It was New Year’s Eve. Often during so, the clubs and bars would be brimming with youth and underage teenagers waiting to count down to New Year’s Day. However, I spent my New Year’s Eve in the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. The sports arena was mostly crowded with middle aged adults and everyone was there not to watch a game, but to bid farewell to a legendary hair metal band, Mötley Crüe. The band’s career spanned three decades and they ended it all at the birthplace of hair metal - Los Angeles, California. I really enjoyed the show because even though the band has aged staggeringly, they managed to maintain the elements of a hair metal concert – face-melting guitar solos, pyrotechnics, female dancers in skimpy clothing, and to …show more content…
People bought cars, alcohol, drugs and had huge parties especially on the Sunset Strip in West Hollywood, California. Hair metal received very little recognition as the scene was only on the Sunset Strip. Bands gave incredible performances in iconic nightclubs such as the Whisky a Go Go and The Troubadour. They had a slow growth in their fanbase as the clubs were often filled with their friends and girls. However, they were able to make a decent living by playing five to six nights a week. The hair metal scene started to change when Quiet Riot’s album Metal Health reached number one on the Billboard 200. Record labels started taking notice of hair metal artists and soon started signing them. Everyone else believed that the success of Metal Health was a signal that hair metal was able to commerical and more and more hair metal bands from other parts of the United States started moving to Los Angeles. Girls were the primary target audience in the hair metal scene and hair metal artists are able to attract a lot of girls with power ballads. With power ballad hits such as “Every Rose Has Its Thorn” by Poison and “Home Sweet Home” by Mötley Crüe, hair metal bands had a huge growth of girl fans. Having a huge girl fanbase was important for the hair metal bands because even though the males may not like hair metal, they were at hair metal concerts to meet the
The celebrity who will be the subject of this paper will be Trent Reznor, the widely acclaimed musician and frontman for the band known as Nine Inch Nails. Though it is considered a band, Reznor is the only permanent member, the primary songwriter and performer, and it is widely considered that his “band” is primarily just him mostly alone working under the name Nine Inch Nails.
In rock music its target audience is the youth. And by youth I am not referring to teenagers, but instead to the mentality of youth, the adults and teens still in the sociological stage between being a ‘kid’ and accepting the responsibilities of ‘adulthood’ [Weinstein pg6] These youth negotiate the genre and change it to their liking. For example both males and females have different subgenres of rock targeted specifically at them. Males are seen from a young age as being naughty and rowdy, not very responsible and thus given more freedom. While girls are seen as quiet and polite, with very low aggression. These traits have reflected in the genres that are targeted at the two genders. Males were targeted with Heavy Metal as it expressed the qualities the very qualities they will have to give up in order to become adults and how they will lose their freedom. While for females rock music is soft and romantic, females will typically grow up faster than males and leave youth behind in order to take up responsibilities. An example of how the music was negotiated to fit the two genders is seem in the 1960s when performers such as Carole king and James Taylor transformed themes of protest into sentimental commentaries, romance and illusions of youth. [Weinstein pg 12-13] While heavy metal bands such as Black Sabbath sung about politicians and how disgusting they are for exploiting young people in the name of greed which is shown in the song Wicked World. This very characteristic of rock being created by the youth for the youth is still alive today, for example during the 2004 presidential election Green Day released American Idiot. The song was about how the media and political are brainwashing Americans to remove their individuality. The singer wanted to warn America of this and prevent them from turning into ‘idiots’ and
...ings like anger. This is exactly what has happened to metal music; it has contracted a stubborn social stigma. It is misinterpreted to be "satanic angry and violent" and therefore many conclude that it creates violent, angry and satanic people. The truth is these angry, cynical, and socially isolated "metalheads" were created by a series of conditions through their lives, such as failed upbringings, severe antagonism towards them, and general misunderstanding of them and not by the music or it's subculture. These teen "metalheads" have merely reacted to the hostility and general negativity towards them and have chosen to be part of a group that can stand strong against the antagonism towards them. They joined to the metal subculture to be accepted as a part of a group that can simply laugh in the face of the dislike towards them. There is strength in numbers.
All Metallica.Com - Information - Interviews. (n.d.). All Metallica | News History Bios Vintage Guitars. Retrieved February 26, 2012, from http://www.allmetallica.com/info/loadpersp96int.shtml
...he essence of a grief-stricken generation, exhibited an unyielding emphasis on the importance of piercing passion over musical intricacy, and introduced the world to a vast array of gifted musicians who did not deem music as a tool to achieve recognition or financial stability. In turn, the decades that followed the rise of alternative rock have been inundated with so-called musicians whose main goal has been to get their faces plastered on magazine covers and achieve maximum public exposure, rather than devoting themselves to their craft. Consequently, the world has been left with nothing but an endless parade of shocking behavior, skimpy outfits, and mediocre music. Unfortunately, if the current state of affairs is any hint of what the future holds for music audiences, the magic generated by the nineties alternative rock will not be matched in years to come.
Nirvana, Rage Against the Machine, Alice in Chains, and Pearl Jam, Alternative Grunge bands from the 90s, were very influential to today’s bands. Grunge music started in the early 90s, mainly from the Seattle scene. Metallica, Kiss, and even Led Zeppelin helped make alternative music start. Although these bands were very famous in the 90s, many of them suffered from substance abuse and even depression. After years of being famous some bands split completely, some formed new bands with members in other bands, and even some stayed together and play together today. All bands believed that people should be able to afford music and listen to what they enjoy, not what other people want you to listen to. Bands from the 90s have influenced some of
wardrobe, band members wear is a little different from what is trending in the modern society. Ripped skinny jeans or shoes, hoodies in the dark shaded colors are common type of clothing members wear. Additionally, many seem to understand that band individuals have poor hygiene due to how many men have long hair and not a clean cut shave. As said before, many of the stereotypes are not fully wrong. According to Makewav.es, in the article Misconceptions About Rock Music, by Maddie Smith and Talia Alvarez, who both stated, “Will not try to defend the fact that some artists in the industry, like Danny Worsnop and Ronnie Radke, are recovering addicts.” The authors explain that some truth behind what is said about alcohol or drug consumers on band members is true. It has been indicated that not just the act of a small groups has produced a negative image on people who play
As the nineteen seventies came to a close so did many of the musical styles of that decade. While some faced what seemed to be extinction others went through a sort of evolutionary process. The bands that were at the top of the heavy metal ladder during this time were such acts as Motorhead, Iron Maiden, and Tygers of Pan Tang. These groups would be just some of what the new crop of heavy metal bands would consider inspirational. This style, which is typically referred to as "The New Wave of British Heavy Metal," would fuel and empower many acts to stardom. (Marshall 3)
... in Amityville in 2009 when they opened for Rise Against. Dan Campbell, the singer, gave everyone a free copy of their album just to get their name out there. They are now at the peak of the pop punk genre by selling thousands of albums, playing the main stage at Warped Tour and headlining a show at Best Buy Theater this April. Bands that make this sacrifice and eventually make it to a successful level deserve the natural rush music gives them.
In closing, the undoubtable influence of music, more specifically of Rock ‘n’ Roll on American society is responsible for a number of changes to the status quo. These range from sexual liberation and racial desegregation all culminating with other influences to create an intergenerational identity. Despite the desperate attempts of older generations to smother these influences, these changes ultimately shaped the years that followed, molding the country into what it is today. Along the way these changes as well as individual involvement in them has also eased the lives of many through empowerment and a feeling of community and purpose. Despite a lull and renewal Rock ‘n’ Roll continues to serve as an agent of influence and change in today’s youth culture and continues to burn in the heart of past generations of loyal fans.
Heavy Metal Heavy metal from the 1960’s to the 1980’s was a different and hard time for heavy metal bands. Heavy Metal is a genre of rock n’ roll that was created in the late sixties and late seventies. With influences from blues-rock and psychedelic rock mostly blues. With there twelve bar blues and extended guitar solos help create many guitar styles. Heavy Metal is recognized by its loud distorted guitars, emphatic rhythms, dense bass and drum sound, and vigorous vocals. Metal subgenres either emphasize these things or take on or two of them out. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heavy_metal_music) Blues-rocks style had began in the mid 1960s in England and in the some parts of the United States. UK bands such as The Animals, Cream, and the Rolling Stones were some of the first to experiment with the interestinggenre. Some of the typical instruments used in a blues-rock band would be electric guitar, bass guitar, a drum kit, vocals, a Hammond organ and a harmonica. In the 1970s the line between hard rock and blues-rock had become so thin it was almost unnoticeable. By the early 1980s blues-rock had a falling out of the mainstream of music. But in the late 1980s early 1990s blues-rock went mainstream again thanks to bands such as Fabulous Thunderbirds and Stevie Ray Vaughn who made there way to rock stardom once again. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blues-rock) Psychedelic rock the definition of this interesting and influential genre is a style of rock music that attempts to reproduce the mind-altering experiences of many different hallucinogenic drugs. It started from garage and folk bands in the early 1960s in Britain and the United States. Some of its typical instruments included the electric guitar with effects like fuzz, phaser, and reverb. Other instruments were bass guitar, a drum kit, the electronic organ, a sitar, a moog synthesizer, and theremin. One of the greatest psychedelic rock bands in the United States would be the Grateful Dead. (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychedelic_rock) Early heavy metal bands such as Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, and Deep Purple attracted large audiences though they were still criticized by the majority of the public. Most bands of heavy metal created a thick sound, with high amplified distortion, and there extended guitar solos, and there overall loudness. In the middle of the 1970s Judas Priest helped Mainstream Heavy Metal by taking out its blues influences. Motorhead introduced a punk rock subgenre with an increased playing speed.
Blues music was the voice of the black community during the early to mid 20th century. Blues expressed the angst many felt due to segregation and mistreatment by white society. Similarly, metal music is the voice of the frustrated and ostracized youth of the 1980's to today (Young). In Metal Heads: Heavy Metal Music and Adolescent Alienation, Jeffrey Jensen Arnett examines the effects of heavy metal music on adolescents and concludes that messages of violence, anger, hate and rebellion have created a brand of antisocial and hateful teen outcasts. However, this is false. Metal music, while it may occasionally have messages of violence, anger and hate, usually spreads messages of individualism, enjoyment of the present moment, and freedom. These messages, along with the energetic music, and instrumental virtuosity are what attract youthful listeners to this genre.
Heavy Metal music is a genre that has always been seen as music of the devil. This is due to the violence of the instruments and the supposed vehemence behind the lyrics. Heavy Metal music is a branch of rock and roll that began in the mid 1970’s with bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, and Black Sabbath. This style of music is known for an overpowering drumbeat, distorted electric guitar, and clean vocals, with some screaming on the side. Adults and parents have seen such sounds as loud, disruptive, and harmful. However, Jon Pareles wrote in an article for the New York Times that rock and “speed metal” tell teens the truth about the world they live in and shows them that they are not alone in it. “Speed-metal bands strike a chord with millions of teen-agers because they reflect what's on their minds - and the songs tell them they are not alone”. Despite its bad reputation, heavy metal does a world of good for teenagers: it speaks to the dark side of life that most media ignores, and really communicates to teens that they are not forsaken. Heavy metal has been seen as a poison that infiltrates the minds of the youth and cultivates their dark desires; however, the distorted beats and piercing vocals actually represent an asylum for these young adults.
Heavy Metal’s popularity is and has been on the rise due to its many bands and increased guitar technology. Since the mid 1960’s, when heavy metal spread to the U.S. from England, it has grown in popularity. Many of the first bands that came from Europe came with two intentions; to spread heavy metal to other parts of the world, and to make it grow in popularity. (Ragland 1).
The album “Black Sabbath” by Black Sabbath was released in the year 1970 in the UK under the label “Vertigo”. The band is composed of four members, all from Birmingham England. Tony Iommi, Ozzy Osbourne, Geezer Butler and Bill Ward. Birmingham was a place of economical depression and reflected the atmosphere of that distant and forgotten town where situations were not for the best which was reflected through their albums. After Black Sabbath debuted and pretty much cleared the way for a new sub-genre of rock, the bands that followed in their steps had to take ‘The Originals in the game’ as their prime role model in order to stay true to the genre. “Black Sabbath” is of importance to the world of rock and heavy metal music because of its leading