The “other Sixty-Eight”. Historical and cultural roots of far-right music in Italy (1968-1977)

Abstract

Abstract The article aims to explore the origins of far-right music in Italy and its contribution to the formation of a new and corresponding youth movement, which constitutes a phenomenon at least partly independent of the historical and political legacy of the Fascist regime. This study is conducted by analysing three key elements that contributed to the creation of a different background, more suited to the context of the 1960s and 1970s. The first concerns the development of far-right alternative music as a counter-movement to both the conservative and progressive cultures within the 1968 student revolution; the second focuses on the cultural appropriation of Tolkien’s works and, more generally, of the epic and fantasy genre by the Italian far right; and the third considers the increased radicalisation of far-right alternative music during the Years of Lead. This phase paved the way for the development of an international network of genres and artists that now play a crucial role in the persistence and strengthening of far-right music, particularly among younger audiences.