TY - CHAP

T1 - Not Entirely Subversive

T2 - Rock Military Style from Hendrix to Destiny's Child

AU - Langkjær, Michael Alexander

PY - 2012

Y1 - 2012

N2 - Rock and pop musicians attired in military uniforms belong to our collective visual memory of the popular music scene since the 1960s. There has been a tendency to overestimate the subversive and erotic appeal of the uniformed look; subversion and fetishistic eroticism need not have been all that 'rock military style' involved. In challenging a-priori psychological or semiotic approaches, a note is made of discrepancies between what military-styled stars wished to express by their look and what their audiences assumed was its purpose. A general characterization of 'rock military style' is followed by analyses of the 1960s guitar hussar look of Jimi Hendrix and the 21st century camouflaged survivor look of Destiny's Child. Elucidation of the motivation behind their respective versions of 'rock military style' is achieved through utilization of personal statements in interviews, song lyrics, and contextual evidence linked to the histories and philosophies of Pop Art and aesthetics, current events and the cultural and social histories of particular groups. Differences and similarities between Hendrix and Destiny are noted, which include gender-specific attitudes toward the use of uniforms and military textiles as decorative devices, male status display and female empowerment, as well as anxieties about mortality.

AB - Rock and pop musicians attired in military uniforms belong to our collective visual memory of the popular music scene since the 1960s. There has been a tendency to overestimate the subversive and erotic appeal of the uniformed look; subversion and fetishistic eroticism need not have been all that 'rock military style' involved. In challenging a-priori psychological or semiotic approaches, a note is made of discrepancies between what military-styled stars wished to express by their look and what their audiences assumed was its purpose. A general characterization of 'rock military style' is followed by analyses of the 1960s guitar hussar look of Jimi Hendrix and the 21st century camouflaged survivor look of Destiny's Child. Elucidation of the motivation behind their respective versions of 'rock military style' is achieved through utilization of personal statements in interviews, song lyrics, and contextual evidence linked to the histories and philosophies of Pop Art and aesthetics, current events and the cultural and social histories of particular groups. Differences and similarities between Hendrix and Destiny are noted, which include gender-specific attitudes toward the use of uniforms and military textiles as decorative devices, male status display and female empowerment, as well as anxieties about mortality.

KW - Faculty of Humanities

KW - Uniforms

KW - Camouflage

KW - Fashion

KW - Semiotics

KW - Gender

KW - Aesthetics

KW - Empowerment

KW - Rock music

KW - Jimi Hendrix

KW - Destiny's Child

KW - Beyoncé

KW - Popular Culture

KW - 1960s

KW - 1990s-2000s

M3 - Book chapter

SN - 978-1-84888-015-3

T3 - Critical Issues

SP - 193

EP - 227

BT - Fashions

A2 - Foltyn, Jacque Lynn

PB - Inter-Disciplinary Press

CY - Oxford

ER -