Kahn-Harris mentions what I would refer to as the function of extreme metal as being a safety valve for the audience. He states about Johan, “In claiming that this cathartic process reduced aggression, he refutes those psychologists who argue that violent media ‘prime’ real-life aggression (e.g. Anderson et. al. 2003) and bolsters those who see metal as a way of coping with aggression (e.g. Nahum 2004)” (p. 53). As a journalist, and as any media studies student would know, one of the commonly referred to functions of the media in general is the safety valve function. This allows people to take out aggression or emotions that are not commonly accepted in our society, and essentially keep them from committing crimes. One of the most popularly discussed topics regarding the safety valve function is the existence of violent video games, such as Grand Theft Auto. I find it really interesting that extreme metal is regarded in this same fashion, which makes sense in that metal strays from the hegemony of popular culture and serves to shock those audiences while fulfilling a void for its own audience. This alternative form of music, extreme metal, allows these aggressions and forms of violence to be translated through music. One of the previous arguments we heard in a video explained how extreme metal introduces violence as a means to make its audience feel something under the ideology that we are sheltered from such realities. Extreme metal is then, in a sense, a way of getting back to basics and the presence of death, violence, and killing in our lives.
I think there’s something to be said about the safety valve function of extreme metal as being true and valid, at least for some audience members. I say this because when I am angry I’m not going to listen to calm, peaceful music unless that is the goal to be reached. Instead I would listen to some heavy, such as metal, to fuel or at least equal my emotions. Therefore, I believe people in general seek music that matches their own emotions, even if those emotions are ever-changing. When someone is happy, they listen to up-beat poppy music, and when they’re sad they listen to depressing slow music. Given that extreme metal caters to a certain audience demographic (young men, let’s say) it makes sense that music about violence that sounds violent itself would serve as a safety valve and a release from reality and everyday frustrations. Kahn-Harris goes on to point out, “The experience of the scene does not take place in an isolated, socially abstracted environment but in the ‘everyday life’ of members (Douglas 1971)” (p. 55). This also follows this concept in that scene members use music to react to things happening in their every day lives and their every day lives are a reflection of their music tastes and ideologies.
Kahn-Harris goes on to say, “Since the scene is male-dominated, heterosexual scene members are forced to look outside the scene for a partner, which can be a difficult process” (p. 58). I find this really interesting because it’s something I had not considered. While I know that the scene is generally male-dominated, I’ve found that females make their presence known within the scene, accepted or not. We’ve mentioned how women aren’t exactly welcomed or needed in the scene model, but I’ve noticed a general increase in the female population of the metal scene in recent years. In my own experiences, there used to be very few girls in the scene and the women who existed were generally very masculine in their demeanor. Now, however, more women are accepted and expected to be part of the scene, most likely as a result of this need for heterosexual men within the scene desiring partners.
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