Beat TrippersBeat Trippers
Beat tripping is a branch of the subculture of techno which
arose from the alternative underground of Hamilton, Ontario. Actually,
you could say that it was the fusion of techno with alternative (cultures).
Some alternative punk-rockers became bored of the alternative scene. They came to dislike
the drugs, the clothes, heavy guitars, and sad (really sad) lyrics. A few of these
"ex-punks" became interested in "coffee-shop" clothing (e.g leather blazer,
boot-cut jeans, plain t-shirt, Doc Marten boots). The "look" for a female
beat tripper would be the clothes mentioned above. Females would hardly wear
any make-up or none at all. They would sport a crop cut (Wynona Ryder's hair). This was
due to the fact that they didn't have enough time to spruce themselves up due to
their busy schedules with school and work. Males, on the other hand, would
wear black suit pants with Doc Martens, plain t-shirt, a leather jacket and
would sport a crew cut and wear a thin tuque. The beat tripper principle for
style and fashion was to look neat and clean.
Besides clothing, they changed their musical tastes.
Their music toned down and shifted away from the heavy guitars. Instead, the music was in
line with electronica, '80's New Wave, trip-hop and some heavy alternative mixed in. Some examples of this
music would be: Chemical Brothers, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark,
Massive Attack, Asian Dub Foundation, etc.
These ex-punks also became interested in indie movies (Hollywood box office
products are deemed as too bland and mind-numbing), art, and
literature. In effect, they became cultured.
Beat trippers like to be ahead of the crowd (or away from it), so to speak.
Beat trippers take pride in being intelligent and sophisticated. But they
do not shun others who are not. THEY WELCOME all types of people
except those who are afraid to show their intelligence.
If you are a Beat Tripper or have just discovered about it, please email me
and tell me about yourself, your styles and thoughts. I'm just SO curious
about other people around the world! :0)
