5/24/11

            I was most intrigued this week by how accessible metal music is on a global level.  Not accessible in terms of it is easy to get your hands on it, but how easily different cultures around the world can absorb metal.  I believe that you can take metal music into any culture in the world and there will be many people who are turned off by it.  But much like here in the States and Europe, there will be just enough people turned on by it to create a thriving metal scene.  I think that there are certain aspects to metal music that can be appreciated across all cultures.  It is fast, heavy, loud, offensive, rebellious, etc. and no matter which culture you go to there are individuals within that culture who will be drawn to it. 

It is also interesting that metal may have so much appeal because no culture is perfect.  As we discussed in class, cultures in Brazil and Indonesia are very poor but metal has found a way into the society, but on the other end of the spectrum northern/western Europe, especially Norway, is very affluent but metal has also found a strong scene there.  It seems that metal is very versatile in its ability to address certain issues.  In poorer nations it is used to escape and relieve the stresses of a very hard life due to social inequality.  But in richer nations it is used to escape the lack of stress and the mundane existence of an overly equal life.

This brings me to a different thought it was having.  How is it that “metal”, being such an efficient outlet for dis-enchanted individuals, can be such a solid and concrete genre?  For example, if a person is into the Thrash Metal scene they adhere to a certain sound, style of play, style of dress, ect.  And the same thing goes for Glam, Death, and Black Metal.  They all have certain rules that one needs to conform to in order to belong to the scene or genre.  I really don’t have an answer and it appears to be a paradox sometimes because we have a genre of music with various sub-genres, but each sub-genre adheres to a certain code, but at the same time metal is very good at being absorbed into various cultures that are different from each other.  I say this because I really don’t see Country music, which is popular in the States having a global scene.  The same can go for Gangster Rap, Jamaican Steel Drum Troops, and the Vienna Boys Eunuch Choir (just kidding), but you get my drift. 

Perhaps metal just has a way of tapping into something about human nature that is cross cultural, something that is ingrained into our DNA.  Who knows, maybe someday geneticists will find the gene responsible for appreciation of metal music.

Blog Entry 5/16/11

            This week’s material covered gender and sexuality in metal.  Personally I think that if one was to express themselves openly the metal scene would be the place to do it.  The whole metal genre is all about being an individual.  Most of the messages being promoted are the fact that a person should celebrate their individuality and be neo-individualistic.

            So if we take a look at Rob Halford from Judas Priests and Gaahl from Gorgoroth and the fact that they came out of the closet, it really isn’t a big deal.  In my opinion they are just practicing what they preach.  They sing mostly about pushing the boundaries or societal norms, not conforming, and living life free from oppression in a lifestyle that they see most fitting.  So then why would they choose to keep their true identities hidden?  It just doesn’t make sense for them to do so.  The reaction from the metal scene didn’t really surprise me either.  Most people seemed to be accepting and okay with it, but it they weren’t they would simply voice their opinion and leave it be.

            If we switch gears over to the Glam Metal scene in LA, we can see examples of hyper-masculinity in the form of men dressing up in lingerie, lace, and make up.  Again, metal seems to be a safe environment to do pretty much whatever you want without much ridicule.  Now, there was ridicule from different genres of metal.  For example the Thrash Metal scene was not too keen on the Glam Metal scene only because they disagreed on the methods on which they would use to achieve the same goal.  Both Glam and Thrash Metal scene members wanted to play music, live free, make lots of money, party, and get laid.  The Glam Metal members decided to dress up as girls to achieve that goal where Thrash Metal members did not.  I guess the point I am trying to make here is that Metal genre as a whole did not have a problem with Rob Halford or Gaahl because they were being true to themselves and genuine about their individuality and sexuality, where as members of the Glam Metal scene were perhaps not very true to themselves and they were just following a trend.  But I may be wrong; maybe the Glam Metal members were being true to themselves.

            Addressing the issue of women in metal tends to make me a little sad.  In the Glam Metal scene the only status women had were to be objects to have sex with.  They seemed to have very little value and they also seemed to be expendable.  But if we fast forward to the present day, we find that there are numerous metal bands that have women in them.  These women mostly tend to be front members of various groups and more commonly vocalist.  This is a big step forward from the Glam Metal scene but it still feels a little weird.  To me it doesn’t really feel genuine because the female’s role in the band seems to be streamlined and overly commercialized.  If you were to listen to a lot of the songs by female fronted metal bands you would find that they all sound kind of similar and over produced, it’s not really raw.  Then if you look at all the females who are in the bands they all kind of have the same image and they are often “sexed up” in ways most male metal members are not.  There is nothing that is extremely individualistic about it to me.  Now there are the exceptions like Arch Enemies Angela Gossow but other than that it is all generic to me. 

            I find it to be interesting because metal allows men to dress up like women, act in debauched ways, express their hyper masculinity and sexuality and pretty much do whatever they want.  But the women’s role seems to be largely contained within a certain boundary of acceptance.  Even the women who front metal bands, are they expressing anything individual or are they confined by the expectations of the music business and insecurities of male members of the metal scene?

5/6/11

            This week’s reading dealt with experiencing the scene.  The scene is very important to heavy metal and extreme metal because it allows individuals who are into the music to interact with others who are also into the same music.  The scene also allows members of the scene to escape the mundane monotony of everyday life. 

            For example most individuals in the United States work 40 hours a week at a job that they most likely do not like but they do it just to pay the bills.  They wake up every morning and go to work then go home and go to sleep.  The weekend is time off but I think that most people are still stuck doing things they really don’t want to do during their time off too.  But if a person is involved with a scene, more specifically a metal scene, they have the opportunity to break away from the boring existence of everyday life.

            To participate in the metal scene usually means that you need to go to a metal show.  This is where the outlet takes place.  A person can dress differently, act differently, and partake in actions that otherwise would not be allowed in most places and situations in society. 

            This escape from reality that the scene provides can be healthy and productive.  But the danger lies in when the scene itself becomes just as mundane as everyday life.  Then the excitement of the scene is gone and the boundaries are pushed even further. 

I would like to take a step back and suggest that it is not wholly dangerous that the scene becomes mundane because that is when new innovations come to be.  We can take the New Wave of British Heavy Metal and the scene in the United States.  There were tons of young people who were listening to the NWOBHM and there was a certain scene that was associated with that.  But at some point the NWOBHM scene became mundane in itself and the boundaries were pushed.  The result in the United States was the formation of Thrash Metal.  So in this sense the fact that a scene became mundane resulted in musical innovation and the creation of a new genre.

But getting back to how it can be dangerous.  If the most extreme scenes like black/death metal are becoming more and more mundane for those who are seeking an escape or a thrill then where else is there to go?  I would suggest the video we watched in class is a good example of where it can go.  I may sound like an old man but what they hell was that festival about?  To me it just looked like a bunch of kids getting together to listen to bad music and get wasted and high.  Which is fine I guess but how is it any less mundane than doing it in your parent’s basement?

To me, the kids in the video are all dis-enchanted and they are sick of their mundane lives.  So they go to a festival seeking thrills and excitement, anything to make them feel alive, but they have reached a point where there really isn’t any other level of experiencing a scene to be had.  There may be initial excitement and anticipation of the event but soon the realization sets in that the scene is just as mundane as everything else.  The end result is not the feeling of being empowered, or a sense of community, or a sense of being a unique individual, but rather even more anomie.  So the individual, feeling alienated and hopeless, gets wasted on drugs or alcohol, or engages in other activities like fighting and wresting, pretty much anything that will give them a sensation. 

Getting back to metal.  The metal scene is in a state of constant tug of war if you will. You have one side of metal that is exciting and that allows members of the scene to escape life for a while, but on the other side you have members of the scene who may find the scene becoming more mundane so they push the envelope to make it more exciting.  But at the core of it all is metal itself.  So the metal scene will probably never deteriorate into what we saw in the film because metal music is all about maintaining control, empowerment, strength, survival of the fittest, etc.  It is all about pushing boundaries but never at the expense of becoming too self destructive or self wallowing,  there are the exceptions but when those occur they are short lived or no longer a member of the scene. 

Blog Entry 5/2/11

            After reading chapters 1 and 2 of Extreme Metal I find that my knowledge of metal music ends with Metallica, Megadeath, Exodus, etc and the 1980’s and early 1990’s.  With that being said I find that as I read into the more extreme versions of metal I am becoming more aware of a scene that I always knew existed but never became affiliated with.

            What struck me most in the reading is the constant struggle within extreme metal to be a part of a scene but at the same time not conforming to any set of rules or norms.  The whole point of extreme metal, black metal or death metal, is to live outside the norms of society.  But as I continued reading I found that to be a member of the extreme metal scene means that you need to conform to some sort of norm to fit in.  This ranges from the style of clothing worn, the type of hair style that is acceptable, the makeup that is worn, to the style of music being played along with the lyrical content being sung.  I am very curious to see where the reading goes in explaining how this balance, or tension, plays out in the extreme metal scene because if you take a look at the scene itself, there is definitely a code and a community that exists, but at the same time the scene itself is advocating neo-individualism and separation from all norms of society.  Perhaps with further reading I will come closer to an answer.

            Also I would like to point out that the concepts of power and control are paramount in the extreme metal scene.  I think that the musical style of playing says it all.  To an outsider the sound of death or black metal may just sound like noise.  But to the members in the scene or to the trained ear the music is extremely controlled.  As pointed out on page 31 through 34, the music is pushed to its limit as far as speed, intricacy, and volume is concerned but it is always controlled.  But as I think about it more in depth I find another paradox.  If extreme metal, especially the lyrics, is all about no limits, extremes, anarchy, and the acting on animal/primal impulses; then how can bands and scene members be so dedicated to the ridged structure of the music?  It seems as if extreme metal is bipolar in nature.  The music on one hand is very controlled and exists within certain acceptable parameters (meaning no 10 minute freestyle jam during a live show), but at the same time the lyric content contains disturbing issues such as murder, rape, death, suicide, torture, etc.  But then again, perhaps the lyrics are forced to exist within the same parameters as the music.  Would it be very black/death metal to do a metal song with lyrics like “your body is wonderland”?

            Ultimately I am fascinated with how extreme metal can advocate for no rules, norms, or boundaries, but at the same time the genre is considerably tied down by rules, norms, and boundaries.  It will be fun to see how this plays out.

Blog Entry 4/23/11

            I am particularly excited about this week’s reading because it allows me the opportunity to go on a Metallica trip!

            The reading talks about Metallica and their breakthrough album Kill ‘Em All and how ground breaking the album was to the metal genre.  The main point that I would like to point out as being the most critical is the fact that although Metallica was playing extremely fast for the early 1980’s they were using a lot of precision.  They were and still are actually very good musicians.  This critical point is what I believe sets them apart from other bands of the same era.  

For example, punk is loud and fast but the music is not played with any precision.  It is pretty sloppy.  And on top of that it does not take much talent to play punk, as we learned in previous readings all you need to know is three chords and you are good to go.  Punk guitarists did not need to know scales either because there were rarely any guitar solos.  There were rarely any time changes and the music was pretty simple, just played fast.

The bands involved with the New Wave of British Heavy Metal, in my opinion, were very technical and although they played fast, they were not playing at the same speed as Metallica was in Kill ‘Em All.  They also had a cleaner sound and their arraignments were a little more complicated.

The book does not refer to Metallica as a crossover band but one can see where Metallica draws from the NWOBHM and punk at the same time.  Metallica plays very fast but with precision and keeps it in control.  They play very loud but not sloppy and they songs can range from somewhat simple chords and fast from beginning to end where other songs are longer and have difficult rhythms, time changes, and solos requiring some knowledge of music theory.

We all know that Metallica has since evolved in style from its roots in the thrash metal scene.  But without Metallica hitting the scene in the early 1980’s and pretty much showing other bands how thrash was suppose to be done, I do not think that bands like Slayer, Pantera, and Anthrax would have become who they are today.  I say this because all other bands after Metallica have not only tried to be as fast as Metallica, but faster and thrashier.  I believe that other bands heard Metallica then challenged themselves to take the music to another level.

I have posted some links in this blog of some songs from various bands and then the link to the Metallica cover of the songs.  I hope this gives a better example of how sonically different Metallica is and how it set a new standard for metal.

Breadfan, by Budgie: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s3-l_T6AuNk

Breadfan by Metallica: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Z6cVUOhLDw&feature=related

The Prince by Diamond Head: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q_OA5J1HsGk

The Prince by Metallica: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N_ubQnhIQ5I

Stone Cold Crazy by Queen: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AnGaEk0rZdU

Stone Cold Crazy by Metallica: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mgndm6FTERk&feature=related

4th Blog Entry 4/15/11

            The reading this week concerning metal, punk and the crossover was very interesting to me mostly because I never really considered metal and punk to be related at all, but to my surprise at one point in history it was almost the same genre.  But out of this point in time we have the birth of Heavy Metal as a distinct and independent genre and that perhaps we have punk to thank.

            In the mid 1970’s there was a lot of development going on in the punk/metal scene that eventually led to the stand alone genre of metal we know today.  I will focus mainly on the musical styles and how their roots are somewhat similar and how they eventually evolved to become two different styles of music.

            Fast, trashy, and loud.  That can pretty much sum up metal and punk music.  Bands would turn up their amps as loud as they can and play.  The trashier it sounded the better because they didn’t want to sound too sophisticated.  And while they were at it they played as fast as possible regardless of their accuracy because they were more concerned with getting energy out than with their musicianship.

            But somewhere in the mid 1970’s you start to see a distinctive split developing.  We can start with the band Motorhead.  Although their playing style mirrored punk in the fact that the songs were short, loud, trashy, and played fast.  The songs included a guitar solo, which is essential to Heavy Metal.  Their image also changed from the trashy punk look to the leather/outlaw biker look.  The outlaw biker look is not quite essential to Heavy Metal, but leather sure is.  So in the case of Motorhead we see the beginnings of the split between metal and punk.

            A little later down the line punk had been clearly defined and adopted by the media but this left metal out in the cold.  Here steps in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal.  Although these bands played fast, they paid more attention to their musicianship.  Along with playing fast they were more accurate in their playing; their arrangements were longer and had more time changes, they were cleaner sounding than punk, and they had more of an emphasis on being in control of their instruments rather than making noise.

            It is in the New Wave of British Heavy Metal when we first see what is considered to be Heavy Metal.  We have bands like Black Sabbath and Deep Purple who set the foundations, then we have the metal/punk scene that infused the music with speed and attitude, then we have Motorhead who crossed over both genres, then finally we have the birth of a true metal genre in bands like Iron Maiden and Angelwitch.  A band like Iron Maiden has it all; it has the attitude, the speed, the accuracy, the tone and sound, and the control.

            I have heard many times in my life that metal music would not exist today without punk.  I never believed it before now, because if you take a serious, non bias look at the history and how intertwined the music was in the past, it becomes easy to see how the punk scene helped to develop the sound of metal and eventually push it into evolving into its own identity.

3rd Blog Post 4/8/11

            The portion of this week’s reading that really stood out to me was the piece called Factory Music: How the Industrial Geography and Working-Class environment of Post-War Birmingham Fostered the Birth of Heavy Metal, by Leigh Michael Harrison.

            The reading goes on to describe how the environment in which the members of Black Sabbath and Judas Priests grew up in had an enormous impact on the lyrical content and the style of playing they eventually developed.  Not only was much of Birmingham in ruins because of the bombing it suffered during WWII, it was heavily industrialized.  And on top of that the people who lived in Birmingham and the surrounding areas were lower middle class factory workers.

            Ozzy Osbourne describes on page 148 that “As a child, Osbourne lived in a

home with no inside toilet and shared a bed with five other siblings. The Osbourne

children only possessed one pair of shoes, one pair of trousers, one shirt and

jacket and no underclothing.”

            Geezer Butler states on 149 that “In the Second World War, in Birmingham,

that was where all the ammunition was made. That’s why it got so heavily bombed.

So there were a lot of bricks all over the place, bombed out buildings, all that kind

of stuff.”

            Just based off of this reading and these few examples I found myself wondering: “Where does metal music come from?”  A few of the answers I came up with, but there may be more, include misery, suffering, hardship, social inequality, despair, struggle, lack of security, abuse, oppression, fear, anger, retribution, etc.  But most importantly these things are experienced at a young age, in the formative years of an individual, where they still have the energy to push back against what they dislike about life.  Older people tend to accept things and are all too often complacent with the way things are.  Younger people have the energy to say “To hell with your old ways, systems, and institutions!  Everybody I see working and living in this society are unhappy and miserable and that’s not going to be me!”  Essentially I see metal coming from the youth who are immersed in a very unfavorable environment.

            Not only does Black Sabbath form the foundation for metal music through their songwriting and their style of playing, but they lay the foundation of what kind of individual would like metal music, and this individual is the downtrodden who is constantly fighting against a society that wants them to be dis-enchanted.

            Throughout the history of metal we can see individuals who have come from similar circumstances.  James Hetfield from Metallica was born into a lower middle class family that eventually became a broken home, and on top of that he lost his mother to cancer while still a teenager.  Dave Mustaine was also born into a lower middle class family, he moved constantly with his mother and sisters to avoid contact with his father and he dealt drugs as a teenager just to get by.  Then there is the band Slipknot from Iowa.  If memory serves, the band stated that the sheer fact that they had to grow up in Des Moines Iowa was a horrible enough experience they didn't need a whole lot more to piss them off.

            The main point I am trying to get at is that we don’t really see a whole lot of Heavy Metal Bands coming out of Holmby Hills Los Angeles, The Highlands near Seattle, or even Cherry Hills Village here in Denver.  I’m not saying that it’s not possible, it’s just highly unlikely because the environment an individual grows up in is going to be one of the most influential things that form who that individual is and how they are going to relate to the outside world.  In the case of Heavy Metal and the people who associate with it, they seem to be the ones born on the “other side of the tracks”.