TM
Joined: May 12, 2004
Posts: 4105
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TM
On 2010-08-17 07:48, woofmutt wrote:
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Mr and Mrs White arriving at a backyard luau in Middlestatus, Oklahoma in 1959 wouldn't have been surprised to see torches, mugs and lights in the shape of island gods, people wearing clothes with garish tropical prints, and hearing Martin Denny playing on the record player. But they probably would have been more than a little confused if many of their friends were wearing Fezzes* and there were a couple of burlesque dancers performing off to the edge of the yard.
If most of us showed up at a Tiki party and people were running around in fezzes chasing burlesque dancers in pasties while Reverend Horton Heat blasted from the stereo we wouldn't be too surprised.
Tiki is part of the retro and lowbrow cultures but the tendency of those cultures to grab and mix all sorts of pop culture shouldn't define Tiki.
I don't mind the mixing of pop culture elements in retro culture, but I definitely will bluntly state: Burlesque isn't Tiki. Fezzes aren't Tiki. Hot rods aren't Tiki. Rockabilly isn't Tiki.
*All the White's friends belonged to the Moose Lodge.
I agree with this 100%. I also like some of the elements from retro-culture you pointed out, but you are right. They are not "Tiki", at least not as I am seeing it.
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