A Man Behind Everything? Motivational Sources of Metal Listening Among Female Audiences (original) (raw)

Individual Thought Patterns: Women in New York's Extreme Metal Music Scene

2016

Extreme metal music (EMM) is both an umbrella term and a sub-category of heavy metal, with origins in the early 1980s. It is a complex amplification of heavy metal that has garnered increased attention during the last two decades due to some bands becoming more popular and accessible than anticipated for the styles it comprises. Although women have a small but steady presence in heavy metal, this number shrinks when applied to extreme metal a subculture which has typically been coded as a masculine domain (Purcell 2003; Kahn-Harris 2007; Walser 1993; Weinstein 1991). For women, participating in such an overwhelmingly male-coded environment can incur sexism, marginalization, and misogyny. This begs the question: Why and how do women participate in a genre so often considered to be a man’s domain? By use of ethnographic research, participant observation and interviews, this study surveys female participants (fans, musicians, and music industry workers) in the New York Tri-state area i...

Extreme Conditions Demand Extreme Responses: The Treatment of Women in Black Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, and Grindcore by Sarah Kitteringham, MA

This is a communicative research project that focuses on the treatment of women in extreme metal bands that stem from scenes in Canada. This research addresses the following question: using constructs derived from the Communication Theory of Identity, what are the contributions to studies in extreme metal that can be made by qualitative research on women's experiences of negotiating gender and identity as performers and fans in extreme metal scenes? It also chronicles the history and sounds of extreme metal, and outlines the extreme metal scene in Canada. The methods of inquiry include autoethnography, participant observation, and qualitative interviews. It found that among other challenges, women in extreme metal bands struggle with negative and reactionary responses from both males and females in the metal scene, and how they are represented in the media. Despite these issues, participants in this study identified the increasing number of women in extreme metal bands, and stated that discourse around gender was changing for the better.

I Wanna Rock:' A Critique of Gender Essentialism in Metal Music Scholarship

2017

In presenting this thesis/dissertation in partial fulfillment of the requirements for a Postgraduate degree from the University of Saskatchewan, I agree that the Libraries of this University may make it freely available for inspection. I further agree that permission for copying of this thesis/dissertation in any manner, in whole or in part, for scholarly purposes may be granted by the professor or professors who supervised my thesis/dissertation work or, in their absence, by the Head of the Department or the Dean of the College in which my thesis work was done. It is understood that any copying or publication or use of this thesis/dissertation or parts thereof for financial gain shall not be allowed without my written permission. It is also understood that due recognition shall be given to me and to the University of Saskatchewan in any scholarly use which may be made of any material in my thesis/dissertation.

Masculine Subversion and Heavy Metal

2016

In this paper I will introduce several concepts related to the subversion of, or “play” with, discourses and ideals of masculinity in heavy metal. The first of these concepts is Gregory Bateson’s notion of play as metacommunication simultaneously existing on two levels, where what is denoted by an act is not what is actually signified. The second is Jean Baudrillard’s notion of abstract code and commodification, where capitalistic “fetish signs” circulate in such a way as to commodify life and overcode social relations. Third is the notion of “hegemonic masculinity” as formulated by Raewyn Connell, which signifies a variety of different discourses and modes of embodied sociality meant to influence and direct the way that men relate to themselves, each other, and others in the social field. Next, I will examine the culture of “heavy metal music” through these conceptual lens, analyzing how heavy metal has formulated, reinforced, and in some cases allowed for the subversion of traditional dominant discourses surrounding masculinity. I will also discuss some of my personal experiences participating in metal communities, live performances, and the culture at large as a music reviewer and fan.

Girls, Girls, Girls: Women in Glam Metal

Words, Music and Gender, 2020

This chapter will provide a linguistic analysis of the representation of women in the lyrics of the 1980s glam metal band, Mötley Crüe. An analysis of the band's discography gives insight into the roles and characteristics typically accorded to women, shedding light on their perceived role during this time in music history. The way in which male glam metal bands expressed and performed gender could best be described as controversial, even oxymoronic. The machismo and misogyny expressed in most glam bands' lyrics contrast heavily with the performers' feminine appearance and vocals. It has been argued that by appropriating traditionally feminine characteristics, male glam metal bands prove that gender is something that is performed, thus liberating women by subverting traditional norms on gender appearance and behaviour (Sollee 2011; Simon 2014, 59). On the other hand, the intense sexism and misogyny of many glam lyrics, and the actions of artists on and off stage, can be interpreted as precisely the opposite. By appropriating through performance what is socially perceived as feminine behaviours and attributes, while simultaneously behaving in a traditionally macho way, male glam rock artists ended up by occupying all possible roles in the genre, leaving little or no space available for women on the stage and in the music itself.

Grunting alone? Online gender inequality in extreme metal music.

IASPM@Journal, 2014

The global metal scene is a highly skewed field of cultural production in which women are greatly under-represented. As tokens, women are likely to be subjected to gender-biased evaluations, the male gaze, and are held accountable when breaking gender roles. This paper investigates the online gender dynamics in extreme metal by conducting a content analysis of the comments on videos of females (and males) performing ‘vocal covers’ on YouTube. Surprisingly, men and women tend to be evaluated along similar lines, suggesting the possibility that women might utilize the Internet for individual music production to circumvent offline gender inequality.

“Look What the Cat Dragged In”: Analyzing Gender and Sexuality in the “Hot Metal Centerfolds” of 1980s Glam Metal

Throughout rock music’s history, its stars have explored the boundaries of dress and sexuality, but none have done it quite as fascinatingly as those of glam metal, a particular subgenre of heavy metal which took hold in the United States in the mid 1980s. The stars of glam metal often appropriate exaggeratedly feminine modes of dressing, such as extensive and highly styled hair and makeup, yet still successfully communicate an overtly masculine, even hyper-masculine, persona designed to snare women through their clothing, lifestyle, and the presentation of both in popular media. As musicologist Robert Walser writes, metal is a cultural entity that offers lots of opportunities for doing identity work, and accomplishing gender is one form of identity work that merits particular focus. Using the visual material contained within the metal “pin-up” or centerfold, this paper takes upon itself the task of understanding how glam metal musicians accomplish gender, with particular emphasis on the way ideas about masculinity are packaged and presented to the consumer of such imagery. The metal centerfold is compared to its more famous female counterpart, the Playboy centerfold, to illustrate the way clothing and body posturing influence our reading of gender and sexuality, and the cowboy imagery that defines musicians such as Bret Michaels of Poison is compared to the image of the cowboy as viewed in Marlboro advertisements, demonstrating glam metal’s emphasis on projecting a carefully calibrated sense of masculinity to its audience.

Postfeminism and heavy metal in the UK: Sexy or sexist?

Postfeminism and heavy metal in the United Kingdom: Sexy or sexist? abStract As feminist scholars, and heavy metal fans, it has been regularly pointed out that the two positions are inconsistent, ontologically and politically, given the linkages between misogyny and metal in public and scholarly discourse. Weinstein used sociology to inform public discussion of heavy metal; but given our own epistemology, we thought it would be interesting to analyse heavy metal through a postfeminist lens. Postfeminism contains a set of contradictions: on the one hand it contains claims that feminism is no longer necessary, the battles have been won; on the other, it argues the need for feminism is ever more urgent. These tensions can be explored with reference to postfeminist notions of 'empowerment' and we argue that there are similar contradictions in heavy metal. To make this argument, empirically we have explored what is happening on stage and in audiences at festivals and at the intersection between bands and audiences. We use postfeminist theorizing to inform our discussion, as a mechanism to unpack the ways in which heavy metal can be both empowering (sexy) and problematic for women (sexist). Understanding the tensions between and the duality of these positions also enables us to understand predominantly masculine cultures. We argue that where heavy metal is situated as marginal it may provide a site of empowerment where women are liberated from mainstream hegemonic patri-archal structures. In this sense, heavy metal provides a site where patriarchy may be destabilized. Paradoxically, we argue, this site of empowerment may also be limited by masculine definitions of the extent to which gender norms may be subverted.

"Sticky Business": An Examination of Female Musicians in the Context of Perth's Metal Community

Popular Music and Society

This study investigates and elaborates on the experiences of female musicians in the Perth metal music community, which has traditionally been identified as a male-dominated environment and even a hypermasculine space. This study serves to inform the growing research emerging from metal music studies and to contribute to the wider conversation about women's experiences in male-dominated fields. To undertake this research, I used a mixedmethods approach that includes a survey questionnaire of thirteen women who have all identified as musicians interacting within the Perth metal community and one extended interview with a veteran metal guitarist.