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The next 'scary' genre

Wolffgang

Wolffgang

Guest
Jan 1, 2012
531
45
37
Newcastle, Australia
#1
Hey, did a search, didn't see anything like this yet.

What do you guys think the next 'scary' genre of music is going to be? I don't think I have the age or scope to answer this or even the history of it by myself, so if I'm operating from false assumptions, feel free to school me.

It seems like from as far back as the religious paranoia of the diabolic tritone, to rock and roll rebellion, to shock rockers and death metallers and then rappers with guns, there have been 'scary' genres and aspects of music. I don't see any of that now. Like, Kesha scares the hell out of me personally (especially the idea that she has an iq of 140 and is doing that on purpose), but she's not 'scary' in the way those other things.

So, what's scaring suburban parents now? Or, if there's nothing, what's lurking just around the corner?
 
#5
Marial said:
It's kind of hard to imagine a 'scary', or even dangerous, form of music these days.
Click to expand...

Yeah that's the sense I'm getting, and I'm not sure how to feel about it. As a gamer, film enthusiast and musician, I hate the idea that things can be censored or even banned because of the delicate sensibilities of a vocal minority, but at the time it just seems kind of... wrong... Even if I may not like a given genre or message, on some level I just kind of like the idea that art can scare people, even gratuitously.
 
#7
Speaking as a suburban parent, I find certain aspects of some music "scary" - if the music condones or glamorizes hatred, intolerance, greed, that kind of thing. But that is not particular to one genre. For example, I can think of a couple of country songs off the top of my head that literally make me feel nauseous based on the lyrics.
 
#8
spz8 said:
Never heard of Kesha, so to Youtube I went. Wow, scary. Scary bad that is. :rollno:
Click to expand...

Shake your head all you want, but she's rich. She's also terrible on purpose. It's like the same thing Kanye West does when he rails against consumerism in his songs, but then "designs" a $120 plain white t-shirt. He's just proving his own point by playing a caricature of a modern hip-hop star - an over-the-top, stupid, materialistic jackass that the masses throw their money at. Same goes for Kesha. As stated, she has a 140 IQ. She knows what she's doing, and it's actually really funny when you realize what's going on. I'm convinced these people are engaging in an Andy Kaufman-level performance piece - a huge joke (albeit with a point) that very few people are in on.

As for the thread topic, I think at this point we may actually be past the point of entertainment being able to scare anyone. Everyone's too jaded, and we've seen it all before - nobody buys that musicians are dangerous or capable of corrupting anyone's kids - the only thing they're a threat to at this point is taste and musicianship. The whole "satanic" rock thing just seems silly and tongue in cheek now, idiot rappers who wave guns around only get themselves killed, and the digital age has simply demystified everything. So, I don't think we're ever going to see a "Scary" music genre again.
 
#9
Marial said:
It's kind of hard to imagine a 'scary', or even dangerous, form of music these days.
Click to expand...

Wolffgang said:
Yeah that's the sense I'm getting, and I'm not sure how to feel about it. As a gamer, film enthusiast and musician, I hate the idea that things can be censored or even banned because of the delicate sensibilities of a vocal minority, but at the time it just seems kind of... wrong... Even if I may not like a given genre or message, on some level I just kind of like the idea that art can scare people, even gratuitously.
Click to expand...

Welcome to Rome...care for some grapes?

Rob
:bassist:
 
#10
Wolffgang said:
So, what's scaring suburban parents now?
Or, if there's nothing, what's lurking just around the corner?
Click to expand...
this .... :ninja::bassist:
rock-stars-musicians-play-video-games-maybe-but-gamers-are-n-demotivational-poster-1264629417.jpg
 
#11
Red_Merkin said:
Shake your head all you want, but she's rich. She's also terrible on purpose. It's like the same thing Kanye West does when he rails against consumerism in his songs, but then "designs" a $120 plain white t-shirt. He's just proving his own point by playing a caricature of a modern hip-hop star - an over-the-top, stupid, materialistic jackass that the masses throw their money at. Same goes for Kesha. As stated, she has a 140 IQ. She knows what she's doing, and it's actually really funny when you realize what's going on. I'm convinced these people are engaging in an Andy Kaufman-level performance piece - a huge joke (albeit with a point) that very few people are in on.
Click to expand...

I have to agree, except its not a joke, its a formula
 
#12
Red_Merkin said:
Shake your head all you want, but she's rich. She's also terrible on purpose. It's like the same thing Kanye West does when he rails against consumerism in his songs, but then "designs" a $120 plain white t-shirt. He's just proving his own point by playing a caricature of a modern hip-hop star - an over-the-top, stupid, materialistic jackass that the masses throw their money at. Same goes for Kesha. As stated, she has a 140 IQ. She knows what she's doing, and it's actually really funny when you realize what's going on. I'm convinced these people are engaging in an Andy Kaufman-level performance piece - a huge joke (albeit with a point) that very few people are in on.

As for the thread topic, I think at this point we may actually be past the point of entertainment being able to scare anyone. Everyone's too jaded, and we've seen it all before - nobody buys that musicians are dangerous or capable of corrupting anyone's kids - the only thing they're a threat to at this point is taste and musicianship. The whole "satanic" rock thing just seems silly and tongue in cheek now, idiot rappers who wave guns around only get themselves killed, and the digital age has simply demystified everything. So, I don't think we're ever going to see a "Scary" music genre again.
Click to expand...

I agree with your assessment of those people, and frankly I'm completely ok with someone playing a character just to make money, even if the character scares me and the idea that people idealise it sickens me. If Kanye has been doing a strawman thing this whole time that would finally make random people calling him a genius every few years make some sense.
 
#13
Wolffgang said:
Yeah that's the sense I'm getting, and I'm not sure how to feel about it. As a gamer, film enthusiast and musician, I hate the idea that things can be censored or even banned because of the delicate sensibilities of a vocal minority, but at the time it just seems kind of... wrong... Even if I may not like a given genre or message, on some level I just kind of like the idea that art can scare people, even gratuitously.
Click to expand...

Actually, it has nothing to do with censorship or some sort of political correctness. I just have a hard time imagining music being scary or dangerous. Most 'scary' music seems cartoonish to me. Horrocore? Black Metal? Screamo?

I mean, Nick Cave can probably summon more menace with a waive of his pinky than any band in those genres and I still don't find him scary or dangerous.

Maybe I'm just old and jaded, but to me, to find scary music you have to explore in the avant gard, modern classic, and 'IDM' realms. Even then it's not necessarily scary. Difficult would probably be a better way to describe it.
 
#15
I mean more the 'culture' behind the music, like Marilyn Manson turning youth into buttoned down psychos, or rap making them into criminals and so forth. Let's not even mention juggalos >.>

I know the growth of the subculture and the medium happen in symbiosis to a degree, but those bands/genres convinced people that the teens listening to them were going to turn into the things they sang about. It's been happening for so long that it's just hard to believe it could stop. Maybe it has.
 
#16
I've been at shows where people were intentionally injured, and others where the risk of accidental injury was extremely high, to the point of near guarantee somebody was going to get hurt. At some of the big Lollapalooza-type shows young women have been raped, not only near the stage but even IN the mosh pit.

So there is a sense in which music can still be scary. But it's not any genre, it's the attitude of lawlessness--which is brilliant right up to the point where people sustain serious traumas.
 
#17
Don't know how today's youth relate to this, but I grew up in a hardass, call-your-bluff generation, and not being scared by whimsical pop fads is part of the role. We went to war, we went to Woodstock, lived under the threat of nuclear annihilation for a generation or two, made fortunes, lost fortunes, etc.

So, some "new" artist starts a fashion trend by wearing his pants backwards, eats cute little kittens, and wants to have sex with my mother. Who gives a ****? She can take care of herself, because she came from an even tougher generation. Wake me when it gets pointy.

Scary is in the eye of the beholder; some beholders are insufferable wimps.

Tom
 
#20
AaronVonRock said:
Not just scary or dangerous, but even mysterious. Having total access to bands through YouTube, Facebook, Twitter, and official band websites takes a lot of the danger and mystery away from rock music.
Click to expand...

That's a really good point, you used to have to have to work for information like that, stuff that would portray people in a different light, now it's barely even a google search away. You can't actually *be* any of those scary archetypes and be a successful businessperson/performer, and that becomes abundantly clear when you can know everything about them and see who they are(n't).
 

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