Musical Socialization: Chapter Three, Alternative Metal Years, 1991 to 1997

Wanting to break free of my self-imposed adherence to some of the scenes unwritten moral codes whilst remaining true to my original musical roots, I formed a desire to expand my musical horizons. I soon found what I was looking for in the emergence of the Alternative Metal movement where bands were not afraid to combine new musical elements previously considered to be incompatible.

As the cultural and societal landscape shifted from the corporate greed and conservative nature of the eighties to a more liberal period in the nineties, the approach of these new artists not only reflected my new found open mindedness but also brought together seemingly disparate genres such as Hardcore, Noise rock and Industrial to create songs that introduced new facets into preexisting musical structures.

By retaining the anti-authoritarian sensibility of the Punk and Thrash Metal movements that came before they were able to adhere themselves to those that still felt ostracized by society while simultaneously managing to break through to the mainstream. Spurred on by the commercial success of Metallica and Guns and Roses, they captured the collective mood of an entire generation by taking the anger, dissatisfaction and mistrust that they felt towards political, religious and ideological institutions and turning it into music.

Although I was already a fan of metals continued progression towards a more groove orientated sound with bands like Pantera, Biohazard and Machine Head thanks to some of the Metal specific publications that I subscribed to, it was the availability of internationally recognised shows like Headbangers Ball that first introduced me to newer artists such as Nine Inch Nails, Tool or Ministry.

Appealing to the same inner sense of dissatisfaction and nonconformist sensibilities that I felt during the initial phase of my music socialisation, I soon found that I could relate to the music these bands were creating with various Alternative Metal and Metal albums subsequently acting as a means of catharsis to alleviate the stresses of everyday life.

Allowing me to use it as a tool for freedom of expression as well as to follow my own path regardless of outcome or fear of consequence, the music provided the perfect outlet for pent up emotions such as anger and frustration. When feelings of isolation or loss sometimes seemed overwhelming, the music provided a constant source of courage when motivation lacked and the strength to carry on was in danger of subsiding.

It was this strengthening of character that eventually led me to overcome my anxieties and to follow my own convictions by practising what I preached even as time progressed and the phenomenon that was Alternative Metal began to wane.

Succumbing to the same fate of previous genres, it reached its creative and commercial zenith towards the end of 1996/97 as it began to pay more attention to quantity over quality. With the focus shifting to increased financial profitability instead of artistic integrity, the subsequent oversaturation of the market coupled with creative stagnation led to inferior bands of a corporate nature that resulted in the scenes eventual collapse.

Although the alternative metal movement was effectively at an end, Metals various offshoots continued to strive leaving me with no shortage of new music to discover. By the time the overall trend had shifted from innovative and forward thinking artists towards mundane and overtly similar sounding bands, I already had an arsenal of music at my disposal that would not only sustain me but that would also inform the basis of everything I listened to going forward.