Stronghold

Foto: Uni Graz/Tzivanopoulos

Youth cultures give security, above all in times of a crisis. Music, fashion and language unite. The cultural historian Peter Pichler has been investigating the traces of the Corona pandemic in the local metal scene.

Heavy Metal emerged in England in the 1970ies as a mixture of Hardrock and Blues and took root in different branches all over the world. Black clothes, long hair, leather jackets and studded belts are still today visible signs of a rebellion against law and order. “According to the motto of the Judas Priest song ‘Breaking the Law’ metal addicts embody the ideal of the anarchic who fight for freedom against the establishment”, Peter Pichler explains. In a project financed by the Austrian Science Fund FWF he researches the history of the Styrian Heavy Metal community. The scene here was established in the 1980ies. And has undergone quite a few changes since then: “Social developments like the emancipation of women, migration and also the Corona crisis become visible in the songs.”

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