Song-cultural analysis

[hodge]

Anyone feel up to doing this kind of thing?

I was a lit crit/writer til PTSD kicked my ass.

Now after my second ART session I'm kind of feeling up to exploring cultural analysis from a pop culture song from the 80s, which I've always found very interesting on several fronts: antebellum U.S. history, LGBTQ populations, just all kinds of levels. Anyone?

Culture Club - Karma Chameleon

 

[hodge]

A song I could have seen my hubs write, in terms of its humility and honesty, though he never worked in the pop music field: R.E.M. - Losing My Religion (Official Music Video)

 

[shatter eyes]

Linkin Park - Numb
A song so real..too real..

 

[hodge]

I believe I've heard of that song recently. Can you post a Youtube link?

 

[user44376]

Anyone feel up to doing this kind of thing?

I was a lit crit/writer til PTSD kicked my ass.

Now after m...

Are you talking about the song though, or the video? Do the lyrics address these issues? Great song. Heard it a billion times. Can’t remember the lyrics atm.

 

[Deleted member 19804]

I love this! In grammar school, a friend and I wrote a project on the analysis of protest music. Like "99 Luftballons" (99 air balloons) by Nena. The melody sounds so happy, but when you look at the lyrics, it's actually a protest song against the Berlin Wall :)

 

[user44376]

I love this! In grammar school, a friend and I wrote a project on the analysis of protest music. Like...

I remember seeing the vid for Smalltown Boy by Bronski Beat. Then reading that it was about a gay kid getting stomped and his family abandoning him. Blew me away. I was like 12. Even then homosexuality wasn’t really acknowledged. I thought it was awesome. It was nice to see a video with some depth as opposed to empty entertainment.

 

[hodge]

I love this! In grammar school, a friend and I wrote a project on the analysis of protest music. Like...

Awesome, @Snowwhite. "99 Luftballoons" is a perfect example. Now that song is probably going to run in my head over the next few days. It may replace "What's Going On" by 4 Non Blondes, lol. But maybe not.

 

[hodge]

Are you talking about the song though, or the video? Do the lyrics address these issues? Great song....

Both the song and the video. To me, there are so many striking images in this video. Like, it announces that it's 1870 Mississippi and yet there are black and white people in the event mixing, which I can't imagine actually happening in 1870 Mississippi. And then we have the lead singer who is obviously genderbending as no one in the video notices, as if maybe he's sort of the ghost in the machine? I don't know. Maybe there's nothing more here, but I still find this video fascinating and kind of comforting in some odd way.

 

[hodge]

This song has been playing in my head all week: 4 Non Blondes - What's Up