To understand the essence of this term, which characterizes the direction in art, we turn to the translation of a word from English. What is underground? Literally underground is a underground, underground. Representatives of the underground in various fields (literature, music, cinema, visual arts) are very characteristic of contrasting their work with generally accepted values, norms, and rejection of artistic and social traditions.
This trend first appeared in the sixties of the twentieth century under the influence of hippies. There were many talented people in this subculture, looking for unconventional approaches, eager to create something new. It was a collection of the most extreme styles that tried to exist and develop outside the official culture and show business. We can say that the underground is a direction that rejects the principles of officially existing art, a protest against generally accepted bourgeois values, where art submits to the market.
What is underground in Russia
If you apply this term to Russian culture, then in the Soviet period it is a protest against the state administration of art, a direction in culture that rejects the existing state system. In literature, this trend arose in the seventies and continued the principles of samizdat, with the difference that the authors tried to shock the public, using profanity, addressing the topic of sexual deviations.
The names of writers representing the Russian underground are known even to people who have not read their works - Venedikt Erofeev, Lyudmila Petrushevskaya, Tatyana Tolstaya and others.
With regard to Russian music, underground is underground "home" concerts, rebellious texts expressing social protest. What is underground music currently? Heavy metal and rap are too commercialized; rather, this is the style in which there is more unpredictability and freedom. In the West, perhaps Jim Morris is the most legendary and outstanding representative of the underground style. The music of The Doors made it the most famous and most controversial band of its time. In Russia, the groups “Nautilus Pompilius”, “Kino”, “DDT”, “Aquarium”, “Resurrection”, “Alice”, “Sounds of Mu”, “Aria” and others became the most prominent representatives of the underground during the fateful eighties and nineties Since these rock bands boiled in their own juice, that is, they existed on their own, they formed their own unique style, which is still in demand today. Their common feature was a pronounced social protest and texts bearing the main burden. Musically, the underground had a huge impact on the development of rock music in the world.
There is a dispute over the fact that if some subcultural movement receives promotion and commercial support, then it loses the right to be called an underground. Probably, the underground currently exists only at the very beginning of the emergence of some style or trend in art. Everything new is often perceived by the public at first poorly, then delights and brings commercial success, and this can no longer be called underground. Now they use the term "alternative", it is more extensible.