Well, I’ve been working on updating some of my Weirdo iTunes Playlists™ lately, and I’m looking for additions to my Steampunk mix. Anyone have any suggestions?
Abney Park (Electronic/World/Pop)
Absinthe Drinkers, The (Post-Punk/Rock)
Agent Ribbons (Pop/Indie/Rock)
Arcade Fire, The (Indie/Rock/Acoustic/Symphonic)
Beat Circus (Acoustic/Circus)
Beats Antique (Electronic/Hip-Hop/Circus/World)
Beirut (Acoustic/Indie)
Bug (Electronic/Experimental/Symphonic)
Cabaret Decadance (Acoustic/Cabaret)
Clockwork Dolls, The (Electronic/Symphonic/Acoustic)
Clockwork Quartet, The (Acoustic/Indie/Musical Theater)
Cretins, The (Punk-Rock)
Crimson Muddle (Electronic/Coldwave)
Danny Elfman (Symphonic/Rock)
Darius Greene (Acoustic/Indie/Tin-Pan Alley)
DeVotchKa (Acoustic/Rock/Indie/Symphonic/Gypsy)
Decemberists (Acoustic/Indie/Rock)
Diablo Swing Orchestra (Metal/Swing)
Dr. Steel (Hip-Hop/Electronic/Industrial)
Dresden Dolls, The (Cabaret/Acoustic)
Emilie Autumn (Electronic/Symphonic/Metal)
Extraordinary Contraptions, The (Rock/Indie)
Ez3kiel (Electronic/Experimental/Symphonic)
Fermata (Acoustic/Rock/Gypsy)
Flood of Rain (Symphonic/Acoustic/Electronic/Experimental)
Ghostfire (Rock/Indie)
Gogol Bordello (Rock/Acoustic/Gypsy)
Harlequin Jones (Acoustic/Cabaret)
Hellblinki Sextet, The (Acoustic/Rock/Cabaret/Gypsy)
Humanwine (Rock/Cabaret/Punk)
Imaginary Airship (Rock/Pop/Experimental)
In the Nursery (Symphonic/Electronic)
James Gang Experience, The (Hip-Hop/Acoustic/Tin-Pan Alley)
Jill Tracy (Cabaret/Acoustic/Symphonic)
Jim Strange with the Proud & the Damned (Rock/Acoustic)
Johnny Hollow (Rock/Electronic/Experimental/Symphonic)
Juke Baritone & The Swamp Dogs (Acoustic/Rock/Indie/Punk)
Kate Bush (Experimental/Acoustic/Electronic/Pop)
Katzenjammer Kabarett (Rock/Pop)
Lee Press-on and the Nails (Swing/Rock)
Legendary Shack Shakers, The (Rock/Punk/Americana)
Life’s Decay (Electronic/Experimental/Symphonic)
Life Towards Twilight (Electronic/Acoustic/Experimental)
Magnificent Seven, The (Cabaret/Acoustic/Rock)
Malice Mizer (Rock/Symphonic/Metal/Experimental)
Men That Will Not Be Blamed For Nothing, The (Acoustic/Punk/Experimental)
Mr. Joe Black (Cabaret/Acoustic)
Nouvelle Vague (Acoustic/Rock/Pop/Bossa Nova)
Paul Roland (Rock/Experimental/Electronic/Symphonic)
Peryls, The (Rock/Indie/Acoustic)
Rasputina (Electronic/Acoustic/Rock/Symphonic)
Real Tuesday Weld, The (Pop/Cabaret/Indie/Symphonic)
Revel Hotel (Experimental/Electronic)
Scarring Party, The (Acoustic/Rock)
Sixteen Horsepower (Rock/Americana/Punk/Acoustic)
Squirrel Nut Zippers (Dixie Jazz/Pop/Swing)
Strawfoot (Acoustic/Americana)
Sxip Shirey (Experimental)
Synthonym (Electronic/Symphonic)
Tenth Stage, The (Electronic/Rock/Symphonic)
This Way to the Egress (Cabaret/Acoustic/Indie)
Tiger Lillies (Experimental/Acoustic)
Tleilaxu Music Machine, The (Electronic/Cabaret/Experimental)
Tom Waits (Acoustic/Rock/Experimental)
Tragic Tantrum Cabaret (Cabaret/Acoustic)
Unextraordinary Gentlemen (Electronic/Symphonic/Experimental)
Unwoman (Symphonic/Electronic/Acoustic)
Vagabond Opera (Cabaret/Acoustic)
Vermillion Lies (Indie/Acoustic/Cabaret)
Vernian Process (Rock/Electronic/Symphonic/Acoustic/Experimental)
Viral Millennium (Metal/Symphonic)
Voltaire (Indie/Gypsy/Pop/Acoustic/Symphonic)
Voodoo Organist (Acoustic/Rock)
Walter Sickert and the Army of Broken Toys (Experimental/Indie)
Widow’s Bane, The (Acoustic/Indie)
World Inferno Friendship Society (Swing/Rock/Pop/Indie)
Wovenhand (Acoustic/Experimental/Americana)
I make no claim to the current whereabouts of any of these groups, and I would also include the Two Man Gentleman’s Band and Emperor Norton’s Stationary Marching Band, which do not seem to be on the list.
DrFidelius, there’s a lot of stuff I like in that list of yours (and I also echo the Dr. Steel recommendation), but I think some of it’s a bit of a stretch – what’s steampunk about DeVotchKa? Or Wovenhand (and 16hp)? I can see the Dresden Dolls, or the Tiger Lillies, but I would’ve put them more in sort of a ‘dark cabaret’ direction (from where I also get Mikelangelo & The Black Sea Gentlemen, who’ve collaborated with Amanda Palmer of Dresden Dolls fame – I’d like to hear if you’d consider them ‘steampunkish’, as well). Good call on Tom Waits by the way, I wouldn’t have made the connection, but there is definitely part of the aesthetic there (thinking, for instance, of the Orphans artwork) – though of course his scope is too broad to fit neatly in any category.
Not my list, I stole it from Josh from Vernian Process, originally pulled together in July of 2009. Josh is much younger than I, and his tastes run more towards techno-funk than mine.
However, I felt it was a good starting point, although I vouch for few artists on it from personal experience. (I don’t listen to much music.)
I often argue that there is no such an animal as the “Steampunk Music” genre. There are groups that Steampunks like, there are groups that deliberately use Steampunk themes or imagery, but the music itself ranges from classical to Dixieland to goth to the awful clangour these kids like nowadays.
De gustibus etc.
I don’t know why I didn’t think of this earlier, but Sepiachord has amazing insight into what music fits the Steampunk aesthetic (and is better focussed than the list I posted before).
Actually, my list was compiled to include straight up Steampunk influenced music, and bands that steampunks tend to enjoy listening to. To me personally Steampunk is not a genre definition, but rather an aesthetic that can be utilized in a myriad of ways by performers, from their costuming, to their musical influences.
We (Vernian Process) tend to take it in the musically influenced direction, with very little regard to our appearance. We don’t go for outlandish outfits, or crazy props to convey our Steampunk elements, we go for classical arrangements, and instrumentation that compliment the old world influence of Steampunk.
As far as my tastes in music go, I love everything from 19th Century Romantic Classical composers, Turn of the Century Ragtime, Edwardian popular songs, Tin-Pan Alley, Hot Jazz, Swing, Blues, Tangos, European Folk, Doo-Wop, Broadway/Showtunes, and many other pre-Rock styles, as well as more modern fare such as Prog-Rock, New Wave, Post-Punk, Funk, Soul, Surf, Ska, Reggae, Glam, Electro, Trip-Hop, Goth, Industrial, World Grooves, Lounge, etc.
But the old world music tends to influence me more than anything, and is also the period I tend to enjoy listening to more than anything.
And to answer the question “what is Steampunk about (insert band name from my old ass list here)”, well nothing particularly, other than that all of those bands have old world influences, and that is what makes them appealing to Steampunks. Especially a lot of the Gothic Country stuff like 16hp, Tarantella, etc.
That list is way out of date btw, it’s missing a good 50 other bands, not to mention the entire catalog of Electro-Swing artists that can easily fit into a Steampunk playlist.
The Underscore Orkestra has been performing for the past 5 + years, touring all around the western U.S., Mexico and Guatemala and has been seen from intimate coffee shop setting all the way to huge outdoor festivals. We are also working with and interested in continuing to meet performance artists, jugglers, poets, storytellers, clowns, actors and tech folk alike. A great Steampunk band, including dancer!
The band has just launched a fundraising campaign to finance part of the cost of plane tickets back to Portland, OR from the group’s summer 2011 European tour:
Just to see it used twice in a post today, Lady Carey’s Dompe. It’s technically Renaissance, but that arrangement includes an electric guitar and hurdy gurdy.
