Arivethead orrivet head is a person associated with theindustrial dance music scene.[1] In stark contrast to the originalindustrial culture, whose performers and heterogeneous audience were sometimes referred to as "industrialists", the rivethead scene is a coherentyouth culture closely linked to a discernible fashion style. The scene emerged in the late 1980s[2] on the basis ofelectro-industrial,EBM, andindustrial rock music. The associated dress style draws on military fashion andpunk aesthetics[3] with hints offetish wear, mainly inspired by the scene's musical protagonists.
Initially, the termrivethead had been used since the 1940s as a nickname for North Americanautomotiveassembly line[4] and steel construction workers[5] and hit the mainstream through the publication ofBen Hamper'sRivethead: Tales From the Assembly Line,[6] which is otherwise unrelated to the subculture.
Glenn Chase, founder of San Diego labelRe-Constriction Records, is responsible for the term's meaning in the 1990s.[7] In 1993, he releasedRivet Head Culture, a compilation that contains several electro-industrial and industrial rock acts from the Americanunderground music scene. In the same year, industrial rock groupChemlab − whose members were close friends ofChase − had released their debut albumBurn Out at the Hydrogen Bar,[8] which includes a track called "Rivet Head". Chemlab singer Jared Louche said he did not remember where the term came from, although he stated that this song title was in his mind for years.[9]
The rivethead scene is remotely related but not directly connected to the industrial music culture.Industrial music is a genre of experimental andavant garde music, intertwined with graphical visualization (mostly with disturbing graphical content).[10] The absence of conventional song structures, such as rhythm and melody, is a main characteristic of the genre, whereas the music preferred by the rivethead scene includes several danceable and song-oriented styles that are sometimes considered"post-industrial".[10] Likepost-punk, the termpost-industrial describes a musical genre that developed distinctly from its roots and turned into several strands of sound, namelyelectro-industrial,electronic body music, andindustrial rock, often referred to asindustrial dance music. Those styles differ from traditional industrial music regarding aesthetics, sound, and production techniques.[11][10]
The rivethead dress style has been inspired bymilitaryaesthetics, complemented by fashion "that mimics the grit and grime of industrial sectors in major metropolitan areas".[12] Additionally, it borrows elements of punk fashion, such as a fanned and dyedMohawk hairstyle,[3] andfetish wear such as black leather and PVC tops, pants and shorts partly supplemented withmodern primitive body modifications such astattoos andpiercings.
Occasionally, rivetheads emphasize apost-apocalyptic,dystopian influence, often inspired by movies, e.g.Mad Max (1979),Escape from New York (1981),Gunhed (1989),Death Machine (1994), andStrange Days (1995). Several movies, such asHardware (1990),Strange Days andJohnny Mnemonic (1995), feature music tracks byMinistry,KMFDM,Diatribe,Stabbing Westward and other bands associated with the rivethead culture.[13][14][15] Other influences include sci-fi archetypes such asLupus Yonderboy andRazorgirl, characters from theSprawl trilogy byWilliam Gibson.
Below some basic characteristics of the rivethead dress style. As a divergence from the extravagance of youth cultures such asNew Romantic,goth,cyber, andsteampunk, the idea is to make a statement with as few fashion components as possible. The rivethead look commonly is unadorned and epitomizes a direct reflection of the social environment ("street survival wear"[16]).
Rivetgirls may dress along with thefemme fatale look:sexuality as power. Common are fetish wear, such as blackPVC andleathercorsages,miniskirts, ankle-deep or knee-highstiletto heel boots;[5] less makeup than Goths[3] and 1980s New Wave fashion girls, who were also an influence on the late-1980s/early 1990s rivetgirl style (cf. fishnet tights, stilettos, Dr. Martens low boots). Often dyed hair (black, sometimes red or blond) that is long, short, spiked, partially shaved (seeMaria Azevedo ofBattery[20] and Yone Dudas ofDecoded Feedback[21]) or dreadlocked (see Anna Christine ofLuxt[22]). On the other hand, the female rivethead fashion look may be and often is identical to the tough style of the male rivetheads (Tank Girl aesthetic; military wear[5] such as tank tops, paratrooper pants and combat boots[3]). Kim X, co-founder of California-based music labelCOP International, compared the female rivethead attitude to theRiot grrrl movement.[23]
Women involved in the 'Industrial scene' wore less makeup, particularly less elaborate eye makeup. They also adopted a much more traditional Punk look, with shorter skirts, made of leather or vinyl, and combat boots. Because of the athletics required of 'Industrial' dancing, it was rare to see women in this scene with spike heels, as it would constrain their movement on the dance floor. The male 'Industrial style' also was much closer to Punk, with men wearing shorts, big boots and adopting partially shaved hairstyles.
— Kristen Schilt, sociologist at theUniversity of Chicago[3]
The rivethead scene of the 1980s and 1990s was different from thegoth subculture in ideological and musical terms, as well as in their visual aesthetics.[24] Confusion regarding the boundaries of those two youth cultures has heightened because of the late-1990s "multi-subcultural" cross-hybridization, which led people to incorrectly believe that rivetheads are an offshoot of the goth subculture. Canadian novelist and authorNancy Kilpatrick labelled this youth-cultural overlap "industrial goth",[25] as does Julia Borden.[2] ( −Note: In the heyday of the rivethead culture, the term "industrial goth" as a description of a youth culture did not exist).[26][18][27]
“The 'Industrial look' began to emerge in the late 1980s. […] The typical 'Industrial' guy, circa 1989, was a Punk who liked technology.”
— Julia Borden[2]
“In contrast to the old-style Goth look, which was androgynous, the male 'Industrial look' was tough and military, with a sci-fi edge. The men wore […] band T-shirts, black trousers or military cargo pants in black, military accessories, such as dog-tags, heavy boots […] 'Industrial' women, who were fewer in number, tended to wear waist-cinchingcorsets, small tank tops or 'wife-beaters' [sleeveless t-shirts], trousers, and sometimes suspenders hanging down off the pants. They also […] sometimes shaved their heads.”
“Stylistically, both men and women in the Gothic subculture […] rely heavily on feminine signifiers, such as makeup, skirts and corsets, while the 'Industrial scene' adopts a much more masculine style that incorporates more traditional Punk elements, such as combat boots and leather pants. […] Unlike their Gothic counterparts, the male ‘Industrials’ did not wear makeup.”
Goths are adark romantic outgrowth of thepunk andpost-punk movements that emerged in the early 1980s[29][30][31] while rivetheads developed from theindustrial dance music scene that came to be in the second half of the 1980s, hand in hand with the media success of post-industrial artists such asSkinny Puppy,Front 242,Front Line Assembly,Ministry,KMFDM,[2] andNumb. The rivethead scene is a male-dominated youth subculture[32][28] that shows a provocative, insurgent as well as socio-critical approach. The Goth subculture is“equally open to women, men and transgendered [sic] people”,[33] and frequently devoid of any interest in ethical activism or political involvements.[34]
“Gothic expresses the emotional, beautiful, supernatural, feminine, poetic, theatrical side. Industrial embodies the masculine, angry, aggressive, noisy, scientific, technological, political side. Industrial music often uses electronics,synthesizers, samples from movies or political speeches, loops, anddistorted vocals. It tends to be male-oriented in those who make the music and those who enjoy it.”[35]
picture was taken in 1996/97 (COP International promotion picture
