[Column] The genealogy of Lo-Fi Folk / Bedroom Folk and the deepening of home recording culture
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The genealogy of Lo-Fi Folk / Bedroom Folk and the deepening of home recording culture
Text: mmr｜Theme: About the sonic and cultural development of Lo-Fi Folk, including the artist’s production environment and equipment
Folk music with a lo-fi feel is at the center of the ““history of individually produced music”’ that has continued since the home-recording culture of the 1970s. The evolution of recording equipment, the spread of individual production, and the approach of quietly recording the singer”s inner feelings have all combined to form a trend known as Bedroom Folk since the 2000s.
1. Origin: The germination of Takuroku folk (1970s–1990s)
1-1. 1970s: Rise of home recording culture
Consumer tape recorders became popular in the late 1970s, and with the advent of inexpensive cassette decks, the culture of recording at home spread. In the world of folk music, the prototype of ““home-recorded folk’’ has emerged, in which artists themselves record themselves playing and singing in their own rooms.
Main practices
- Plug the dynamic microphone directly into the cassette deck
- Recordings mixed with daily life sounds
- One-take recording with almost no mixdown
- Sound creation that retains the natural echoes of the room
Although the sound quality was by no means high, it was praised for its ability to preserve the distance between the singing voice and the guitar and the atmosphere of the room.
1-2. 1980s–1990s: Connection between indie folk and Takuroku
In the late 1980s, inexpensive 4-track cassette MTRs (such as TASCAM Portastudio) appeared, and the quality of home recording improved dramatically.
Recording became established as a means of personal expression,
- Multi-recording
- Build an arrangement in your own room
- Cassette’s unique saturated overtones was associated with folk expressions.
In the 1990s, along with the cassette release culture of indie labels, the number of works created by singer-songwriters in their bedrooms increased.
2. Early 2000s: Establishment of Bedroom Folk
2-1. Iron & Wine (Sam Beam) home recording environment
Iron & Wine’s early work ““The Creek Drank the Cradle’’ (2002) is known as a representative work of Bedroom Folk. Many of the recordings are made at the artist’s home and include:
● Recording environment
- Sam Beam’s home in Florida
- Uses 2 rooms: bedroom and living room
- Actively utilize the reflected sound of the room
- Microphone uses a combination of simple condenser and dynamic
- When cassette MTR and digital recording were mixed
● Sound characteristics
- Whispering vocals
- Leaving acoustic guitar noise and finger scrapes
- Record the room air and minute reverb as is
- "”Feeling of closeness’’ unique to low-volume home recording
These elements defined the sonic image of Lo-Fi Folk from the 2000s onwards.
2-2. Production method of Sufjan Stevens’ early works
Sufjan Stevens’s early works, especially Seven Swans (2004), and his earlier and later vocal recordings show active use of home recordings.
● Main techniques
- Play many instruments by yourself
- Improve microphone placement in your home environment (minimize wall reflections)
- Most of the reverb is built with natural reverberation
- Complete your own mix at home
- Recording organs and banjos from close range, preserving the unique Lo-Fi texture
In particular, in the early works, the tape-like roughness and very close vocal recordings have become symbols of Bedroom Folk.
3. Sonic characteristics of Lo-Fi Folk
3-1. Recording method
Lo-Fi Folk is characterized by a style that actively accepts the limitations of the recording equipment itself as “sound.”
● Examples of equipment used
- 4 track cassette MTR
- Minidisc recorder
- Early digital MTR
- Cheap microphone similar to voice recorder
- Homemade sound absorption treatment (blankets, bookshelves, curtains)
● Characteristic sound
- Roundness of high frequencies due to cassette saturation
- Existence of room noise due to quiet environment
- Vocal super close sound
- Minor noises (string noise, floor rumble, clothing rustling)
- Recording layout with a strong one-take feel
3-2. Lyric theme
Bedroom Folk’s lyrics are often introspective, speaking in low voices about their personal lives, emotions, and memories.
- Personal daily life
- Memories of family and home
- Close relationships
- Quiet religious and spiritual content
- A look away from the hustle and bustle of the city
Iron & Wine, a trend shared by Sufjan Stevens’ early work.
4. 2010s: Intersection with Bedroom Pop
In the 2010s, with the digitization of home recording equipment, more artists began producing in their bedrooms. The boundaries between folk, electronic music, and ambient music became blurred, and the scope of Lo-Fi Folk expanded.
● Main trends
- DAWs (Pro Tools, GarageBand, Logic, etc.) become popular
- Popularization of USB microphones
- Increase in online home recording community
- Re-evaluation of cassette culture
Although the sound quality was clearer than before, mixes that still had a “room feel” were still preferred.
5. 2020s: Post-lo-fi and acoustic return
In the 2020s, Lo-Fi Folk is moving towards a more static approach. With minimalist compositions, an emphasis on live recording, and a reduction in overt noise, Bedroom Folk is moving toward a stage where “life-sound realism” and “high-resolution intimacy” coexist.
- Lower prices for high-quality condenser microphones
- Improved DAW standard plug-ins
- Simplify room tuning at home
These factors are making modern home recording folk even more mature.
6. History of development by age (chronology)
7. Lo-Fi Folk production structure (diagram)
8. Representative works
8-1. Iron & Wine — The Creek Drank the Cradle (2002)
- home recording
- Recording is extremely low volume
- Close-distance recording while suppressing room noise
- Soft cassette-like high range
- Mix that actively retains guitar finger noise
8-2. Sufjan Stevens — Seven Swans (2004)
- Personal recording of multiple instruments at home
- Close-range recording of banjo, guitar, organ
- Vocal whisper-like vocalization
- Uses the room’s natural reverberations
9. Lo-Fi Folk influence and contemporary significance
Lo-fi folk is a genre that redefines the expression born from technical constraints as the value of music.
- Production without relying on large studios
- Directly record personal emotions and daily life as sound
- The living environment of the room is incorporated into the composition of the music.
- Pursuing “intimacy” by minimizing the distance between singing voice and instruments
These have had a great influence on modern Bedroom Pop and singing culture.
10. Conclusion
Lo-Fi Folk / Bedroom Folk has pioneered a new expression of folk music, taking into account the limitations of recording equipment and the personal living space. Iron & Wine and Sufjan Stevens’ early works are iconic examples of the sheer charm of home recording, and they continue to influence many artists today.
The small voices recorded in the room recorded the ““feel of everyday life’’ as sound that was not available in studio production, and carved out a new chapter in the history of folk music.
