Animal Rescue and Heavy Metal Music: Strange or Perfect Bedfellows?

Sometimes events collide that kick the strange workings of my brain into overdrive. Connections that I would never previously see suddenly start lining up.  This happened recently when a local “metal” band, All ThingsDone, in Jacksonville, Fl. offered to hold a benefit concert for Pet RescueNorth.  As a music fan with extremely eclectic tastes—my music collection literally ranges from Beethoven to Black Sabbath—I was over the moon about this event. However, the more I thought about this collaboration between an animal rescue organization and a metal band with all the negative stereotypes that they carry—stereotypes of preoccupations with death and suicide, images of animal cruelty associated with Satan worship and memories of Ozzy Osbourne biting the heads off live animals—the more I realized how some would question this partnership. And the more I thought of how people would question the partnership, the more I came to one conclusion: Heavy Metal Music and Animal Rescue could not be a more natural fit!

Metal music is, arguably, the most misunderstood  and, in some quarters, reviled form of music on the planet. Sociological theories on the attractions of such music and the subconscious needs and motivations of its fans are everywhere.  And, for various reasons, many of the theories remain rooted in stereotypes.  This discussion, for reasons of space, will itself address stereotypes and remain relatively simplistic. I have neither the time nor the inclination to write any sort of academic thesis here. However, one fact must remain at the front of our minds: what attracts people to any specific form of music, including metal, and the individual personality-types is way too complex to allow for everyone to be lumped into one pigeon-hole!

So, why do I think this partnership is a natural fit? Let’s start with one of the predominant theories about why people are attracted to metal music.  It has been widely touted that metal music attracts those with a sense of alienation, of isolation. A need for those who don’t quite fit in with the rest of society is being met by metal’s themes of fear and despair, themes that reflect the dark side of humanity.  Musical expressions of violence and anarchy reflect a feeling of hopelessness, a feeling that the world around the individual is spinning out of their control and that a refusal to comply with social norms constitutes a refusal to participate in the social behaviors that are working to subdue and submerse those who are a little different.

The musical expression of such beliefs does not mean that the fans will physically act out on those ideas.  It can be regarded as a “what if”, no different to the basis of every novel ever written, but how many people act out the contents of a novel? So why are metal fans regarded as any different in that respect?

Okay, so we have a bunch of people who feel isolated and alienated in some way and are looking for some way to fit in. How do you fit in?  Simple . . . you look for those with the same feelings of isolation and alienation.  You look for those that you regard as your peer group!  And who are more alienated and isolated than animals who rely on humans for their care, yet who have been abused, neglected, and abandoned to fend for themselves or to die trying.

In the animal welfare world breed-specific-legislation, the banning and indiscriminate killing of a specific group, for example, is an extreme form of control over those that are seen as somehow different and dangerous.  Is it any surprise, therefore, that metal fans feel a need to align themselves with those breeds of animal?  It can be argued that to take up the fight against BSL, or to rescue any abandoned animals, is to act in defense of kindred spirits.

Similarly, the stereotype of Satan-worship, the use of satanic themes and symbolism in the music is merely an artistic tool.  While some may actually become interested in satanic rites, it does not reflect the actual beliefs or values of the majority of metal fans.  In fact, from my personal experience, it may surprise many people just how many of those sitting around you in your Christian church on a Sunday are then going home and turning on their Black Sabbath or Judas Priest or Pantera CDs.  The music is often a reflection of how the metal fan views the world around them rather than how they view themselves.  The music frequently is not describing the metal fan, it is describing you, the non-metal fan, the moral majority, the bureaucracy and government, and the effects that you are having on the world.

Again, in my experience, if metal fans are attracted to non-conventional religions they tend to be attracted to belief systems such as Wicca, a nature-based belief system, or the theologies of Native Americans or other aboriginal groups—again, nature–based belief systems that emphasize a concern for the natural environment and animals that surround us. So, where is the surprise that animal rescue becomes a physical expression of those belief systems?

And what of Ozzy biting the heads off bats and pigeons?  Well, that is like asking if you want your peer group to be judged by the actions of one or two people. Look at any sociological grouping of people and you will find the mentally ill, or the somehow deviant, acting in ways that the majority of the group will find incomprehensible and that are often contradictory to the beliefs of the rest of the group.  An individual, possibly mentally ill but definitely drug-driven, compounded by a showbiz persona created to maximize shock value does something that he knows will sicken the masses: not exactly representative of most sociological groups, including most metal fans.

So, on June 22^nd 2013, a metal concert starring All Things Done and Nocturnal State of Mind, along with guest stars will be held at the Landshark Café, Jacksonville Beach, Fl.  Some people might still think “how strange?” but I for one am stoked about this event.  If you don’t like metal music you don’t have to go—I would never ask a non-metal fan to subject themselves to that—because there are so many other ways in which you can support Pet Rescue North.  But please don’t knock it; it will be great to see all those “metalheads” who are also animal lovers together in one place!

As previously mentioned, this is not meant to be an exhaustive examination of all things metal, just an overview of why metal fans seeking to help rescue animals is the most natural thing in the world. It is also not meant to be an indictment of those who are not metal fans.  Just file it under “never judge a book by its cover”. The next time you in your smart business suit are standing next to someone in black leather and studs or ripped jeans and long hair, just remember: they may have more in common with you that you think!