In this episode we talk to Stan Erraught about his book, Rebel Notes: Popular Music and Conflict in Ireland. We discuss Stan’s own political background and work leading to his research for the book; the different facets of Irish popular music since the mid-20th Century; the particular cases of the Wolfe Tones and Kneecap and perceptions of their political and Irish cultural expression; and the changing relationship between popular music and Republicanism, politics more broadly, and Irish culture and language.
Stan is a Lecturer in the School of Music at the University of Leeds. His research includes popular music and aesthetics, the political economy of the music industry, and critical theory. As well as several journal articles, he previously published On Music, Value and Utopia: Nostalgia for an Age Yet to Come? in 2018. Before moving to academia, Stan was a member of the band, The Stars of Heaven, in the 1980s.