Although there has been concern about the negative effects of music on human behavior throughout history, public interest in this issue rose sharply with the introduction of rock and roll music in the 1950s. Since those early days of rock and roll, many changes have taken place in the music. The lyrics have become more explicit in their references to sex, drugs, and violence (Fedler, Hall & Tunzi, 1982; Radecki, 1985). Along with this has come a surge of public concern about the effects of these lyrics. In addition to the extensive and sometimes sensational media coverage, these lyrics have drawn the attention of religious and parent groups, and the medical and political communities.
Two specific types of music have come under the most scrutiny. The first is a type of hard rock music known as heavy metal. There are probably several reasons for this--the appearance of the musicians, the loud and powerful style of the music, the theatrics of the live performances--but what receives the most attention is the basic themes of the lyrics. On September 19, 1985, the U.S. Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation held a hearing on the "Contents of Music and the Lyrics of Records." Most of the music discussed at this hearing was by heavy metal groups. The basic themes of many of the successful heavy metal songs are extreme rebellion, violence, substance abuse, sexual promiscuity, perversion, and Satanism (Stuessy, 1985). More: Findarticles
No comments:
Post a Comment