Is Heavy Metal "Rebellious"?

[IronWolf]

Yes, but the distinction is important. If it weren't important, we'd have stopped at asking if Rock music were rebellious, as Heavy Metal is a subgenre of Rock.

But the question was about heavy metal and not rock. My responses have indicated that I was wrapping up the subgenres with it, right or wrong it is the basis which I answered the question.

You have apparently answered the question for traditional heavy metal only which you have made clear.

 

[Starman]

But I wouldn't say that rebelliousness is a part of the definition of rock. I think rock music and heavy metal has been rebellious and I think some subgenres of metal are rebellious today, but certainly what is rebellious today is different than what was rebellious twenty or thirty years ago. That doesn't change the music, though, or it's definition because rebellion doesn't define rock/metal; it just occasionally describes it.

 

[Viking Bastard]

Music isn't rebellious in it's self, it's the act of listening to it and/or performing it. This may seem like splitting hairs, but it's an important distinction.

As a teenager I liked metal/hardcore/etc. (Korn, Rammstein, Iron Maiden, blabbedybla) and that was mostly because I was rebelling against my peers, who most liked Hip Hop. In turn, they were listening to Hip Hop (Wu-Tang Clan etc.) because they were rebelling against the adults/society.

In hindsight, they were more rebellious than me, because Hip Hop was the new edgy thing. Metal was old. When I was a teen, nobody worried that metal was corrupting anyone, but boy did people fuss over the Clan. People who had listened to a lot of the same bands when they were teens as I did, or at least had long since gotten used to the idea of loud crass rock.

Nowadays all the fuss seems to be about pop music: Lady Gaga, Ke$ha, etc. All about the pornification of the youth.

 

[TarionzCousin]

As the OP, I am rebelling against this thread.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

There is but one true OP, all others are but pale imitations!

 

[Man in the Funny Hat]

With one exception it's not the genre itself that constitutes rebellion - rebellion lies more in the motivation of the listener in choosing that music. If your parents can only tolerate Mozart you can rebel by listening to Miles Davis or Yanni. If your parents listen to classic rock you can rebel by listening to rap. If your parents sing along when you play Green Day you can rebel by listening to Tony Bennet.

Parents who grew up in, say, the 80's probably rebelled against THEIR parents by choosing to listen to metal. You think having kids NOW who listen to metal is going to constitute Rebellion? Ten years ago rebellion would have been listening to rap. While I usually object to rap on general principles of TASTE, choosing to listen to it hardly constitutes inherent rebellion anymore. It's too familiar.

The one genre that is SUPPOSED to inherently encompass rebellion is Punk - but even that is/was more a rebellion against established MUSICAL tastes as opposed to rebellion in general. That the fans of Punk were also motivated as Rebels isn't so much cause-effect as natural association.

 

[ggroy]

Wonder what kids/teens would consider "rebellious" these days.

Most likely it isn't heavy metal or hip-hop.

For that mater, there is the scenario where "rebelliousness" may not even be in the form of musical tastes these days. It could be something else entirely unrelated to music, such as the type of video games a person plays (for example).

 

[Janx]

rebelliousness in teens is more tied to how they dress which ties to what they listen to.

Kids with their pants down are trying to be thugs. They listen to rap. Especially if they're not black or hispanic.

Kids wearing black are probably goths. They might be more likely to listen to metal, techno, or emo.

Kids dressed like what might be considered normal, probably listen to pop. They are probably the non-rebellious ones.

Kids with the messenger bags, bell bottoms, or thick rimmed plastic glasses are either emo or trendsters.

That's a sad way to stereotype things, but odds are good it's true. It also doesn't mean these kids are bad, just that they identify with a certain group that isn't the norm.

Teenagers are the most conformist non-conformers. meaning, that while they claim to seek individuality and such, their idea of it tends to involve conforming to some other group.

 

[Turjan]

Nowadays, heavy metal is more or less a fashion statement among many. I would even put it post-nostalgia (Metallica covered that already a decade ago).

If making your father get dreamy eyes by making him think of the days of yore counts as rebellious, go ahead and vote yes. Otherwise, I have to give it a pass.

 

[Dannyalcatraz]

I don't know about YOUR families, but a CD by the Deftones makes mine wince...so yes, rebellious.