Edition 40 | 2021
Glam Rockvs Gender Norms Illustrations Olivia Mannella Words Nahum Gale
Picture this. Great Britain. Early 1970s. The music scene. The Summer of Love, that brought with it the notorious British Invasion of bands, has long since greyed and turned the once vibrant and colourful land of English rock monochrome. In the wake of this psychedelic hippie rock, music was missing a crucial ingredient that gave it it’s oomph. That ingredient being identity. Enter glam rock (or “glitter rock” in the United States), a fresh subgenre of rock which saw the diverse and the obscure bubble to the surface. Beyond combining art rock, cabaret, 1950s rock and roll, bubble-gum rock and even science fiction, glam became best known for its revaluation of music identity by playing with gender roles and subverting gender norms. Taking the once overly masculine male rock star persona and donning him with loud costumes, make-up, hairstyles, platform shoes and, of course, glitter, glam promised to push the boundaries of rock long after the British Invasion’s departure. Glam redefined musical identity and, to celebrate that fact, we have decided to recall a few of these ultra-theatrical rock icons to understand their success, their style and, most importantly, their identities in an ever-evolving music scene that champions the flamboyant.
Perhaps where it all started, Marc Bolan and his band, T-Rex, surfaced come the concluding chapters of the 1960s British music scene and, seemingly, changed rock entirely by the turn of the decade. The dandy sounding vocals of Bolan and the band’s inherent oozing of coolness led them to pioneer status in the newly labelled genre that was glam rock. Their 1970 hit, Ride a White Swan was enough to land them a place in the zeitgeist, but it was not until their next single, Hot Love (which, by the way, was written in 10 minutes) that they truly shaped the genre. Soon came Get It On and, well, the rest is history...
Bursting from their plainer 1960s personas, Slade’s 1971 chart topper, Cuz I Luv You, erected the band as glam icons with their silky style and truly memorable hairstyles. It was the rock star characteristics that Slade emulated that pushed them close to the top; their riffs, their energy and, of course, their horrendous and complete disregard for the English language with cooky titled hits like Cum on Feel the Noise. Between the latter single and their holiday hit, Merry Xmas Everybody, Slade knew how to craft a unique identity in a genre that was already dripping with unique identities all around... I just doubt their English teachers would have been that proud.
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