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Judas Priest, AC/DC, Twisted Sister, Mötley Crüe, and Mercyful Fate are examples that made the conservative elite tear their hair out and spare no effort to censor them.
Judas Priest, AC/DC, Twisted Sister, Mötley Crüe, and Mercyful Fate are examples that made the conservative elite tear their hair out and spare no effort to censor them.
By Bruno Silvestre, journalist and Wikibrother
In a country where a large part of the political groups organized in the struggle for power are demoralized, talking about politics or taking a particular ideological position often becomes taboo, generated by the embarrassment and shame on the part of those who engage politically in some cause. But, since political and institutional decisions directly reflect our daily lives and determine our social role, addressing this issue is very necessary, even more so because it is something extremely related to music, in this case, to Heavy Metal/Rock'n Roll.
In this context where social and ideological contradictions in Brazil are even more pronounced, we see the emergence of many personalities within our scene who gain attention by vociferating conservative, moralistic, and authoritarian speeches, with a very strong hatred against social movements and left-wing collectives. I personally say this with great regret and disappointment as someone who, since the age of 15, has always understood Rock culture as something liberating that breaks with all the social and moral standards imposed by this society, which, for at least 40 years, has always been criticized within the scene.
When Black Sabbath released their first album in 1970, what stood out most was the fact that the songs addressed issues considered universal truths by our Western society, such as religion, sex, and drugs. The same thing happened when the Sex Pistols released their debut album, "Never Mind Bollocks, Here's The Sex Pistols." As the band itself was already controversial for the time, songs like "Anarchy in the UK" and "God Save the Queen" were enough to further inflame the moral positions of the British aristocracy and elite. Judas Priest, AC/DC, Twisted Sister, Mötley Crüe, and Mercyful Fate are other examples that made the conservative elite tear their hair out and spare no effort to censor them through the Parental Music Resource Center (PMRC).
Metal originated in the most marginalized areas of the United States and Europe, and has always had the ideology of criticizing the dominant, exclusionary structures that society has always passively accepted without question. Religion is proof of this. Contrary to what many believe, the concept of Satanism within the musical genre is not a spiritual or religious expression, but rather a critique and opposition to all kinds of atrocities and the dissemination of violence and repression that has always been (and still is) justified through Christianity.
Even though many try to deny it, we all, without exception, possess an ideology, whether well-developed or a collection of distorted ideas. Ideology doesn't mean supporting political parties or specific people, but rather having a basis for reasoning that we use to understand society and act within it. Our ideology defines our position on issues that permeate the society in which we live, whether we are for or against something, and what should be done in the face of a given situation. The mere act of expressing our opinion already demonstrates that we are ideological.
Heavy Metal is a movement that appropriated various cultural concepts to emerge and continues to appropriate others to innovate. However, at its core, Metal has always advocated for a free society where people can fulfill their personal desires and wishes without being judged or repressed by anyone bothered by them. The dilemma "Sex, drugs, and Rock 'n' Roll" reflects this cry for freedom and tolerance in the face of our authoritarian and hypocritical society. Considering these aspects is enough to understand why it is ignorant and inconsistent for Headbangers to spout prejudice and elitism wherever they go.
Some people try to justify that people like me are "trying to impose" a single, immutable concept on Metal, but the truth is that we are only correcting deviations and concepts that are averse to the culture we are part of. We understand that Metal does have a libertarian concept, not a segregating one. After figures like Jair Messias Bolsonaro and Olavo de Carvalho, other characters also rose to prominence and gained visibility for defending similar ideas, such as Nando Moura. From there, a legion of Metal fans was formed, ignoring the entire concept of the genre, all the criticism present in the musical compositions, and supporting the Brazilian far-right as someone who wants to show radicalism and brutality without thinking about what they are saying.
"Metal can never be synonymous with segregation, elitism, eugenics, or religious dogmatism."
"Metal can never be synonymous with segregation, elitism, eugenics, or religious dogmatism."
Bringing the issue of ideology back to the forefront, I can better summarize the contradiction in question: We all have a basis for reasoning through which we perceive the world. Bolsonaro, for example, has already demonstrated that, in his understanding, society would be better if there were more control and repression against those he considers the "cancer" of society. Openly, he defends a society built on a moralistic, conservative bias, governing socioeconomic structures, as well as sociocultural homogeneity, and worst of all: all of this imposed authoritatively under a totalitarian regime. He makes all this very clear in his praise of the military dictatorship and his criticism of the Workers' Party government.
Nothing proposed by the far-right or elitist sectors aligns with the ideology expressed in the lyrics of the songs or the social role we have played in history. Metal can never be synonymous with segregation, elitism, eugenics, or religious dogmatism. Metal is the opposite of everything that has ever been imposed, forced against our will; it is a cry for freedom, for autonomy of thought, behavior, and attitude.
It is on this basis that I express my profound repudiation of those who give in to ideological figures and concepts that actually seek to end any semblance of our freedom and right to be and think as we wish, independent of the opinions of others or even society. Regardless of whether one is a fan or a musician, mixing conservatism and Heavy Metal is like mixing water and oil.
*This text was written by a Wikimate and does not necessarily represent the opinions of the site's authors.
