Heavy Metal From Anthropologist's View

Though this might interest some of our metal head posters. Might be a nice supplement to VH1's metal mania month.


Heavy Metal From Anthropologist's View

By Luke Sheridan, Associated Press Writer
12 minutes ago

AUSTIN, Texas - When Sam Dunn attended the University of Victoria in British Columbia, he wanted to study the culture of heavy metal music. Since "metal studies" wasn't part of the curriculum, he majored in anthropology.

But Dunn's documentary, "Metal: A Headbangers Journey," which has just been released on DVD, could serve as a visual textbook for that class if the university ever changes its mind. The film attempts to show the culture of heavy metal using a mix of musicians, sociologists, musicologists, journalists and hard-core fans.

"There's never been an in-depth, comprehensive documentary on the history of heavy metal," said Dunn in a recent interview with the Associated Press at the South by Southwest music festival.

"While there have been movies made about heavy metal such as "The Decline of Western Civilization," and "Spinal Tap," Dunn says, "they were essentially parodies or comedies."

To rise above comedy and parody, Dunn uses his training as an anthropologist to artfully deconstruct the music and its associations, and uncover what motivates the musicians, the fans and the critics.

The fight led by Tipper Gore and the Parents Music Resource Center (PMRC) to censor heavy metal and other forms of music in 1985 is a highlight of the film and a period of American history that that Dunn called "a moral panic basically, around metal."

Dee Snider of Twisted Sister, who testified before the Senate committee led by then Sen. Al Gore, fondly looks back at the period and comments on his testimony in the film.

Dunn feels that "the actions of the PMRC are an example of how metal and popular music are seen as a scapegoat that inspires kids to do bad things." But Dunn says, "there's a line between music and actions."

Not only does the film put metal culture under a magnifying glass, it also attempts to scrape at stereotypes to see if they hold any truth.

Anti-Christianity and Satanism have long been themes within heavy metal. The film's chapter on religion places particular scrutiny on Norwegian black metal and the widespread church burnings that occurred in the country in the early 1990s.

"There's really a long-standing resentment to Christianity in Norway," said Dunn.

The film also looks at the origins of metal music, and tries to pin down its first composers. Dunn found that there are many different answers to the question.

Robert Walser, a UCLA music historian interviewed in the film, drew parallels between heavy metal and the orchestrations of Wagner and Beethoven. Legendary music producer Bob Ezrin likened metal's vocal styles to 19th century opera.

But other fans and many musicians simply trace metal's beginnings to late 1960s bands such as Blue Cheer, Deep Purple or Black Sabbath.

Sabbath guitarist Tony Iommi said in the film that he first heard the term "heavy metal" when it was used to describe to his style of playing in 1970.

"Every cool riff has already been written by Black Sabbath," said musician Rob Zombie. "Anything anyone else does is basically just ripping them off."