Moscow by Night: Musical Subcultures, Identity Formation, and Cultural Evolution in Russia, 1977–2008
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MOSCOW BY NIGHT: MUSICAL SUBCULTURES, IDENTITY FORMATION, AND CULTURAL EVOLUTION IN RUSSIA, 1977–2008 BY GREGORY R. KVEBERG DISSERTATION Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in History in the Graduate College of the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, 2012 Urbana, Illinois Doctoral Committee: Professor Diane Koenker, Chair Professor Kathryn Oberdeck Professor Craig Koslofsky Professor John McKay Professor Mark Steinberg Abstract This dissertation examines the history of musical subcultures in Moscow from 1977 to 2008. It argues that subcultures were not forces for revolutionary change, or natural loci of opposition to the state. Only during the brief period from 1982 to 1984 did the state actively seek to impose a unitary vision of culture on the Soviet Union. Throughout the rest of these three decades, the state allowed a significant range of subcultural expression. This policy won either loyalty or toleration for Brezhnev’s government from a majority of Muscovite subculturalists. It proved similarly successful when re- introduced by Vladimir Putin. This dissertation asserts that this policy of tolerance allowed official culture and subcultures to evolve together in a dialectical process. This work also charts key trends in the development of subcultural identities in Moscow. Subculturalists responded to shifting political and economic situations. They generally greeted the arrival of the market with ambivalence, as many felt that musical legitimacy required artists to eschew commercial success. Subculturalists eagerly embraced the Internet, and used it to form connections to other groups of subculturalists and to archive collective memories. Contact with the west produced a variety of different responses among subculturalists, and these responses speak to larger divisions within Russian society. Some Russians came to resent the west, and sought to distance themselves from western ideas and cultural forms, often including rock music. Others accepted western cultural forms, but crafted content for a specifically Russian audience. A third strain sought to join larger, trans- national subcultural groups. This dissertation contends that subcultural identities can prove to be surprisingly durable. It explores the changing nature of subcultural participation over time, and posits that older individuals may well still consider themselves to be subculturalists, despite no longer acting to display subcultural symbols with any frequency. The Internet has likely increased the durability of subcultural identities, as ii it allows memories to be archived and shared, and allows subculturalists to use digital means to stay connected to one another and to specific subcultural resources. iii Acknowledgements I would like to dedicate this work to two people who did not live to see it come to fruition. First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge and remember my father. He was a kind and clever man, who never wavered in his support for me, despite the fact that he had little interest in either history or musical subcultures. I would also like to remember Rebecca Jackson. She was a gentle and whimsical soul, a kind muse and inspiration, for me and for many others. She was taken far too soon, and is sorely missed still. The world is a much poorer place without these two, and I can only hope that, somewhere, they are sharing a table, while Rebecca attempts to explain to my father what this whole “goth” thing is all about. Many people deserve credit for the help, inspiration, and support that they have provided during the work on this dissertation. First and foremost among these is Diane Koenker, my principle advisor. She has been a tremendous help along the way. Her tireless dedication to the historian’s craft helped to make this a far stronger work than it would otherwise have been, and her advice and guidance have made me a far better historian than I would otherwise have been. I am deeply grateful for the time and energy that she has invested throughout the years. The other members of my committee have all, also, provided invaluable assistance, advice, and inspiration. I am grateful both for Mark Steinberg’s historical insights and for his infectious passion for the study of history, which served, at times, to revive my own. Kathryn Oberdeck and Craig Koslofsky were kind enough to step outside of their geographic fields and share their knowledge of cultural theory and music’s place in history. I would like to thank John McKay, too, for his steady friendship and thoughtful advice. I am grateful to many of the other professors at the University of Illinois, but Carol Symes, in particular, served as an inspiration to me during the work on this project, and I can only hope that I will one day possess some measure of her skill as an educator. iv Work on a dissertation can be a tremendously arduous process, and I would not have seen this work through to completion without the assistance and support of my friends and family. My mother, like my father, has always been tireless in her support. She will be very relieved that this is finished. Many of my fellow graduate students helped to keep me sane during work on this dissertation, and their input also served to make this a better work. I am particularly grateful to Karen Phoenix, my most loyal academic partner in crime. I remain convinced that we did some of our best theoretical work together at steak night, despite the fact that we study vastly different subjects. I am grateful, also, to the subculturalists of the world. Medieval re-enactors, goths, steampunk enthusiasts, gamers, goldfish fanciers and members of any number of other subcultures all constantly remind me of humanity’s ability to form meaningful communities in the oddest of places, and to create strange, wonderful, and magical things together. I am particularly grateful to the various Russian goths and punks who were kind enough to take pity on and befriend a slightly frumpy American scholar, and who cheerfully shared parts of their worlds with me. Finally, I would like to acknowledge the assistance of several libraries and archives. Galina Mikhailovna, the benevolent ruler of the reading room at RGASPI was a great help in my studies, and presided over a small island of peace, tranquility, and scholarship in the midst of a very turbulent Moscow. The librarians at the State Historical Library were kind enough to help me sort through their collection of Samizdat material. Finally, I must thank Mark Yoffe, who helped me to access the spectacular collection of Samizdat material that he amassed on behalf of the George Washington University. v TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 1 Chapter One: Soviet Culture and the Broken Dialectic, 1977–1985 ........................................................... 18 Chapter Two: Cultural Proliferation in the Era of Failed Reforms, 1985–1991 .......................................... 91 Chapter Three: Subcultural Growth in the Absence of Unifying Narratives 1991–1999 .......................... 149 Chapter Four: Stability and the Soviet Legacy during the First Putin Presidency, 2000–2008 ................. 199 Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................. 247 Bibliography: ............................................................................................................................................. 255 vi Introduction During my research year in Moscow, I attended a gathering of the city’s Depeche Mode fan community. This gathering included men and women who ranged in age from their early twenties to middle age, and featured the music of Depeche Mode, but also video clips from previous gatherings, beginning with a very early meeting that took place during the last spring of 1991, on the eve of the breakup of the Soviet Union. This event demonstrated the depth and durability of subcultural affiliations and the social networks that can develop within the social matrices of subcultural groups. The older men and women who were present that evening had preserved social and cultural connections through a period that spanned the breakup of the Soviet Union, the rapid and unsettling changes of the Yeltsin presidency, and the emergence of Putin’s Russia. They had also kept subcultural affiliations alive through fifteen years of personal history; through new careers, shifting personal lives, and the end of youth. The case of these Depeche Mode fans is part of a much larger pattern in the history of the Soviet Union. Under Brezhnev, state agents had supported and sought to guide the emergence of youth subcultures. They were successful. By 1980, many musical subcultures, most built around musical forms that derived from rock, had taken root in the Soviet Union. A decades-long process of negotiation between state cultural authorities and young people had produced a very useful compromise. This compromise allowed young people to participate in a wide variety of different subcultural activities with the permission of the state. Young people gained cultural freedom and satisfaction from this bargain, and the state, in turn, gained legitimacy and stability, as the state provided necessary infrastructure for most musical subcultures. State agents were also able to prune away some subcultural