The psychological meaning of personal record collections and the impact of changing technological forms

This study explored the personal psychological meanings ascribed to collections of recorded music in a small sample of 20 British consumers. In-depth interviews were conducted with the col-lectors and the data analysed according to the conventions of grounded theory. Three aspects of record collecting were identified as psychologically important: two aspects – records’ status as sacred objects, and record collections as a facet of the self – were felt to be typical of traditional recorded music formats, particularly vinyl. The third, music as sensual (sensory and emotional) experience, appears to be related to contemporary trends in downloading digital music for storage on an iPod or similar player. It is suggested that this third aspect may increase in importance in the future, although aspects 1 and 2 remain salient, even for younger consumers.

Why Creativity Necessitates Eclecticism: Nick Cave’s Influences

by Maria Popova

What Dostoevsky has to do with the hunchback of Notre Dame, Muhammad Ali, and dandelions.

As a firm believer in combinatorial creativity, I’m always interested in theecosystem of influences and how we honor those who inspire us. Reader Will Shaw points me to this handwritten note by music icon Nick Cave entitled “More Things to Remember…,” courtesy of Melbourne’s Arts Centre, in which Cave lists some of his influences. Will writes:

It is clear that Nick Cave was only able to reach his significant artistic heights through appropriating idea’s and aesthetics from his heroes and influences and melding them into something uniquely powerful.

 

I agree, and am delighted to see such a diverse tapas bar of influences spanning multiple disciplines, genres, and eras, including Brain Pickings staples likeAlfred Hitchcock, Vladimir Nabokov, Orson Welles, Muhammad Ali, and Moby-Dick, sprinkled with such wildcards as Saint Theresa of Avila, Popeye, dandelions, and baboons.

No doubt designer Paula Scher, author William Gibson, and artist Austin Kleoncan all relate to this eclecticism implicit to and, they might argue, necessary for creativity. I certainly do.

Abnormal Psychology and Underground Black Metal

InfoBarrel. By Ulalume, 2011. 
The concept of “abnormality” as it relates to psychology is not a particularly easy concept to grasp. While there are some legitimate definitions of abnormality (such as a requirement for psychological dysfunction, personal distress, and atypical behavior), the requirements are ultimately very vague when being considered by multiple people from different cultural backgrounds. The best definition of abnormal behavior would indicate that the behavior has the potential to not be deemed a psychological disorder simply because it is abnormal, yet still maintain that those individuals who adhere to the abnormal are, in the least, significantly different than their societal counterparts. My relatively active involvement in the underground black metal scene in the United States has the potential to be viewed as abnormal due to the themes expressed in the music (Satanism, anti-religion, anti-establishment, war, violence), the extreme sound of the music, and non-traditional feelings towards subjects related to human vitality.    

The abnormality of the black metal music scene is not strictly related to the audible music, rather the ideological ideas and theatrical imagery directrly related to the scene; whether it be at live shows or in some other context, as they tend to push the boundaries of what is socially acceptable, and therefore what is normal and abnormal. One specific example that I witnessed occurred in New Jersey at the Starland Ballroom where the band band Behemoth played. In a room filled with fog machines and darkness, their front man (who goes by the stage name Nergal, a name associated with demons) came out and addressed the crowd with a Christian Bible in his hand. He had no reservations when he yelled into his microphone that the Bible “is a book of lies.” At the end of his speech, he tore pages out of the text, threw them at the crowd, and proceeded to scream the opening line of his next song. While it may be debatable as to whether or not it is abnormal for an individual to be non-religious, there is no doubt that the active expression of these beliefs in such a manner would be perceived as abnormal; particularly to those outside of the in group of fellow black metal fans and musicians. The imagery of ripping up a religious text, the incorporation of pentagrams and inverted crosses to stage sets, and the bodily adornments of leather clothing, chainmail, spikes, armor, and corpse paint (white paint on the body in similar fashion to rock band KISS, however utilized in such a way to make an individual appear to be dead) all add to the abnormal effect.

            In addition to the appearance and thematic elements of black metal, there is no denying that the music that is created is tonally offensive to those who are not adjusted to it. Black metal is created to sound extremely treble heavy (with little bass at all in many songs), forcing the songs to inevitably use more of the higher frequency tones which are very harsh on the ears; in comparison to music which is generally composed to utilize a lot of bass and rhythm mixed with some higher frequency tones. To add to this harshness, the instruments are generally played in a very dissonant manner so as disrupt any melodic phrase in the music. The pace of the music is frequently very fast, with the rhythm often coming in the form of sixteenth and thirty-second note bass drumming. Finally, the vocal style is typically that of a mid-ranged screamer. As an active black metal musician, I adhere very closely to these musical qualities so as to continue this underground music tradition. Many bands take a minimalistic approach to the music, myself included, which inadvertently functions in such a way that most songs sound very much alike. Ultimately, all of these abnormal musical elements combined form the antithesis of modern Western music.

            There is no denying that black metal intends to portray the darker aspects of the human condition. While for some individuals involvement in this music scene may be primarily due to angst, for myself and many others it is in very many ways a spiritual experience to be absorbed in the music and atmosphere present at many black metal concerts. An element of irony exists because anti-religion is frequently a subject often expressed through imagery and lyricism, yet the act of gathering together as fellow members of a relatively organized group has similar qualities to those religious institutions. The abnormality of this gathering is the purpose for coming together. In religious institutions people gather for the sake of socializing and worshipping god, however at a black metal concert many individuals are particularly introverted and removed from one another; but seemingly bound by the need to express feelings regarding negative life experiences. The abnormality lies in the fact that even if these feelings are natural and experienced by all human beings universally, the active expression in aggressive ways is frowned upon by normal society. Themes related to human vitality like depression, suicide, life and death, and deeply philosophical ideas are examined, and oftentimes the ability for musicians to be able to express their feelings regarding these topics allows them to channel their emotions into what could be deemed a “positive” form of expression, even if some may view their form of expression as abnormal or eccentric. For myself, the opportunity to sit down with my guitar and keyboard, compose music, and write meaningful lyrics is ultimately what assists in keeping me alive. There are very few other outlets available for an individual to express their most intimate feelings with others than as is provided by the black metal scene.  

            What constitutes a social “abnormality” is a fairly controversial subject. The psychological definition of abnormality gives a good starting point when we analyze other people, groups, cultures, and the like; however labeling a group as “abnormal” may inadvertently offend because many abnormalities are simply normality when viewed from the in group. As a member of a black metal band, I cannot help but feel at home when around other people with similar interests as myself. With that said, there is no denying that the black metal music scene is very abnormal in comparison to many other music scenes; much less other groups of people in general. Black metal consists of themes related to the darker aspects of life, sounds that are oftentimes tonally harsh, and general openness with regards to issues dealing with human vitality.

Underground Death Metal: Is It In You?! (Popular Culture Meets Psychology)

Underground Death Metal: Is It In You?!

The road to hell is orchestrated by death metal

Published on August 20, 2009 by Lawrence Rubin, Ph.D. in Popular Culture Meets Psychology

I have no problem admitting that when I was a teen, I was, by today's adolescent standards, a nerd. And before God and the blogosphere, I will now admit that I used to excitedly share my new favorite songs with my mother. I remember being so smitten by Don McLean's American Pie that I listened to it hundreds of times in order to memorize the words, typed them out on 80 character IBM punchcards, and then had my mother transcribe them. While I had, and still have absolutely no idea of what the song means, I loved it back then, and still do.  I think it is a combination of the beat, the power of the elusive lyrics, it's length and intensity that combine to capture me...at a cellular level.

My teenage son has been trying to interest us in his newest, and I must say most challenging form of music yet,underground death metal.  Sadly, I must admit that I, like past generations of doting and doubting parents, am trying to wrap my head around this form of music...and it is very difficult.  I feel the pain of 1950's parents who must have said something like "who the hell is Buddy Holly?, I'm trying to listen to Tex Beneke,  as well as those of the 1960's who must have wondered if The Platterswere going to be forced off stage by the musical antics of those mopheads from Liverpool. 

As a psychologist who works with teens and their families, I am painfully aware of the epidemic of suicide, substance abuse, disenfranchisement, anomie, depression, eating disorders and violence that palgues our youth. So it is natural, perhaps reflexive for me to cringe when I read (becuase I certainly can't comprehend)  lyrics about death, suuicide, poisoning and ultra-violent behavior, accompanied by excruciatingly loud, gutteral, atonal and dys-synchronous music sung by groups with names like Death, Possessed, Morbid Angel, Embodiment, Entombed, Acid Bath, As I Lay Dying, Throwdown, The Faceless, Festerday, Fleshcrawl, Glass Casket, Gutworm, Septic Flesh, Soils of Fate, Torture Killer, and Vomit Remnants.

Wikipedia describes death metalas "an extreme subgenre of heavy metal [which] typically employs moderate tempos, heavily distorted guitars, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes." Related to 'thrash metal' and 'heavy metal', it has spawned the related genres of "melodic death metal", "technical death metal", "death doom", black death metal", deathgrind" and deathcore". Whew!!!

Whatever happended to those gentle teenage tragedy songs that we knew and loved including "Honey" by Bobby Goldsboro, "The Leader of the Pack" by  The Shangri-Las, "And When I Die" by Blood Sweat and Tears, "Tell Laura I Love Her" by Ray Paterson, "Teen Angel" by Mark Dinning, "Dead Man's Curve" by Jan and Dean, "Ode to Billy Joe" by Bobbie Gentry, and "The Last Kiss" by Wayne Cochran and the CC Riders. They were mournful, yet melodic lamentations of love lost through tragedies, sometimes violent and other times accidental, ranging from motorcycle accidents to brain tumors to suicide. We instantly understood and empathized with the painful messages, and we could understand the words.

Back to death metal. The field of psychology has alot to say about heavy metal and death metal, and the most interesting, and perhaps predictable findings converge on the relationship between heavy metal consumption and other troublesome and troubling behaviors, including depression, suicide, substance abuse, and alienation.  Emprical investigations seem to converge on the association between heavy metal use and these pathological "externalizing behaviors". Interested readers may review articles by Selfhout and colleagues in Youth and Society, 2008, volume 39, as well as by Lacourse and colleagues in Youth and Adolescence, 2001, volume 30.  

However, and as in past blogposts, I choose to seek the wisdom of other disiplines for their insights.  Certainly,it is compelling to listen to the ear-splitting music and watch the gory and graphic music videos and ponder on the pathology of both the musicians and the audiences. But, once again, it is sociology, cultural anthropology and semiotics which provide me with a deeper and richer understanding of the genre.  In a fascinating article in the journal "Symbolic Interaction", 2006, volume 29 (edited by my friend and colleague Simon Gottschalk), Karen Hanlon, building on Bakhtin's study of the "carnival grotesque", suggests that the "grotesque realism in metal music and performances constitutes a pro-utopian liminal alternative to the impersonal, conformist, superficial and numbing realities of commercialism, and more abstractly, to a society of spectacle and nothingness."  She adds that [death] metal provides the audience with a "suspension of hierarchical rank, privileges, norms and prohibitions [and therefore] provides liberation from internal censors [and in so doing] challenges exposes and transcends the limits between body and world, life and death interior and exterior." In short, the experience of heavy, dark, black and death metal allows us to "question whether we are really alive amidst the numbing pressure of commercial culture."

In his book "Breaking Through to Teens", therapist Ron Taffel suggests that in order to understand teens, we must enter their world.  The same would attach to understanding young adults, and any other of the  hoards of the "seemingly" lost, subversive and disenfranchised among us. As for me, I choose to appreciate those moments when my son urges me into his room to show me a death metal music video. For him, it may very well be the deep existential angst that he, as a contemporary teen feels. Or perhaps it is the ever changing and unpredictable beat that resonates with and through him, or the fact that he can connect with peers if he knows the words of the latest Emmure song...or that in listening to something so bad and violent, he acheives purgation and redemption.