Just out of curiosity, how many escapists listen to metal? I've noticed in my own life that a lot of nerds are metalheads as well, be it Iron Maiden, Carcass, Trivium or anything else.
So how many of us are metalheads? And do you label yourself as one of the somewhat elitist subgroups? I know most metalheads aren't like that but there is a very vocal minority. [sub]Seems like there's one of those in every out-of-the-norm subculture[/sub]
EDIT: The options are lumped together versions of multiple genres.
True Metal is heavy, NWOBHM, traditional and 80's thrash.
Extreme metal is (melo/brutal)death, grindcore and doom.
Radio metal is metalcore, alternative and modern throwback.
Black metal is black metal. Moving on.
Variety is you listen to more than those outlines.
EDIT: I'm going to use CatBus to teach something. Itmight be is very long so I'll put it in a spoiler tag.
I think that most people that hate on metal's image is because they immediately think of black metal. White and black (aka corpse) paint, they preach destruction of the church, and often religion as a whole, have a very noisy sound to the uninitiated and are responsible for hundreds of church burnings and many support Nazism under the National Socialist Black Metal (NSBM) banner. The vast, vast majority of people that listen to black metal are against this kind of behaviour (e.g. the reaction to Varg Vikernes being released and his actions immediately after).
Let me make this perfectly clear, metal is not about starting wars/fires and destroying any semblance of civilised society. Metal is about letting out all your anger and frustration in an artistic and passionate way. Listening to metal does not make you childish, nor does it make you an imbecile. You may think it's dumb and painful to jump around in a mosh pit, but it's a refreshing and enthralling way to let out your pent up anger in a safe and friendly way; if you get knocked down or hurt, people will help you. It's usually no more dangerous than a game of paintball: you'll get a few bruises, maybe a cut or two, but you'll be absolutely fine the next day and meet some new people.
The vast majority of metal is not like the stuff above, most of it is more like Megadeth in that the vocals are clean (i.e. singing) and the guitar is fast and technical.
Metal heads are anything but dumb. My favourite singer, Bruce Dickinson (of Iron Maiden), is a pilot and lots of other things. Tosin Abasi, the lead guitarist for Animals as Leaders, is one of the most accomplished and talented guitarists alive. And those are just to name a few. Granted, there are many incredibly stupid artists out there are well, just like any other genre.
I've heard the "metal is for angsty kids" argument before and I can most certainly assure you that it is not. I finished high school in June of 2012 and I was one of the very few people that listened to metal. I knew everyone in my graduating year fairly well, it was only 200 people. As for the socially inept factor, that is also untrue. Mostly. Yes, there is the odd person that proclaims their love for metal for everyone to see to shock people into staying away from them or they use it to block out all everything in their lives. Those people are however the exception rather than the rule. All the metalheads I know now are socially accepted and some are quite popular among our peers.
Finally, while I know you didn't bring this up, very little metal is Satanic. There's a specific genre for that and it's called doom metal. It's characterised by slower tempos, a feeling of oppression, slightly cleaner or sung vocals and Satanic messages. The most recent example of this would be Ghost, a Swedish band that combines doom metal, pop vocals and make it as if it were a throwback to the early days of Black Sabbath.
To finish, metal is a hugely varied and accepting music scene. We accept the outcasts and the popular ones and treat you the same no matter where you're from, whether you be African, Hispanic, Indian, Caucasian, etc. We love something others hate and appreciate the new and inventive.
tl;dr Metal is fantastic, varied and accepting of anyone. The people are like any other demographic, we just like to display our frustration is music instead of fists.
So how many of us are metalheads? And do you label yourself as one of the somewhat elitist subgroups? I know most metalheads aren't like that but there is a very vocal minority. [sub]Seems like there's one of those in every out-of-the-norm subculture[/sub]
EDIT: The options are lumped together versions of multiple genres.
True Metal is heavy, NWOBHM, traditional and 80's thrash.
Extreme metal is (melo/brutal)death, grindcore and doom.
Radio metal is metalcore, alternative and modern throwback.
Black metal is black metal. Moving on.
Variety is you listen to more than those outlines.
EDIT: I'm going to use CatBus to teach something. It
The quote is just there to get your attention. Metal is about doing whatever you want and not following the stringent rules of mainstream music. You can have howled/screeched vocals, irregular time signatures, abrasive melodies and make it about anything. For example, Stone Sour's A House of Gold and Bones is autobiographical for Corey Taylor, the band's lead singer and a couple of songs (I think "The Traveler") is about his years of homelessness. It's not all about burning of churches and raping women.CatBus said:
Black Metal Example
I think that most people that hate on metal's image is because they immediately think of black metal. White and black (aka corpse) paint, they preach destruction of the church, and often religion as a whole, have a very noisy sound to the uninitiated and are responsible for hundreds of church burnings and many support Nazism under the National Socialist Black Metal (NSBM) banner. The vast, vast majority of people that listen to black metal are against this kind of behaviour (e.g. the reaction to Varg Vikernes being released and his actions immediately after).
Let me make this perfectly clear, metal is not about starting wars/fires and destroying any semblance of civilised society. Metal is about letting out all your anger and frustration in an artistic and passionate way. Listening to metal does not make you childish, nor does it make you an imbecile. You may think it's dumb and painful to jump around in a mosh pit, but it's a refreshing and enthralling way to let out your pent up anger in a safe and friendly way; if you get knocked down or hurt, people will help you. It's usually no more dangerous than a game of paintball: you'll get a few bruises, maybe a cut or two, but you'll be absolutely fine the next day and meet some new people.
The vast majority of metal is not like the stuff above, most of it is more like Megadeth in that the vocals are clean (i.e. singing) and the guitar is fast and technical.
More Common Metal Example
The video to the left, "Holy Wars, The Punishment Due", is about the crusades. Others, like "Aces High" by Iron Maiden, is about the London raids in World War II. Metal heads are anything but dumb. My favourite singer, Bruce Dickinson (of Iron Maiden), is a pilot and lots of other things. Tosin Abasi, the lead guitarist for Animals as Leaders, is one of the most accomplished and talented guitarists alive. And those are just to name a few. Granted, there are many incredibly stupid artists out there are well, just like any other genre.
I've heard the "metal is for angsty kids" argument before and I can most certainly assure you that it is not. I finished high school in June of 2012 and I was one of the very few people that listened to metal. I knew everyone in my graduating year fairly well, it was only 200 people. As for the socially inept factor, that is also untrue. Mostly. Yes, there is the odd person that proclaims their love for metal for everyone to see to shock people into staying away from them or they use it to block out all everything in their lives. Those people are however the exception rather than the rule. All the metalheads I know now are socially accepted and some are quite popular among our peers.
Finally, while I know you didn't bring this up, very little metal is Satanic. There's a specific genre for that and it's called doom metal. It's characterised by slower tempos, a feeling of oppression, slightly cleaner or sung vocals and Satanic messages. The most recent example of this would be Ghost, a Swedish band that combines doom metal, pop vocals and make it as if it were a throwback to the early days of Black Sabbath.
To finish, metal is a hugely varied and accepting music scene. We accept the outcasts and the popular ones and treat you the same no matter where you're from, whether you be African, Hispanic, Indian, Caucasian, etc. We love something others hate and appreciate the new and inventive.
tl;dr Metal is fantastic, varied and accepting of anyone. The people are like any other demographic, we just like to display our frustration is music instead of fists.
