Actually thank you for pointing it out - it flew by me while I watched it, but actually, yeah. I'm gonna put it on a post-it somewhere - it's just the advice I need at this point in my life. Thanks!
One time in an asexual subreddit, there was a post asking what people's favorite music genres were. The vast majority said metal. Some people explained this by saying that it was refreshing for asexuals and aromantics to have a music genre that wasn't saturated with love songs and songs about sex. I'm not a metal fan myself, but I found that pretty interesting. Edit: EMELIE AUTUMN IS ASEXUAL Edit: Actually no she isn't; she said she just thought she was asexual bc she "had never been with anyone who was any good at it" (which isn't really what asexual means but whatever, it's her identity.)
Yooo I never thought about it this way. I'm not ace but my mother is, and we're both mad Metal fans. I'm gonna pass this onto them and see what they think
I've seen this talked about when trying to find artists whose songs aren't about romance and sex. Unfortunately, whatever I may think of metal, it's a firm "no" from my sensory issues. Still very neat!
I'm a cis woman. I remember the first time my friend showed me In This Moment and honestly I was kind of uncomfortable. Initially I thought it was the sound, since I hadn't listened to much of that genre before. But it was also something about Maria's presence in the videos that made me a bit uneasy, and I wasn't sure why. I think something about it felt so scandelous. She wasn't super feminine like Amy Lee, or "one of the guys" like Lzzy Hale, but she managed to re-appropriate her femininity in a way that was powerful. I think ITM is exactly what metal should be - shocking, provocative, but empowering. I love ITM now - saw them in concert with that same friend, one of my favourite gigs ever.
Y'know this post made me just wanna tack something on. Even though none of the members of ITM are trans, a lot of ITM to me feels very aligned with transfemininity. A great deal of it is informed by Maria's own experience with slut-shaming, sexual violence, being an underage mother etc, but the general themes, encapsulated in the line from Whore "you love me for everything you hate me for" feels so aligned with that experience - being sexualised to the extent that you're barely seen as human, desired and yet seen as a figure of repulsion. I don't think it's a coincidence that people compare her to a Metal Lady Gaga, who in herself is a queer icon whose status as an "authentic woman" was interrogated to hell and back way back in the day. There's something about ITM that feels so inherently queer with that sense of embracing "impure" femininity, even though that likely wasn't the original authorial intention Idk. I'm a big queer ITM simp so take this with a grain of salt. That's just what I take from it 🤷
@@ashergibson9969 I love that comparison actually! I remember hearing people comment (again, back in the day) that Lady Gaga was "very sexual, but not sexy" - especially from straight men. I think it was that same unease surrounding authoritative women that were outside the norm of what was usually depicted in the male gaze, and a similar thing goes for Maria. It's sexuality that doesn't exist just to appeal to the traditional male fantasy, instead it's something that actually acknowledges female autonomy. It's an especially important depiction for trans women too, whose status as women are often reserved for their appeal to male sexuality, rather than their own identity. Super interesting to think about, I think haha
@@mayisuppose I think it comes down to most men, especially cishets, are intimidated by a woman or femme presenting individual who owns and is in control of their sexuality. Because then it's much harder to take that sexuality and use it as a weapon against them. It disempowers men, and that's a terrifying idea to a fragile concept of masculinity.
"Anger is not an emotion, so metal is not emotional" was a view that caught me off-guard. As a cis man, I've never thought of metal as unemotional. If anything, it resonated with the emotions I had when I was young. I'm autistic, and have trouble with identifying and naming emotions. Anger was one of a few emotions I *could* identify and name in my own experience. Interestingly, I thought that those were the only emotions I had, or was capable of. And I wonder how common this experience is with men, that they don't have emotions because they can't recognize them, and thus, anger can't be one. Or how much of it is just "I'm reasonable, shut up or I'll kick your ass!" I later learned that metal resonated with, and negated the negative feelings out of me, making me feel better. It would take time for me to recognize positive feelings, though.
As somebody in their 30s who has listened to metal since he was 15, the idea that metal (or any form of music or art) is unemotional is laughable. You can't create good art without passion.
I totally agree metal is emotional as f and it's what I love about it! I think we rationalize our decision-making more than making a decision on emotion most of the time.
One of Judas Priest's most cleverly subversive details IMO is that while they had a lot of songs about sex and/or romance, nearly every single one of them is gender-neutral, using only "me" and "you" descriptors and never making direct descriptions of the other person's physical form that would clue the audience in to their gender. It's likely another way for Rob to express his homosexuality discreetly, but it also just serves to make their songs feel more accessible to a wider range of identities than something like "Girls Girls Girls".
I love the tiny number of 'Turbo' promo photos where Halford's got a woman with him. He is so clearly counting the seconds until he can stop pretending he's heterosexual.
I’m a female fronted symphonic metal SUPERFAN, I wrote a Wikipedia list of every female fronted metal band and wrote insanely long lists as a teenager (I didn’t source anything so it got taken down) and seeing this made makes me sooooo happy. I’m a drag queen who sings female fronted symphonic metal and attempting to gain traction in the metal world and not drag world and I felt like that would be something you’d enjoy the thought of happening. In this Moment and After Forever are my biggest inspo’s vocally and aesthetically
That’s so cool! As someone who made similar list, and who’s doing a drag performance to a Nightwish song this coming Friday, I definitely have to check your stuff out!
hi everyone I'm very happy to be back with what is by FAR my favourite video I've ever made (which I guess is also how it ended up so long x____X) drop me your recommendations for your favourite gender-squiffy metal/metal-influenced music!
Okay well if you ask like that I guess I can recommend Ashenspire, which is a Scottish avant-garde metal band full of non-men and other men genders. Their lead singer, at least at live shows, is a trans guy. They encapsulate the feeling of British capitalist decay in ways I never deemed possible. Sophie from Mars used one of their songs as an outro on their latest video. I can't stop raving about them
The songs I've probably been getting the biggest kicks out of recently for suggesting gender-variant characters in the lyrics are "Invisible" by Dio and "Alkaline" by Sleep Token. I've also enjoyed discovering the following bands featuring at least one non-cismale member not mentioned in your video Employed To Serve Svalbard Vile Creature (bonus - Vic is non-binary) Body Void (bonus - Willow Ryan is non-binary) Sanguisugabogg (bonus - Cameron Boggs is non-binary) SeeYouSpaceCowboy (bonus - Connie Sgarbossa is trans) Against Me! (No, I don't care if they're punk, Laura Jane Grace is a trans icon) Maximum The Hormone Dark Sarah Yousei Teikoku Defences Once Human King Witch Amberian Dawn Sanhedrin Cage Fight Ithaca BleedSkin Giant Walker Surma Weaponry (bonus - Rivers is non-binary) Gwyndedd Jawless Dana Dentata (more horrorcore than outright metal, but the aesthetics are there) Nervosa Crypta Capra Sorceress Of Sin Shadowkeep (shameless plug - I actually work with the guitarists from this band in a multi-band tribute act called Judas Rising) Regulus
You know what? I'm just gonna plug my own band, Malisma (@malismaband). We've put out two EP's thus far. While I'm queer as fuck, our main songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, lyricist, producer and pretty much anything else apart from drums, bassguitar and singing is a trans woman. The way I see it, it's her project and the rest of us are just helping her out :P
You might enjoy Crucified Barbara. Was all girls band who played what I would call "party rock" kinda in the one of boys style but also vaguely addressing gender stuff. Also, they have a song about killing rapists, soooo...
Not a recommendation, but do you think it might be easier on you physically to do occasional conversational livestreams? You could have some friends and/or kofi supporters moderate a chat if necessary, and just talk about topics like this where you have enough thoughts that you don’t necessarily need a script for there to be interesting discussion. Or about stuff in the news. Or just Q&A. Sorry lol I just want to see more of you but in the most accommodating way possible and only if it's good for you
As a genderfluid individual who has loved metal all their life, I never considered metal to be a genre devoid of emotion! I actually had a realization at some point that emotion and passion was the thing that I mainly looked for in music, whether metal or not. Maybe you could do a future video on this topic?
I suspect this is a 'formal, fancy-pants, music theory' form of 'emotion'. As described at the start of the video a chord theoretically has 3 notes, one of those notes is used to set the 'emotion' of the chord. Happy or Sad. Metal, typically, does not use these and thus is 'emotionless' because it does not have the Happy or Sad signifier of traditional musical theory. Saying metal has no emotion is nonsense on its face. While typically it might have a limited range of emotions being expressed (angry, horny, angsty); even that doesn't hold true when you start listening to more and more bands (Pain Remains for example is a 3 song mini-epic covering a wide range of emotions in response to the death of a loved one). What Metal really has as a strength is the *amount* its emotions are expressed. You're shouting, screaming, wailing, growling, sustaining that note - and thus the emotion - loud and long and powerfully. As a genre metal can, of course, do subtle. It's a vast array of bands and subgenres and music across 50+ years. Of course there's variance. But the main draw for me, personally, in metal is just how strongly the emotions are felt (or, at the least, presented as being felt). It almost doesn't matter *what* emotion the moment is about. What matters is that the band is feeling something with you so much that they have to *scream it into the void*. Which gives you 'social permission' to *scream it right back*. It's permission to feel your feelings and feel them as strongly as you want to feel them. Plus it sounds so good :D
yeah I definitely didn't mean that *I* consider metal unemotional, but that viewing it as such at least to some degree, by categorising anger as somehow "not," an emotion, was a common way for boys/men to engage with it and emotions in general, particularly in the 2000s when I was growing up. I thought that was clear, especially in the overall context of the video, but a few people seem to have got confused ^^;
Have to also state my full agreement with what you're saying about gender and perceived authenticity. I've been thinking about getting into singing for the first time in decades. I've always wanted to, and while it's not specifically gender issues that have held me back, I have always had this worry about being taken seriously. Like, I've always loved bass guitar and wish I was better at playing, but I'm not a great guitar player and I honestly just want to focus on singing and creating meaning through lyrics and presentation. Yeah, a lot more women are vocalists but it still seems like there's a double standard even when they conform to what's expected. For a long time I always thought I had to be able to do all these different things myself to be a real musician. I've noticed a lot that women in certain genres, and in music in general, get talked about as though they haven't worked as hard as men do when they find success. If they collaborate with someone on lyrics, it's always certain to get pointed out that they didn't write it alone despite the fact that it isn't uncommon in any way for songs to have multiple writers. If they have a relationship with a man who's also successful they get accused of riding his coattails. Men write songs about their exes all the time, but successful women get called crazy, petty or whiny. Oh, and you'd better get attention and look good, but not too much. I'm really glad I've gotten back into the goth and industrial scene where you can be avant-garde without being accused of lacking substance. I especially appreciate that I've had the opportunity to talk with more underground artists because a lot of what I've noticed is really an issue with the mainstream music industry. Women and woman led groups there are really killing it now and getting the respect they deserve for what they do. There are so many more platforms and options now for getting art out to people who will actually appreciate it.
Shit I keep forgetting I'm colorblind. I thought it was off white the whole video. I don't see red well. Unless it's a deep red (or burgundy violet) I just see the other colors present. Lighter pinks look white or grey to me x.x
@@SoulDevoured I worked with people in art school who were color blind. It was interesting seeing all the hacks they came up with in color theory. I could totally get why a pale pink would look like off white though.
"The androgyny practiced by performers permits androgyny among fans." This. So much this. I was a baby goth and far far away from coming out as enby when I first heard bands like Evanescence, Nightwish and all those good gothy vibes groups. Ville Valo gave me so much gender envy before I knew what that phrase was. The goth and emo scenes are where I was really able to start experimenting with my presentation. Easier to do when most everyone around you is where the same black eyeliner and lipstick combo. I love Motionless in White's cover of Somebody Told Me. It was a fave of mine in highschool (for gender reasons). I remember when I was first introduced to Arch Enemy. Same guy who used to draw heartagrams all over his textbooks, which is how I ended up getting into HIM. I think I was hit by that same delight and wonderment as you in finding out women could actually do that. I slept on In This Moment too. I was buried in the European metal scene and missed a lotta good bands I'm still catching up on. Otep, Huntress (RIP Jill Janus) and The Pretty Reckless were a few exceptions but I mostly listened to stuff like Arkona, Arch Enemy and The Agonist (Alissa White-Gluz's old band). This was a great video. It reminded me of some old faves and I've got plenty of new recs to check out.
1:14:53 Totally correct. It went to the point that the German domestic intelligence agency started to consider to put the band on a watchlist and to infiltrate the fandom. The song "Links 2,3,4" was a direct reaction to that by the band. The line "Sie wollen mein Herz am rechten Fleck / Doch schau ich dann nach unten weg / Dann schlägt es Links" translates to "They want my heart in the right place / But if I look down at it / Then It is beating left". It's them saying that their hearts are left, not right. The band since then has also repeatedly talked about how they originally came out of the punk scene, displayed support for the LGBTQ+ community on stage and their song Deutschland is nothing but a big statement against nationalism and German nationalism especially. This doesn't bother the far-right fans though, they still go to concerts and buy the albums because they only care about the aesthetics.
I remember there was one interview, where one of them mentioned them beating up nazis during their time in the punk scene. But fascist famously are obsessed with aesthetics and have bad reading comprehension so they'll just ignore that
Thank you for clearing that up. I‘m german and i always thought they were, if not nazis, then far right, so i never listened to them. I may start listening to them
As a transfem nb metal musician slowly and painfully coming to terms with the harmful aspects of a community that has been very important to me, this video was nothing short of perfection. With your skill as a video essayist, you definitely deserve more attention and support.
My experience back in the '80s was that a whole lot of people did, in fact, pick up on the gay imagery of Judas Priest, but it was one of those "open secrets" that you didn't really talk about for obvious reasons. I do remember the controversy over Glam Metal (aka "hair metal" or "spandex metal"), and whether they qualified as metal at all; but mostly the "not metal" side was the minority, usually a small minority. The feminine/androgynous look was popular because, according to most guys in the scene, "girls think it's hot". And IME that was certainly true enough; but I think more than a little of it was also sublimated gender transgression/dysphoria. Misogyny was common, but also seemed to be more of a smokescreen, a way to "fit in" and compensate for the social transgression of the aesthetic, than an actual personal worldview. Obviously these are just my experiences in my local scene; which was pretty small and crossed over a lot with other small "outsider" scenes like rap, goth, and punk more than most other places. As for Marilyn Manson's androgyny; nearly all of us just saw it as a second-rate David Bowie Ziggy Stardust rip-off. (A a few folks in my local scene who actually knew Brian before he hit it big, generally described him as pretty much the same sort of abusive creep that we all know him to be now.) I don't have much in the way of "transgressive" metal to add, since pretty much all of the more recent metal I've been listening to is instrumental prog stuff like Animals as Leaders (although they're definitely unusual in that frontman Tosin Abasi is black (and one of the most brilliant musicians I've ever heard).
the idea that it's unusual for a metal musician to be black itself is awful considering how much foundation rock/jazz comes from specifically African American culture and music (but also African, gotta love polyrhythms) you're still correct in pointing out that it is "unusual" however since that is typically how it is perceived. people have the same reaction about Oceano's vocalist) having that said, as an Asian, I've unironically actually been told by a (unsurprisingly) cis white straight male that Asians can't be metal, and such, a similar reaction is had when people find out I listen to metal or that the vocalist of Crystal Lake is Asian (well, the entire band is LOL) Thanks for sharing your experience with the 80s
@@EphemeralTao I'm sure you've already checked out their first album, but my god that shit was fucking incredible, with or without the context of AAL dropping the self-titled in 2009
@@caixiuying8901 So sorry you had to put up with that "Asians can't be metal" bullshit. I mean, Japan has been highly influential in metal since the '80s; and there's so much great stuff coming out from all over east and south Asia. Some of my favorites are Ningen Isu, Merging Moon, Bloodywood, Voodoo Kungfu, and Tengger Cavalry.
If you like Maria's ability to change her vocals on a whim; check out Tatiana from Jinjer she can gear shift clean to death growl and back on the drop of a dime. Lena from Infected Rain is good too. Totally surprised that OTEP wasn't mentioned.
Suprised Tatiyana from Jinjer wasn't mentioned. She transcends the boundaries between the stereotypical roles that male and female metal vocalists occupy. Effortlessly switching from soaring cleans to hair raising growls. Her lyrics are also very poetic. The performance of Perennial at Wacken Open Air where she's roaring on the stage in a golden yellow tracksuit, completely dominating the show with her presence is a particular stand out moment.
SeeYouSpaceCowboy's lead vocalist is a trans woman and they're one of the best acts in metalcore/hardcore and have been for like 3 years. She alternates between screaming and sass vocals. Awesome stuff.
I always loved metal, but not misogyny. What initially drew me in was a tendency in metal to completely ignore romantic emotions, like you said in the first part of the video, referring to Metallica. When I was young (and also white and cishet male), I was extremely insecure and introverted, and I got frustrated with most pop songs being about romantic love, which I had issues with at the time. Then I really fell in love with the fantasy aspect of metal, high fantasy, sword & sorcery, sci-fi etc, of power metal, but not just power metal. However, one song that I wanted to bring up specifically was "Better Off Dead" by Cirith Ungol. Funny that it's also a band that over the course of their career made lots of fantasy-themed songs (and their band name is from Lord of the Rings), but particularly on their first album "Frost and Fire", they had more personal lyrics about being an angsty, insecure man. "Sometimes I take a look at the world And sometimes I take a look at the girls I'm just a spectator, I don't get involved I've got too many problems of my own to solve" And it resonated with me, a guy in a metal band just being honest about being insecure and not wanting to get involved. There is even a song on the album with love lyrics "Maybe That's Why I love you..." and the lyrics are printed on the album sleeve or CD booklet, but actually it's an instrumental track, as if the singer was so insecure he wasn't sure he could really sing it to do it justice. I've always loved it when metal songs, even within the aesthetics of a masculine metal sound, can show vulnerability. Like Candlemass' "Solitude" or Warlord's "Lost and Lonely Days". Concerning women in metal, I like Farida Lemouchi of The Devil's Blood from the Netherlands and Dingir of Slutet from Sweden. The latter is a similar example to what you said about Arch Enemy. At first I didn't know the vocalist is a woman. I very rarely look at pictures of musicians anyway. I have no idea what 90% of the people I listen to even look like. In the case of Slutet, the vocalist does sound more feminine than Angela Gossow does though. Her vocal style is also very extreme. At first I didn't understand all the words. I just read the lyrics. Really grim stuff though. I haven't heard the 2020 album yet though. I was going off memory referring to their earlier output. Wow, so, couple examples. Earlier stuff I mentioned, not that extreme (musically and lyrically). That last artist though... very extreme, in both fields.
Okay as a huge Candlemass fan I can add that despite "Solitude" being their most popular, a lot of their songs deal with emotion and I cannot recommend this band enough
Thank you for making this video. I was immersed in underground heavy metal subculture from a really young age and, as a cis woman, I always felt the "sharp edges" of my active part on it, but I wasn't able to put them into words until I had more knowledge about feminism and gender theory - and at that point, I needed to step back from it a little. What you said about masculinity being such a fundamental part of this genre that just existing as a non-man in there was subversive really resonated with me. Such an interesting topic and definetely food for thought!
There's a metal band called SeeYouSpaceCowboy should check em out. I was a hardcore kid (now a hardcore grown-up) and they showed up when I was first discovering my sexuality. Connie (The frontman) is an inspiring person. Edit: Never thought about that masculine power dynamic and metal being emotionless. Before I discovered metal, I grew up with my mom's 80s r&b and soul playing as she cleaned out apartment. When I became that hardcore kid, I was looking for an emotion other than love and heartbreak with r&b and that was anger in Death Metal. I just can't see someone saying metal is emotionless. Gonna have to ask some friends what they think.
I've never heard or thought of metal as emotionless - quite the opposite, it was the repository and the space for me to share my negative, dark thoughts, like a catharsis; it was therapy. I don't understand what she was saying with that. Everyone I've ever heard of referring to metal has acknowledged powerful emotions and shit like that. That it expresses the pain of alienation and just darker thoughts in general and allowing those thoughts a space to exist. That's how I've always heard it described.
Yeah I heard them last year, though they're not a metal band. They're more hardcore. The genre metalcore is split between hardcore bands and metal ones since metalcore was started by hardcore bands who wanted to add metal influence to their sound and were labelled metallic hardcore aka metalcore. That's what causes the confusion. Then 2000's bands like As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage, Trivium, Shadows Fall, Unearth came around and also got labelled metalcore but sounded more metal and this genre became popular. Other bands like Devil Wears Prada, August Burns Red, Veil of Maya, Architects, ERRA, Of Mice & Men fit into that style of metalcore too. These are more in the metal scene. SeeYouSpaceCowboy sound more in line with other metallic hardcore bands like Integrity, Converge, Earth Crisis, Botch, Shai Hulad, Hatebreed, Walls of Jericho, Stray From The Path. These are more in the hardcore scene. Some hardcore fans refer to old style of metalcore as "metallic hardcore" to differentiate it from the mainstream metalcore in the metal scene.
I think it was used ironically. Negative emotions are frowned upon, especially in conservative societies and in this contex anger and the rest are not emotions. Joke's on them, of course.
Wow, this video was a masterclass in genderposting. I would know, since last time I watched one of your videos I was a boy, but a year later and I'm a girl now! Real good to see you back here, hope the TH-cam thing is kind to you. I'm looking forward to whatever you make next, and hoping you're able to take care of your health as you do so
When I discovered Whore by In This Moment I also got very excited about it and went to show it to my sister. Unfortunately, her husband was sitting beside her and you can imagine how quickly the light disappeared from my eyes when he asked if Maria is a "real woman". Like, man... And he knows I'm trans, so that stung twice as much. Awesome video btw!!
As a white, queer, autistic, transfem person, my first favorite bands and the ones that bridged me into the metal scene as a whole were Evanescence, Delain, Epica and Within Temptation. Before finding them I primarily listened to Avril Lavigne, Beyonce, Madonna and Britney Spears, I never had a taste for earlier metal bands like Aerosmith, AC/DC, Pink Floyd etc. outside of a few specific outlier songs here or there but to this day I have never felt the interest or compulsion to listen to any of them. And when it came to heavier or grungier sounds, I found I really had a hard time adapting to the harsh masculine elements in heavier nonsymphonic bands until a nonbinary AFAB friend of mine taught me to appreciate its taste in artists like KoRn and Otep. My interests from that point spread like wildfire across most genres. I still view early rock mostly with disdain because of the tainted history of misogyny and racism, but I have found myself really drawn to experimental, genre bending artists like Poppy, Linekraft, Psyclon Nine, Dorian Electra and the like. I'm constantly delighted by the absolute feast of variety today's musicians have to offer.
Ok we get it, tradtional hard rock and heavy metal is too macho for you, do not worries, those generes were always intended/composed by and for a male audience who will identify with said topics and style.
As a cis male metalhead for decades, I loved your wideo. To some degree it made me analyze my atraction to this kind of music, especially as I am also an obsessive fan of woman in this genre (more in the style of "one of the boys" than symphonic (to be fair i like Nightwish, just not most of the bands in the symphonic subgenre)), For bands recommended I have Znowhite, a good female vocalist thrash metal band from the eighties, Plasmatics, Vixen an all female band in the style of early Bon Jovi, Doro Pesch, a female vocalist active from the eighties to this day in the more classical heavy metal subgenre, Hellion, Chastain, Halestorm (this one very popular so I'm almost sure you heard of it), Kittie is not my cup of tea, but worth mentioning. There is also, or at least was the "weinstein" problem in music in general, and also in heavy metal and adjacents too. The story of Runavays for example.
This honestly makes me so happy, Shonalika! I got news from my parents that one of my childhood cats had to be put to sleep, and she'd been in my life since I was 8. I've been crying all day, this is such a help 💕
Damn, this video really took me back to being a teenage metalhead girl in the early 2000s. The female fronted metal scene was HUGE but was routinely left out of any compilations, documentaries, lists etc. The genre police would go out of their way to say they weren't "real metal" though they were just as heavy as other metal bands with clean male vocals. Consequentially, us, the female fanbase weren't "real metalheads" either, and instead labelled goths and, later, emos. Going to shows, guys often assumed we were with a boyfriend, or trying to get with the band. If you insisted you're really there for the music, you got the impromptu music quiz to prove yourself. Man, what a time that was. I'll never forget when I was asked "oh, so you're a metalhead? Are you the Marilyn Manson and Slipknoit kind or the Nightwish and Enya kind" - the latter said in disdain. Still makes me laugh. Anyway, I'm digressing. Great video! Good to see you're back! :)
I think the Nova Twins example also shows something about how Metal music, no matter how skilled artist are, is not a meritocracy, and the power more successful bands have to decide who they collaborate and tour with can make such a huge difference. Nova Twins are not only amazing in their own right, but had quite a significant stylistic influence on Bring Me The Horizons Post-Human Survival Horror according to an interview with Oli Sykes (can't recall which one exactly). BMTH have done a big spike of collaborating with a very diverse set of artists, from Amy Lee to Ed Sheeran. But they could very easily have decided to just take the ideas and run, especially knowing that they can associate with very famous, mainstream artists and boost their own exposure that way. But the decision to collaborate - and as a result, platform - Nova Twins makes not only such a huge difference to their careers, but to the landscape of Metal as a whole. Because now they're in public view, how many other young Black women are going to look at the Metal scene and go "holy shit, maybe this is for me!" In contrast, how many other famous, male-led bands to we see exclusively collaborating with old friends in other, male-led bands, insulating their circle of exposure, keeping their fans' music taste pale, male and stale. I feel like there is a massive role bigger, particularly male-led bands have in considering how they can use their power to give space to other skilled artists that otherwise wouldn't receive the air-time they deserve
Absolutely love Maria Brink in In This Moment - and Whore is an amazing video (The Promise though I think is their hottest video). One thing I'd want to say though Maria Brink's voice (imo) is second to someone: Tatiana Shmailyuk of Jinjer (with Pieces as a perfect example) has such an incredible voice with a crazy range. She blows me away. Jinjer's Pieces has almost a TH-cam genre of it's own, that of singing/voice coaches reacting to her performance, and there's the people who have only heard it on the radio who discover that it's one vocalist when finally seeing the video. Currently a LOT of my metal or metal adjacent playlists heavily feature women - Butcher Babies; Halestorm; (some of) Mushroomhead (Heresy gets a lot of repeat plays); Sumo Cyco; Blackbriar; Skynd; The Pretty Reckless; Devilskin; Starcrawler. However this video has made me think just how many of those have entirely or almost entirely male bands behind a female vocalist - because so many are so prominent as the vocalist in videos I'd never really considered it. As a trans you'd think I'd at least consider/think on/take in gender in my art choices a little more... seems I've been a lazy bones in that regards Also, I don't know about Rammstein but there's a lot of bands who find themselves with odd followings ThisDangDad mentions that when he was a Cop in L.A. (before he knew better) he'd listen to Rage Against The Machine in his police car, oblivious (at the time!) to which machine they might be raging against...
For all female Metal bands I recommend you check out bands like Kittie, Vixen, Frantic Amber, Nervosa, Crucified Barbara, Matriarch, Gallhammer, Arven, Blackthorn, Girlschool, Burning Witches, Hysterica, Exist Trace, Nemesis, and in general you can find a lot of great all female bands in the Japanese metal scene.
Rhapsody of Fire is a male fronted symhonic (power) metal/neoclassical metal band from Italy. Generally speaking, power metal influenced symphonic metal is more often than not fronted by male singers while goth metal influenced symphonic metal is more often than not female fronted.
Kamelot are a pretty clear goth influenced male-led symphonic band with plenty on the side closer to power metal as you mention (where i'd put rhapsody TBH)
I'm so happy to see someone else talking about this, it ticks off a lot of feelings I had as an AFAB egg getting into metal subculture and the exhaustingly insecure cishet men that tried, and failed, to assimilate me into its gender roles and nebulous, aimless ideas of Resistance that completely ignored the targets of it within their own community; I can't tell you how many people within that social group alone had engaged in gross and awful behaviors, only to engage in apologia and victim blaming like they did in every abuse case they read about in the media. It's also worth talking about how gender diverse performers within the genre have both presented themselves and have been received by listeners - I'm thinking mostly of how Mina Caputo, in spite of the fanbase shit-talking and harassment towards her, stood firm in her position as Life Of Agony's lead vocalist. One other case I found interesting was that of Amalie Bruun, a Danish female musician who fronts the black metal band Myrkur and received public backlash for the categorization that platforms which promoted her gave her as a "one-woman metal band", acting dismissive of all of her artistry because of her collaboration with members of other well-established bands such as Ulver and Behemoth, only for her to then, years later, tap into work inspired by Varg Vikernes of all people. It bears the question of how one can use their profile in the subculture's wide media sphere as a symbol of Girlbossing until other, more harmful ideologies are brought to the surface and subtly prompted *through* that girlbossing. Anyway a lot of this was just my surface thoughts about the subculture and were kind of all over the place, so please forgive the shifts in subject. This video tapped into a black hole of discourse on metal that I've been waiting so long to voice my thoughts on, but never got the opportunity. Thank you!
Literally watched this video to hear someone else gush about Maria Brink and In This Moment. Years ago I was looking for a new metal artist, preferrably not men, and found In This Moment with Big Bad Wolf. And I've got to say I loved it. Fast-forward damn near ten years and I'm jammin to Maria Brink hard core damn near all the time.
I played "the idiot guitar" in a glam rock band back when I was in high school. The rest of the band were guys. We won a local battle of the bands and got to record three songs as an award. The guys tried to get another guy to record bass in studio because they believed I wouldn't be able to play the lines I came up with 😂 After a huge argument, I was "allowed" in the studio. Left the bend after the recording sessions. Fuck em.
Kittie is an example of a phenominal all female metal band that really deserves their flowers and have been mostly forgotten about. And even when they came out, they were portrayed in the media as being contemporaries with Britney Spears and The Spice Girls even though they had no resemblance whatsoever to those artists.
Great video! Thank you for showing the trailblazers I’ve never heard of, even as someone that is pretty in tune with up and coming artists. I’m also feeling very encouraged by the amount of diversity I’m hearing not just in metal but other typically male dominated genres, like rock, hip hop, electronic, and experimental music. Someone I’m very surprised I haven’t seen mentioned in the comments is Lingua Ignota. Her music is some of the most powerful and heavy stuff I’ve ever experienced, to the point where I can really only listen to it once in a while. Her most recent album is mainly focused on the emotional and sexual abuse she received from another well known experimental artist. It is a deeply heart wrenching listen that I definitely think is worth checking out.
I tend to think of Blind Guardian pretty regularly when I think of symphonic metal, but that may be because I was introduced to the band via And Then There Was Silence. I know most would classify them as power metal or prog, but power metal is often played with symphonics and prog also has a heavy overlap with symphonic. It always feels like an attempt to dodge classifying them as symphonic simply because they are men, which frankly, only adds to your point. Edit after finishing: Thanks for the Precious Child recommendation!
I actually thought of Avantasia and was surprised that they weren't mentioned given their frequent collaborations with vocalists of other power metal bands
...which is highly ironic since they literally put out a symphonic album a couple years ago - as in, original compositions performed by a classical orchestra. It's great, by the way!
Honestly I think a kind of sad factor in why all female metal bands are so popular in Japan is because they are pretty, like I am a lesbian mess in the vicinity of Lovebites, and it plays into their existing ‘idol’ culture of stanning female artists you’re the most attracted to Granted I also love seeing Lovebites femininity and pretty dresses embraced in combination with their powerful sound, as I find it to be empowering and a showcase of ‘powerful femininity’ in opposition to the norm that masculinity is power. So there is definitely appeal outside that context, for women at least.
I lowkey wanna make a similar video about prog rock cause like??? its always been really weird to me how that has been an almost exclusively male genre when so much of the aesthetic is so flamboyant and the lyrics are so emotional. Peter Gabriel singing all those songs about gender swaps and water nymphs really did a number on my gender as a kid
I'm a white trans guy who's not really that into metal but I'm open to it. This video really opened my eyes to the genre and exposed me to some artist that I might enjoy. this channel is so underrated. You deserve a lot more recognition than you are getting.
Fantastic to see you back and what a return! I am not really into metal but this video's intelligent and compelling content really captured and held my attention (that and also Archenemy are pure class). Thanks a lot!
@@Shonalika I think the choice to start with the discussion on the 'metal aesthetic' works well to ease you in. It's something that even being outside the scene, I am well aware of. Then that contradiction between the core rebellion and subversiveness of metal and the masculine hegemony in the genre really adds a tension that drives the whole video so well. It's made me interested to listen to some of the music and, thanks to you, I know some good places to start!!
What an absolute delight to see you again! My terrible attention span was held entirely through this. In this Moment AND Emilie Autumn in the same essay? YAY!
Finland having a massive metal scene there is also fairly big sub-scene of the symphonic metal genre and while as you said, it's much more female dominated than the other sub genres, there is all men examples. Sonata Arctica (which is huge in Finland and I've heard very popular in Japan too, though I don't think outside them very popular) is usually defined as symphonic power metal, but so is Nightwish, which is very genre defining in symphonic metal and I do think they definitely occupy the same genre however you'd define it, so I'd say they count. In music videos they are often depicted more like any conventional metal band, lead singer emphasized, but not as much as for bands with female lead singer. Tony Kakko, the lead singer, does dress up when performing in ways that are typical for men in metal genre, but it's often more colorful, more over the top and I'd say weird than what's typical. (Fishnet shirts are definitely one of his go to items.) Their themes in their music though is very similar to the rest of the genre, having a lot more themes usually considered femine (romance etc). Apocalyptica is also definitely symphonic metal, but they don't have a singer, so they don't even fit the general band mold. Then there's Ensiferum, which more folk metal mixed with symphonic metal and in heaviness veers on the side of death metal, and Children of Bodom, which is symphonic death metal, and yeah they don't exactly fit that well, since they are heavier than the typical symphonic metal with female lead singer. As a symphonic metal connoseur I'd defend it from the "accusations" that it's less complex and technical than other sub genres. The hits from the genre tend to be the simplest songs they have and often their music tends to be highly technical. Nightiwish is definitely on the more technical side of the genre with the wast majority of their music, but most bands of the genre are also very technical and experimental musically. (I know it's not a requirement for good music, I just think the image these bands have is stained by misogyny of the general public and they are assumed and talk about being less technical, while that is not true, simply because of the image people have of "women's music")
A hugely important band to my youth as a Pagan recently leaving my families Mennonite faith, a woman, a Slav, and a metal head, was the Russian blackened folk metal band, Arkona. There's also Grai, who I found later but they are absolutely solid. I feel like both bands have only become heavier with time, Arkonas Khram and Grais Ashes lean heavily into old dark Slavic witchcraft, using it as a personal expression of feminine rebellion from society, religion, and patriarchal branches of Slavic Paganism, it's amazing👏
I always feel obliged to leave a comment on videos, especially great work like this one from creators I haven't heard of yet. So it's only tangentially connected, but as a local stagehand I've worked In This Moment shows many times. While some of the larger set pieces can be a finger crushing hazard, the band and crew is an absolute delight to work with and the intensely theatrical performance is amazing. If you get a chance to see this band you should do it.
Howdy! I'm a queer nonbinary bassist and vocalist who plays in a death metal and mathcore band. I really appreciate you taking the time to put this video together. I am AMAB and in my childhood I resonated with metal and appreciated it a lot. A part of me liked it due to its masculinity as I felt like I could use it to wave off any questions around me being queer or in any way effeminate through it, but it also gave me the strength to come to terms with myself in my own way. One thing led to another and eventually I found myself getting into extreme genres, particularly death metal. I felt a connection with the music as it felt like a very raw expression of emotion. I ultimately ended up liking these more extreme genres much more than traditional heavy metal. Not to say I think sabbath, maiden, or any other big metal band are bad, they just failed to hit me emotionally and I always wanted something a little more liberating. I think part of that was due to me seeing them as codified and accepted as mainstream and associated with a kind of masculinity I found restrictive and painful. Whereas death metal had this outlier property to it that I felt a kinship with. It is a genre with a sizable opposition to societal norms. One that looked at the world and criticized it in a visceral and raw manner. Through the genre's questioning of religious hegemony I found myself becoming more accepting of my own sexuality that was so painful for so long. In particular it helped a lot that people like Paul Masvidal and Sean Reinhardt of the bands Cynic and Death were prominent queer individuals in the genre. After coming to terms with my own sexuality I began to question what it meant to be a "man" and whether it was something I wanted. Being seen as a man was always one of those things that never felt quite right. It was associated with feelings of suppression, inferiority, and anger that I hated. To be honest I'm still working through how I do identify. I came from a very religious and conservative family so I'm a little slow to start but music has given me an opportunity to express myself and explore ways of gender expression I am more comfortable with (if you consider 20 old). I just feel incredibly comfortable wearing a skirt and telling the world exactly how I feel on a stage more so than day to day life. And death metal, and mathcore are two genres that have allowed me to do that. And the atmosphere of these genres and the openly leftist lean of most hardcore/local extreme metal bands helps a lot with that.
And here a random recommendation: The Japanese Death Metal Band Shadow. Their singer was female and they started before Angela joined Arch Enemy. Unfortunately they only have two albums (one of which I own in physical form 😂) plus a demo. They are on Spotify and I recommend listening to the track Eden. It's really good Melodic Death Metal that can assert oneself against the old In Flames stuff 😀
I'm so glad to have had this randomly recommended to me! Even as a woman in my late 20s, I still encounter the gender gatekeeping in metal/hardcore communities. When I was a young teen, I really struggled with feeling like I had to fit in better with the metal community because some of the metal bands I listened to apparently weren't "real" metal according to certain people due to a lot of the listeners being female. Then when it came to the fashion I wore, I felt more at home with the metal community and other subcultures since I looked like one of them. However, I found that I was objectified and sexualized as a teen girl in those spaces as well as by people outside of those communities who made fun of the fashion style I wore. I've grown up to no longer care about it, but it was such a hard place to be in where I felt like an unequal insider.
On the topic of female metal vocalists, shout outs to Jinjer for bringing out the worst and the best of Metal fans. The viral success of their Pisces live session video got so popular that we can find every type of reaction to their great song. It's quickly obvious that most of the people are doing 😯just because she's a woman who can go from soulful clean singing to deep growls. It's more a spectacle rather than appreciation of her and the band. But their fanbase often outweighs the spectacle in the reactions to their songs. They are largely heralded as great performers and a flagship band for heavy music. Tatiana is simply a great musician among great musicians.
I’m glad things are shifting. I’m going to a show in a couple months headlined by Morbid Angel but the only band I’m going to for is Crypta, an all female Brazilian blackened death metal band; and they’ve gained huge status in the global scene because they’re so good and most of the metal community is over women being treated as a gimmick or oddity. Like the Love Bites video you mention they also have a video that flips the classic video trope, where it cuts between the band playing and a guy just kinda walking around
It is interesting how restrictive the metal scene could also be. I'm a trans woman, but I didn't dare experiment with gender aside from growing out my hair. In my surroundings there was a lot of performative loathing of a lot of bands that had men perform more femininely so I never looked into it (The exception being Twisted Sister, for some reason). Hell, in hindsight I used metal as a way to armor my closet. I can totally relate to how revelatory my first encounter with In This Moment was. I was already out by then, otherwise I never would have looked them up (part of armoring the closet: Don't show a traceable interest in anything that could be considered 'not-manly'. This was more important that actually being interested in things that were considered manly). Similarly when I first heard Jinjer. Hearing women pull such things with their voices really helps whenever I feel dysphoric about my own voice. The unbridled rage they express just hits me harder than the performative anger of a lot of other metal bands. It's funny that performative anger is so big in a genre that claims to be about authenticity. Big fan of Scardust. More 'traditional' in group composition etc, but by the gods Noa Gruman can sing (And her look in the clip for arrowhead is just pure gender envy for me. Love it). Anyway, loved the video. Would love a more in-depth video on Rob Halford (the one man who can pull of a tinfoil bathrobe, IMO). And now I'm going to look into this Emilie Autumn person.
Shoutout to King Woman, Chealsea Wolfe, Anna Von Hausswolff and Emma Ruth Rundle for carving out a space for women within doom metal/stoner rock types of music. I also really like Oathbreaker - witchy, blackened hardcore - and True Widow - a mix of slowcore/shoegaze and doom metal.
I remember a male friend of mine said something about not liking Otep because the songs were all about the leads trauma. Same dude loved Korn. It bothered the crap out of me at the time, but I couldn't quite voice why. Now I know that it is the hypocrisy and inherent misogyny that bothered me, even though I had boatloads of internalized misogyny I was still carrying at the time.
Brilliant video! I've been a metalhead since my late teens, and have gravitated to Power and Epic Doom Metal as my favourites. I've also been playing bass for almost 3 years now, so thanks for that little acknowledgement ;) I felt that Metal was extremely empowering at a time where I was feeling powerless, especially with the epic fantasy heroics of bands like Manowar, Hammerfall, and Rhapsody (Of Fire). It's only later in my 20s when I started to understand feminism that the toxic masculinity of bands like Manowar started to show. Power Metal has a real issue with being a masculine-centred power fantasy, with damsels in distress and claiming women as objects. As much as I love to sing along to Manowar's song "Hail and Kill", the line about raping women left a sour taste in my mouth because it's a subject that is actually trivialized in real life - as opposed to historical bloodshed and conquest. There's also this obsession with gatekeeping "True Metal", as opposed to "False Metal" which isn't well defined at all. The "All Men Play on 10" thing may be a statement of personal power and getting the most out of metal, but it also forgets to mention how not-manly it is to get hearing damage (and I say this as a deaf person). Queer culture is something I've been looking for in metal for ages now, and don't see much of it at all. Rob Halford was one of the first gay celebrities I knew, and introduced me to the concept of gays being, y'know, people (what a concept, amirite?). I fully recognise the paradox of hair metal being extremely feminine in its extravagance, yet also very misogynistic at the same time, for reasons you pointed out. Now I'm an out non-binary transfem who's eager to make my own metal music with a queer theme... with the problem being that I suck at songwriting. It's one of my new year's resolutions to finally make my own basslines, as I've learned so much from playing bass as one of my primary hobbies. Thank you for this insight and analysis into my favourite genre of music! You rock! \m/
I only noticed you were gone when you came back. I don't subscribe to any TH-cam channel so I rely on my piss poor memory when the algorithm fails to show me new content from creators I like. Glad to see new material from you.
Lacrimosa is pretty big in the symphonic/gothic metal, but they're very german, even omitted from many english lists. And while they feature many female vocal parts, the main songwriter Tilo Wolff is the main singer. Furthermore, I feel like Symphonic metal has been defined as "female fronted softer metal" in the stereotype and popular zeitgeist, onto which many then built onto while closely related styles have been pushed into other genres because they're more male centered. Examples would be the Germans bands Blind Guardian, Edguy, Avantasia, that are generally considered power metal or "Opera metal" (somebody explain how that is not symphonic, please...), and the huge amount of gothic metal bands that feature heavy classical elements with deeper voices. PS: love that top you're wearing, quite jealous.
One thing that sounded strange for me, but easy to undestand from a critical analitycal point of view, was the "anger" is not an emotion. For me metal was and is a way to connect to my repressed emotions, and if not deal with them, realise that they are there and let them out for a little bit. I think for many people music plays this role in their life. So seeing music as logical and not emotional sounds funny and jaring. As I have no talent and ability to judge music on a technical level I view it only in the "does it make me feel" way
In the vein of In This Moment, they have collaborated and toured with two of my other absolute favorites: The Pretty Reckless and Halestorm. ON ITM's 2020 album "Mother", they did a cover of Queen's "We Will Rock You" with the singers of both bands and it never ceases to get me to crank the volume any time it comes on! Absolute chills every time!
omg you are just amazing!!! this video came up on my recommended page and i WAS HOOKED. i have the like worst attention span in the world and this was perfect!!! TYSM 🥺💜
It's awesome to have you back! This is one of the best videos on heavy metal in general I've ever seen. You articulate ideas I've had about the genre but I never thought to articulate them myself for whatever reason haha As a bi person, I hope you do a follow up to this talking about the more queer metal influenced stuff like the end of this video. A Maria Brink video would be awesome too. When she screams you feel it cause she lived it! And I'm a big In This Moment fan, and I started listening to the Nova Twins for a year now. It was great seeing you talk about both. Whatever you choose to do next I'll watch it cause you're awesome and you engage with stuff in such a fun and meaningful way!
this video is amazing!!!!!!!!!! oh my god it's a brilliantly constructed video essay and also it is so VALIDATING to hear someone else saying all of this. the statistics you mentioned (97% of people in metal are men, 21% of the billboard top 100 are non-men, 50% of the roles women occupy in metal being vocals, etc) are totally getting brought up in conversations with dickheads in the future. i was starting to wonder if they were right and i was just inadvertently ignoring lots of the contributions of women in metal but NO IT WAS THEM WHO ARE WRONG!!!! this is a very exciting fact and i cant wait to make several men in my life feel very small. it is depressing that there are so few non-men in metal, instrumentalists or otherwise, and i am going to continue doing my absolute best to convince my friends to learn instruments and support the bands in my local scene who are doing cool shit. this convinced me to check out arch enemy and in this moment and emilie autumn. i love this video
Really cool video on a topic that I think needs a lot more coverage, no matter how you slice it! Bravo! Now, being a man myself and a metalhead I kinda never gravitated towards the bands and genres you analyzed in this video because I found them a bit "surface level" (whatever that means for you all). My "refuge" was the darker and more abstract or even alternative types of metal genres that you have not talked about. I would've loved a gender study on genres like death, doom or black metal, but I also take in consideration the title of your video: "gender, power and heavy metal" which could and at the same time does not have to cover the stuff I mentioned above. Coming back to the "gendered" styles of metal I always avoided, I had two personal reasons: 1. I did not care for the music (heavy, power, goth, folk, symphonic), 2. I found that the more "gender bending" dudes were at their core misogynist and queerphobic, and that the women portrayed in these genres were there solely on the basis of their sex appeal (with some bands I would argue I am right, with others that I am wrong). Somehow, if I wanted cool gender bending music or great female driven music I would always search outside of mainstream metal (and maybe metal as a whole) and listen to industrial, punk, electronic music, r&b or soul. Also, I found that at more underground metal shows the crowds were more diverse and inclusive, which was beautiful. Which leads me to... ... what I wanted to do in this comment is to shout out some metal bands with non-dude artists in them, throughout genres not covered by you and that I find deserve all the praise for their talent and who present themselves in a very authentic way. The more underground scene is very vibrant and there are a lot of talented women and queer people (playing guitars, drums, bass, vocals, synths, cellos, etc) that deserve recognition and that are actually very influential and acknowledged in this scene (what I like to call the "Bands that play Roadburn Festival scene"). I am talking about bands like Brutus, GGGOLDDD, Lingua Ignota, Earth, Chelsea Wolfe, Anna von Hausswolff, Liturgy, Boris, Melt Banana, Vile Creature, Messa, Thorr's Hammer, Hulder, Midwife, Ashenspire, Otoboke Beaver, Bismuth, Pupil Slicer, King Woman, SeeYouSpaceCowboy, Wolves in the Throne Room, Code Orange, Baroness, Jo Quail, Mono, Heilung, Myrkur, Pharmakon, Emma Ruth Rundle, A. A. Williams, Oathbreaker, Julie Christmass and I will stop counting here. For me metal was about rebellion and experiments (musical and social ones) and this rule bending was always more interesting to me when digging through the underground where one can find a lot of beautifully gifted and powerful voices that help the movement progress and one has to be blind in order to ignore that a lot of women and queer people are some of the most important voices in this metal underground phenomenon. It is vital to understand the mass movement enabled by heavy, glam, power, symphonic or nu-metal (the more popular genres) and how problematic some of its parts are, parts that trickle down to the underground too, but I wanted to showcase the other side of the game and to list some of the modern metal pioneers who are not dudes. Now, my perspective may be thwarted (I am a dude after all), but maybe some of you folk find some of the artists mentioned above inspiring and cool. I deeply understand the need for representation and diversity, but my limited perception is somewhat critical to the more mainstream metal artists. Thanks for reading and if you wanna share other cool bands, please do! One love! \m/
A fascinating video, I'm a massive fan of metal and I found elements of this video disheartening, but I have hope for the future of the genre. I always think of metal as an open space and I wish that was reflected in the artists inhabiting the space.
I'm a trans woman. Pre-transition in my teen years I enjoyed metal and I feel it hit where I was in my gender. The gay coding appealed to me and I started to develop androgynous aesthetic. It allowed me to be empowered as a feminine looking male. I feel metal being ultimately veiled in masculinity/patriarchy allowed me to cling onto being cis when I wasn't yet ready to accept I was a trans. (H.I.M was my favourite band haha)
I love that you mentioned Nova Twins. I’ve been listening to them for almost a year, and they’re one of my favorite groups right now. They’re music is so unique, I can honestly say I’ve never heard anything else like it.
Amazing Video. Sad not to hear Tatiana Shmayluk(jinjer) or Courtney LaPlante(spiritbox) mentioned, as two of the best vocalists in the space for both cleans and screams (Courtney especially), but regardless of that I'm beyond glad to see a video about this pop into my recommended. Time to check out your music to see if I like *all* the art that you make, not just the videos. I hope you have an amazing day.
Glad to see you back! I may not have ever been a huge metal fan, but I'm always a fan of seeing people get into it with things they're passionate about, so really enjoyed this one.
the pure passion emminating from this video was so lovely, and managed to get me intrested in a topic i wouldnt be otherwise (also! the video you made where you mentioned half finger, sholder length gloves changed my life in both having a cool peice of fashon and having something that helps me soothe some of my frequent sensory issues)
Did you, one of my favourites content creator, release a video about music, gender and one of my favorite bands and the best diva I'll ever worship Maria Brink? THANK YOU
22:40 I’m struck while listening to the breakdown about HIM by my specific experience which I know was not representative. As a cis man who was and is deeply into Metal the main thing I loved the most about HIM was that they approached love with a more serious ambition which was also why I loved Type O Negative’s October Rust. Though in both cases your still right, there was always something messed up injected into the topic. Even so, those works have a notable tonal shift towards treating romance as a topic perfectly suited to metal.
This was an incredibly well made and researched video. I have too many emotions and thoughts swirling around for a single comment, but this video made me realize that I probably can thank metal for accepting my own pansexuality. Since I didn't even start questioning my sexuality until 19-20yo, it was tough to unlearn a lot of the old-school ideas of masculinity ingrained into me. It took a long time, but I'm finally at a point where I can be comfortable enjoying some traditionally masculine things (beer, violent video games, metal, etc.) while simultaneously embracing my more feminine/queer side. The comfort in rebellion that metal instilled into me probably helped me accept these clashes to norms. Thank you for making this video. You have a new fan (who's still trying to process the emotions this video stirred!)
It's great to see you back! I don't listen to metal, but I always love a good video essay on a niche topic from someone who's passionate about it. The phenomenon you talked about of women only being aloud into metal when they inhabit a different and specifically feminine role explains something I've noticed when trying to find sea shanties sung by someone (anyone, ever, please, where are they?) who is in some way not a cishet white man. Until now, I'd just been vaguely annoyed at myself that I don't like the versions sung by women, but thinking back, those versions are all sung in a completely different style from that of a typical sea shanty -- much more delicate and meandering. There are one or two examples I can think of with a woman vocalist who sang the same as any other shanty singer, and I did like those. I wonder how many other genres are affected by that.
Hi! The story of how you discovered Arch Enemy mirrors my own; found out about them through a sampler from a metal magazine (Rock Hard) and was surprised their singer was a woman. In the coming years, I would show unsuspcting friends of mine the first one or two songs from the Tyrants of the Rising Sun live DVD just to check on their reaction. I remember some of my friends being shocked, others amazed when Angela enters the stage (rewatched it just now and it's still an awesome entrance). Unfortunately, I also remember the many times at festivals when bands with female band members (including Arch Enemy) were met with shouts of "take off your clothes" from male audience members. I feel like this has died down over the last decade or so, but it's been a couple of years since I've attended a metal festival. Anyway, what a great video essay! I need to admit that you got me with In This Moment, as I remember watching a video a couple of years ago that made me uncomfortable (it probably was Blood, but I don't recall it 100%). I'm a (mostly) straight white cis dude, so the reasons you laid out in your essay why it rubbed me the wrong way checks out. However, since then I've learned and grown a lot both musically as well as a person, so I will give it another chance. As far as recommendations go, I'm afraid that there isn't much I have to offer in terms of gender-bending metal. I've been a low-key fan of Crypta, an all-female thrash metal band from Brazil for a while, but I don't know if that's subversive enough. Same with Oceans of Slumber. Anyway, thanks for the video!
I think this is my favourite video you’ve done. I had no idea other people had had the same experience of showing cis het guy an In This Moment video and them fully shutting down. That seems like such a specific thing to have occurred, but that it’s part of a pattern is wild.
If you want a group with a fantastic female guitarist, check out Baroness. The current lead guitarist is Gina Gleason. It’s sort of an Arch Enemy situation in that she replaced a guy. She’s only been on one of their albums so far (called Gold and Grey), but there’s buzz that a new one will be out this year.
Aaah I wish you would have also talked about Otep 😀 I know some people don't like the band but not only is Otep one of the few gay women in the genre, she has also *always* been unapologetically feminist with anarchist/leftist leanings. Like, she had lyrics such as "it's revolution, us against the patriarchy" since the year 2000. People should hear "Menocide" or "March of the Martyrs" by her. She also has some amazing LGBT anthems such as "Rise, Rebel, Resist" or "Fists Fall". She's honestly amazing 😔
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I know it was mostly a joke, but "this is your life and you have every right to waste it" is actually really important advice
Actually thank you for pointing it out - it flew by me while I watched it, but actually, yeah. I'm gonna put it on a post-it somewhere - it's just the advice I need at this point in my life. Thanks!
@@LilayM it's always nice to hear something I did is making a positive impact on someone's life. Thank you for telling me
One time in an asexual subreddit, there was a post asking what people's favorite music genres were. The vast majority said metal. Some people explained this by saying that it was refreshing for asexuals and aromantics to have a music genre that wasn't saturated with love songs and songs about sex. I'm not a metal fan myself, but I found that pretty interesting.
Edit: EMELIE AUTUMN IS ASEXUAL
Edit: Actually no she isn't; she said she just thought she was asexual bc she "had never been with anyone who was any good at it" (which isn't really what asexual means but whatever, it's her identity.)
YEEES!!! I'm ace and stand by this!
Yooo I never thought about it this way.
I'm not ace but my mother is, and we're both mad Metal fans. I'm gonna pass this onto them and see what they think
That makes a lot of sense for me. However, The Cure's romantic poetry will always have a place in my heart.
I've seen this talked about when trying to find artists whose songs aren't about romance and sex. Unfortunately, whatever I may think of metal, it's a firm "no" from my sensory issues. Still very neat!
Yep I'm asexual and metal has been my favourite genre for years because of that
I'm a cis woman. I remember the first time my friend showed me In This Moment and honestly I was kind of uncomfortable. Initially I thought it was the sound, since I hadn't listened to much of that genre before. But it was also something about Maria's presence in the videos that made me a bit uneasy, and I wasn't sure why. I think something about it felt so scandelous. She wasn't super feminine like Amy Lee, or "one of the guys" like Lzzy Hale, but she managed to re-appropriate her femininity in a way that was powerful. I think ITM is exactly what metal should be - shocking, provocative, but empowering. I love ITM now - saw them in concert with that same friend, one of my favourite gigs ever.
Y'know this post made me just wanna tack something on. Even though none of the members of ITM are trans, a lot of ITM to me feels very aligned with transfemininity. A great deal of it is informed by Maria's own experience with slut-shaming, sexual violence, being an underage mother etc, but the general themes, encapsulated in the line from Whore "you love me for everything you hate me for" feels so aligned with that experience - being sexualised to the extent that you're barely seen as human, desired and yet seen as a figure of repulsion. I don't think it's a coincidence that people compare her to a Metal Lady Gaga, who in herself is a queer icon whose status as an "authentic woman" was interrogated to hell and back way back in the day. There's something about ITM that feels so inherently queer with that sense of embracing "impure" femininity, even though that likely wasn't the original authorial intention
Idk. I'm a big queer ITM simp so take this with a grain of salt. That's just what I take from it 🤷
@@ashergibson9969 I love that comparison actually! I remember hearing people comment (again, back in the day) that Lady Gaga was "very sexual, but not sexy" - especially from straight men. I think it was that same unease surrounding authoritative women that were outside the norm of what was usually depicted in the male gaze, and a similar thing goes for Maria. It's sexuality that doesn't exist just to appeal to the traditional male fantasy, instead it's something that actually acknowledges female autonomy.
It's an especially important depiction for trans women too, whose status as women are often reserved for their appeal to male sexuality, rather than their own identity.
Super interesting to think about, I think haha
@@mayisuppose I love both of these comments!!
@@mayisuppose I think it comes down to most men, especially cishets, are intimidated by a woman or femme presenting individual who owns and is in control of their sexuality. Because then it's much harder to take that sexuality and use it as a weapon against them. It disempowers men, and that's a terrifying idea to a fragile concept of masculinity.
@@mayisuppose you're a woman
Stop making up words.
"Anger is not an emotion, so metal is not emotional" was a view that caught me off-guard. As a cis man, I've never thought of metal as unemotional. If anything, it resonated with the emotions I had when I was young.
I'm autistic, and have trouble with identifying and naming emotions. Anger was one of a few emotions I *could* identify and name in my own experience. Interestingly, I thought that those were the only emotions I had, or was capable of. And I wonder how common this experience is with men, that they don't have emotions because they can't recognize them, and thus, anger can't be one. Or how much of it is just "I'm reasonable, shut up or I'll kick your ass!"
I later learned that metal resonated with, and negated the negative feelings out of me, making me feel better. It would take time for me to recognize positive feelings, though.
Wow, same experience for me.
Same boat, sometimes blasting nasty shit and screaming along as loud as you can is super cathartic. Same reason I listen to machine girl
As somebody in their 30s who has listened to metal since he was 15, the idea that metal (or any form of music or art) is unemotional is laughable. You can't create good art without passion.
Anger isn't an emotion? I'm really surprised because metal is really emotional for me including songs that would evoke anger.
I totally agree metal is emotional as f and it's what I love about it! I think we rationalize our decision-making more than making a decision on emotion most of the time.
One of Judas Priest's most cleverly subversive details IMO is that while they had a lot of songs about sex and/or romance, nearly every single one of them is gender-neutral, using only "me" and "you" descriptors and never making direct descriptions of the other person's physical form that would clue the audience in to their gender. It's likely another way for Rob to express his homosexuality discreetly, but it also just serves to make their songs feel more accessible to a wider range of identities than something like "Girls Girls Girls".
Defenders of the Faith 😂
Diamonds and Rust is studded with vague homoerotic energy
Grinder is the best one for sure lmao
I love the tiny number of 'Turbo' promo photos where Halford's got a woman with him. He is so clearly counting the seconds until he can stop pretending he's heterosexual.
Lemmy side every one knew rob was gay in the music scen.
I’m a female fronted symphonic metal SUPERFAN, I wrote a Wikipedia list of every female fronted metal band and wrote insanely long lists as a teenager (I didn’t source anything so it got taken down) and seeing this made makes me sooooo happy. I’m a drag queen who sings female fronted symphonic metal and attempting to gain traction in the metal world and not drag world and I felt like that would be something you’d enjoy the thought of happening. In this Moment and After Forever are my biggest inspo’s vocally and aesthetically
Same. ♡♡♡
I love after forever. I hope you're sucessful!!
Keep at it, you’re on a super cool idea.
any place I could find your work?
That’s so cool! As someone who made similar list, and who’s doing a drag performance to a Nightwish song this coming Friday, I definitely have to check your stuff out!
hi everyone I'm very happy to be back with what is by FAR my favourite video I've ever made (which I guess is also how it ended up so long x____X) drop me your recommendations for your favourite gender-squiffy metal/metal-influenced music!
Okay well if you ask like that I guess I can recommend Ashenspire, which is a Scottish avant-garde metal band full of non-men and other men genders. Their lead singer, at least at live shows, is a trans guy. They encapsulate the feeling of British capitalist decay in ways I never deemed possible. Sophie from Mars used one of their songs as an outro on their latest video. I can't stop raving about them
The songs I've probably been getting the biggest kicks out of recently for suggesting gender-variant characters in the lyrics are "Invisible" by Dio and "Alkaline" by Sleep Token.
I've also enjoyed discovering the following bands featuring at least one non-cismale member not mentioned in your video
Employed To Serve
Svalbard
Vile Creature (bonus - Vic is non-binary)
Body Void (bonus - Willow Ryan is non-binary)
Sanguisugabogg (bonus - Cameron Boggs is non-binary)
SeeYouSpaceCowboy (bonus - Connie Sgarbossa is trans)
Against Me! (No, I don't care if they're punk, Laura Jane Grace is a trans icon)
Maximum The Hormone
Dark Sarah
Yousei Teikoku
Defences
Once Human
King Witch
Amberian Dawn
Sanhedrin
Cage Fight
Ithaca
BleedSkin
Giant Walker
Surma
Weaponry (bonus - Rivers is non-binary)
Gwyndedd
Jawless
Dana Dentata (more horrorcore than outright metal, but the aesthetics are there)
Nervosa
Crypta
Capra
Sorceress Of Sin
Shadowkeep (shameless plug - I actually work with the guitarists from this band in a multi-band tribute act called Judas Rising)
Regulus
You know what? I'm just gonna plug my own band, Malisma (@malismaband). We've put out two EP's thus far. While I'm queer as fuck, our main songwriter, guitarist, keyboardist, lyricist, producer and pretty much anything else apart from drums, bassguitar and singing is a trans woman. The way I see it, it's her project and the rest of us are just helping her out :P
You might enjoy Crucified Barbara. Was all girls band who played what I would call "party rock" kinda in the one of boys style but also vaguely addressing gender stuff. Also, they have a song about killing rapists, soooo...
Not a recommendation, but do you think it might be easier on you physically to do occasional conversational livestreams? You could have some friends and/or kofi supporters moderate a chat if necessary, and just talk about topics like this where you have enough thoughts that you don’t necessarily need a script for there to be interesting discussion. Or about stuff in the news. Or just Q&A.
Sorry lol I just want to see more of you but in the most accommodating way possible and only if it's good for you
As a genderfluid individual who has loved metal all their life, I never considered metal to be a genre devoid of emotion! I actually had a realization at some point that emotion and passion was the thing that I mainly looked for in music, whether metal or not. Maybe you could do a future video on this topic?
you might like lingua ignota then if you’re not already familiar, she makes some of the most emotionally gripping music i’ve ever heard
Exactly. For me metal is just a type of emotion I'm looking in music for sometimes.
I suspect this is a 'formal, fancy-pants, music theory' form of 'emotion'. As described at the start of the video a chord theoretically has 3 notes, one of those notes is used to set the 'emotion' of the chord. Happy or Sad. Metal, typically, does not use these and thus is 'emotionless' because it does not have the Happy or Sad signifier of traditional musical theory.
Saying metal has no emotion is nonsense on its face. While typically it might have a limited range of emotions being expressed (angry, horny, angsty); even that doesn't hold true when you start listening to more and more bands (Pain Remains for example is a 3 song mini-epic covering a wide range of emotions in response to the death of a loved one). What Metal really has as a strength is the *amount* its emotions are expressed. You're shouting, screaming, wailing, growling, sustaining that note - and thus the emotion - loud and long and powerfully.
As a genre metal can, of course, do subtle. It's a vast array of bands and subgenres and music across 50+ years. Of course there's variance. But the main draw for me, personally, in metal is just how strongly the emotions are felt (or, at the least, presented as being felt). It almost doesn't matter *what* emotion the moment is about. What matters is that the band is feeling something with you so much that they have to *scream it into the void*. Which gives you 'social permission' to *scream it right back*.
It's permission to feel your feelings and feel them as strongly as you want to feel them. Plus it sounds so good :D
yeah I definitely didn't mean that *I* consider metal unemotional, but that viewing it as such at least to some degree, by categorising anger as somehow "not," an emotion, was a common way for boys/men to engage with it and emotions in general, particularly in the 2000s when I was growing up. I thought that was clear, especially in the overall context of the video, but a few people seem to have got confused ^^;
@@Shonalika I actually understood that to an extent, but still think it would be an interesting thing to explore. Great video by the way, we love
The Gothic aesthetic while sitting on a super pink couch is absolute perfection. I just love it 🖤
Have to also state my full agreement with what you're saying about gender and perceived authenticity. I've been thinking about getting into singing for the first time in decades. I've always wanted to, and while it's not specifically gender issues that have held me back, I have always had this worry about being taken seriously. Like, I've always loved bass guitar and wish I was better at playing, but I'm not a great guitar player and I honestly just want to focus on singing and creating meaning through lyrics and presentation. Yeah, a lot more women are vocalists but it still seems like there's a double standard even when they conform to what's expected. For a long time I always thought I had to be able to do all these different things myself to be a real musician. I've noticed a lot that women in certain genres, and in music in general, get talked about as though they haven't worked as hard as men do when they find success. If they collaborate with someone on lyrics, it's always certain to get pointed out that they didn't write it alone despite the fact that it isn't uncommon in any way for songs to have multiple writers. If they have a relationship with a man who's also successful they get accused of riding his coattails. Men write songs about their exes all the time, but successful women get called crazy, petty or whiny. Oh, and you'd better get attention and look good, but not too much. I'm really glad I've gotten back into the goth and industrial scene where you can be avant-garde without being accused of lacking substance. I especially appreciate that I've had the opportunity to talk with more underground artists because a lot of what I've noticed is really an issue with the mainstream music industry. Women and woman led groups there are really killing it now and getting the respect they deserve for what they do. There are so many more platforms and options now for getting art out to people who will actually appreciate it.
Shit I keep forgetting I'm colorblind. I thought it was off white the whole video.
I don't see red well. Unless it's a deep red (or burgundy violet) I just see the other colors present. Lighter pinks look white or grey to me x.x
@@SoulDevoured I worked with people in art school who were color blind. It was interesting seeing all the hacks they came up with in color theory. I could totally get why a pale pink would look like off white though.
"The androgyny practiced by performers permits androgyny among fans." This. So much this. I was a baby goth and far far away from coming out as enby when I first heard bands like Evanescence, Nightwish and all those good gothy vibes groups. Ville Valo gave me so much gender envy before I knew what that phrase was. The goth and emo scenes are where I was really able to start experimenting with my presentation. Easier to do when most everyone around you is where the same black eyeliner and lipstick combo. I love Motionless in White's cover of Somebody Told Me. It was a fave of mine in highschool (for gender reasons).
I remember when I was first introduced to Arch Enemy. Same guy who used to draw heartagrams all over his textbooks, which is how I ended up getting into HIM. I think I was hit by that same delight and wonderment as you in finding out women could actually do that.
I slept on In This Moment too. I was buried in the European metal scene and missed a lotta good bands I'm still catching up on. Otep, Huntress (RIP Jill Janus) and The Pretty Reckless were a few exceptions but I mostly listened to stuff like Arkona, Arch Enemy and The Agonist (Alissa White-Gluz's old band).
This was a great video. It reminded me of some old faves and I've got plenty of new recs to check out.
1:14:53 Totally correct. It went to the point that the German domestic intelligence agency started to consider to put the band on a watchlist and to infiltrate the fandom. The song "Links 2,3,4" was a direct reaction to that by the band. The line "Sie wollen mein Herz am rechten Fleck / Doch schau ich dann nach unten weg / Dann schlägt es Links" translates to "They want my heart in the right place / But if I look down at it / Then It is beating left". It's them saying that their hearts are left, not right. The band since then has also repeatedly talked about how they originally came out of the punk scene, displayed support for the LGBTQ+ community on stage and their song Deutschland is nothing but a big statement against nationalism and German nationalism especially. This doesn't bother the far-right fans though, they still go to concerts and buy the albums because they only care about the aesthetics.
I remember there was one interview, where one of them mentioned them beating up nazis during their time in the punk scene. But fascist famously are obsessed with aesthetics and have bad reading comprehension so they'll just ignore that
@Berenice A. N. Barkovitch I respect that. They are doing public service. I have not listened to Varg before, but now I want to.
Thank you for clearing that up. I‘m german and i always thought they were, if not nazis, then far right, so i never listened to them. I may start listening to them
@@blubbernblatzen5807 Es ist manchmal problematisch hier, Rammstein zu hören, wegen genau dieser Annahme.
@@blubbernblatzen5807 as a Brazilian fan, I have this to say: the secret of Rammstein rebellion and Leftist ideals are on the lyrics.
That quote about women being portrayed as "simultaneously angel and witch" is pretty funny to me as someone who likes Angel Witch.
Angelwitch.. totally classic!
As a transfem nb metal musician slowly and painfully coming to terms with the harmful aspects of a community that has been very important to me, this video was nothing short of perfection. With your skill as a video essayist, you definitely deserve more attention and support.
My experience back in the '80s was that a whole lot of people did, in fact, pick up on the gay imagery of Judas Priest, but it was one of those "open secrets" that you didn't really talk about for obvious reasons.
I do remember the controversy over Glam Metal (aka "hair metal" or "spandex metal"), and whether they qualified as metal at all; but mostly the "not metal" side was the minority, usually a small minority. The feminine/androgynous look was popular because, according to most guys in the scene, "girls think it's hot". And IME that was certainly true enough; but I think more than a little of it was also sublimated gender transgression/dysphoria. Misogyny was common, but also seemed to be more of a smokescreen, a way to "fit in" and compensate for the social transgression of the aesthetic, than an actual personal worldview.
Obviously these are just my experiences in my local scene; which was pretty small and crossed over a lot with other small "outsider" scenes like rap, goth, and punk more than most other places.
As for Marilyn Manson's androgyny; nearly all of us just saw it as a second-rate David Bowie Ziggy Stardust rip-off. (A a few folks in my local scene who actually knew Brian before he hit it big, generally described him as pretty much the same sort of abusive creep that we all know him to be now.)
I don't have much in the way of "transgressive" metal to add, since pretty much all of the more recent metal I've been listening to is instrumental prog stuff like Animals as Leaders (although they're definitely unusual in that frontman Tosin Abasi is black (and one of the most brilliant musicians I've ever heard).
I just learned of a new band to check out. I’ve been wanting something instrumental recently.
@@adorabell4253 Their album "The Madness of Many" is some of the best prog metal/math rock I've ever heard.
the idea that it's unusual for a metal musician to be black itself is awful considering how much foundation rock/jazz comes from specifically African American culture and music (but also African, gotta love polyrhythms)
you're still correct in pointing out that it is "unusual" however since that is typically how it is perceived. people have the same reaction about Oceano's vocalist)
having that said, as an Asian, I've unironically actually been told by a (unsurprisingly) cis white straight male that Asians can't be metal, and such, a similar reaction is had when people find out I listen to metal or that the vocalist of Crystal Lake is Asian (well, the entire band is LOL)
Thanks for sharing your experience with the 80s
@@EphemeralTao I'm sure you've already checked out their first album, but my god that shit was fucking incredible, with or without the context of AAL dropping the self-titled in 2009
@@caixiuying8901 So sorry you had to put up with that "Asians can't be metal" bullshit. I mean, Japan has been highly influential in metal since the '80s; and there's so much great stuff coming out from all over east and south Asia.
Some of my favorites are Ningen Isu, Merging Moon, Bloodywood, Voodoo Kungfu, and Tengger Cavalry.
51:09 The band Kamelot came to mind. They’re a symphonic metal with a male vocalist, that does the operatic singing. They’re awesome!
If you like Maria's ability to change her vocals on a whim; check out Tatiana from Jinjer she can gear shift clean to death growl and back on the drop of a dime. Lena from Infected Rain is good too. Totally surprised that OTEP wasn't mentioned.
And Courtney laplante of spiritbox
Suprised Tatiyana from Jinjer wasn't mentioned. She transcends the boundaries between the stereotypical roles that male and female metal vocalists occupy. Effortlessly switching from soaring cleans to hair raising growls. Her lyrics are also very poetic. The performance of Perennial at Wacken Open Air where she's roaring on the stage in a golden yellow tracksuit, completely dominating the show with her presence is a particular stand out moment.
SeeYouSpaceCowboy's lead vocalist is a trans woman and they're one of the best acts in metalcore/hardcore and have been for like 3 years. She alternates between screaming and sass vocals. Awesome stuff.
I always loved metal, but not misogyny. What initially drew me in was a tendency in metal to completely ignore romantic emotions, like you said in the first part of the video, referring to Metallica. When I was young (and also white and cishet male), I was extremely insecure and introverted, and I got frustrated with most pop songs being about romantic love, which I had issues with at the time. Then I really fell in love with the fantasy aspect of metal, high fantasy, sword & sorcery, sci-fi etc, of power metal, but not just power metal.
However, one song that I wanted to bring up specifically was "Better Off Dead" by Cirith Ungol. Funny that it's also a band that over the course of their career made lots of fantasy-themed songs (and their band name is from Lord of the Rings), but particularly on their first album "Frost and Fire", they had more personal lyrics about being an angsty, insecure man.
"Sometimes I take a look at the world
And sometimes I take a look at the girls
I'm just a spectator, I don't get involved
I've got too many problems of my own to solve"
And it resonated with me, a guy in a metal band just being honest about being insecure and not wanting to get involved. There is even a song on the album with love lyrics "Maybe That's Why I love you..." and the lyrics are printed on the album sleeve or CD booklet, but actually it's an instrumental track, as if the singer was so insecure he wasn't sure he could really sing it to do it justice. I've always loved it when metal songs, even within the aesthetics of a masculine metal sound, can show vulnerability. Like Candlemass' "Solitude" or Warlord's "Lost and Lonely Days".
Concerning women in metal, I like Farida Lemouchi of The Devil's Blood from the Netherlands and Dingir of Slutet from Sweden. The latter is a similar example to what you said about Arch Enemy. At first I didn't know the vocalist is a woman. I very rarely look at pictures of musicians anyway. I have no idea what 90% of the people I listen to even look like. In the case of Slutet, the vocalist does sound more feminine than Angela Gossow does though. Her vocal style is also very extreme. At first I didn't understand all the words. I just read the lyrics. Really grim stuff though. I haven't heard the 2020 album yet though. I was going off memory referring to their earlier output. Wow, so, couple examples. Earlier stuff I mentioned, not that extreme (musically and lyrically). That last artist though... very extreme, in both fields.
Okay as a huge Candlemass fan I can add that despite "Solitude" being their most popular, a lot of their songs deal with emotion and I cannot recommend this band enough
Thank you for making this video. I was immersed in underground heavy metal subculture from a really young age and, as a cis woman, I always felt the "sharp edges" of my active part on it, but I wasn't able to put them into words until I had more knowledge about feminism and gender theory - and at that point, I needed to step back from it a little. What you said about masculinity being such a fundamental part of this genre that just existing as a non-man in there was subversive really resonated with me. Such an interesting topic and definetely food for thought!
There's a metal band called SeeYouSpaceCowboy should check em out. I was a hardcore kid (now a hardcore grown-up) and they showed up when I was first discovering my sexuality. Connie (The frontman) is an inspiring person.
Edit: Never thought about that masculine power dynamic and metal being emotionless. Before I discovered metal, I grew up with my mom's 80s r&b and soul playing as she cleaned out apartment. When I became that hardcore kid, I was looking for an emotion other than love and heartbreak with r&b and that was anger in Death Metal. I just can't see someone saying metal is emotionless. Gonna have to ask some friends what they think.
I've never heard or thought of metal as emotionless - quite the opposite, it was the repository and the space for me to share my negative, dark thoughts, like a catharsis; it was therapy. I don't understand what she was saying with that. Everyone I've ever heard of referring to metal has acknowledged powerful emotions and shit like that. That it expresses the pain of alienation and just darker thoughts in general and allowing those thoughts a space to exist. That's how I've always heard it described.
no i agree
Yeah I heard them last year, though they're not a metal band. They're more hardcore.
The genre metalcore is split between hardcore bands and metal ones since metalcore was started by hardcore bands who wanted to add metal influence to their sound and were labelled metallic hardcore aka metalcore. That's what causes the confusion.
Then 2000's bands like As I Lay Dying, Killswitch Engage, Trivium, Shadows Fall, Unearth came around and also got labelled metalcore but sounded more metal and this genre became popular. Other bands like Devil Wears Prada, August Burns Red, Veil of Maya, Architects, ERRA, Of Mice & Men fit into that style of metalcore too. These are more in the metal scene.
SeeYouSpaceCowboy sound more in line with other metallic hardcore bands like Integrity, Converge, Earth Crisis, Botch, Shai Hulad, Hatebreed, Walls of Jericho, Stray From The Path. These are more in the hardcore scene.
Some hardcore fans refer to old style of metalcore as "metallic hardcore" to differentiate it from the mainstream metalcore in the metal scene.
I think it was used ironically. Negative emotions are frowned upon, especially in conservative societies and in this contex anger and the rest are not emotions. Joke's on them, of course.
Just dropped my own SYSC comment, they're so great. One of the best bands in hardcore, full stop.
Wow, this video was a masterclass in genderposting. I would know, since last time I watched one of your videos I was a boy, but a year later and I'm a girl now!
Real good to see you back here, hope the TH-cam thing is kind to you. I'm looking forward to whatever you make next, and hoping you're able to take care of your health as you do so
When I discovered Whore by In This Moment I also got very excited about it and went to show it to my sister. Unfortunately, her husband was sitting beside her and you can imagine how quickly the light disappeared from my eyes when he asked if Maria is a "real woman". Like, man... And he knows I'm trans, so that stung twice as much.
Awesome video btw!!
I literally made an audible sound of joy when I saw this in my feed. I'm so glad to see a new video from you! Also, I'm totally psyched for that EP.
Me too, involuntary “hooray!”
As a white, queer, autistic, transfem person, my first favorite bands and the ones that bridged me into the metal scene as a whole were Evanescence, Delain, Epica and Within Temptation. Before finding them I primarily listened to Avril Lavigne, Beyonce, Madonna and Britney Spears, I never had a taste for earlier metal bands like Aerosmith, AC/DC, Pink Floyd etc. outside of a few specific outlier songs here or there but to this day I have never felt the interest or compulsion to listen to any of them. And when it came to heavier or grungier sounds, I found I really had a hard time adapting to the harsh masculine elements in heavier nonsymphonic bands until a nonbinary AFAB friend of mine taught me to appreciate its taste in artists like KoRn and Otep. My interests from that point spread like wildfire across most genres. I still view early rock mostly with disdain because of the tainted history of misogyny and racism, but I have found myself really drawn to experimental, genre bending artists like Poppy, Linekraft, Psyclon Nine, Dorian Electra and the like. I'm constantly delighted by the absolute feast of variety today's musicians have to offer.
Ok we get it, tradtional hard rock and heavy metal is too macho for you, do not worries, those generes were always intended/composed by and for a male audience who will identify with said topics and style.
@@fighter77weon bait
@@worstusernameintheworld9871 he's gone
Another transfem here with Dio in my veins, I’m finally making an album yay
@@TabithaReminiec3399 No, I am here
As a cis male metalhead for decades, I loved your wideo. To some degree it made me analyze my atraction to this kind of music, especially as I am also an obsessive fan of woman in this genre (more in the style of "one of the boys" than symphonic (to be fair i like Nightwish, just not most of the bands in the symphonic subgenre)), For bands recommended I have Znowhite, a good female vocalist thrash metal band from the eighties, Plasmatics, Vixen an all female band in the style of early Bon Jovi, Doro Pesch, a female vocalist active from the eighties to this day in the more classical heavy metal subgenre, Hellion, Chastain, Halestorm (this one very popular so I'm almost sure you heard of it), Kittie is not my cup of tea, but worth mentioning.
There is also, or at least was the "weinstein" problem in music in general, and also in heavy metal and adjacents too. The story of Runavays for example.
Znowhite indeed.
Chastain, great band. "Ruler of the wasteland" had been played nonstop. I also liked Holy Moses, german thrash metal.
I did keep wondering where Kittie was going to come up.
This honestly makes me so happy, Shonalika! I got news from my parents that one of my childhood cats had to be put to sleep, and she'd been in my life since I was 8. I've been crying all day, this is such a help 💕
oh that sucks that you're having such a rough day :/ glad this was able to help in any way
Eyyy my grandpa died today!
Damn, this video really took me back to being a teenage metalhead girl in the early 2000s. The female fronted metal scene was HUGE but was routinely left out of any compilations, documentaries, lists etc. The genre police would go out of their way to say they weren't "real metal" though they were just as heavy as other metal bands with clean male vocals. Consequentially, us, the female fanbase weren't "real metalheads" either, and instead labelled goths and, later, emos.
Going to shows, guys often assumed we were with a boyfriend, or trying to get with the band. If you insisted you're really there for the music, you got the impromptu music quiz to prove yourself.
Man, what a time that was. I'll never forget when I was asked "oh, so you're a metalhead? Are you the Marilyn Manson and Slipknoit kind or the Nightwish and Enya kind" - the latter said in disdain. Still makes me laugh. Anyway, I'm digressing. Great video! Good to see you're back! :)
I think the Nova Twins example also shows something about how Metal music, no matter how skilled artist are, is not a meritocracy, and the power more successful bands have to decide who they collaborate and tour with can make such a huge difference.
Nova Twins are not only amazing in their own right, but had quite a significant stylistic influence on Bring Me The Horizons Post-Human Survival Horror according to an interview with Oli Sykes (can't recall which one exactly). BMTH have done a big spike of collaborating with a very diverse set of artists, from Amy Lee to Ed Sheeran. But they could very easily have decided to just take the ideas and run, especially knowing that they can associate with very famous, mainstream artists and boost their own exposure that way. But the decision to collaborate - and as a result, platform - Nova Twins makes not only such a huge difference to their careers, but to the landscape of Metal as a whole. Because now they're in public view, how many other young Black women are going to look at the Metal scene and go "holy shit, maybe this is for me!"
In contrast, how many other famous, male-led bands to we see exclusively collaborating with old friends in other, male-led bands, insulating their circle of exposure, keeping their fans' music taste pale, male and stale.
I feel like there is a massive role bigger, particularly male-led bands have in considering how they can use their power to give space to other skilled artists that otherwise wouldn't receive the air-time they deserve
THIS
Absolutely love Maria Brink in In This Moment - and Whore is an amazing video (The Promise though I think is their hottest video). One thing I'd want to say though Maria Brink's voice (imo) is second to someone: Tatiana Shmailyuk of Jinjer (with Pieces as a perfect example) has such an incredible voice with a crazy range. She blows me away. Jinjer's Pieces has almost a TH-cam genre of it's own, that of singing/voice coaches reacting to her performance, and there's the people who have only heard it on the radio who discover that it's one vocalist when finally seeing the video.
Currently a LOT of my metal or metal adjacent playlists heavily feature women - Butcher Babies; Halestorm; (some of) Mushroomhead (Heresy gets a lot of repeat plays); Sumo Cyco; Blackbriar; Skynd; The Pretty Reckless; Devilskin; Starcrawler. However this video has made me think just how many of those have entirely or almost entirely male bands behind a female vocalist - because so many are so prominent as the vocalist in videos I'd never really considered it. As a trans you'd think I'd at least consider/think on/take in gender in my art choices a little more... seems I've been a lazy bones in that regards
Also, I don't know about Rammstein but there's a lot of bands who find themselves with odd followings ThisDangDad mentions that when he was a Cop in L.A. (before he knew better) he'd listen to Rage Against The Machine in his police car, oblivious (at the time!) to which machine they might be raging against...
For all female Metal bands I recommend you check out bands like Kittie, Vixen, Frantic Amber, Nervosa, Crucified Barbara, Matriarch, Gallhammer, Arven, Blackthorn, Girlschool, Burning Witches, Hysterica, Exist Trace, Nemesis, and in general you can find a lot of great all female bands in the Japanese metal scene.
Jinjier also came to mind to me. Pisces is a great song!
I also liked that ThisDangDad video, I really like his perspective in it.
I haven't seen this video yet but I'm soooo happy to see you back here. You are still one of my favourite TH-cam people ever 💜🖤
thank you so much I really appreciate it!!
@@Shonalika Now I've seen the full video and it's yet one of my favourite videos of the year. Just amazing.
Rhapsody of Fire is a male fronted symhonic (power) metal/neoclassical metal band from Italy. Generally speaking, power metal influenced symphonic metal is more often than not fronted by male singers while goth metal influenced symphonic metal is more often than not female fronted.
Kamelot are a pretty clear goth influenced male-led symphonic band with plenty on the side closer to power metal as you mention (where i'd put rhapsody TBH)
I'm so happy to see someone else talking about this, it ticks off a lot of feelings I had as an AFAB egg getting into metal subculture and the exhaustingly insecure cishet men that tried, and failed, to assimilate me into its gender roles and nebulous, aimless ideas of Resistance that completely ignored the targets of it within their own community; I can't tell you how many people within that social group alone had engaged in gross and awful behaviors, only to engage in apologia and victim blaming like they did in every abuse case they read about in the media.
It's also worth talking about how gender diverse performers within the genre have both presented themselves and have been received by listeners - I'm thinking mostly of how Mina Caputo, in spite of the fanbase shit-talking and harassment towards her, stood firm in her position as Life Of Agony's lead vocalist.
One other case I found interesting was that of Amalie Bruun, a Danish female musician who fronts the black metal band Myrkur and received public backlash for the categorization that platforms which promoted her gave her as a "one-woman metal band", acting dismissive of all of her artistry because of her collaboration with members of other well-established bands such as Ulver and Behemoth, only for her to then, years later, tap into work inspired by Varg Vikernes of all people. It bears the question of how one can use their profile in the subculture's wide media sphere as a symbol of Girlbossing until other, more harmful ideologies are brought to the surface and subtly prompted *through* that girlbossing.
Anyway a lot of this was just my surface thoughts about the subculture and were kind of all over the place, so please forgive the shifts in subject. This video tapped into a black hole of discourse on metal that I've been waiting so long to voice my thoughts on, but never got the opportunity. Thank you!
this all sounds fascinating thanks so much for sharing!
Literally watched this video to hear someone else gush about Maria Brink and In This Moment. Years ago I was looking for a new metal artist, preferrably not men, and found In This Moment with Big Bad Wolf. And I've got to say I loved it. Fast-forward damn near ten years and I'm jammin to Maria Brink hard core damn near all the time.
I played "the idiot guitar" in a glam rock band back when I was in high school. The rest of the band were guys. We won a local battle of the bands and got to record three songs as an award. The guys tried to get another guy to record bass in studio because they believed I wouldn't be able to play the lines I came up with 😂 After a huge argument, I was "allowed" in the studio. Left the bend after the recording sessions. Fuck em.
Kittie is an example of a phenominal all female metal band that really deserves their flowers and have been mostly forgotten about. And even when they came out, they were portrayed in the media as being contemporaries with Britney Spears and The Spice Girls even though they had no resemblance whatsoever to those artists.
Great video! Thank you for showing the trailblazers I’ve never heard of, even as someone that is pretty in tune with up and coming artists. I’m also feeling very encouraged by the amount of diversity I’m hearing not just in metal but other typically male dominated genres, like rock, hip hop, electronic, and experimental music.
Someone I’m very surprised I haven’t seen mentioned in the comments is Lingua Ignota. Her music is some of the most powerful and heavy stuff I’ve ever experienced, to the point where I can really only listen to it once in a while. Her most recent album is mainly focused on the emotional and sexual abuse she received from another well known experimental artist. It is a deeply heart wrenching listen that I definitely think is worth checking out.
Brilliant video, new sub! As far as my recommendations go: back in the day my top nonman metal band was Otep, today it's Jinjer.
Did not expect a new Shonalika vid to suddenly pop up in my feed! Hang on clearing my schedule
I tend to think of Blind Guardian pretty regularly when I think of symphonic metal, but that may be because I was introduced to the band via And Then There Was Silence. I know most would classify them as power metal or prog, but power metal is often played with symphonics and prog also has a heavy overlap with symphonic. It always feels like an attempt to dodge classifying them as symphonic simply because they are men, which frankly, only adds to your point.
Edit after finishing: Thanks for the Precious Child recommendation!
I actually thought of Avantasia and was surprised that they weren't mentioned given their frequent collaborations with vocalists of other power metal bands
...which is highly ironic since they literally put out a symphonic album a couple years ago - as in, original compositions performed by a classical orchestra.
It's great, by the way!
Honestly I think a kind of sad factor in why all female metal bands are so popular in Japan is because they are pretty, like I am a lesbian mess in the vicinity of Lovebites, and it plays into their existing ‘idol’ culture of stanning female artists you’re the most attracted to
Granted I also love seeing Lovebites femininity and pretty dresses embraced in combination with their powerful sound, as I find it to be empowering and a showcase of ‘powerful femininity’ in opposition to the norm that masculinity is power. So there is definitely appeal outside that context, for women at least.
I lowkey wanna make a similar video about prog rock cause like??? its always been really weird to me how that has been an almost exclusively male genre when so much of the aesthetic is so flamboyant and the lyrics are so emotional.
Peter Gabriel singing all those songs about gender swaps and water nymphs really did a number on my gender as a kid
I'm a white trans guy who's not really that into metal but I'm open to it. This video really opened my eyes to the genre and exposed me to some artist that I might enjoy. this channel is so underrated. You deserve a lot more recognition than you are getting.
Fantastic to see you back and what a return! I am not really into metal but this video's intelligent and compelling content really captured and held my attention (that and also Archenemy are pure class). Thanks a lot!
that's great to hear, thank you, I was wondering how it would come across to people who weren't into the genre!
@@Shonalika I think the choice to start with the discussion on the 'metal aesthetic' works well to ease you in. It's something that even being outside the scene, I am well aware of. Then that contradiction between the core rebellion and subversiveness of metal and the masculine hegemony in the genre really adds a tension that drives the whole video so well. It's made me interested to listen to some of the music and, thanks to you, I know some good places to start!!
A new Shonalika vid? Amazing!! It's too late for me to watch it all tonight but I'm very excited to know I can watch this tomorrow!!
“It’s Narnia, but with more spandex” 😆 I just… thank you for that chef’s kiss perfectly delightful and accurate sentence for one of my favorite bands
What an absolute delight to see you again! My terrible attention span was held entirely through this. In this Moment AND Emilie Autumn in the same essay? YAY!
Finland having a massive metal scene there is also fairly big sub-scene of the symphonic metal genre and while as you said, it's much more female dominated than the other sub genres, there is all men examples. Sonata Arctica (which is huge in Finland and I've heard very popular in Japan too, though I don't think outside them very popular) is usually defined as symphonic power metal, but so is Nightwish, which is very genre defining in symphonic metal and I do think they definitely occupy the same genre however you'd define it, so I'd say they count. In music videos they are often depicted more like any conventional metal band, lead singer emphasized, but not as much as for bands with female lead singer. Tony Kakko, the lead singer, does dress up when performing in ways that are typical for men in metal genre, but it's often more colorful, more over the top and I'd say weird than what's typical. (Fishnet shirts are definitely one of his go to items.) Their themes in their music though is very similar to the rest of the genre, having a lot more themes usually considered femine (romance etc). Apocalyptica is also definitely symphonic metal, but they don't have a singer, so they don't even fit the general band mold. Then there's Ensiferum, which more folk metal mixed with symphonic metal and in heaviness veers on the side of death metal, and Children of Bodom, which is symphonic death metal, and yeah they don't exactly fit that well, since they are heavier than the typical symphonic metal with female lead singer.
As a symphonic metal connoseur I'd defend it from the "accusations" that it's less complex and technical than other sub genres. The hits from the genre tend to be the simplest songs they have and often their music tends to be highly technical. Nightiwish is definitely on the more technical side of the genre with the wast majority of their music, but most bands of the genre are also very technical and experimental musically. (I know it's not a requirement for good music, I just think the image these bands have is stained by misogyny of the general public and they are assumed and talk about being less technical, while that is not true, simply because of the image people have of "women's music")
Sonata Arctica slaps
@@SwipSedai word!
In this Moment's "In Between" is the one I go back to A LOT. The Lyrics and music are just amazing.
Shonalika saves the day! I mean it, this day was horrible, but your video dropped in the 11th hour to turn things around. Welcome back!
I would LOVE a full video on Emily Autumn! Definitely an icon! Loved this video!
A hugely important band to my youth as a Pagan recently leaving my families Mennonite faith, a woman, a Slav, and a metal head, was the Russian blackened folk metal band, Arkona. There's also Grai, who I found later but they are absolutely solid. I feel like both bands have only become heavier with time, Arkonas Khram and Grais Ashes lean heavily into old dark Slavic witchcraft, using it as a personal expression of feminine rebellion from society, religion, and patriarchal branches of Slavic Paganism, it's amazing👏
I always feel obliged to leave a comment on videos, especially great work like this one from creators I haven't heard of yet.
So it's only tangentially connected, but as a local stagehand I've worked In This Moment shows many times. While some of the larger set pieces can be a finger crushing hazard, the band and crew is an absolute delight to work with and the intensely theatrical performance is amazing. If you get a chance to see this band you should do it.
Howdy! I'm a queer nonbinary bassist and vocalist who plays in a death metal and mathcore band. I really appreciate you taking the time to put this video together. I am AMAB and in my childhood I resonated with metal and appreciated it a lot. A part of me liked it due to its masculinity as I felt like I could use it to wave off any questions around me being queer or in any way effeminate through it, but it also gave me the strength to come to terms with myself in my own way. One thing led to another and eventually I found myself getting into extreme genres, particularly death metal. I felt a connection with the music as it felt like a very raw expression of emotion. I ultimately ended up liking these more extreme genres much more than traditional heavy metal. Not to say I think sabbath, maiden, or any other big metal band are bad, they just failed to hit me emotionally and I always wanted something a little more liberating. I think part of that was due to me seeing them as codified and accepted as mainstream and associated with a kind of masculinity I found restrictive and painful. Whereas death metal had this outlier property to it that I felt a kinship with. It is a genre with a sizable opposition to societal norms. One that looked at the world and criticized it in a visceral and raw manner.
Through the genre's questioning of religious hegemony I found myself becoming more accepting of my own sexuality that was so painful for so long. In particular it helped a lot that people like Paul Masvidal and Sean Reinhardt of the bands Cynic and Death were prominent queer individuals in the genre. After coming to terms with my own sexuality I began to question what it meant to be a "man" and whether it was something I wanted. Being seen as a man was always one of those things that never felt quite right. It was associated with feelings of suppression, inferiority, and anger that I hated. To be honest I'm still working through how I do identify. I came from a very religious and conservative family so I'm a little slow to start but music has given me an opportunity to express myself and explore ways of gender expression I am more comfortable with (if you consider 20 old). I just feel incredibly comfortable wearing a skirt and telling the world exactly how I feel on a stage more so than day to day life. And death metal, and mathcore are two genres that have allowed me to do that. And the atmosphere of these genres and the openly leftist lean of most hardcore/local extreme metal bands helps a lot with that.
And here a random recommendation: The Japanese Death Metal Band Shadow. Their singer was female and they started before Angela joined Arch Enemy. Unfortunately they only have two albums (one of which I own in physical form 😂) plus a demo.
They are on Spotify and I recommend listening to the track Eden. It's really good Melodic Death Metal that can assert oneself against the old In Flames stuff 😀
I used to love In Flames! Will def check this out
I'm so glad to have had this randomly recommended to me! Even as a woman in my late 20s, I still encounter the gender gatekeeping in metal/hardcore communities. When I was a young teen, I really struggled with feeling like I had to fit in better with the metal community because some of the metal bands I listened to apparently weren't "real" metal according to certain people due to a lot of the listeners being female. Then when it came to the fashion I wore, I felt more at home with the metal community and other subcultures since I looked like one of them. However, I found that I was objectified and sexualized as a teen girl in those spaces as well as by people outside of those communities who made fun of the fashion style I wore. I've grown up to no longer care about it, but it was such a hard place to be in where I felt like an unequal insider.
On the topic of female metal vocalists, shout outs to Jinjer for bringing out the worst and the best of Metal fans.
The viral success of their Pisces live session video got so popular that we can find every type of reaction to their great song. It's quickly obvious that most of the people are doing 😯just because she's a woman who can go from soulful clean singing to deep growls. It's more a spectacle rather than appreciation of her and the band.
But their fanbase often outweighs the spectacle in the reactions to their songs. They are largely heralded as great performers and a flagship band for heavy music. Tatiana is simply a great musician among great musicians.
I’m glad things are shifting. I’m going to a show in a couple months headlined by Morbid Angel but the only band I’m going to for is Crypta, an all female Brazilian blackened death metal band; and they’ve gained huge status in the global scene because they’re so good and most of the metal community is over women being treated as a gimmick or oddity. Like the Love Bites video you mention they also have a video that flips the classic video trope, where it cuts between the band playing and a guy just kinda walking around
Crypta rules!
It is interesting how restrictive the metal scene could also be. I'm a trans woman, but I didn't dare experiment with gender aside from growing out my hair. In my surroundings there was a lot of performative loathing of a lot of bands that had men perform more femininely so I never looked into it (The exception being Twisted Sister, for some reason). Hell, in hindsight I used metal as a way to armor my closet.
I can totally relate to how revelatory my first encounter with In This Moment was. I was already out by then, otherwise I never would have looked them up (part of armoring the closet: Don't show a traceable interest in anything that could be considered 'not-manly'. This was more important that actually being interested in things that were considered manly). Similarly when I first heard Jinjer. Hearing women pull such things with their voices really helps whenever I feel dysphoric about my own voice. The unbridled rage they express just hits me harder than the performative anger of a lot of other metal bands. It's funny that performative anger is so big in a genre that claims to be about authenticity.
Big fan of Scardust. More 'traditional' in group composition etc, but by the gods Noa Gruman can sing (And her look in the clip for arrowhead is just pure gender envy for me. Love it).
Anyway, loved the video. Would love a more in-depth video on Rob Halford (the one man who can pull of a tinfoil bathrobe, IMO). And now I'm going to look into this Emilie Autumn person.
When they said "as a musical gender person" i really felt that
Really happy to see you again :)
thank you so much
Shoutout to King Woman, Chealsea Wolfe, Anna Von Hausswolff and Emma Ruth Rundle for carving out a space for women within doom metal/stoner rock types of music. I also really like Oathbreaker - witchy, blackened hardcore - and True Widow - a mix of slowcore/shoegaze and doom metal.
Love all of these artists that you mentioned
I remember a male friend of mine said something about not liking Otep because the songs were all about the leads trauma. Same dude loved Korn. It bothered the crap out of me at the time, but I couldn't quite voice why. Now I know that it is the hypocrisy and inherent misogyny that bothered me, even though I had boatloads of internalized misogyny I was still carrying at the time.
I'm so happy someone FINALLY acknowledged Emilie Autumn in a video essay.
Brilliant video! I've been a metalhead since my late teens, and have gravitated to Power and Epic Doom Metal as my favourites. I've also been playing bass for almost 3 years now, so thanks for that little acknowledgement ;)
I felt that Metal was extremely empowering at a time where I was feeling powerless, especially with the epic fantasy heroics of bands like Manowar, Hammerfall, and Rhapsody (Of Fire).
It's only later in my 20s when I started to understand feminism that the toxic masculinity of bands like Manowar started to show. Power Metal has a real issue with being a masculine-centred power fantasy, with damsels in distress and claiming women as objects. As much as I love to sing along to Manowar's song "Hail and Kill", the line about raping women left a sour taste in my mouth because it's a subject that is actually trivialized in real life - as opposed to historical bloodshed and conquest.
There's also this obsession with gatekeeping "True Metal", as opposed to "False Metal" which isn't well defined at all. The "All Men Play on 10" thing may be a statement of personal power and getting the most out of metal, but it also forgets to mention how not-manly it is to get hearing damage (and I say this as a deaf person).
Queer culture is something I've been looking for in metal for ages now, and don't see much of it at all. Rob Halford was one of the first gay celebrities I knew, and introduced me to the concept of gays being, y'know, people (what a concept, amirite?). I fully recognise the paradox of hair metal being extremely feminine in its extravagance, yet also very misogynistic at the same time, for reasons you pointed out.
Now I'm an out non-binary transfem who's eager to make my own metal music with a queer theme... with the problem being that I suck at songwriting. It's one of my new year's resolutions to finally make my own basslines, as I've learned so much from playing bass as one of my primary hobbies.
Thank you for this insight and analysis into my favourite genre of music! You rock! \m/
if you like doom metal, please check out windhand! they're so underrated, the frontwoman's voice is absolutely ethereal and haunting
I only noticed you were gone when you came back. I don't subscribe to any TH-cam channel so I rely on my piss poor memory when the algorithm fails to show me new content from creators I like. Glad to see new material from you.
Two days ago i was thinking "i miss my favorite synthopop enby" and now I've been blessed 💖
Lacrimosa is pretty big in the symphonic/gothic metal, but they're very german, even omitted from many english lists. And while they feature many female vocal parts, the main songwriter Tilo Wolff is the main singer.
Furthermore, I feel like Symphonic metal has been defined as "female fronted softer metal" in the stereotype and popular zeitgeist, onto which many then built onto while closely related styles have been pushed into other genres because they're more male centered. Examples would be the Germans bands Blind Guardian, Edguy, Avantasia, that are generally considered power metal or "Opera metal" (somebody explain how that is not symphonic, please...), and the huge amount of gothic metal bands that feature heavy classical elements with deeper voices.
PS: love that top you're wearing, quite jealous.
One thing that sounded strange for me, but easy to undestand from a critical analitycal point of view, was the "anger" is not an emotion. For me metal was and is a way to connect to my repressed emotions, and if not deal with them, realise that they are there and let them out for a little bit. I think for many people music plays this role in their life. So seeing music as logical and not emotional sounds funny and jaring. As I have no talent and ability to judge music on a technical level I view it only in the "does it make me feel" way
I'm so glad there's people talking about this! It's surprisingly overlooked
Corey Feldman has an all-female backing band who all dress in white while Corey dresses in black. You have to go to all his gigs now. 51:20
Nice surprise, was only rewatching one of your vids the other day.
thanks! I'm glad they're still of interest aha
In the vein of In This Moment, they have collaborated and toured with two of my other absolute favorites: The Pretty Reckless and Halestorm. ON ITM's 2020 album "Mother", they did a cover of Queen's "We Will Rock You" with the singers of both bands and it never ceases to get me to crank the volume any time it comes on! Absolute chills every time!
omg you are just amazing!!! this video came up on my recommended page and i WAS HOOKED. i have the like worst attention span in the world and this was perfect!!! TYSM 🥺💜
It's awesome to have you back! This is one of the best videos on heavy metal in general I've ever seen. You articulate ideas I've had about the genre but I never thought to articulate them myself for whatever reason haha
As a bi person, I hope you do a follow up to this talking about the more queer metal influenced stuff like the end of this video. A Maria Brink video would be awesome too. When she screams you feel it cause she lived it!
And I'm a big In This Moment fan, and I started listening to the Nova Twins for a year now. It was great seeing you talk about both.
Whatever you choose to do next I'll watch it cause you're awesome and you engage with stuff in such a fun and meaningful way!
this video is amazing!!!!!!!!!! oh my god it's a brilliantly constructed video essay and also it is so VALIDATING to hear someone else saying all of this. the statistics you mentioned (97% of people in metal are men, 21% of the billboard top 100 are non-men, 50% of the roles women occupy in metal being vocals, etc) are totally getting brought up in conversations with dickheads in the future. i was starting to wonder if they were right and i was just inadvertently ignoring lots of the contributions of women in metal but NO IT WAS THEM WHO ARE WRONG!!!! this is a very exciting fact and i cant wait to make several men in my life feel very small. it is depressing that there are so few non-men in metal, instrumentalists or otherwise, and i am going to continue doing my absolute best to convince my friends to learn instruments and support the bands in my local scene who are doing cool shit. this convinced me to check out arch enemy and in this moment and emilie autumn. i love this video
Really cool video on a topic that I think needs a lot more coverage, no matter how you slice it! Bravo!
Now, being a man myself and a metalhead I kinda never gravitated towards the bands and genres you analyzed in this video because I found them a bit "surface level" (whatever that means for you all). My "refuge" was the darker and more abstract or even alternative types of metal genres that you have not talked about. I would've loved a gender study on genres like death, doom or black metal, but I also take in consideration the title of your video: "gender, power and heavy metal" which could and at the same time does not have to cover the stuff I mentioned above. Coming back to the "gendered" styles of metal I always avoided, I had two personal reasons: 1. I did not care for the music (heavy, power, goth, folk, symphonic), 2. I found that the more "gender bending" dudes were at their core misogynist and queerphobic, and that the women portrayed in these genres were there solely on the basis of their sex appeal (with some bands I would argue I am right, with others that I am wrong). Somehow, if I wanted cool gender bending music or great female driven music I would always search outside of mainstream metal (and maybe metal as a whole) and listen to industrial, punk, electronic music, r&b or soul. Also, I found that at more underground metal shows the crowds were more diverse and inclusive, which was beautiful. Which leads me to...
... what I wanted to do in this comment is to shout out some metal bands with non-dude artists in them, throughout genres not covered by you and that I find deserve all the praise for their talent and who present themselves in a very authentic way. The more underground scene is very vibrant and there are a lot of talented women and queer people (playing guitars, drums, bass, vocals, synths, cellos, etc) that deserve recognition and that are actually very influential and acknowledged in this scene (what I like to call the "Bands that play Roadburn Festival scene").
I am talking about bands like Brutus, GGGOLDDD, Lingua Ignota, Earth, Chelsea Wolfe, Anna von Hausswolff, Liturgy, Boris, Melt Banana, Vile Creature, Messa, Thorr's Hammer, Hulder, Midwife, Ashenspire, Otoboke Beaver, Bismuth, Pupil Slicer, King Woman, SeeYouSpaceCowboy, Wolves in the Throne Room, Code Orange, Baroness, Jo Quail, Mono, Heilung, Myrkur, Pharmakon, Emma Ruth Rundle, A. A. Williams, Oathbreaker, Julie Christmass and I will stop counting here. For me metal was about rebellion and experiments (musical and social ones) and this rule bending was always more interesting to me when digging through the underground where one can find a lot of beautifully gifted and powerful voices that help the movement progress and one has to be blind in order to ignore that a lot of women and queer people are some of the most important voices in this metal underground phenomenon.
It is vital to understand the mass movement enabled by heavy, glam, power, symphonic or nu-metal (the more popular genres) and how problematic some of its parts are, parts that trickle down to the underground too, but I wanted to showcase the other side of the game and to list some of the modern metal pioneers who are not dudes. Now, my perspective may be thwarted (I am a dude after all), but maybe some of you folk find some of the artists mentioned above inspiring and cool. I deeply understand the need for representation and diversity, but my limited perception is somewhat critical to the more mainstream metal artists.
Thanks for reading and if you wanna share other cool bands, please do! One love! \m/
Glad you're back, seeing this in my notifications made my metalhead heart take a big jump!
A fascinating video, I'm a massive fan of metal and I found elements of this video disheartening, but I have hope for the future of the genre. I always think of metal as an open space and I wish that was reflected in the artists inhabiting the space.
i audibly said “holy fucking shit it’a shonalika” when i saw the notification. welcome back!
I'm a trans woman. Pre-transition in my teen years I enjoyed metal and I feel it hit where I was in my gender. The gay coding appealed to me and I started to develop androgynous aesthetic. It allowed me to be empowered as a feminine looking male. I feel metal being ultimately veiled in masculinity/patriarchy allowed me to cling onto being cis when I wasn't yet ready to accept I was a trans. (H.I.M was my favourite band haha)
I love that you mentioned Nova Twins. I’ve been listening to them for almost a year, and they’re one of my favorite groups right now. They’re music is so unique, I can honestly say I’ve never heard anything else like it.
Amazing Video. Sad not to hear Tatiana Shmayluk(jinjer) or Courtney LaPlante(spiritbox) mentioned, as two of the best vocalists in the space for both cleans and screams (Courtney especially), but regardless of that I'm beyond glad to see a video about this pop into my recommended. Time to check out your music to see if I like *all* the art that you make, not just the videos. I hope you have an amazing day.
Glad to see you back! I may not have ever been a huge metal fan, but I'm always a fan of seeing people get into it with things they're passionate about, so really enjoyed this one.
the pure passion emminating from this video was so lovely, and managed to get me intrested in a topic i wouldnt be otherwise
(also! the video you made where you mentioned half finger, sholder length gloves changed my life in both having a cool peice of fashon and having something that helps me soothe some of my frequent sensory issues)
I'm SO pleased to hear that thank you for telling me!!
Had to double-take when i saw your video in my subscriptions. very happy to have you back!
Hell yeah, new Shonalika! What a delightful surprise 🖤
A new video from one of my all-time favorite creators !! Much love from Latin America!
I can't believe that one of my favorite non-metal musicians somehow made it into this essay! EA has and continues to do amazing and captivating works
ohhh I just recently checked if your channel was back! excited for this video 🌟
Did you, one of my favourites content creator, release a video about music, gender and one of my favorite bands and the best diva I'll ever worship Maria Brink? THANK YOU
22:40 I’m struck while listening to the breakdown about HIM by my specific experience which I know was not representative. As a cis man who was and is deeply into Metal the main thing I loved the most about HIM was that they approached love with a more serious ambition which was also why I loved Type O Negative’s October Rust. Though in both cases your still right, there was always something messed up injected into the topic. Even so, those works have a notable tonal shift towards treating romance as a topic perfectly suited to metal.
It’s so great to see someone give In This Moment and Maria herself the praise she deserves, thank you
This was an incredibly well made and researched video. I have too many emotions and thoughts swirling around for a single comment, but this video made me realize that I probably can thank metal for accepting my own pansexuality. Since I didn't even start questioning my sexuality until 19-20yo, it was tough to unlearn a lot of the old-school ideas of masculinity ingrained into me. It took a long time, but I'm finally at a point where I can be comfortable enjoying some traditionally masculine things (beer, violent video games, metal, etc.) while simultaneously embracing my more feminine/queer side. The comfort in rebellion that metal instilled into me probably helped me accept these clashes to norms.
Thank you for making this video. You have a new fan (who's still trying to process the emotions this video stirred!)
It's great to see you back! I don't listen to metal, but I always love a good video essay on a niche topic from someone who's passionate about it. The phenomenon you talked about of women only being aloud into metal when they inhabit a different and specifically feminine role explains something I've noticed when trying to find sea shanties sung by someone (anyone, ever, please, where are they?) who is in some way not a cishet white man. Until now, I'd just been vaguely annoyed at myself that I don't like the versions sung by women, but thinking back, those versions are all sung in a completely different style from that of a typical sea shanty -- much more delicate and meandering. There are one or two examples I can think of with a woman vocalist who sang the same as any other shanty singer, and I did like those. I wonder how many other genres are affected by that.
I am so hyped for more Shonalika videos. Take whatever time you need, look after your health, that's the most important.
Hi! The story of how you discovered Arch Enemy mirrors my own; found out about them through a sampler from a metal magazine (Rock Hard) and was surprised their singer was a woman. In the coming years, I would show unsuspcting friends of mine the first one or two songs from the Tyrants of the Rising Sun live DVD just to check on their reaction. I remember some of my friends being shocked, others amazed when Angela enters the stage (rewatched it just now and it's still an awesome entrance). Unfortunately, I also remember the many times at festivals when bands with female band members (including Arch Enemy) were met with shouts of "take off your clothes" from male audience members. I feel like this has died down over the last decade or so, but it's been a couple of years since I've attended a metal festival.
Anyway, what a great video essay! I need to admit that you got me with In This Moment, as I remember watching a video a couple of years ago that made me uncomfortable (it probably was Blood, but I don't recall it 100%). I'm a (mostly) straight white cis dude, so the reasons you laid out in your essay why it rubbed me the wrong way checks out. However, since then I've learned and grown a lot both musically as well as a person, so I will give it another chance.
As far as recommendations go, I'm afraid that there isn't much I have to offer in terms of gender-bending metal. I've been a low-key fan of Crypta, an all-female thrash metal band from Brazil for a while, but I don't know if that's subversive enough. Same with Oceans of Slumber.
Anyway, thanks for the video!
I think this is my favourite video you’ve done. I had no idea other people had had the same experience of showing cis het guy an In This Moment video and them fully shutting down. That seems like such a specific thing to have occurred, but that it’s part of a pattern is wild.
If you want a group with a fantastic female guitarist, check out Baroness. The current lead guitarist is Gina Gleason. It’s sort of an Arch Enemy situation in that she replaced a guy. She’s only been on one of their albums so far (called Gold and Grey), but there’s buzz that a new one will be out this year.
Aaah I wish you would have also talked about Otep 😀 I know some people don't like the band but not only is Otep one of the few gay women in the genre, she has also *always* been unapologetically feminist with anarchist/leftist leanings. Like, she had lyrics such as "it's revolution, us against the patriarchy" since the year 2000. People should hear "Menocide" or "March of the Martyrs" by her. She also has some amazing LGBT anthems such as "Rise, Rebel, Resist" or "Fists Fall". She's honestly amazing 😔