True fans of '80s music know all too well the definition of awesomeness. I have always been a fan of music from the 1980s, but I have recently discovered a large rift between '80s music fans. There are those who appreciate '80s music as a revolution of pop music, and there are those who think '80s music is just silly, quirky and fun. There are even non-fans who think that the 1980s should be considered a lost decade in the history of music.
This division came to my realization while watching Devo play at San Diego's Street Scene. Half of the audience was transfixed by the awe of Devo, while the other half was just waiting for the band to play "Whip It" while wearing funny red hats.
Devo did not disappoint audience members, incorporating synthesizers and robotic dance into a high energy set. But the band's persona is more than just that goofy out of date robotic dance. The name Devo stands for de-evolution, the theory that the human race is regressing, caused by the many societal structures that restrict mankind. Thus the robotic dancing and use of electronics represents the mechanization of the human race.
Many prominent figures of '80s music are still active and progressive to this day. Devo's lead singer, Mark Mothersbaugh, when not touring with Devo, works with director Wes Anderson and scores movies like "Rushmore" and "The Royal Tenenbaums." The Smith's frontman Morrissey released a brand new album, "Years of Refusal," and is a headliner at southern California's Coachella Music Festival. The Smith's guitarist Johnny Marr toured with Modest Mouse for the past several years, just recently splitting with the band. Now is the perfect time to experience the musicians that shaped modern pop music.
What else makes '80s music more than just quirky and silly? '80s bands like the Talking Heads, The Cars and Devo pioneered a music genre called New Wave, which evolved from '70s punk as a new form of pop music. New Wave also sparked the birth of MTV with its pop songs set to video background. New Wave is still important today with bands like The Faint, Franz Ferdinand,and The Killers drawing most of their influence from the genre.
New Wave may have dominated the early '80s but it was hardly the only influential music that arose from this decade. By the mid 80s, alternative rock bands like The Smiths and The Cure hit the music scene and paved the way for bands like Nirvana. Alternative rockers took the New Wave pop song and molded it with a more guitar based style.
Diagramming music's "who influenced who" is a tedious and near impossible task, but the point of a basic analysis is to understand the importance and scope of music evolution. Hopefully the conclusion drawn is that '80s music is much more than just the soundtrack from "Revenge of the Nerds." You do not need a retro style to appreciate the value of influential music. Anyone who enjoys music has a multitude of reasons to thank the 1980s, whether it's for killing the radio star or popularizing indie icon, Morrissey.
To find out what type of '80s music fan you are, ask yourself why you like David Bowie. If your answer is that David Bowie was in the movie "Labyrinth," then you're just a big Muppets fan. If your answer is that David Bowie's work with Brian Eno in Berlin laid the groundwork for '80s New Wave and Post-Punk, then you're a music snob. If your answer is both of these, then you are a true '80s music fan.
