anti-folk

Anti-folk (sometimes spelled antifolk) is a genre of folk music that emerged in the 1980s in New York City. It was founded by the musician, author, and comedian Lach, as a reaction to the commercialization of folk music. It is characterized by its amateur sound, DIY ethos, and often humorous, rebellious, or satirical lyrics. Antifolk music was made to diverge from, and sometimes mock, the perceived seriousness of the era's mainstream music scene, while often still being protest music aimed at social change. The latter element especially overlaps with folk punk.

==History== ===In the United States=== Antifolk was introduced by artists who were unable to obtain gigs at established folk venues in Greenwich Village such as Folk City and The Speakeasy. In the mid-1980s, singer-songwriter Lach started The Fort, an after-hours club on NYC's Rivington Street on the Lower East Side. The Fort's opening coincided with the New York Folk Festival. Because of this, Lach dubbed his event the New York Antifolk Festival. Other early proponents of the movement included the Washington Squares, Cindy Lee Berryhill, Brenda Kahn, Paleface, Beck, Hamell on Trial, Michelle Shocked, Zane Campbell, John S. Hall, Roger Manning, Kirk Kelly, and Block.