2024-07-07 08:26:12
Metal as a genre distinct from rock emerged in the 20th century. in the early 1970s, when artists were trying to make heavier music. It is quite difficult to answer the question of what makes music “metal” – it consists of characteristic drum rhythms, and specific bass or rough rhythms and sharp solo guitars, as well as an expressive, sometimes aggressive vocal style – from roaring to falsetto. Perhaps that’s exactly what it is. the combination essentially separates metal music from punk rock and other extreme music styles. However, even these characteristics do not fully reveal the essence of the genre – because metal is multifaceted.
“Whatever music you’re into, there’s likely to be a metal band equivalent of that kind of music,” says Kim Kelly, a journalist who has written about heavy music for many years. – If someone likes unearthly melodies, clean singing and an emotional atmosphere, he will definitely find a metal band that sounds like that. If you are interested in hip-hop – [metale] it can also be like transitional or connective tissue.’
Metalheads are not what you imagine them to be
Just as the genre is more complex than one might imagine, so is its fandom. They are very diverse – and less evil than they appear at first glance. And they are everywhere. For example, in 2021 at least one active metal group existed in all 145 countries of the world.
And contrary to popular belief, not all metal fans look like hulking Vikings. The ethnomusicologist and the books “What Are You Doing Here?” A Black Woman’s Life and Liberation in Heavy Metal” (lit. “What are you doing here? A black woman’s life and liberation in heavy metal) by Laina Dawes – exploring why young black Americans tend to choose aggressive music. Her interviews with artists and fans over the past few years show that punk rock, powerviolence, grindcore and other genres that are overtly political can be a form of catharsis for youth facing individual and systemic oppression.
From the 1980s to the early 1990s, rap filled this need by singing about police violence and racism, poverty and life on the economic margins. “Rap was more extreme then than it is now, so young black people could vent their inner anger,” says Dawes. However, her research suggests that contemporary productions, with their fluid sound engineering and wider range of texts, do not offer the same liberation. “Heavy metal these days [tam] may be a better genre,” says the researcher.
Metal is intense. But is it dangerous?
Despite mounting evidence, the stereotype that metal fans are prone to violence persists, raising concerns about the music for parents and educators. For this reason, scientists in various fields are paying a lot of attention to explain how this music can shape minds. They studied metalheads’ personality traits, assessed their propensity for self-harm or violence, and even considered the risks of concussion-related brain injuries.
And metalheads really do have things in common, just not as much as it might seem to outsiders. Based on 2013 University of Westminster and HELP University College, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia according to the data of the conducted research, they care more about being seen as “unique” than the average person. They are also less religious and have slightly lower self-esteem.
2015 m. Stanford and Cambridge University psychologists have publishedthat people with “systematizing” traits—a tendency to analyze things and look for patterns—are more likely to like intense music and reject quiet singers.
in 2009 Scotland Psychologists at Heriot-Watt University foundthat metalheads are drawn to theatrics, a sentiment they share with classical music lovers, when in fact the only difference between these groups is age: younger people prefer Metallica to Mozart.
And in 2018 Australian Research published by Macquarie University has shownthat a penchant for aggressive tunes doesn’t mean you’re a serial killer: listening to aggressive music doesn’t suppress your sensitivity to violence.
However, this does not mean that metal does not affect the listener. in 2015 in the study conducted surveyed 377 people who were metalheads in the 1980s. Although they were often involved in risky ‘sex, drugs and rock’n’ roll’ habits in their youth, they were also significantly happier than their peers at the time – and better adjusted to life as adults. It’s possible that being on the cultural fringes can help you develop a strong sense of self and maybe even help you develop supportive friendships.
If you ask fans why they listen to metal, they’ll probably say it makes them happy, and some studies show that heavy tunes can even help manage emotions. in 2015 University of Queensland (USA) was evaluated in the conducted studyhow extreme music affects anger management.
The researchers first administered an “anger induction” to 39 metalheads, strategically prompting them to recall events that had made them extremely angry—and then instructed some of them to listen to metal from their playlists. If the common assumptions that intense music actually causes anger were indeed true, then the study participants should have become angrier when they listened to the music. But that wasn’t the case: participants said they felt positive and “inspired” after listening to metal. The authors suggest that intense music can be a lightning rod for difficult emotion, rather than the source of it.
Can metal help save the world?
If we accept that metal builds communities (and often has a cleansing effect), then shaking your head (not necessarily literally, of course) can get you through tough times — including, one scientist says, the coming climate apocalypse.
Maintaining mental and emotional resilience—that is, overcoming difficult feelings—will be critical to surviving shocks and building a stronger future. That’s why ecologist and complex systems researcher David Angeler in 2016 published an article in SpringerPlus about the potential of metal music. According to D. Angeler, building resilient societies depends on complex factors affecting both systems and individuals. Anything that helps people deal with their emotions — including the catharsis that many feel when listening to metal — also helps keep communities strong.
But the scientist’s ideas are not limited to that. What if metalworkers could collaborate with the sustainability community? “We need to go back to the Romantic era, when different fields – like the arts and the natural sciences – weren’t at odds with each other,” he says. If you think of metal and sustainability as complex ecosystems analogous to those we see in nature, it’s easy to imagine how these two fields could interact to create change at a systemic human level.
And in a sense it is already happening. More and more groups – esp black, thrash metal and grindcore – explores topics such as climate change, biodiversity loss and environmental collapse in their lyrics.
By talking about the problems they see every day, artists help inform others about their experiences and let people know they are not alone in their problems. Some fans might even become scientists themselves (and among the scientists there are certainly many metalheads, even former ones. If there are “former” ones). Sustainability professionals, in turn, could listen to the challenges and concerns echoed in the music and direct their studies to areas where these issues are addressed.
Such connections and feedback loops, Angeler says, could help “reduce suffering, cost and tolerance.” He adds that metal’s rich sonic structures—and the extent to which they vary among metal subgenres—could be an ideal vehicle for artistically conveying complex issues. For example, symphonic metal can evoke harmonious and empowering feelings, mathcore – convey chaos, oh doom metal can help deal with despair.
Could other types of music provide similar benefits? Of course. But because of metal’s constant willingness to speak about uncomfortable truths, its tendency to turn adversity into emotional resilience, and its ability to build community around the world, this music is an example of how art can continue to give us meaning and support in life – even when everything around us is falling apart.
“Metal has never been given the credit it deserves,” says music journalist K. Kelly. “Damn you for disrespecting us. Metal doesn’t wait for your approval.”
Adapted from Popular Science.
2024-07-07 08:26:12