| Dakou | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chinese | 打口 | ||||||||||||
| Literal meaning | punched hole | ||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||
In the recording industry, a dakou ( Chinese: 打口) was a type of cut-out used in China to gain access to mostly rock music recordings that would otherwise be banned due to Chinese censorship. [1]
These recordings, which were mainly shipped from the United States and Canada, were exported to China to be used as raw materials; however, they were instead sold through semi-legal markets to be listened to. [2] Although they were cut, due to how tape recorders read the reels of tape loaded in a cassette from the centre to the margin, only the last parts of recordings were lost. [3]
Influence
The dakou allowed the Chinese youth to access Western rock music recordings, which led to musical inspiration from this type of music. [4]
Dakou generation
The emergence of this generation in China during the 1990s can be seen as a result of social and cultural changes. The generation that emerged after the Cultural Revolution was raised in an era characterised by stability and prosperity, which influenced a more relaxed outlook on popular culture. Rock music played a role in their identity politics as it influenced their beliefs and values. The evolution of rock music in China has seen a shift from its initial portrayal of rebellion to a more nuanced perspective within the context of communism. Scholars have studied the production of rock music in China, analysing its connection to the global influence of Western rock and the diverse music scenes in different regions of China. [5]
The influence of the Dakou Generation was observed in various rock music genres, including underground bands, heavy metal, punk, hip-hop, folk-rock, pop-rock, and fashionable bands. The genres and their performers played a role in the evolution and alteration of rock music in China, reflecting the changing cultural scenery of the nation. [5]
Notes
- ^ de Kloet 2005, p. 609.
- ^ "Choice cuts: Li Jianhong's selections from the dakou era". The Wire. September 2021. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
- ^ de Kloet 2010, p. 21.
- ^ Dutton, Lo & Wu 2010, p. 162-163.
- ^ a b Matsue 2013, p. 13.
References
- de Kloet, Jeroen (2005). "Popular Music and Youth in Urban China: The Dakou Generation". The China Quarterly (183): 609–626. ISSN 0305-7410. JSTOR 20192511.
- de Kloet, Jeroen (2010). China with a Cut: Globalisation, Urban Youth and Popular Music. Netherlands: Amsterdam University Press. ISBN 9789089641625 – via Google Books.
- The Piracy Years: Internet File Sharing in a Global Context. (2023). (n.p.): Liverpool University Press.
- Kielman, A. (2022). Sonic Mobilities: Producing Worlds in Southern China. United Kingdom: University of Chicago Press.
- Dutton, Michael; Lo, Hsiu-ju Stacy; Wu, Dong Dong (2010). Beijing Time. United Kingdom: Harvard University Press. ISBN 9780674047341.
- Encyclopedia of Social Movement Media. (2011). India: SAGE Publications.
- Matsue, Jennifer Milioto (2013). "Stars to the State and Beyond: Globalization, Identity, and Asian Popular Music". The Journal of Asian Studies. 72 (1): 5–20. doi: 10.1017/S0021911812001763. ISSN 0021-9118. JSTOR 23357504. S2CID 145755247.
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