I’m honestly impressed that your kid was confident enough to listen to Dragonforce “in public” at 13 years old. That kind of melodic fantasy music was derided pretty heavily by my peers all through high school (04- 08). I wasn’t into it but if I had been, I don’t think I would have been open about it. Kudos to your kid.
That’s interesting - Dookie and Get a Grip were my introduction to rock music as well. I was probably about 13. I was also a fundamentalist churchgoing Christian and a straight-A student. Listening to that stuff was a great outlet for me considering all of the ways I repressed myself. Now I’m 29, Buddhist, have an MSW, a good job and a good marriage. I think that in mosts cases music is just harmless escapism.
I shoot concerts by various branches of the School of Rock, so I know plenty of kids who not only listen to heavy metal, they play it. Most of them are high achievers rather than stoners.
Yep, there’s plenty of racist BM, and punk for that matter, out there, but most of it won’t be encountered unless someone’s actively looking for it.
I’ll nitpick Burzum though - whilst Varg Vikernes, the sole member, is an outspoken white separatist (and convicted murderer and arsonist) there’s nothing actually objectionable in his lyrics.
If the OP, or anyone else, ever wants an overview of any obscure metal bands, try this site. Among other things, it prominently lists the lyrical themes the bands use.
Agreed about Burzum… he is a white nationalist (Norwegian) but his albums are about ancient Norwegian mythos (at least the pre-jail ones) and don’t really touch modern politics. Besides which, the lyrics are completely incomprehensible on listening… in fact Burzum and other Black Metal bands often disapprove of their lyrics being posted online because they are supposed to be a type of magic on their own.
I have no idea what 99% of the metal I listen to is about. It’s not for that to me.
Maybe because I grew up listening to Iron Maiden albums as they were released, but that dragon force track that was linked way up thread, had me thinking thats who I was listening to.
Not quite the rhyme of the ancient mariner, or run to the hills, but close enough that I would not be surprised if maiden was a major influence with that group.
Declan
So basically, you’re me, but a few years younger and less of an engineer. =P
As a Dragonforce fan, there’s definitely a lot of both Iron Maiden and Manowar in there.
Deal’s a deal. He apparently get his side; now you have to.
Most of his lyrics aren’t objectionable.
But since you write that there’s “nothing actually objectionable in his lyrics”, I gotta call bullshit.
For starters, many parents (including the OP, I guess?) would probably find the line “war between the races” pretty darn objectionable.
Not to mention “fremmad for vårt blod og all vår jord! / fylking fremmad! fylking marsj!”, and “fell den feige fiendeflokken” and “la deres blod gjødsle vår jord!” (Translated into English: “forwards for our blood and all our soil! / army forwards! army march!” and “slay the cowardly enemy crowd!” and “let their blood fertilize our soil.”)
And then there are the lyrics Vikernes wrote for Darkthrone’s Over Fjell Og Gjennom Torner, with the infamous closing lines: “Den norrøne rase må slakte den andre / nar blåmenn dunker for tungt pa var dør.” (Translated into English: “The Norse race must slaughter the other / when niggers pound too heavily on our door.”)
… And I’m not even going to start with Vikernes’ “official statement” with regards to the Breivik shootings.
What are you talking about? Vikernes’ clearly does not disapprove of his lyrics being posted online, seeing how they are available on his very own official homepage.
Your son has some pretty good taste. Let him listen to what he wants.
I always understood that to be a reference to Ragnarok, rather than to anything in the modern world.
I’ll give you that one, I’ve never looked at the translations of the more recent albums.
He’s an interesting character. A highly intelligent, extremely articulate racist arsehole, who happens to be a stunning musician, and a murderer.
I don’t know Norweigan. Are you sure it is “niggers” because multiple people claiming to understand Norweigan on youtube claim it’s “black man” or “Black stranger”.
For sure he is a horrible racist murdering excuse for a human being. I just like his music.
I will have to look. It’s possible I was confusing Varg with another band I like, but I know that some of the bands I like don’t like their lyrics being posted (or at least didn’t in the early 90’s), I will try to find who I was talking about and correct myself.
Hmmm, let’s see here. “Blåmenn” literally translates as “blue men”, from back in the day when “blue” and “black” was pretty much the same thing.
I guess translating “blåmenn” as “negroes” rather than “niggers” would make sense, too? (I speak both Swedish and Danish, but my Norwegian is admittedly a bit rusty.)
Either way, I’m sure you’ll agree that, considering the context - i.e., that these “blåmenn” must be “slaughtered” (there is absolutely no ambiguity about the word “slakte”, meaning “to slaughter”) - it’s a pretty damn offensive line, to say the least.
Oh, don’t get me wrong, I absolutely love his music, too!
Hey Robby,
my parents felt the same way when I got into metal, they despised the music; well it’s better the dumb rap and stuff. If he’s been acting weird after metal, time to stop it, and be sure that he doesn’t listen to bands like Ozzy or Marilyn Manson or bands along those lines, music has profound effect on people but those two guys are bad influences.
You bumped this thread to scaremonger on two acts as harmless as Ozzy “I am a walking anti-drug PSA” Ozbourne and Marilyn “I’ve been reduced to burning bibles on people’s front lawns in random Nebraska towns to try to stay shocking” Manson?
LOL! First off, the kid in the OP is probably16 yrs old now, definitely old enough. Oh, and I bought my kid his first Black Sabbath CD when he was 10 yrs old for Christmas. You would not believe how he turned out at 14. Top of his whole school in math, 4 As, two Bs (89% and 88%), does volunteer work because he wants to, not because he has to, is polite and plays a mean fiddle. I’m thinking the bad influence that he got from Ozzy is the fact the often he “forgets” to do the dishes until I’ve nagged him.
Yes, a wee stealth brag about my heavy metal listening, hard rocking teenage son.
Just felt compelled to share 13 year olds playing metal - and doing a very creditable job of it.
Robby,
has your son expressed any interest in playing any music? Both of my sons (as well as myself) all like different forms of metal and/or hard rockand my youngest wanted to learn how. Once I set him up with an Epiphone SG (Angus’ primary axe), and an amp with a few lessons he took to it like a duck to water! That was three years ago and now he’s playing Hendrix, Rush, and Blink-182 in addition to Sons of Bodom and Slipknot.
Once you start playing, it’s hard to stop!
If it is an option, I can endorse the School of Rock. They have private lessons, but more importantly, group practice. I’ve seen and shot more than sixty concerts by various School of Rock locations over a period of years and I’m amazed at the growth of the students musically. As the founder of the school said “It’s the difference between shooting hoops and playing basketball”.