Event overview
'He made up the person he wanted to be and changed into a new personality’: negotiating authenticity in a post-authentic world.
In this talk Pete Astor has two takes on authenticity. In take one, he recognises that ‘authenticity’ is a construct, the term continuing in academia with permanent inverted commas. In take two, he asks why in his practice as a working musician the inverted commas just keep falling off. To know that authenticity is constructed is not enough to remove its potency.
Pete Astor is Senior Lecturer at the University of Westminster. He recently published a study of Richard Hell and the Voidoids’ Blank Generation as part of Bloomsbury’s Thirty Three and a Third series. He also writes songs and plays the guitar. His new album, Spilt Milk, will be released by Fortuna Pop in the Spring 2016.
A one-time NME journalist and leader of The Loft - one of the first ever acts on Alan McGees epochal Creation Records - Astor was a stalwart of British rock in the 80s and 90s, regularly topping the indie charts with The Loft and his next band The Weather Prophets. A subsequent solo career made him a star in Europe, while later work with more electronically oriented ensembles the Wisdom of Harry and Ellis Island Sound saw him making records for Matador, Warp and Heavenly EMI, combined with A&R work for Beggars Banquet and 4AD music and a busy lecturing schedule. Still a very active musician (his compositions currently grace several UK TV shows), his work with The Loft was recently the subject of a Mojo magazine feature with Astor's 1985 song 'Up the Hill and Down the Slope' identified as one of the eras key tracks.
----------------------------------------------------------------
The Music Research Series is designed to help postgraduate students advance their research and careers. The events stimulate exchange, hones skills, facilitates the creation of professional networks and helps to consolidate the department’s postgraduate community, all over a glass of wine! Attendance is strongly recommended for all postgraduate students (MA, MMus and PGR) in Music but of course undergraduates, music researchers, and visitors from across the college and the community are also most welcome to these public lectures.
Dates & times
| Date | Time | Add to calendar |
|---|---|---|
| 1 Dec 2015 | 5:00pm - 6:30pm |
Accessibility
If you are attending an event and need the College to help with any mobility requirements you may have, please contact the event organiser in advance to ensure we can accommodate your needs.
