New Romantic
| New Romantic | |
|---|---|
| Stylistic origins | glam rock, punk rock, krautrock, electropop, synth pop |
| Cultural origins | 1980s England. |
| Typical instruments | Synthesizers- Bass - Drums - Guitar |
| Derivative forms | Romo |
| Other topics | |
| New Wave music | |
New Romantic was a New Wave music genre and fashion movement that occurred primarily in England during the early 1980s. The genre emerged after the London punk scene had come to an end, with former members of the movement splintering into the New Romantic, Gothic rock and postpunk movements.
Origins
The genre's genesis took place largely through clubs such as Billy's in Dean Street, London, England, which ran David Bowie and Roxy Music nights in the aftermath, evolving into the highly successful and elitist Blitz Club in Great Queen Street, which featured Steve Strange as doorman and Boy George as cloakroom attendant. The club spawned a hundred suburban spin-offs in and around London, among which were Croc's in Rayleigh, Essex, and The Regency in Chadwell Heath, where Depeche Mode and Culture Club had their debut gigs as fledgling bands.
History
The New Romantic phenomenon was similar to that of glam rock during the early 1970s, in that (male) New Romantics dressed in effeminate clothing, often with frilly "fop" shirts, and wore cosmetics. David Bowie was an obvious influence, and his 1980 single "Fashion" could be considered an anthem for the New Romantics, as were Brian Eno and Roxy Music. However as with many art school-based youth movements, by the time this 'anthem' was pronounced, the movement itself, although successfully projecting many new stylish futuristic ideas and visions (with lots of various references to sci-fi), had been seized upon by commercial forces, and watered-down versions were being cheaply reproduced for the High Street.
Despite the movement's ties to glam rock, the moods and themes explored by New Romantic differed sharply from those examined by their supposed forefathers - compare Slade's screeching "Coz I Luv You" to Visage's more languorous "Fade to Grey".
The main difference from glam, however, was that instead of guitar rock, the music was largely synthesizer-based electropop music. Japanese electronic-music pioneers YMO were a significant influence in this regard, as were German electronic innovators such as Kraftwerk and Can, intelligently introducing plenty of innovative and experimental sounds. Rhythm machines were also widely in use.
In the mid 1980's the genre made its way to America, particularly the West coast of California. Its moniker saw a slight shortening and "New Ro" became a trend among people looking for a happy medium between the surf and ska inspired "Mod" category, and the more guitar oriented Punk scene.
New Romantic bands and artists
The main musical and stylistic proponents of the New Romantic movement were Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, Adam & The Ants, Visage, and Ultravox, especially during the period from mid-1980 to mid-1982. Other bands of the era which have been associated with New Romanticism include Japan, Depeche Mode, Simple Minds, Soft Cell, The Human League, Eurythmics, OMD, Tears For Fears, Tony Reed, and Talk Talk, although the majority of these bands have refuted the 'New Romantic' tag.
In the mid-1990s, New Romantic was briefly revived in England as a movement called Romo in clubs like Club Skinny. Orlando is generally seen to have been the most successful Romo group.