Page 15 - THE ORACLE MAGAZINE October'23 EDITION
P. 15
On a technicality Rodriguez isn't actually an antifolk artist - folk definitely -
however, antifolk properly emerged in the 80s, whereas Rodriguez was
prominent in, bizarrely, South Africa during the 70s. Nonetheless, his indirect
protest to South Africa's apartheid is one of the first ventures into the genre of
antifolk. Standout tracks include “I wonder” and “Crucify your mind”
.
Favourite tracks:
“This is Not a Song It’s an Outburst: Or, The
Establishment Blues” & “Gomorrah (A nursery rhyme)”
RODRIGUEZ -
“COLD FACT”
, 1970, 32 MINS LONG
Again on a technicality “room 29” (or by extension Jarvis cocker and Chilly
Gonzalez) aren't completely antifolk - however, I am of the belief that if music
focuses more so on the lyrics than that of the musical capabilities/talent, then it's
antifolk. And that's not me saying that Jarvis or Chilly Gonzales are incapable of
writing good music; I mean I can't name one bad pulp song, BUT this album only
has three components; the vocals, the piano and the lyrics, so because of this
simplicity each component has to be exceptional - and lucky for us they are.
Antifolk lyricism tends to be quite crude and raw - hence why I've deemed “room
29” antifolk; Jarvis’s blunt lyrics and Gonzales’s filmscore background contrast to
create an alienated scene in which you are looking into room 29 and seeing the
numerous wrongdoings of the guests.
JARVIS COCKER & CHILLY GONZALES -
“ROOM 29”
, 2017,
51 MINS LONG
Favourite tracks:
“Belle boy” & “Tearjerker”
No technicality on this one; “torch song” is antifolk through and through…with
some punk elements, which isn't necessarily a defining feature of antifolk, but I’ll
let it slide. Combining noisy, punk-bred instruments against Sam Cook-Parrot's
imperfect vocals,
“torch song” explores a gross, sickly sweet romance that’s
doomed to fail. Radiator Hospital are a great gateway into antifolk - not too
overwhelming, but also by no means boring.
My fav tracks:
“Cut your bangs” & “Fireworks”
RADIATOR HOSPITAL -
“TORCH SONG”
, 2014, 32 MINS
LONG
Sidenote: If you prefer faster paced music and
aren't all that fussed about ballads then this
probably isn't the album for you
14
THE ORACLE MAGAZINE
The Vinyl Verdict
ANTIFOLK
by Poppy Burgess