18 October 2013
This symposium will explore the histories and experiences of living in British cities to examine the role of music and music scenes in the urban unrest of 1981 and 1986 and the more recent unrest of Summer 2011. Bristol, as the venue for this symposium, has a unique position in the history of British popular music and we seek to use that history to explore the relationship between the past and present and between Bristol and the wider national context.
The Bristol music scene has a rich history that produced bands such as Black Roots, Massive Attack, Disorder, Roni Size, Portishead and the Pop Group. The multicultural nature of the scene often reflected the close proximity of communities where ethnicity, class and different heritages mingled and fed off each other. Many of these musicians created a narrative in lyrics, aesthetics, imagery and comment on the cultural and political scene within the city and nationally. Bristol’s example demonstrates not only the importance of the history of popular music, but also the role of musicians, audiences and music in making history happen. Other British cities have their own histories and peculiarities that are reflected in events such as these but also there are some similarities to the Bristol example and we hope that we can attempt to illustrate and reflect on those differences and links in this symposium.
This event was part of the AHRC Networking Project: Subcultures, Popular Music and Social Change, which examined youth cultural identity and political (dis)engagement via five symposia.
“Retelling the Riots! Music, Community and Civic Unrest” was held on 18 October 2013 at the St Werburgh’s Centre in Bristol. Click here for more information