Abstract
From the Red Hand Commando’s Loyalist Songbook to the Ulster Volunteer Force (UVF)’s reworking of ‘Simply the Best’, music has long been used to support and promote paramilitarism in Northern Ireland. Yet the decline in physical conflict has imbued loyalist songs with greater importance. Although there have been several ethnographic studies on the role of music in expressing support for loyalist paramilitaries, most revolve around popular public marches and parades. Indeed, while less publically visible than their parading counterparts, Ulster loyalism has other musical worlds, replete with imagery and symbolism that commentate on and react to the changing socio-political situation in the Province. Focusing on loyalist songs, this paper examines the interconnection between music and conflict in Northern Ireland from the Troubles to the present. Through discussion of popular musical examples, the paper illustrates how loyalist songs operate as a locus for group construction and cultural sensibility, as well as act as a form of political resistance. The paper reflects upon how – in the wake of Brexit – such songs form part of a cultural nostalgia for multiple and intersecting imagined pasts, which resonate with the rise of populism in other parts of the world, and are weaponized to defend against the looming existential threat of a United Ireland.
Original language | English |
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Publication status | Published - 24 May 2019 |
Event | Soundscapes of Trauma: Music, Violence, Therapy - Panteon University , Athens, Greece Duration: 24 May 2019 → … |
Conference
Conference | Soundscapes of Trauma: Music, Violence, Therapy |
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Country/Territory | Greece |
City | Athens |
Period | 24/05/2019 → … |