The Metal Subculture

Subculture: 1: division of a larger culture, 2: a distinctly different culture which exists within another culture and that has not been assimilated. Does not have to be an ethnic group.

Individuality: 1: the quality of being individual, the distinct personality of an individual regarded as a persisting entity, 2: the personal trait of being different in order to attain a distinct identity

Elitism: 1: superior attitude or behavior, 2: a select group of people with nearly exact similar values, behavior, or tastes 3: a select group discriminatory against individuals due to their belief system, tastes, or social class

Since its very first conception metal has represented passion, individuality, and just pure rebellion against the status quo. It is these main traits that has drawn so many young adults and created a swelling mass of people who just wished to express their individuality from the mainstream rank and file. Originally born from a music sociological backlash against the British punk scene the NWOBHM would usher in the very first wave of fast hard heavy music and cause a tsunami effect of unbridled pure energy and ideas to flood across Europe, Asia, and North America. The early days were incredible times to be a teen because the music was so new and vibrant and nothing else had the same power as metal.

In the beginning few saw where the music would eventually lead, and fewer even cared. For many of the kids it was a tool for self expression, a chance to finally be free from the chains of society and familial pressures. Put very simply you loved the music, you represented the scene, and you respected the person next to you because they represented a part of the scene. Back then few if any of the first head bangers would ever guess that 30 plus years later metal would evolve from its infant state to its current hybrid of genres sub genres, music history, and internal cultural strife.

The internal cultural strife I speak of is called elitism. When did a musical form which in essence represented individuality of the person from society become conformist? Why must it be conformist? Why has the metal subculture evolved to the point where certain members now expect everyone to like the exact same styles, bands, and hold the exact same views or be outcast amongst his/her piers? Isn’t such behavior contradictive to the original message that the metal culture was first founded on? Isn’t this sort of sociological Nazism counter productive in the growth of a healthy music culture? Let’s see if these questions can be answered?

In the beginning of the metal music movement many of the now commonplace genres and sub genres did not exist or were only beginning to be coined. For many kids of the early days metal was simply metal no matter what the style. The genre names of doom, thrash, death etc were only beginning to be coined. Even when these genre names first began to gain popularity few identified themselves as thrashers, doomers, blackers, or death metalers. The general consensus back in the day was you were a metal head and nothing more.

Of course with every generation comes change and as the first teens grew older went to college and started families a new generation would supplant them. By around 1983 - 84 many of the first adherents of metal had started to do just that and in their place a fresh stock of teens would enter the scene. By then the first signs of division were beginning to take root. Unlike the very first teens the current mid 80s metal head knew the difference between doom, thrash, death, and heavy metal. Very distinct styles had developed and metal had started to now become dissected into its chief genres. The average metal head was now forming their own little social groups consisting of members who shared the same appreciation for his/her style or styles of choice.

Of coarse such sociological behavior isn’t uncommon. It stands to reason that humanity being the social animal it is that teens began to splinter into separate groups. Even as the overall genre showed signs of sociological splintering based along different musical styles it still wasn’t uncommon for the heavy metal lover to hang with the thrash lover or the death metal lover to hang with the doom metal lover. It was actually quite common back then to cross over into other socio musical groups of fans. In many ways it was even an accepted norm of the times. Even so by the late 80s internal division had taken root and began to become more and more prevalent.

Many metal adherents began to signal out others within the subculture based on their own misguided perceptions of keeping the music genre pure, or as its most commonly referred to in the present day TRVE. Death metal lovers signaled out heavy metal lovers based on the sole belief that heavy metal had sold out and only death could be considered pure anymore. Of coarse this behavior type was not only manifesting itself amongst the death metal crowd but in many other of the sub genres such as doom and thrash and by the closing of the 80s metal in general had fallen as the dominate music subculture. In its place came Rap, Hip Hop and Grunge. Not surprisingly many teens turned their back on metal completely, rejecting a scene made up of piers that outcast them for showing their own individuality?

Even though metal had been supplanted as the dominate force amongst the teenage crowd it was far from dead. Great music never dies and as the early 90s began metal had gone underground and was beginning to metamorphous into a new beast. In countries like Sweden, Finland, Norway, Canada, Britain mainland Europe and parts of the USA more sub genres had formed or had begun to form. Death metal was well on its way to reinventing itself. The Scandinavian countries would lead the charge and take death to a whole new level bringing in a technicality previously unknown. Musical execution became smooth and seamless with expansion lyrically into deeper and more epic topics.

In the USA the death and thrash underground even though now smaller then it was in the 80s was still alive and kicking like a wild mule. Many diehards had shunned the popular culture of the mainstreamer and only cared for the then extreme sound that gave them their fix of pure audio adrenalin. American thrash had begun to grow bigger fangs and sharper claws. Like its death metal cousin it to had matured and had begun to experiment and refine itself with harder more complex abrasive guitar work and faster harder drumming.

To the north of the USA Montreal had supplanted Toronto as the so called big show and was becoming home to death metal band after death metal band. Voivod towards the late 80s had become known for mixing progressive jazzy elements and the later death metal bands happily followed their lead. Bands like Rush and Voivod would be the major influences for many a metal band in the Canadian scene and soon Canadian progressive death began to turn heads. Quo Vadis, Anonymus, Cryptopsy, Annihilator, and Kataklysm had breathed new life into Canadian metal and this writer for one was happy they were around to keep him from dying of boredom during the 90s.

In Europe artists began to push their creativity and began mixing symphonic elements into their music. The goth scene towards the late 90s was also starting to come alive after its own fall from grace and had begun to mix its own musical inspiration with the base metal sound. Not to be forgotten or outdone punk was well on the way to mixing its own brand of audio adrenalin in with metal and the name metalcore and deathcore was starting to be coined as genre names.

By the close of the 90s metal was back stronger, harder angrier and more rebellious then ever and along with it even more inner genre based division. Its sole saving grace, in this writers opinion, was its ability to change and a infusion of creativity from the metal artists who weren’t afraid to experiment and step out of their genre pigeon holes. Put very bluntly artistic individuality was what brought back metal music as the dominant musical art form.

After metal nearly disappeared you would have thought people would have learned their lesson the first time. Unfortunately the new breed has shown themselves to be as empty headed as the generation before them if not worse. Elitism has now set even deeper roots then ever before. So called self righteous music puritans now run around using slang terms like KVLT and TRVE as if it actually meant anything, leaving this writer mystified as to why the younger generation thinks creative spelling leads to a better metal scene.

The very foundation of any musical art form is heavily based on the creativity of its artists and in other ways the will of its fans. When a subculture begins to judge and outcast its own members based on ignorance and misguided perceptions of being trve and kvlt it risks implosion. It strangles the essence of creativity and ideas leaving only a empty husk of recycled trash. With no experimentation music is left static and when it becomes static only boredom is left as cloned band after cloned band continues to put out more of the same hum drum repetitive music with no real meaning left behind it.

Many misguided individuals lay claim that by out casting people with certain musical tastes in styles/bands/genres they keep metal TRVE (pure). I say to anyone who reads this FAQ what right does anyone have in deciding what is acceptable for someone else to listen to? Is anyone’s taste in music truly beyond reproach? Does not everyone no matter what style they prefer or what music genre they prescribe to have their own so called guilty pleasures? None of us are ever beyond reproach when put under the microscope by others. Taste in music is ultimately a very personnel decision made by an individual and always will be. No two people can ever have the exact same tastes nor should they ever have. It’s this distinctness in taste that enforces our own individuality and brings a wonderful mix of diversity into being a part of the metal subculture.

Many modern day metal adherents now resort to bashing others for the so called sin of liking bands belonging to the nu metal genre. Why so many seem moved to the point of hateful anger over the words nu metal is a mystery to this writer. Why someone would even care why another individual chooses to listen to nu metal is also beyond this writer’s comprehension. Individuality very much represents differences in musical tastes within the subculture. Even this writer has a passing interest in nu metal as well as more serious interests in hard rock, goth rock, grunge and blues. The essence of individuality is comprised of differences in personal taste and these differences should always be respected.

Nu metal is simply a broad term created to encompass various bands whose chief elements is, but not limited to, pop, grunge, indie, alternative/hard rock, rap, punk as well as some metal influences. It highly differs from what is considered traditional metal in that it in many cases emphasizes rhythm over melody played over distorted guitars down tuned to a lower pitch. Many nu metal bands do not utilize guitar solos to the extent that metal bands do. Amongst other traits nu metal uses vocals ranging the spectrum from clear vocals utilized in pop and rock to screamo not unlike vocals utilized in metalcore. Rhyme used in rapping is also sometimes utilized by some nu metal bands. Please note that these traits I have just described are far from written in stone and are intended only as a general very brief overview of the genre and not all nu metal bands will necessarily display these traits. There are many other traits that could be mentioned which shall not be discussed due to the fact that this articlewas never intended to be a nu metal music theory article.

Many younger music fans listen and appreciate nu metal and in this writers experience nu metal has served as a bridge that has lead many new fans into the metal genre. I write these paragraphs to emphasize how nu metal can be a positive force that can lead to younger music lovers discovering the true beauty that is metal music. Even if some new adherents still choose to listen to nu metal what does it really matter in the end? People are their own master and we all should respect an individual’s taste like we all want others to respect ours. We as music lovers should always remember that none of us have the right to judge another’s musical taste. I also remind everyone who reads this how in the beginning people at one time judged the first generation of metal heads as extremist devil worshipping drunkards and would laugh saying metal would never grow and was doomed to die out completely. Nearly 30 years later the genre has grown to gigantic proportions compared to what it was in the late 70s. The scoffers have since faded away never to be heard from again. Hallelujah for that.

Heavy, doom, thrash, death, black, progressive, melodic death, and progressive death metal amongst many others are all true metal deserving its own praise. To not like a certain style only means a listener doesn’t like a certain style because it doesn’t pertain to his/her own individuality. It should never mean the listener isn’t a true metal head. To judge someone based on their tastes in styles only causes dissention and dooms the subculture into a state of stale conformity. Many younger fans forget that metal originally was born due to dissention from the punk scene. In the 70s a once vibrant British punk scene had imploded from its own elitism. Fans turned their back on punk and instead turned to metal as an alternate. Because of this the British punk scene never again was able to regain the thunder it once had.

I write this FAQ as a warning to the new generation of metal heads. To force elitism on others only dooms the culture we all love. There is no such thing as a completely pure style nor is there ever such a thing as trve metal. All metal be it whatever style is true metal and represents an artistic vision of its artists. This art shall never appeal to everyone but it will always appeal to some. Be smart and stop this foolishness of kvlt and trve because there is only one way and one way only to be a real head banger. Be TRUE TO YOURSELF.

DevineNemesis
\m/Bless