Emergence of Geek Culture

Many of us enjoy listening to music but did you know that many singers and music groups have incorporated some aspects of geek culture. In today’s society many individuals who embrace geek culture whether its movies, tv shows, books, etc. Music has always been an outlet for people to express themselves in ways that can’t be shown in mundane life.

One prime example is the Canadian progressive rock band Rush has been known for not conforming to the standards of the music industry. Instead of singing about love, drinking, and other rambunctious activities they talk about literature, science fiction, and moral philosophy. Many of their songs consist of complex lyrics and musical sounds that draw inspiration from Lord of the Rings, Kubla Khan, Anthem, and The Twilight Zone. Many of Rush’s songs feel like their listeners are watching a movie instead of listening to a song. Tracks such as Red Barchetta, Tom Sawyer, By-Tor and the Snowdog, Xanadu, and Rivendell.

Rush drummer Neil Peart who was an avid Ayn Rand follower wrote a song that pays tribute to her philosophy of objectivism which has influenced the band throughout their career. In their famous album 2112 released in 1974, they write a song called 2112:Overture/The Temple of Syrinx the song tells a sci-fi epic which was based on the book of Anthem, which tells the story of a dystopian future where all individualism has been eliminated. The main character uncovers the corruption of the priests of the Temple of Syrinx after they ban him from showing his music to the masses and calls a revolution. The song “Rivendell” based on the fictional Lord of the Rings location talks about Bilbo Baggins return to Rivendell and how he is at peace when he enters the doors of the kingdom.

The single hit “Subdivsions” speaks to our inner underdog who may have trouble fitting in high school. The lyric ” Subdivisions in my high school halls, in my shopping malls conform or be cast out, Subdivisions in the basement cars, in the backs of cars be cool or be cast out.” These lyrics can emphasize how hard we have tried to fit in throughout our high school years and how we need to maintain our individuality.

The lyrics that center on individuality and science fiction are the primary motives that many geek bands encompass in their lyrics. In the 1990’s another Canadian group called The Barenaked Ladies have made numerous pop culture references, in particular, their primary hit “One Week” while it’s implied to be about a couple argument. During the song, we hear references to Aquaman, X-Files, Harrison Ford, Kurosawa, and Sailor Moon. While our inner nerd loves to hear these names in the song they’re used to explain a situation and add humor to it. The Barenaked Ladies are also known for writing the intro theme song for “The Big Bang Theory” a show that was targeted to geek culture practitioners.

In the early 2000’s geek music has emerged at a rapid pace with the introduction of wizard rock, time lord rock, and twi-rock. All of these music genres write songs that feature references to Harry Potter (wizard rock), Time Lord rock (Doctor Who), and Twi-rock (Twilight). While they are normally meant for fun some of the songs composed can have a strong lyrical composition and artistic expression. A final example is rapper MC Lar’s hit “Geeked Out” which talks about an individuals pride in geek culture activities like video games, science fiction, and computer science. The song also talks about being unafraid to admit your intellectual ability and interests.

Geek culture is growing at a rapid pace because its an outlet for people to express their individuality and share pop culture references. The 21st century has shown us that even people with musical abilities aren’t afraid to express their geek pride, through music. So let’s rock on to our geek pride.