Greetings from a 'lab rat'

[Hologram784]

Hello, fellow forumers,

I am Hologram, a suspected 'lab rat', as FatherAlabaster has nicknamed me already, or at least attempted to😆.

I am a final year Bachelor's student and I have posted a discussion here yesterday to help me out with a project I am doing for my dissertation.

Let me assure you that my credentials are Metal indeed, started listening at the age of 9 thanks to my oldschool Soviet defector of a father and have been fully loyal to the music ever since - and I am 21 now. 

My objective at the moment is to gather responses to this question: What does Metal mean to you?

And the objective of my research is to show the wider academic public that metal is not merely a defective subculture, it is a much more valuable cultural and social phenomenon, that plays a significant positive role for us as fans of the music.

I hope you will be able to assist me on this noble quest.

For now, farewell, and I wish you a pleasant day.

[JamesT]

47 minutes ago, Hologram784 said:

Hello, fellow forumers,

I am Hologram, a suspected 'lab rat', as FatherAlabaster has nicknamed me already, or at least attempted to😆.

I am a final year Bachelor's student and I have posted a discussion here yesterday to help me out with a project I am doing for my dissertation.

Let me assure you that my credentials are Metal indeed, started listening at the age of 9 thanks to my oldschool Soviet defector of a father and have been fully loyal to the music ever since - and I am 21 now. 

My objective at the moment is to gather responses to this question: What does Metal mean to you?

And the objective of my research is to show the wider academic public that metal is not merely a defective subculture, it is a much more valuable cultural and social phenomenon, that plays a significant positive role for us as fans of the music.

I hope you will be able to assist me on this noble quest.

For now, farewell, and I wish you a pleasant day.

Hey there, suspected "lab rat"!  I'm not sure how informative my answer will be, but to me, metal means everything.  It's not just a style of aggressive music that doesn't necessarily lend itself to mainstream popularity, but rather, it's an entire lifestyle.  It means not bowing or caving to what society might label as "normal".  It's the abiding appreciation for the unbelievable skill and musicianship that it takes to execute it well.  It means not being afraid to stand by and defend something that might be countercultural in some ways.  And because it is scoffed at and dismissed by many as being "just noise", and it is looked down upon by many as something only for misfits to rally behind so they can feel better about themselves, that makes it all the more near and dear to those of us who love it.  Metal has been a huge part of my life for the majority of it and has really helped pull me through some tough times.  I'm a metalhead for life!

[Hologram784]

23 hours ago, JamesT said:

Hey there, suspected "lab rat"!  I'm not sure how informative my answer will be, but to me, metal means everything.  It's not just a style of aggressive music that doesn't necessarily lend itself to mainstream popularity, but rather, it's an entire lifestyle.  It means not bowing or caving to what society might label as "normal".  It's the abiding appreciation for the unbelievable skill and musicianship that it takes to execute it well.  It means not being afraid to stand by and defend something that might be countercultural in some ways.  And because it is scoffed at and dismissed by many as being "just noise", and it is looked down upon by many as something only for misfits to rally behind so they can feel better about themselves, that makes it all the more near and dear to those of us who love it.  Metal has been a huge part of my life for the majority of it and has really helped pull me through some tough times.  I'm a metalhead for life!

Thank you so much, James, and don't worry, any answer is informative in my book.

Appreciate your time and effort to write this, you have helped immensely.

[JamesT]

20 minutes ago, Hologram784 said:

Thank you so much, James, and don't worry, any answer is informative in my book.

Appreciate your time and effort to write this, you have helped immensely.

Sure thing!  Always great to connect with a fellow metalhead.  Good luck with your dissertation!  Hope you knock it out of the park!

[FatherAlabaster]

Hey man, no, I was trying to say that I think some of these students who join up with their survey questions look at us as lab rats. Haha interesting subculture you have here, I have heard your people can be insular, do your horns fall off after mating season, etc. It's all good but I guess I have limited patience for things that strike me as tourism. There's that concern for legitimacy rearing its ugly head, a personal failing for me to work on.

[H34VYM3T4LD4V3]

Hello and welcome! what are your favourite metal bands?

 

To me metal means an escape from all of the everyday crap we put up with, life in general and the shitty manufacutred music that is forced into our ears in shops/radio etc. just feels so much better than pop music 

 

it's also a way of life for me, nearly everything I do, I have my metal playing, keeps me motivated and concentrated when I need to do something

[Hologram784]

22 hours ago, FatherAlabaster said:

Hey man, no, I was trying to say that I think some of these students who join up with their survey questions look at us as lab rats. Haha interesting subculture you have here, I have heard your people can be insular, do your horns fall off after mating season, etc. It's all good but I guess I have limited patience for things that strike me as tourism. There's that concern for legitimacy rearing its ugly head, a personal failing for me to work on.

Don't worry, I was merely joking around.

And I can definitely understand your caution, fear not, as we've converses elsewhere, hopefully my credentials as a metalhead, albeit a younger one are sufficient.😁

18 hours ago, H34VYM3T4LD4V3 said:

Hello and welcome! what are your favourite metal bands?

 

To me metal means an escape from all of the everyday crap we put up with, life in general and the shitty manufacutred music that is forced into our ears in shops/radio etc. just feels so much better than pop music 

 

it's also a way of life for me, nearly everything I do, I have my metal playing, keeps me motivated and concentrated when I need to do something

Thanks so much for your response and question mate!

My favourites currently are Bound In Fear (British Blackened Deathcore), Ghost Bath (North American Black Metal), and Landmvrks (French Metal/Deathcore).

23 hours ago, JamesT said:

Sure thing!  Always great to connect with a fellow metalhead.  Good luck with your dissertation!  Hope you knock it out of the park!

Thank you so much, mate!