![[Column] The future of underground music](/../assets/images/column-the-future-of-underground-music.webp)
Birth of the concept of underground music
Text: mmr｜Theme: Where is underground music heading amid changes in the internet, AI, and communities? Decipher the future from history and current facts.
The term underground music is not just a genre name. It is a cultural concept that refers to music outside of circulation, power, media, and community.
In the United States in the 1960s, the term “underground” began to be used to refer to rock, jazz, and folk movements that were not covered by mainstream media. Particularly in San Francisco and New York, unique cultural spheres were formed through connections with alternative newspapers and the art scene.
There are three characteristics of underground music.
- small community
- Independent distribution
- Experimentability
In the 1970s, punk became its symbol. In clubs in London and New York, a DIY spirit of music production is spreading outside of major labels.
In the 1980s, this underground culture further expanded into electronic music.
House was born in Chicago, and techno was born in Detroit. At first, this music was supported by clubs and communities rather than commercial music.
Underground music is always a culture that begins in small places.
Underground music was not created as a genre, but as a term denoting a cultural position outside the mainstream.
Underground network created by club culture
The biggest infrastructure for underground music is the club.
In New York in the 1970s, disco clubs became testing grounds for new music. The DJ begins to create a new form of music while stringing together records.
In the 1980s, Chicago’s Warehouse and Detroit clubs became centers of electronic music culture.
A club is more than just a place for music.
There
- Where music is born
- Where communities are formed
- Where new sounds are tested
It was.
In 1988, the acid house movement spread in Britain. The movement expanded with illegal raves, forming a vast underground network.
Later, in the 1990s, genres such as jungle, drum and bass, and UK garage were born out of this club culture.
The evolution of underground music has always been supported by the physical space of clubs.
The Internet has changed underground music
In the 2000s, the structure of underground music changed significantly.
The reason is the Internet.
The advent of MySpace, blogs, forums, etc. has changed the way music is discovered.
Once upon a time
- record shop
- Club
- DJ
was spreading music.
But the Internet completely changes this.
In the late 2000s, the phenomenon of blog houses was born. An era has begun where music blogs can discover new artists and instantly spread them around the world.
The emergence of SoundCloud is also important.
This platform has created a system that allows music to be released without going through a label.
As a result, underground music is freed from geographical location.
The scenes in Berlin, London, and Tokyo will be connected to each other by the Internet.
The Internet has transformed underground music from a local culture to a global network.
Underground music in the streaming era
In the 2010s, the center of music distribution shifted to streaming.
Platforms such as Spotify, Apple Music, and YouTube have become the center of the music market.
This change also affected underground music.
While streaming generates massive access, it also has a structure in which algorithms determine the visibility of music.
In other words
You can”t find music that isn”t included in the algorithm.
This problem became a major challenge for underground music.
But at the same time, platforms like Bandcamp are becoming the new home for independent music.
On Bandcamp
- Artists can sell directly
- A community is formed
- Small labels can operate
A structure was born.
This can be considered a digital version of record culture.
Even in the streaming era, underground music continues to create its own economic zone.
Current state of underground music
The underground music of the 2020s exists in multiple places.
- Club
- Online
- Community
- Art scene
These overlap in a complex way.
for example
- Bandcamp Community
- SoundCloud Scene
- Discord Community
- local club
exist at the same time.
During the pandemic, clubs closed and many music events moved online.
This experience further changed the shape of the music community.
Underground music has become a culture that exists not only in physical space but also in digital space.
Contemporary underground music exists both in physical space and on the internet.
The future of underground music
The future of underground music is headed in several directions.
The first is the miniaturization of communities.
Rather than a huge scene, there is a growing structure of many small communities.
Second, there is a reassessment of local culture.
While music has become more homogenized due to the Internet, interest in regional culture is increasing.
Thirdly, new technology.
AI, VR, real-time streaming, etc. have the potential to change the way we experience music.
However, the essence of underground music remains the same.
It is a culture born outside the mainstream and supported by community.
If you look at history, underground music has always seemed on the verge of disappearing, only to reappear.
The reason is simple.
This is because new music always comes from small places.
Chronology: History of underground music
| Years | Events |
|---|---|
| 1960s | Counterculture and underground media |
| 1970s | Punk and DIY culture |
| 1980s | Birth of house and techno |
| 1990s | Rave culture and electronic music expansion |
| 2000s | MySpace and blogging culture |
| 2010s | Streaming and SoundCloud |
| 2020s | Online communities and hybrid culture |
Underground music is a culture that has survived while changing its form along with changes in technology and society.
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