Heavy Metal
Musical preferences are as diverse as the
people who listen to it. Different
types of music have different reputations.
Heavy metal music is often labeled as
"negative." Yet others find it a
harmless form of music. The argument
presented in this paper will show that
heavy metal music poses no threat to the
well-being of its listeners. Like
other types of music, such as jazz, blues, and
even rap. The distinct style
of heavy metal music can be grouped into three main
sections (Ratliff 1). One
popular style of heavy metal is death metal. Death
metal has a more dark
sound and eerie style than other forms of heavy metal. The
music itself is
fast, heavy, and loud. The images that death metal portrays are
death, doom,
destruction, suicide, sex, and drugs. Some see these images as
harmful or
having a negative effect on the listener (Halbersberg 1). Another
form of
heavy metal music is speed metal. Speed metal has a more upbeat sound
than
death metal and is not as depressing as death metal. It is fast paced and
has
a hard impact The lead guitar follows a frenetic pace. This is in contrast
to
death metal which emphasizes rhythm guitar (Graff 3). The last type of
heavy
metal music is thrast metal. The name refers to both the thrashing
sound of the
music and the flailing movement of its listeners. The sound is
very loud and has
the same tone and style of speed metal (Graff 3). These
styles however, attract
certain people. Waite 2 The majority of people who
listen to heavy metal music
are suburban white males. These males range in
ages between 14-24. They have a
certain style of dress and way of life. They
wear dark clothing with morbid
images of death and destruction. This clothing
can be seen to be a costume that
advertises the teens' musical preference. It
is a way of getting attention.
Surprisingly, even though the crowds tend
to be young, adults are also seen at
these concerts. One example of an adult
and a parent is Dave Mullins. He likes
to take his sons to see death metal
shows.(Graff 1) Mullins says about death
metal, "I did see one band that had
a clear bag with a fetus inside it. It
looked gross, but it was just a gag.
When I'm watching the kids, they're just
letting off steam. When I was a kid,
we used to beat people up after school.
This seems better to me." (Graff
1) Of course, not all parents agree with
Mullins. Parents want the best
for their children, but sometimes their efforts
are not beneficial. When
parents nag their children about what they should and
should not listen to,
kids can become angry and depressed. This possibly can
lead to drinking and
drug use, and suicide. Parents can blame this behavior on
the music that
their kids are listening to. A group of parents formed the Parent
Music
Resource Center in the 80's (Gonzales 1). Even the Vice-presidents
wife,
Tipper Gore, got involved. She led the center in the fight against
heavy metal
music. The center's main goals were to destroy heavy metal music
and all other
music that had a negative message. They were effective in
banning some groups
from record stores and canceling some concerts. However,
Tipper Gore's mission
failed to kill off heavy metal music. The Parent Music
Resource Center still
exists, but it is not as powerful as it once was
(Gonzales 3). This group never
examined whether heavy metal music could be a
healthy outlet for aggrssion.
Waite 3 A well known psychologist from
Durham, Stephanie Pinder-Amaker, said
that music can influence a person's
state of mind. In her studies she found that
"if people listen to music that
is faster than their heart rate, such as
heavy metal, it increases the heart
rate. If you're trying to increase your
energy level, it might be a good way
to generate excitement." (Freelon 1)
Heavy metal music by increasing the
heart rate of its listeners can be seen as a
form of exercise or a physical
release. Studies have been done on the effect of
heavy metal music. Roe and
King, child psychiatrists at the University of Iowa
examined the effects of
heavy metal music on teenagers social behavior. These
studies show that many
teens who thought seriously about suicide and abused
drugs listened to heavy
metal, but they also showed no direct connection between
the music and these
actions.(Freelon 2) Another recent survey done by the
University of Iowa
reported that teenage female hard rock fans thought about
suicide more often
than people that listened to other types of music. However
most of the
females who thought about suicide were too scared of dying to try
it.(Freelon
2) One positive effect of this music was that even if the teenager
was
feeling bad and low, listening to his or her favorite music helped him or
her
feel better again.(Freelon 2) In another test, teens and their parents
were
surveyed to investigate the association between heavy metal music and
teens'
social function. The people taking the survey were asked about current
and past
psychological functioning, as well as their music preferences. The
results
indicated that teens who preferred heavy metal music had a higher
incidence of
below-average school grades, school behavior problems, sexual
activity, drug and
alcohol use, and arrests. Despite this, it was evident
that the teens' home
lives were stable with two parents, good living Waite 4
conditions and sound
financial status.(Took 1) Although it seems that heavy
metal music was
corrupting teens' lives, there was no direct correlation
between poor behavior
and heavy metal music. Some listeners do not always
understand what they are
listening to. One study group, Prinsky and
Rosenbaum, found that many teens who
listen to heavy metal music
misinterpreted the lyrics. This misinterpretation
was said to be due to the
teens' limited life experience and immature
development. Unlike adults, who
find references to sex, violence, drugs and
Satan, teens tended to
interpret the lyrics of their favorite songs as being
about love, politics,
growing up, friendship, and other appropriate subjects.
Many people do
not take this music seriously. Brian Slagel, CEO of Metal Blade
Records,
says: I think the genre as a whole is serious in wanting to shock
people, but
it also has its tongue planted in its cheek. These bands don't
do
cannibalistic things, they do not worship Satan. They don't do all the
things
people think they do. If you take it seriously, you're further off the
deep end
than most people, I think. --Graff 1 In other words, the content can
be
discounted because it is not meant to be taken literally. On stage, groups
of
death metal sing about Satan, societal ills, cannibalism and sex with
rotting
corpses. But to fans its entertainment. "It's good violent fun,"
says
Ron Holt, 26, a death metal fan. "Its like seeing Jason slash
someone's
head off; it helps me release my aggressions, but it doesn't mean
i'm going to
go out and do it." (Graff 1) David Horn, from Metal Blade
Records, says:
Waite 5 The difference between this type of music and
something like gangsta
rap, is that heavy metal is pretty much firmly based
in fantasy...I don't think
a song about some mystical war or slaying a
barbarian poses as much of a threat
as far as influencing people. --Graff 1
In conclusion, heavy metal music, while
much maligned, has not been found to
seriously damage listeners' lives. Yes, it
is violent and depicts images of
doom and destruction, but it should not be
interpreted as a negative
influence on its listeners. Teens will continue to
listen to music their
parents do not care for. Heavy metal music can be healthy
for the mind
psychologically as well as physically. When people look at heavy
metal music,
they should not see it as a negative influence, but as a
therapeutic release
for teenage energy or angst.