Why metal ?

[I-TEND-TO-DIE]

You seem quite seduced by the Floridian death metal sound, good on you

Yeah, metal is the weirdness inside the individual as you say, it's that special place, completely separate from the mainstream, a private space that feels like home...etc. It's a bit like the avatar of our "trueness" I suppose we can say. Our most intimate, most real, primal domain inside. It's completely uncompromising and pure. It doesn't play games or attempt to be pretty, which generally speaking is unlike 95% of, well, anything in life.

Yes you nailed it.

 

[Bruticus]

Although there is a lot of metal music that I still love, I don't listen to a great deal of it anymore. I actively avoid most death metal and black metal these days. Part of it has to do with mellowing out with age and not wanting to listen to such abrasive music, and part of it is the fact that I find a lot of the anti-Christian lyrical content either deeply offensive or just stupid. These days I tend to go for traditional heavy metal, progressive metal, classic doom metal, and so-called atmospheric metal (e.g. The 3rd and the Mortal). I like the romanticist tendencies of this kind of music. I also like that a lot of these bands are, from limited means, attempting to create something grandiose and highly structured. You can find a similiar sort of thing in classical music too (which I like as well), but classical music lacks the specific sort of charm that comes from these guys of limited means and abilities striving for something larger than life. There's something about that combination in certain metal music that puts it in a very special category. I have a hard time articulating the specific reason this is so appealing to me; I'm not so good at talking about this kind of stuff. Anyway, it's why metal music that sounds extremely polished often doesn't stick with me for long. Also, who doesn't like awesome riffs?

I see what you're saying. I realize the lyrics are fkng stupid in metal 95% of the time, and sometimes offensive depending on one's beliefs and values, and extremely stubborn at that, and in a sense the music as well as it's carried by the same spirit and momentum as the lyrics...
but most ppl would agree they listen to metal for the music not the lyrics, and it's difficult to find as advanced/well written music around so it's sort of the compromise. Like: "yeah I listen to dumbshit bands, but they're really freaking good musically" - and furthermore "give me a style that's AS rich and enticing".

Akerfeldt from Opeth answered when confronted with the question of having toned down and singing only clean vocals, that metal sounded "dull" to him. I understand that with age myself, been there done that screamed in a microphone been angry on the guitar and headbanged and all that....but what I have a hard time letting go of is the pureness of metal in its atmosphere and drive that, for e.g., in my compositions although I've moved towards a very non-metal format the backbone and intensity are still metal. The stuff I write now would prob not be considered metal, but any metalhead listening would know it's metal in spirit and the composer definitely is/was a metalhead.
That dark most obscure appeal that speaks to the deeper ends of you, that adrenaline and acknowledgement of the power demonstrated in front of you. I don't get that anywhere else. Closest non metal thing would be J.S.Bach and his church organ and ridiculous compositional might - there's an awe-inspiring motivation and drive there as well.

 

[Krow]

How to stop appreciating death metal:

Become a catholic fucking faggot.

 

[Bloopy]

excitement

Excitement/ecstasy/thrill/endorphins, that's about the whole of it for me. As for angst, I don't remember music ever lifting me out of a bad mood, as a bad mood is too distracting and needs to wear off first. Usually I can't stand music that's supposed to be relaxing or romantic. It just makes me feel uncomfortable. I know some people find drone metal relaxing, but that's not what I get out of it. It's the music that's supposed to make you feel uncomfortable which can be thrilling. It seems to go hand in hand with having a cynical sense of humour. The darkest, most miserable metal resonates with my happiness in a purely positive way.

Metal's not the only exciting music of course, but it tends to be more intense so it brings on stronger feelings than other music. Which is probably a physiological thing, similar to how people talk quickly and loudly when they're getting mutually excited about something, or how sudden noises can trigger a fight-or-flight response and enhance your senses for a moment.

 

[The Ozzman]

How to stop appreciating death metal:

Become a catholic fucking faggot.

Better than being an atheistic faggot tbh

 

[Krow]

grind on his dick any harder and he'll call you a faggot.

 

[The Ozzman]

grind on his dick any harder and he'll call you a faggot.

Triggered

I don't like grindcore enough to be a faggot tbh

 

[HamburgerBoy]

We seriously need to do something about the Papal problem. A few years ago it was irreligious leftists, particularly of the social justice variety, becoming newfound vassals of the Vatican, seemingly in response to divisions between them and fedora types. Now the edgelord death metal fans are converting as well. At least when the fucking Paddys swam over here we were allowed to lynch the worst of them and put them in their place. This is the newest implement of the globalists in the war on American values.

 

[Bruticus]

Excitement/ecstasy/thrill/endorphins, that's about the whole of it for me. As for angst, I don't remember music ever lifting me out of a bad mood, as a bad mood is too distracting and needs to wear off first. Usually I can't stand music that's supposed to be relaxing or romantic. It just makes me feel uncomfortable. I know some people find drone metal relaxing, but that's not what I get out of it. It's the music that's supposed to make you feel uncomfortable which can be thrilling. It seems to go hand in hand with having a cynical sense of humour. The darkest, most miserable metal resonates with my happiness in a purely positive way.

Metal's not the only exciting music of course, but it tends to be more intense so it brings on stronger feelings than other music. Which is probably a physiological thing, similar to how people talk quickly and loudly when they're getting mutually excited about something, or how sudden noises can trigger a fight-or-flight response and enhance your senses for a moment.

I'm sorry, that made me lol. It's like a Michael Scott line out of The Office US. (Although I see what you're saying)

You're linking quite a few things to metal in this post, and they're interesting notions to entertain. A dark sense of humor and metal ? Well it makes sense, it definitely feels like a vast majority of metalheads have a rather dark sense of humor, but I'd link that to intelligence merely. Not that metalheads are brilliant people lol, but they're typically a bit more sophisticated than the avg person (which isn't very !) and hence, I believe, the slightly more nuanced/cynical sense of humor.

About the second part, the physiological/adrenaline correlation with metal... there's surely a part of that which is true. I believe everything is rooted in physiology anyways at some point or another, and for e.g., why do we listen to people yell in a microphone ? If you stop and think about it, what's the direct answer to that. Surely there's something primal about the scream that taps into our animal instinct and conveys strong vibes of power that resonate with us on a deep level, which becomes "truth" or an ideal (or something we genuinely respect and mean to drive towards). It's like a language, watching some death metal vocalist on stage just pouring out into the mic' right in front of you, the drummer blasting away and the guitarist just spewing out musical filth....is powerfully inspiring; it's like they're communicating directly with our innermost animal.

 

[Bloopy]

A dark sense of humor and metal ? Well it makes sense, it definitely feels like a vast majority of metalheads have a rather dark sense of humor, but I'd link that to intelligence merely. Not that metalheads are brilliant people lol, but they're typically a bit more sophisticated than the avg person (which isn't very !) and hence, I believe, the slightly more nuanced/cynical sense of humor.

I was trying to describe it more on a personal level there rather than speak for every metalhead. Some may have a dark sense of humour and yet be attracted to metal more for its serious artistic side, or as an escape or whatever. And a few are just boneheaded thugs with very little sense of humour.

 

[Bruticus]

I was trying to describe it more on a personal level there rather than speak for every metalhead. Some may have a dark sense of humour and yet be attracted to metal more for its serious artistic side, or as an escape or whatever. And a few are just boneheaded thugs with very little sense of humour.

well yeah but there is a connection, in a general kind of way. Metal, dark humor, horror films, weird fiction, a strong attraction for power generally speaking... not all metalheads tick all of those boxes, but it definitely constitutes a fairly common profile. At least metal + a couple of those.