Madness
Madness are a British pop/ska bandfrom Camden Town, London, who formed in 1976. The band perform with their most recognised line-up of seven members, althoughthis has occasionally varied slightly over the years of their existence. They were one of the most prominent bands of the late 1970s 2 Tone ska revival.
Madness’ audience in the early days of their formation were predominantly skinheads; members of a British working class subculture that the media often stereotyped as racist (although many skinheads, including the original generation, are non-racist or anti-racist). This sparked much controversy about the band, who were on the receiving end of racist allegations, claiming they too were racists. This however waslater disproved as they denied their skinhead roots, disappointing much of their fan base. Towards the later stages of their careers, although still being predominantly 2 Tone ska, they edged slightly more towards the mainstream pop audience.
They appeal to their audience largely through their roots. They are a well known British ska band, who use their national appeal to draw in audiences who get a feel of patriotism and belongingness from listening to their ‘rock steady’ beats. The media surrounding their music, such as album art and videos, contain a number of generic signifiers relevant to both the ska genre and Britain. For example in their video for one step beyond, they are seen dancing down the British streets, with a red telephone box in the background, a prominent signifier of British culture.
They interact with the audience through the performance of live gigs and festivals, in which they still partake. For example, Madness continue to tour playing most recentlyplaying Birchington-on-Sea Quex Park in Kent with a new set of UK tour dates throughout November and December 2010. Even long after their years in the limelight, they play shows for the fans that have been loyal to their music that has been and still is so iconic to the British ska/pop scene. In a large sense, the way in which they dress plays a large part in their interaction with audiences. Their partially smart dress, with suits, ties, smart shoes, trilbies and of course the large shades worn by Suggs are vital in the establishing of their image. Fans of the ska genre then have an image to aspire to and aim towards by dressing in a similar fashion to achieve this.
