Heavy metal music

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This topic has 17 replies, 13 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 7 months ago by Anonymous.

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November 3, 2014 at 7:21 am #67236

Dave
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Hi everyone

Does metal music bring negativity into your life? By stopping listening to metal will my life become better? Ive listened to the metal genre for a long time in my life. I must say ive been suffering from depression for a long time as well, since before I got into metal. Metal has helped me relate and get through a lot of difficult times.
Recently Ive been erasing everything that brings negativity into my life and I was wondering whether I should stop listening to metal. Because it helps me get through bad times is it related to negativity and will feed my negativity?
I guess the emotion that the music gives the listener is largely dependent on the lyrics. So maybe I should stop listening to metal that has negativity in the lyrics? I really do enjoy listening to the genre, the instrumental and lyrical. I understand my pain body could just be feeding off of it. But what if its actually getting stuff off of my shoulders by relating to the lyrics? Whats everyones opinion about metal music? Is it good or bad? Society takes one look at metal and labels it bad but a lot of people dont understand that it can help people. Please push labeling aside and answer from the heart.:)
Thanks guys!

November 4, 2014 at 1:55 pm #67329

Jade
Participant

I’m someone who listens to all genres of music and heavy metal is one of them. I appreciate the musicality of heavy metal, the complex instrumentation and talented singing, and how rousing and high-energy it is. It’s true that the lyrics can be negative though, which is why I try to branch and listen to more upbeat/cheerful music every now and then. There’s nothing wrong with heavy metal music, it’s part of a balanced musical diet!

November 4, 2014 at 2:29 pm #67330
popi
Participant
Hello,
six years now I’m listening to metal music. I’m now 21 ….(in a few days)
YES metal brings depression UNFORTUNATELY…
and the bad beliefs that every metalhead has (i had them,too) it’s that metal is a saviour in our problems.
No, problems are the reason that we like this kind of music,mentally we want to listen to sth that matches our lives,and if we have depression, metal is the music that fits. I love metal music,but i discovered from personal experiences that metal gives to my problems more strength.
I can’t be productive and my own saviour when I’m sad ,and i listen to this music and these lyrics to be more sad.
I used to do this for many years,so,my own story starts from my teen ages,when my father didn’t want to accept me (same now) ,and my uncle died 5 years ago,then my grandfather died and all this time i was listening to this music.
I love metal but it’s not for me. I want to be happy, i want to be calm,healthy,optimist etc
metal can’t help you,this is a wrong belief that many people have.
see with your own eyes,people who listen to metal have AT LEAST depression.
my ex has psychosis,illusions and he’s taking drugs.
I stopped listening to music in general and I’m pretty happier now. The reason behind this ,is that i wanted to forget about my ex and not be part of social media. So,without pc i can’t listen to music. I’m pretty good and i suggest you to do the same.
Although, i miss metal music,but it’s not good for my health.
- This reply was modified 9 years, 6 months ago by popi.
November 4, 2014 at 7:15 pm #67342
bran
Participant
I’ve read a handful of solid articles here and some posts, but this is my First time post here. The subject of music is what grabbed my attention…and I most definitely can’t agree with the poster saying that metal brings depression into one’s life. You could very easily say cupcakes bring depression too if someone was emotionally engorging themselves on them during a time of crisis. Honestly, too much of anything can yield a Pavlovian response.

I think it is beautiful to feel both ends of the spectrum…happiness and sadness. With that said, music has the ability to encapsulate both of those and touch everything in between. Some of the most amazing songs ever produced were written after love or circumstantial tragedies that the person had experienced.

I believe your question is completely case dependent. I could see how an addictive personality would be affected by more depressive music though. I think that same person would probably feel some mental tweaking if all they listened to was K-Pop or happy hardcore or…yeah. There is plenty of metal out there that isn’t revolving around negative and painful feelings…not to mention plenty of amazing instrumentals.

I think your body and mind will tell you when you’ve had enough of a certain thing, just keep yourself open to noticing the hints…and check out all the other amazing genres out there : )

rock on \m/
- This reply was modified 9 years, 6 months ago by bran.
November 5, 2014 at 12:04 am #67351

Dave
Participant

Thanks guys for your responses.
I Appreciate all your points of views and am grateful for your sharing them.
After much contemplating, my point of view is that there is a very broad amount of metal music out there. Ranging from death metal, black metal, heavy metal, metalcore and so on… And in each of those sub-genres the different bands in each of them all have different types of energies which will define their type of lyrics, obviously.
A lot of metal bands have negative depressive lyrics and although their riffs can be out of this world, the negative depressive lyrics could have a negative effect on you. But then again not all of a band’s lyrics will be depressive. And there are a lot of metal bands who have a small amount of depressive lyrical songs and still have killer riffs.
So the key is to balance the music you listen to, try avoid depressive lyrical songs as much as possible.:)

I agree with Jade and Bran that balancing and branching out into different genres will be best. I agree with Popi to a degree, but not that metal brings depression. I think by only ever listening to metal with depressive lyrics will perhaps not make your situation better.But there is metal without those depressive lyrics, so not all metal will bring negativity to you.

@thebranman Thanks for your post man 🙂 This is a bit off topic to the thread. But you have an interesting theory that it is beautiful to experience both happiness and sadness… I’m not on the same page as you to think its beautiful to experience sadness. Please explain your perspective to me.

November 5, 2014 at 1:13 am #67354

popi
Participant

I’m referring to depressive part of metal,not all the metal songs in the world.
metal can make your problems and your life and your situation even worse,when you’re already in a sad situation …
Do this test in your own mind, it’s simple, try to listen to depressive music only,for one week and see how you doing with your life,your conversation with others,and your point of view with many subjects in your daily routine. How you can handle them? I suppose not so good, by contrast , like a day without depressive music.
This is my opinion,guys,we all have one,it’s okay if I’m not acceptable. Thanks.

November 5, 2014 at 1:47 am #67357

Tir
Participant

Actually I’m pretty balanced and show few signs of youthful angst and I love metal. It speaks to something primal in me. The lyrics I choose aren’t derogatory or hateful…sometimes they are edgy and aggressive but sometimes that is what I listen to that makes me feel empowered or exercise really hard. It is all about balance and checking in with yourself to make sure the music doesn’t make you feel negative. Metal makes me feel powerful.

November 5, 2014 at 3:31 am #67358

Dave
Participant

I understand that is your opinion. I apologise if I made you feel as if I was putting you down, I had no intentions of doing so. I’m grateful and accepting to hear everyone’s different opinions.

November 6, 2014 at 2:02 pm #67441

bran
Participant

@Dave (I dont know how the tagging works, so I could have very easily failed 😉

I believe that although happiness and sadness are of course on opposite sides of the spectrum, we are able to find out more about ourselves by being honest and finding the strength to experience and embrace both. I guess I am more interested in all the emotions I can possibly feel during my personal journey through this world. Avoid and/or bottling up a certain emotion can wreak havoc down the road both mentally and physically, so I prefer to deal with things sooner than later.

I think there is a healthy time and place where one must sit in solitude and fully embrace the pain or loss they experience. These ‘sad’ moments may become pivotal moments for someone, marking the need for powerful changes in their situation or approach to life…pushing them above and beyond. Whether it be the loss of a life or relationship, it inversely leaves a proportional amount of room for happiness when the time comes and you are open for it in your life. Someone transforming into a better person is most definitely a beautiful thing.

Just an example, one of my favorite things to do when the weather is dark/dreary/raining/foggy or all the above…put on Milosh and get some creative work done. His albums are a type of very melancholy downtempo, many would call them depressing. Literally speaking, why would someone put on depressing music, purposely? For whatever reason, it allows my brain to access the creative lobes more easily. Weird, indeed. For the same reasons that people can get amped up on high intensity music before working out, another could play classical music to lower their heart rate and take an old fashioned nap.

Anyway, everyone is entitled to their own opinion as well as to disagree with another…but this is why I believe that beauty can be found in sadness : )

cheers

January 5, 2015 at 10:46 am #67302

Soham Chowdhury
Participant

I do not know. Some metal is beautiful, although there is an “extreme end” (I mean scary extreme) of the spectrum you probably don’t want to know about.

Here’s a song that you might like: Forget Not

I think even the metal with slightly violent lyrics (a la Amon Amarth, Between The Buried And Me) isn’t bad. I enjoy it in the same way I would enjoy, say, the Iliad‘s descriptions of battle. Of course, as mentione earlier, there is an “extreme end” that isn’t too nice, and your best bet is to stay away from it.

Here’s Steve Losh’s perspective on why people don’t like metal (he’s actually an awesome programmer/dev).

I personally like metal because of its enjoyable complexity and the thought the musicians put into the music, unlike a lot of popular music today – similar to why one enjoys classical music or classical literature. Take Ulver for example – they released an album based on a work by William Blake (The Marriage of Heaven and Hell). Metal, to me, is the classical music of today. Much like how Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov might have been derided for his “unholy barrages of notes”, or Bartok or Schopenhauer for their atonal/dissonant music, metal is often perceived by mainstream media in a somewhat incorrect way, fueled largely by widespread reporting of incidents revolving around the “scary extreme” bands I spoke of earlier. A lot of metal is beautiful – it’s just that the, um, entry fees are a bit high.

Whatever happens, I hope the music you listen to brings joy and meaning to your life. 🙂

May 10, 2015 at 5:31 am #76533

PathOfPeace
Participant

A Topic I can relate to. I myself have asked the question when I started to become more peaceful and stop the rage. Here is what I have learned. Heavy Metal CAN increase your anger towards….well….anything because it gets you in a state of Power? Meaning when Im driving and someone cuts me off and Im listening to heavy metal telling me to take no Sh*t from people. Next thing I know Im wanting to run them off the road, give the finger, curse them. Whatever, same goes for interactions with people. Now, replay the same story only now listening to….Elvis we will say. I just let it go and laugh, go about my day enjoying it.

BUT do I think you should stop listening to it all together? Of course not! This is what I do. Lifting weights? Listen to Metal. Boxing/sports? Listen to Metal. Going to a concert? Listen to Metal. Hanging out with your wife for a dinner date? DONT listen to metal. Driving? DONT listen to metal. Trying to relax/sleep? DONT listen to metal.

You get the idea, you have to make it work for you. When I get down in the dumps, metal protects me and makes me rise again. As for the lyrics, stop listening to them. Listen to Rammstein or Sepultura so you just get the sound without knowing the dark lyrics or angry lyrics. Or find bands with a positive Metal influence. They are out there.

July 24, 2015 at 4:34 pm #80401

Natalie
Participant

Hi I’m new here-Listen to Tool- progressive metal that will take you to higher states of consciousness, so clever, so beautiful, so perfect. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EDlC7oG_2W4

July 24, 2015 at 11:14 pm #80414

Josh
Participant

Metal is extremely spiritual for me. It gives me something to be very passionate about. Metal is in my blood and in my bones. I like all metal. I don’t take the more extreme stuff to seriously but I still love it. I think it’s important to realize that as a person, who is inseparable from the world and people around you, that all those negative things exist inside of you just the same as love and all the good stuff exists inside of you. Dude I wouldn’t give up metal if it’s what you truly enjoy. I’m sure that you’ll find the reasons to keep on thrashing way deep down in your heart, where it truly matters.

August 27, 2015 at 9:50 am #82496

Anonymous
Inactive

I also enjoy metal music, all kinds of metal in fact. I grew up listening to it and I still listen to it. I listen to metal when I am upset it helps me when I need to relax. But I don’t think you should stop listening to it. There is metal music out there that has positive messages out there. I actually know a band that has negative songs as well as positive songs. When I listen to the positive songs my mood gets way better and I’m actually happy again. I have to say that if you like metal music and it helps you when your feeling down or you just love listening to it, then keep listening to it. If you love that kind of music there’s no harm in listening to it. If you haven’t heard of In This Moment I think you should check them out. My favorite song by them is You Always Believed. It has a very positive message in it and has a (I don’t know how to say it exactly, I cant think of the word. But listening to that song puts me in a great mood every time.) I hope this helps a little, and I apologize if I am not making sense. I am really tired and I notice I make the mistake of saying things and they are confusing to other’s but I know what I am saying. Anyway I hope this helps and if you have a question about something I wrote, I would be glad to answer any questions.

August 29, 2015 at 12:08 am #82553

Brian
Participant

I confess I have not read anything but the original post on this thread. However, I’d like to offer my own take. I’ve listened to metal for over 25 years. First Metallica, Megadeth…then onto more extreme bands like Suffocation, Cannibal Corpse, Mayhem, Emperor, etc. I too have struggled with the lyrics–I love bands that are extreme in sound but aren’t about satanism or promote violence or things like that. I used to like bands that were violent lyrically. In fact, I’ve written and recorded songs myself that have violent lyrics…but to me, they don’t seem as violent as others because they are an expression of what I feel. It’s a release for me.

Or it least it has been. I say this because I went though a very hard time earlier this month, where I had a difficult time listening to anything that wasn’t positive. Dream Theater has helped me with that part–a progressive metal band that has lyrics like “To really feel the joy in life / You must suffer through the pain / When you surrender to the light / You can face the darkest days”. That portion really speaks to my inner soul. I love those lyrics. And yet in my lifetime I certainly have hearkened to lyrics about killing and death. Morbid Angel basically got me through high school, because I could express fantasies when listening to them instead of actually doing what was on my mind.

Anyway, the trials of this month have made me feel not so gung-ho about the lyrics I wrote before this month. I sometimes feel that extreme metal is me wallowing in pain. On the other hand, sometimes I feel as though it’s freedom.

I guess all I can say is that it varies with me. Perhaps the “healthy” parts of me want to hearken to the Dream Theater lyrics; but also perhaps, when I’m depressed or angry, the Suffocation/Morbid Angel lyrics are what speak to me most, though I don’t know if they help me.

Am I making any sense?
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