Music publicly hidden : analysis of the functioning of hidden tracks in contemporary popular music

摘要

American popular music is full of elements that are not visible or hearable at first. Fans tend to search for hidden meanings, messages, or allusions, which lead to conspiracy theories. One of the most popular artistic measures that convey such pieces of information are hidden tracks. History of their usage began in late 1960s, when the Beatles accidentally placed "Her Majesty" at the end of "Abbey Road" LP. In the following decades, its form evolved and whole generations of artists followed their lead, The Clash, Nirvana, and Lauryn Hill being only few. Musicians became fascinated of this alternative form of expression that gave artistic, commercial, integrative possibilities. This paper is focused on the idea of hidden tracks, their history, evolution, and motivations that influenced artists to decide to use them as an artistic measure. The main goal is to emphasize few examples of contemporary usage of such measurement, focusing on the process of its deliberate disclosure. Author analyses four studio albums as case studies - Coldplay's "Parachutes", Queens of the Stone Age's "Songs for the Deaf", Kanye West’s "808s & Heartbreak", and Jack White’s "Lazzaretto". These LPs are used to reflect modern trends in the usage of hidden tracks, their condition, future, and importance. Furthermore, this paper shows that the idea of this measurement is still present in contemporary music despite unfavorable form of the most popular way of listening to music - streaming, while seeing the change in marketing of this notion of albums' additional material.