After much deliberation, I have decided to pursue a very interesting analysis on the perspective of the human condition from the viewpoint of Black Metal Theory. This particular sub-culture was expanded and made infamous by the Scandinavians during the early 1990s. The theory of Black Metal encompasses much more than just the music and artists of that era. It also includes the ethical and moral code spawned by a very specific combination of emotions and personalities.
For the first book assignment, I read an extremely interesting and curious compilation of essays encompassed in an independent publication: The Helvete Journal (Helvete is Swedish for Hell) which is dedicated to the world of Black Metal Theory. The essays were written, submitted, edited, arranged, and finally published into a very flowing and easy-to-read format for anyone’s reading pleasure.
Please be careful if you are sensitive to explicit language or violent scenes, but I implore you to at least read the first piece which is mainly about the world of self-destruction, suicide and Suicidal Black Metal (SBM). The URL to read it is as follows:
I found this entire group of writings fascinating, but of course some were more exciting or inquisitive than others. My favorite, by far, was the first essay, Open a Vein, by Janet Silk (which I hope you read before getting this far!!!). It challenged my views of many important topics like suicide, cutting, self-immolation, suicide bombing, and martyrdom. Each of these issues are interlinked in their own ways and further, understanding these acts helps me to comprehend why they are so integral to the Black Metal Culture.
A few of the main points in this first essay were:
- Suicide gives someone control in an unpredictable world where we often feel like we are just puppets to the mainstream culture.
- Those who do choose suicide and fail have been known to say that they “left” the world long before they actually decided to take their lives. They also say that they feel a renewed desire for living.
- Self-inflicted pain is often used in an attempt to reach a higher state of enlightenment just as it has been by ancient cultures for thousands of years. These same people would have otherwise been dead by their own hands long ago if they didn’t experience that pain.
- Suicide bombers are acting as martyrs to their cause. They can be likened to musical artists of the time who were doers just as much as they were preachers.
- This piece also introduced me to a man with an incredible story Per “Dead” Ohlin. He was a singer for a widely known Black Metal band who took his own life in 1991. Since reading, I have done more research into his incredible story and he will definitely be a person of interest in my paper.
Another interesting piece was Baptism or Death by Elodie Lesourd. This lengthy bit of writing can be attributed to the analysis of the art of Black Metal Culture. Lesourd made connections between Black Metal music, visual pieces and several artistic movements. I found that this piece most closely related to many of the recurring themes which we have been discussing in class.
As I said all of the essays were worth reading, but those two inspired me most. As an experiment, I am considering taking this ideology more deeply to heart. If I meditate about death, my personal death in particular, how will it affect my perception of living? Tune in to the next episode for an answer to that question and much, much more!
-MrNicky900 out
Nick, I love how passionate you are about this topic. I feel like you have a lot of information to use, but I'm a bit confused as to where your paper will end up. Are you planning on using the information as a way to make connections between bands within the genre or are you going to find a way to use it as the main idea of your paper? I can see your paper being successful no matter what you end up focusing on, but you might want to start thinking about what you want to do if you haven't already decided. Good luck!
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ReplyDeleteNick,
ReplyDeleteThis is an incredible topic choice! I had never even heard of BMT before, but it actually seems to be almost related to my topic, at least the heavy metal portion of it. I listened to a bit of the music, and it does have a similar sound to some of the more alternative heavy metal out there, but it's not just the music. The fans of some of the alternative heavy metal groups had many of the same ideas as those of the BMT - the difference is that they seldom acted on them. Since I am focusing on the fans of 70s-80s hard rock music, which often goes hand in hand with heavy metal, I am interested to see where you go from here with BMT, and further discover the similarities between our topics. Good luck!