Wonky Pop
Encyclopedia
Wonky Pop was a term used to describe a loose grouping of musical acts that played what the BBC
called "quirky, catchy and credible pop
", rooted in the eccentric side of 1980s pop music, which was briefly popular in the late 2000s. Acts described as being in this genre include Mika
, Alphabeat
and Frankmusik
.
word meaning unsteady, shaky, awry, or wrong. The BBC reported that the term was both coined by and is owned by the manager of Mika
while The Independent
reported the term was coined by Peter Robinson
founder of the blog Popjustice
.
The BBC describes a UK Wonky Pop a club night as involving "cutting-edge pop, dance, hip hop and everything in between; the club organiser René Symonds states that "the iPod shuffle generation will not be limited to one genre and wants a return to authenticity after years of manufactured pop". The Wonky Pop website sets out a manifesto that states that "We want to show the world that pop is not a four letter word, and for every flaky reality TV winner there's a myriad of cool, credible and weird acts".
A 2008 article in The Guardian contrasted Wonky Pop performers with mainstream pop performers, noting that "Wonky Pop artists are unmanufactured but unashamedly melodic and capable of playing live without recourse to lashings of dry ice, troupes of dancers and an interlude during which they fly around the stage on wires". The Independent stated that Wonky pop caused a change in "pop's division of labour ...away from focus-grouped, production-line pop, and towards DIY [and] ...fresh flavours", which is rejuvenating pop in the 2000s in the way that Britpop
gave a shot in the arm to pop in the 1990s. Major influences cited for Wonky Pop acts include David Bowie
, Kate Bush
, Kylie Minogue
, Prince
and Madonna
Wonky Pop was credited with causing a shift in popular musical tastes from male-driven guitar acts to female-driven 1980s style pop music seen in the synthpop
revival of the later 2010s.
BBC
The British Broadcasting Corporation is a British public service broadcaster. Its headquarters is at Broadcasting House in the City of Westminster, London. It is the largest broadcaster in the world, with about 23,000 staff...
called "quirky, catchy and credible pop
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
", rooted in the eccentric side of 1980s pop music, which was briefly popular in the late 2000s. Acts described as being in this genre include Mika
Mika (singer)
Mika is a British singer-songwriter.After recording his first extended play, Dodgy Holiday EP, Mika released his first full-length studio album, Life in Cartoon Motion, on Island Records in 2007. Life in Cartoon Motion sold more than 5.6 million copies worldwide and helped Mika win a Brit...
, Alphabeat
Alphabeat
Alphabeat are a Danish pop band from Silkeborg, fronted by singers Stine Bramsen and Anders SG and signed to Polydor Records. Their single "Fascination" was a major hit in Denmark during the summer of 2007 and a significant hit in the United Kingdom in 2008...
and Frankmusik
Frankmusik
Vincent Frank born Vincent James Turner is known professionally as Frankmusik is an English electropop musician. The name "Frank" is derived from the surname of his grandfather, whose name he took in tribute.-Early life:...
.
Definitions
"Wonky" is a British EnglishBritish English
British English, or English , is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the United Kingdom from forms used elsewhere...
word meaning unsteady, shaky, awry, or wrong. The BBC reported that the term was both coined by and is owned by the manager of Mika
Mika (singer)
Mika is a British singer-songwriter.After recording his first extended play, Dodgy Holiday EP, Mika released his first full-length studio album, Life in Cartoon Motion, on Island Records in 2007. Life in Cartoon Motion sold more than 5.6 million copies worldwide and helped Mika win a Brit...
while The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
reported the term was coined by Peter Robinson
Peter Robinson (journalist)
Peter Robinson is a British music journalist. He is the creator of the pop music-based blog Popjustice. Robinson first came to the attention of music fans with his self-published biography/fanzine of The KLF, Justified and Ancient History...
founder of the blog Popjustice
Popjustice
Popjustice is a music website founded in 2000 and is the work of UK freelance music journalist Peter Robinson, who has worked for NME, The Guardian, Attitude and many others....
.
The BBC describes a UK Wonky Pop a club night as involving "cutting-edge pop, dance, hip hop and everything in between; the club organiser René Symonds states that "the iPod shuffle generation will not be limited to one genre and wants a return to authenticity after years of manufactured pop". The Wonky Pop website sets out a manifesto that states that "We want to show the world that pop is not a four letter word, and for every flaky reality TV winner there's a myriad of cool, credible and weird acts".
A 2008 article in The Guardian contrasted Wonky Pop performers with mainstream pop performers, noting that "Wonky Pop artists are unmanufactured but unashamedly melodic and capable of playing live without recourse to lashings of dry ice, troupes of dancers and an interlude during which they fly around the stage on wires". The Independent stated that Wonky pop caused a change in "pop's division of labour ...away from focus-grouped, production-line pop, and towards DIY [and] ...fresh flavours", which is rejuvenating pop in the 2000s in the way that Britpop
Britpop
Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
gave a shot in the arm to pop in the 1990s. Major influences cited for Wonky Pop acts include David Bowie
David Bowie
David Bowie is an English musician, actor, record producer and arranger. A major figure for over four decades in the world of popular music, Bowie is widely regarded as an innovator, particularly for his work in the 1970s...
, Kate Bush
Kate Bush
Kate Bush is an English singer-songwriter, musician and record producer. Her eclectic musical style and idiosyncratic vocal style have made her one of the United Kingdom's most successful solo female performers of the past 30 years.In 1978, at the age of 19, Bush topped the UK Singles Chart...
, Kylie Minogue
Kylie Minogue
Kylie Ann Minogue, OBE - often known simply as Kylie - is an Australian singer, recording artist, songwriter, and actress. After beginning her career as a child actress on Australian television, she achieved recognition through her role in the television soap opera Neighbours, before commencing...
, Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
and Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
Wonky Pop was credited with causing a shift in popular musical tastes from male-driven guitar acts to female-driven 1980s style pop music seen in the synthpop
Synthpop
Synthpop is a genre of popular music that first became prominent in the 1980s, in which the synthesizer is the dominant musical instrument. It was prefigured in the 1960s and early 1970s by the use of synthesizers in progressive rock, electronic art rock, disco and particularly the "Kraut rock" of...
revival of the later 2010s.
List of acts
- AlphabeatAlphabeatAlphabeat are a Danish pop band from Silkeborg, fronted by singers Stine Bramsen and Anders SG and signed to Polydor Records. Their single "Fascination" was a major hit in Denmark during the summer of 2007 and a significant hit in the United Kingdom in 2008...
- Annie
- The Big PinkThe Big PinkThe Big Pink is an English electro-rock duo comprising multi-instrumentalists Robbie Furze and Milo Cordell. The duo signed to the 4AD label in 2009, and won the prestigious NME Philip Hall Radar Award for best new act...
- Dan BlackDan BlackDan Black is a British wonky pop artist. He was also a member of alternative rock band The Servant, before their 2007 split. He has also been a guest vocalist for the Italian group Planet Funk....
- The Dolly RockersThe Dolly RockersThe Dolly Rockers are an English girl group from London, Leeds and Manchester. The group currently consists of Lucie Kay, Sophie King and Daniele Owen. They first became known when they competed in UK talent show The X Factor in 2006, making it through to the "judges' houses" stage, however they...
- ElectrelaneElectrelaneElectrelane are a British all-female indie rock band, formed in Brighton in 1998 by Verity Susman and Emma Gaze. The band comprised Susman, Gaze, Mia Clarke, and Ros Murray. Their music draws from wide range of influences including Neu!, Stereolab, Sonic Youth, and The Velvet Underground...
- Empire of the SunEmpire of the Sun (band)Empire of the Sun is an Australian electronic music duo that formed in 2008. The duo is composed of Luke Steele of The Sleepy Jackson and Nick Littlemore of Pnau. The two met in 2000 after both being signed to the same record label. Luke and Nick knew that they instantly had a chemistry like no other...
- Everything EverythingEverything EverythingEverything Everything are a British indie band that formed in late 2007, originate from Newcastle, Kent and Guernsey, and reside in Manchester. The band rose to fame when they were revealed as part of the BBC's Sound of 2010 poll on 7 December 2009...
- ExampleExample (rapper)Elliot John Gleave , better known by his stage name Example, is an English singer and rapper signed to Data Records. His name arose due to his initials being E.G., which is an abbreviation of the Latin phrase "exempli gratia", which means, "for example".Example's third album Playing In The Shadows...
- Flamboyant BellaFlamboyant BellaFlamboyant Bella were a British Indie/Pop band that came to wider attention from online social networks including MySpace. They were No.4 in MySpace's Top 10 unsigned bands...
- Florence and the MachineFlorence and the MachineFlorence and the Machine is the recording name of English musician Florence Welch and a collaboration of other artists who provide music for her voice. Florence and the Machine's sound has been described as a combination of various genres, including rock and soul...
- FrankmusikFrankmusikVincent Frank born Vincent James Turner is known professionally as Frankmusik is an English electropop musician. The name "Frank" is derived from the surname of his grandfather, whose name he took in tribute.-Early life:...
- Girls AloudGirls AloudGirls Aloud are a British and Irish pop girl group based in London. They were created through the ITV1 talent show Popstars The Rivals in 2002. The group consists of Cheryl Cole , Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. They are signed to Fascination Records, a Polydor...
- Lady GagaLady GaGaStefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta , better known by her stage name Lady Gaga, is an American singer and songwriter. Born and raised in New York City, she primarily studied at the Convent of the Sacred Heart and briefly attended New York University's Tisch School of the Arts before withdrawing to...
- Ladyhawke
- La RouxLa RouxLa Roux are an English electropop duo made up of singer, keyboardist, co-writer and co-producer Eleanor Kate Jackson, and co-writer and co-producer Ben Langmaid. Jackson describes their relationship as "very much a half and half sharing situation... not like a singer producer outfit", but also...
- Little BootsLittle BootsVictoria Christina Hesketh, also known by her stage name/pseudonym Little Boots, is an English electropop singer-songwriter. Her stage name comes from a nickname given to her by a friend, a reference to her unusually small feet...
- Kid CudiKid CudiScott Ramon Seguro Mescudi , better known by his stage name Kid Cudi , sometimes stylized KiD CuDi, is an American rapper, singer and actor. He first gained major attention after the release of his debut mixtape A Kid Named Cudi. In 2009, his single "Day 'n' Nite" reached the top five of the...
- Master ShortieMaster ShortieTheo Jerome Kerlin is a British MC who is credited by his stage name Master Shortie. He is also a singer, establishing his own record label, Odd One Out. Plus has been listed in the Sound of 2009 poll.-Early life:...
- MetronomyMetronomyMetronomy are an electronic music group formed by Joseph Mount in Totnes, Devon, England in 1999. The current band consists of Joseph Mount , Anna Prior , Oscar Cash and Gbenga Adelekan...
- MikaMika (singer)Mika is a British singer-songwriter.After recording his first extended play, Dodgy Holiday EP, Mika released his first full-length studio album, Life in Cartoon Motion, on Island Records in 2007. Life in Cartoon Motion sold more than 5.6 million copies worldwide and helped Mika win a Brit...
- New Young Pony ClubNew Young Pony ClubNew Young Pony Club are an English electronic band from London, consisting of members from London, Hereford, Cambridge and Bromley. Their influences are prominently from post-punk and New Wave....
- Mystery JetsMystery JetsMystery Jets are an English five-piece indie band, formerly based on Eel Pie Island in Twickenham, London. The band was formed by Henry Harrison , Blaine Harrison and William Rees when the boys were still at school and would send each other songs on cassettes...
- Passion PitPassion Pit (band)Passion Pit is an American electropop band from Cambridge, Massachusetts. The group, which formed in 2007, consists of Michael Angelakos , Ian Hultquist , Ayad Al Adhamy , Jeff Apruzzese and Nate Donmoyer...
- Queens of NoizeQueens of NoizeQueens of Noize are an English indie/disco or Wonky pop DJ duo based in London. The constituent members are Mairead Nash and Tabitha Denholm.-Career:...
- Sam SparroSam SparroSam Sparro is an Australian singer-songwriter, music producer, and former child actor. His stage name was derived from a family nickname, which in turn was inspired by the Dagenham radio mascot Sammy Sparrow...
- ShitdiscoShitdiscoShitdisco, was a Dance-punk band from Glasgow, Scotland. They were formed in 2003 while studying at the Glasgow School of Art. Their first single "Disco Blood"/"I Know Kung Fu" was released in December 2005 and sold out quickly. They are signed to record label Fierce Panda...
- The Ting TingsThe Ting TingsThe Ting Tings are an English music duo comprising Jules de Martino and Katie White . They formed in December 2007 while based at Islington Mill Studios in Salford...
- VV BrownVV BrownVanessa Brown , also known as VV Brown, is an English singer, songwriter, model, and producer signed to Island Records in the United Kingdom and to Universal Republic Records and Capitol Records in the United States...