Soviet sci-fi bittersweet nostalgia, and more far-right memes

September 25, 2019 8:40 AM

For the soundtrack of sadness and bitter(sweet) nostalgia from Soviet sci-fi films that promised a bright and glorious future, here's 1 Hour Of Melancholic Sovietwave [via Mltshp]. If you check out YouTuber Truckfighter, you'll find three more hour-long mixes of Russian Doomer Music: volumes one, two and three. But who is that bleak looking cartoon dude with the beanie, stubble and a cigarette, and what is a doomer? KnowYourMeme covers doomer, noting some of the memes include antisemitic slurs and ideas, and Mel Magazine takes a deeper dive into 4chan’s ‘doomer’ memes, "a strange frontier in online extremism," with "depressing" music as its soundtrack. And as usual, the far right smuggles ‘ironic’ racism within their memes (where if you scrape away the irony, you're left with racism).

Truckfighter also posted 1 Hour of Rock/Metal/Stoner with Saxophone and 1 Hour Of Russian Black Metal.

posted by filthy light thief (11 comments total)

I just want to give these kids who are obsessed with taxonomizing things an Audubon field guide and a notebook and shove them out the door. No more computers! Go do something wholesome with that energy!

You too, Miles Klee! Out! Out!
posted by prize bull octorok at 9:30 AM on September 25, 2019 [3 favorites]

But are there women who also birdwatch, and would be into them for birdwatching?

Because it sadly/ tragically/ expectedly comes back to "women won't bang me," based on my cursory browsing of doomer discussions. See the definition of blackpill on Urban Dictionary (or don't, because there's also an awful definition that doesn't bear repeating anywhere).

Sad music makes me happy, but seeing sadsack misogynist dudes rebrand the Cure, Joy Division, Radiohead and My Bloody Valentine, and all this gloriously melancholy Soviet/ Russian music as "doomer music" makes me feel a mixture of sadness and anger. Deal with your depression in a positive way, stop blaming women, and enjoy sad music for its emotional beauty instead of having it reinforce your sorrow at your sad state of affairs.
posted by filthy light thief at 10:18 AM on September 25, 2019 [6 favorites]

I'm confused. If I click on the first link in the post, will I be benefitting a racist 4channer?
posted by NoMich at 10:20 AM on September 25, 2019 [2 favorites]

I'm conflicted as well, those one hour russian post punk mixes are pretty good...
posted by SageLeVoid at 10:22 AM on September 25, 2019

The Mel Magazine article notes that there are Spotify "doomer" playlists with the Cure, Joy Division, Radiohead and My Bloody Valentine --- which sound like awesome playlists to me. And Truckfighter's playlists-as-videos seem to be Russian equivalents -- adopted by 4channer culture, but not of 4chan culture. Sad music existed before, and beyond, 4chan.

Enjoy the music, but now you know who and what that MS Paint character represents, at least to some people. The Russian text in the Melancholic Sovietwave mix says "I am not monitizing this video," so even if it is from a 4channer, I don't know if YouTube will pay him for making a mix of someone else's music (the "includes music by" list is pretty long, so it seems to recognize that there's no original work presented).
posted by filthy light thief at 10:26 AM on September 25, 2019 [3 favorites]

This Sovietwave mix is good but now I'm wondering if it's authentic / old music, something new? What makes it Soviet? For once the Youtube comments are sort of helpful, "For not russian: this music begins nostalgy from our childhood. Samples from old cartoons about space, old tv news, etc."

I've never heard of doomer culture before but having spent 3 minutes reading links I'm now an expert. I dunno, sounds very familiar to me; in my time it was goth. Perhaps they read Emily Dickinson to each other. I kinda like /r/nightwalk, lots of moody urban photos. I hope these depressed teens find each other on their night walks and share a clove cigarette and maybe an awkward kiss.

(I'm done trying to track which Internet memes are also racist, as long as the primary content is OK and I'm not too engaged with the culture. OTOH I'm still mad that tradwave turns out to be unironic conservative Catholic crap.)
posted by Nelson at 10:29 AM on September 25, 2019 [2 favorites]

Nazis better keep their hands off my Joy Division! Oh wait

Youthful edginess is a flat circle. If the 4channers are listening to good music, leave them to it. Maybe it will save their mortal souls.
posted by prize bull octorok at 10:36 AM on September 25, 2019 [4 favorites]

Miserable teens and 20-somethings passing shitty in-jokes back and forth online? Is this a thing, or is it just some thing?
posted by SoberHighland at 1:01 PM on September 25, 2019

Ironic Racism is like Single-Stream Recycling. They're both lies we tell ourselves to feel better about the world. Calling it ironic doesn't make it any less racist, and calling it recycling doesn't make it any better for the environment.
posted by Mr.Encyclopedia at 6:55 PM on September 25, 2019

Nazi Nihilist Memes For Radicalised Incel Teens.
posted by acb at 5:24 AM on September 26, 2019 [1 favorite]

Once again, filthy light thief, I come here to post something cool I found on the web (i.e. mltshp), and you beat me to it.

Oh well, nothing matters when I am being lulled into complacency by Soviet nostalgia synthwave. The great thing is that I don't pay attention to lyrics no matter what language, so this could all be propoganda, but I am impervious and blissed out.
posted by not_on_display at 11:16 AM on September 27, 2019