - Espers [Amazon.com] [FR] [DE] [UK]
New Weird America describes a musical movement in the 2000s which boasts a new uprising of weird and psychedelic music. It is a revival of sorts of the term Old Weird America, coined by Greil Marcus. The style of this movement is derived from folk and psychedelic groups from the 1960s and 1970s. The bands of this movement are usually classified as psych folk, acid folk or most notably as freak-folk.
In 2004, The Wire magazine ran a cover story on this movement, written by David Keenan. However, there is no definitive source for information about the movement, as most works are hard to find and distributed independently.
New Weird America is not a unified movement. It was a term derived by journalists such as post-rock and indie rock. Many of these bands do not identify with this term but have been lumped into it by the press. The underground American scene has been around for a long time. --http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Weird_America [Jan 2006]
See also: new - weird - music -
Folk Is Not a Four Letter Word (2005) - Andy Votel, Various
Track Listings
1. Kathy Smith - It Takes So Long
2. Sarofeen & Smoke - It’s Love
3. Brigitte Fontaine - Brigitte
4. Linda Perhacs - Hey, Who Really Cares?
5. Breakout - Warm Up My Lips
6. Musica Dispersa - Cefalea
7. The Poppy Family - Shadows On My Wall
8. Wendy & Bonnie - By The Sea
9. Bonnie Koloc - My Aunt Edna
10. Heaven & Earth - Jenny
11. Erica Pomerace - You Used To Think
12. Audience - Man On Box
13. The Roundtable - Scarborough Fair
14. Sidan - Gobiath
15. Sidan - Ar Goll
Album Description
Folk-Funk? Electric Folk? Hippy-Rock? Acid Folk? Sunshine-Pop? Folk-Fusion? Folksploitation? Once again music lovers struggle to bridge the deep & wide gully where another hybrid genre wanders lonely amongst the vinyl ghosts of yesteryears ethereal love songs. Let us introduce a flock of unsung songbirds who flutter between rocks and hardened pastures too commercial to be traditional - not successful enough to be credible - from the wrong side of town - on the other side of the globe. Here are some of the would-be folk legends that you didn’t read about, they never played the festivals and you never heard their records... until today.
"Folk Is Not A Four Letter Word" is the debut release from DELAY 68 RECORDS, a brand new label from CHERRY RED RECORDS, set to bring you the best in Folk, Funk, Psych, Prog, Ye-Ye, & Beat from across the world.
Compiled by, and featuring original artwork and sleevenotes from ANDY VOTEL (TWISTED NERVE), fans of Andy’s groundbreaking "MUSIC TO WATCH GIRLS CRY" mix CD (an insanely eclectic mix of 75 tracks in 76 minutes!), and "FINDERS KEEPERS" compilation on FAT CITY RECORDS will have some indication of what to expect from this enthralling compilation.
** The majority of these tracks have never before been on CD, many appear here for the first time away from their sought after original releases.
** Eclectic folk has become very popular lately amongst collectors, DJs and artists (Wendy and Bonnie’s "By The Sea" was recently sampled by Super Furry Animals on their album Phantom Power), and Andy Votel is well respected in each of those circles.
** Features cover sticker endorsements from DAMON GOUGH (aka BADLY DRAWN BOY), and BOB STANLEY (ST. ETIENNE)
** There is already much press interest in the label and this album from national magazines (including Uncut, Mojo, Record Collector) as well specialist websites and radio. --via Amazon.co.uk
see also: folk - terms of disparagement
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