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Author Topic: Satanic Panic: the Devil in Rock 'n' Roll  (Read 5064 times)
the captain
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« on: November 19, 2016, 10:02:04 AM »

I started this same thread and posted the below at PSF but thought some who are only over here might also be interested. If so, discuss. If not, don't.

The thing about most religious people--or at least their religions' doctrine--is that they take seriously the benefits and dangers associated with supernatural beings. Which aren't real.

For someone born in the Midwest in 1976, this meant coming of age in an era when people like Dr. James Dobson, the Peters Brothers, and even some senators' wives were regularly warning us--or at least our parents--about the risks of letting Satan in the back door to our souls (the back door in this case actually being the two side doors of our ears, not our assholes, which were actually the most appropriate holes for this nonsense).

While my family is religious in what most outsiders would call a mainline, and thus more reasonable, Protestant denomination, Lutheranism, it was a part of some of the most conservative strains of that denomination, the sort that take the Bible literally, and thus believe in young-Earth creation occurring over six days and culminating with two people who populated the world, of a flood that covered the Earth, of the entirety of the world's fauna surviving because either two or seven of each (depending on which chapter you're reading) of their types (that's the meaningless category used these days) were somehow made to fit on board (you can learn more in Kentucky), and so on.

And so it fits right in that people who believe these sorts of things also believe that musicians who wear black, have long hair, and play aggressive music are doing this for the furthering of their religion, which is of course the Christian conception of Satanism (as opposed to the actual Church of Satan, which is an atheist organization whose religious trappings exist to mock Christians, for better or for worse). Those rhythms exist to make us feel like doing that, and we can't be thinking about doing that. Those pentagrams, they're not just added to album covers to scare parents (and thus attract rebellious teens), they're actually ancient symbols that will bring about the Horned Fella himself! And while it's not musically related, stay away from those ouija boards, kids: you never know what evil spirits you'll accidentally summon.

OK, so my parents didn't actually ever quite believe in the literal involvement of the underworld in rock music--though they were wont to say things like "why take the chance?"--but they definitely believed that one should keep an eye out for explicitly non-Christian rock music, whether overtly using Satanic imagery and lyrics or just glorifying sex and ... well, really what was usually at the heart of pre-9/11 Christian fears, mostly just sex.  My parents were mostly really cool about letting me buy and listen to whatever music I wanted, possibly because their parents had railed against the Satanism of Elvis Presley, the Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, and the like. (My maternal grandfather, a former president of the now-defunct-by-merger Norwegian synod and a conservative religious college, considered Harry Truman to be a devil-worshipping communist; needless to say, he found the aforementioned early rock 'n' rollers even worse.) So as long as my music didn't include profanity, explicitly Satanist-sounding lyrics, or warrant a spot on the Peters Brothers' Top 10, I was OK.

What's this? You're not up on the Peters Brothers' Top 10? The Peters Brothers were quite famous in religious circles, even publishing a 10 Most Wanted kind of list of rock bands to stay away from. As I recall, the No. 1 rated Satanic band was Van Halen. Because, you know, Van Halen was famously into the occult and whatnot. (Oh wait, no, this was another sex one.) I believe Madonna was on there, too, despite the list being dedicated to hard rock or heavy metal. Again, sex concerns. KISS (Knights and/or Kings in Satan's Service, you know), WASP, Twisted Sister ... no, no, and no.

Unfortunately for me, Van Halen, KISS and Twisted Sister were three of my five favorite bands in the mid-80s. I found myself spending an absurd amount of time explaining why these bands were not Satanic. Dee Snider's PMRC speech, in which he outlined how "We're Not Gonna Take It" had lifted its melody from "O Come All Ye Faithful," was a world of help.

Over time, being the last of five kids, I think my parents just got sick of wasting time on non-issues like whether I was going to become a Satanist because of my predilection for whammy bar dives and finger-tapping. Especially once my mom returned to the professional workforce and spent less time at home, my listening habits just didn't warrant above-the-fold status. I'd avoid Guns 'n' Roses as after-dinner chores-music as an olive branch, sticking to the swearless and mostly sexless stuff instead. (For the year or so that I convinced myself to stomach Stryper, I had a solid go-to cassette, with the exception of its musical aspects. To Hell With the Devil and In God We Trust were both in my collection, I regret to say.) Instrumental shredders and no-longer-feared devil music like 60s and 70s bands--there was nothing quite so family-oriented and wholesome as Queen, for example, with that nice young mustachioed man singing the nice melodies--helped with chores-time.)

Eventually the whole thing just sort of faded away, hopefully because people grew up and realized the sheer stupidity of thinking these rock musicians were actually being guided by some devil or demon, trying to convince their listeners to have sex, do drugs, and ultimately commit suicide. (There were whispers that my 5-years-older cousin--to whom I'll always be thankful for introducing me to some great rock music and just generally being nice and inclusive toward me--was in a cult and was suicidal. I think the latter may have been true, but the former was idiotic, I later learned. But he did indeed have Shout at the Devil. I argued to my mom, "but they sing shout at the devil, not with or for him!" Seemed cut and dry to me, though I'm not sure the theological efforts put into the song by Mssrs Sixx, Lee, Neil, or Mars.) Time went on and metal went away. There were new fears, mostly these terrifying black people with their fast rhymey-talk. And to be fair, my interest in that music faded as well, as I got more into jazz, blues, classic rock and pop, and other forms. So in my experience, anyway, the fears of the supernatural in hard rock music passed away.

What about the rest of you? Did you have to fight for your right to party (and/or listen to the devil's music)? Were your parents, peers, or even you concerned about the devil? Are you concerned about such things even now, and wanting to punch me in the face for not taking your concerns seriously? What music did you sneak and hide from concerned adults or peers in your life? Did this happen for you in the '80s, earlier, or later? I am interested.
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« Reply #1 on: November 19, 2016, 12:43:56 PM »

Fascinating. And thanks for sharing it over here, cap'n. :=)

I'm closer to the generation of your parents so my problem before anything else was the Generation Gap ("howling apes bashing guitars").

Maybe the UK was never that prone to such religion-related matters anyway (perhaps Beelzebub couldn't be in two places at once). White Magic and Black Magic were in vogue for a while (bluesman Graham Bond's dabblings in the latter may have brought about his (alleged) suicide (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Bond) but was never more than a fringe phenomenon.

   
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« Reply #2 on: November 21, 2016, 02:52:13 AM »

Reminded me of Bill Hicks' classic Judas Priest bit. "They tried to prove there were subliminal messages on this album telling you to kill yourself. Now I may be naive, but what performer wants his audience dead?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiyLbEMsZOk
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Gertie J.
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« Reply #3 on: November 21, 2016, 03:56:32 AM »

lol true dat !
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JK
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« Reply #4 on: November 21, 2016, 08:12:26 AM »

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAe9rMOxCTg

The relevant bit is at 3:45 but the rest is well worth hearing too.  Grin
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"Ik bun moar een eenvoudige boerenlul en doar schoam ik mien niet veur" (Normaal, 1978)
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the captain
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« Reply #5 on: November 21, 2016, 02:30:49 PM »

Reminded me of Bill Hicks' classic Judas Priest bit. "They tried to prove there were subliminal messages on this album telling you to kill yourself. Now I may be naive, but what performer wants his audience dead?"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qiyLbEMsZOk

I remember using similar logic (as a 10-13 year old) on my parents in the late '80s. Like do you really think these musicians are studying some ancient occult rituals or magical incantations or whatever in the hopes of killing off (by suicides, or whatever else) their record-buyers? Does that make sense to you??

Sadly in those days, there was sufficient silliness that people thought that sounded about right... Between heavy metal and Dungeons & Dragons, the devil was apparently quite busy fucking with teenagers in the '80s...
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« Reply #6 on: November 22, 2016, 12:05:14 AM »

all religious people have a screw loose.  all of them are brainwashed.  the funny thing is when you tell them that, they say
'no we are not'!!  That's when I say 'yep, just what I just said'.  Religion, which is a type of pride and power, is the main
reasons why there has always been war between mankind. 
F&ck the c&nts!
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« Reply #7 on: November 22, 2016, 04:38:42 AM »

there was nothing quite so family-oriented and wholesome as Queen, for example, with that nice young mustachioed man singing the nice melodies

But even Freddie sang "Beelzebub has a devil put aside for me" in their most wholesome song!

all religious people have a screw loose.  all of them are brainwashed.  the funny thing is when you tell them that, they say
'no we are not'!!  That's when I say 'yep, just what I just said'.  Religion, which is a type of pride and power, is the main
reasons why there has always been war between mankind. 
F&ck the c&nts!

Hi, Mr Horse. So good to see you back around these parts. I find little to argue with in your post, except that it's veering slightly off-topic! LOL

And now for a musical interlude, the first in a series of songs about possession by Old Nick:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8aPDwwqT-Ms
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"Ik bun moar een eenvoudige boerenlul en doar schoam ik mien niet veur" (Normaal, 1978)
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the captain
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« Reply #8 on: November 23, 2016, 05:59:52 AM »

It always cracked me up how country, jazz, and opera were also chock-full of stories of extramarital sex, alcohol abuse, and violence, yet by the '80s none of those were of interest to the self-appointed prosecutors of their deity's musical laws. Just the loud stuff with the long-haired fellows playing little squiggly notes on the oddly shaped guitars.
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« Reply #9 on: November 24, 2016, 10:50:52 PM »

This site has been online for years now, but I'm still not sure if it's supposed to be a joke or not.

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Evils%20in%20America/Rock-n-Roll/beach_boys.htm
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« Reply #10 on: November 25, 2016, 04:37:32 PM »

My Parents weren't ever concerned about me listening to the Devil's music, as much as they just didn't want it to be full of swearing. And they didn't want it to really involve sex that much.

Like the Beastie Boys 'License To Ill'. I think they took one look at the video for "You Gotta Fight", and decided that it wasn't appropriate for a 12 year old kid to listen to. Being a parent now, I can understand it.

When I was a teen, things were starting to heat up as far as censorship in music. I remember getting my hands on 2 Live Crew's "As Nasty As They Want To Be", and not being able to believe what I was hearing (unfortunately, I can still rap most of the lyrics to 'Get Loose Now'. Which, judging by the title alone, you can imagine how that song went).

I went through a heavy Slayer phase when I was 15, 16 years old. I don't know if it was because it seemed pretty taboo or what; I mean, their stuff is pretty satanic. They aren't satanists, but you wouldn't know that by listening to their music. I think it was more just the shock of it all; basically, 2 Live Crew and Slayer were the same thing, they were pushing the limits of what you could or couldn't do. It's just that 2 Live Crew was pure sex, and Slayer was pure death. And all of that music, I hid from my Parents, because I knew that they would either throw it in the trash on first sight (2 Live), or take it and hide it from me until I was old enough to be able to handle the real horrors of the world (Slayer).

None of their objections really had anything to do with religion. It was more just trying to instill in me good values, such as not looking at women as objects, or rocking out to a song about the horrors of Nazi Germany.
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Lonely Summer
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« Reply #11 on: November 26, 2016, 01:41:37 PM »

Sadly, this sort of paranoia and fear is still around. I have a friend telling me all famous rock and rollers are Satanists, cause that's how you get famous, you sell your soul to the devil and you get famous. And this includes some supposed Christians like Johnny Cash, Elvis Presley and Bob Dylan. The Beatles were Satanists, that's why you see only half their faces on Meet the Beatles, and John is doing that weird thing with his hands on A Hard Days Night, oh the umbrellas on Beatles '65 are a satanic symbol, the warped faces on Rubber Soul are satanic...good grief, people drive me insane with this stuff. This is the kind of thinking that can lead a person to just locking themselves away in their house because 'the whole world out there is satanic!" Don't misunderstand me, I am inclined to be a religious guy, but what the f** is wrong with "I Want to Hold Your Hand"? Christians don't allow hand-holding before marriage? "it  just leads to ...ahem...other things". Why did Bob Dylan do gospel shows in 1980 and submit himself to jeers and boos from the audience night after night if he was working for the devil? "It's all part of the deception. They want you to think they're something they're not". So in other words, you can't trust anyone! Whatever they say, they mean the opposite. Sheesh! So if someone says they're a Satanist, they're really a Christian?
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« Reply #12 on: November 28, 2016, 04:23:32 PM »

Ima a horrorcore fiend and my mom never cared growing up and 8 years of catechism even I know its ENTERTAINMENT

Triple Six Mafia are my favorite 'devil worshipers'  ::)m
Lord Infamous knew how to fool people R.I.P
https://youtu.be/s0-QNejvKeE

''I don’t like all that chipper-ass, ring-a-ding-a-ding-ass music. I’m sayin’ that Will Smith type sh*t, you know? I don’t like that type of sh*t. And you know I liked NWA but I said I don’t wanna talk about gangbangin’. You know we got gangs here, I’m not gonna say what gang we were in but we were in a gang, but I didn’t wanna do that kind of gangbang type of thing so I said I’ma take it to another level, I’m gonna do something dark. What’s worse than a gangbanger? Evil, satan itself. So I said I’m gonna venture into that side of it and that’s how that came about.'' Lord Infamous 2009



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« Reply #13 on: November 30, 2016, 11:41:10 AM »

It always cracked me up how country, jazz, and opera were also chock-full of stories of extramarital sex, alcohol abuse, and violence, yet by the '80s none of those were of interest to the self-appointed prosecutors of their deity's musical laws. Just the loud stuff with the long-haired fellows playing little squiggly notes on the oddly shaped guitars.

That's still the case really.  Only insert rap and pop.

Look at top 40 radio, geared towards tweens, teens, and young adults.  You have pop tarts like Arianna Grande and Miley Cyrus prancing around half naked in music videos and singing songs about sex.  That's OK, but not the rock / metal guys from back in the day.

Rock has become so watered down and sanitized that no parent group would dare question it today. 
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the captain
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« Reply #14 on: November 30, 2016, 12:19:45 PM »

Don't pop stars take heat for being sexually provocative, though? Seems to me I hear complaints with each new wave of product, ER, stars. And rappers definitely take heat for misogynist and violent lyrics. (I omitted them from the earlier post because circa 1984 groups like PMRC or Peters Bros didn't know they existed so far as I could tell.) But at least complainers tend to leave mythical supernatural bad guys out of it now.
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« Reply #15 on: November 30, 2016, 12:38:33 PM »

Don't pop stars take heat for being sexually provocative, though? Seems to me I hear complaints with each new wave of product, ER, stars. And rappers definitely take heat for misogynist and violent lyrics. (I omitted them from the earlier post because circa 1984 groups like PMRC or Peters Bros didn't know they existed so far as I could tell.) But at least complainers tend to leave mythical supernatural bad guys out of it now.

Maybe I'm out of touch, but I haven't heard many people complain about sexual lyrics in pop music in quite some time.  Maybe people stopped fighting that fighter after the likes of Madonna in 1980s and Brittney Spears in the 1990s / 2000s. 

I remember some group tried to get The Muppets taken off ABC last year because there was a mild reference to pot in one episode. 

Well, the Devil really don't seem to show up much in music these days.  Maybe some European heavy metal bands.  Maybe their references to Satan are keeping the catchy band Ghost from getting airplay (although their song "Square Hammer" does get played going into commercial breaks on Monday Night Football). 
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the captain
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« Reply #16 on: November 30, 2016, 12:54:22 PM »

Much of what I recall catching flak in the 80s wasn't overtly satanic either: Prince, Van Halen etc. A lot was just showing values that Christians weren't ok with (e.g. sex).
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« Reply #17 on: November 30, 2016, 12:59:08 PM »

Miley Cyrus was criticized a lot when she first started acting crazy a few years ago.  I remember there was a huge uproar after one of the awards shows.  But that may have been because a lot of people still wanted her to be Hannah Montana.   
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« Reply #18 on: November 30, 2016, 01:00:44 PM »

Much of what I recall catching flak in the 80s wasn't overtly satanic either: Prince, Van Halen etc. A lot was just showing values that Christians weren't ok with (e.g. sex).

That's true.  There's really not much sex in modern rock anymore either. 

No mentions of sex or the devil.  No wonder modern rock is so boring. 

 Grin
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« Reply #19 on: November 30, 2016, 01:02:10 PM »

Miley Cyrus was criticized a lot when she first started acting crazy a few years ago.  I remember there was a huge uproar after one of the awards shows.  But that may have been because a lot of people still wanted her to be Hannah Montana.   

I do remember that.  And that was just three years ago. 

Selena Gomez apparently had a very sexual performance on SNL this year, and I only heard about that in passing.  Maybe since it likely aired after midnight, that former Disney girl turned pop tart got a pass. 
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The Cincinnati Kid
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« Reply #20 on: November 30, 2016, 01:25:59 PM »

Miley Cyrus was criticized a lot when she first started acting crazy a few years ago.  I remember there was a huge uproar after one of the awards shows.  But that may have been because a lot of people still wanted her to be Hannah Montana.   

I do remember that.  And that was just three years ago. 

Selena Gomez apparently had a very sexual performance on SNL this year, and I only heard about that in passing.  Maybe since it likely aired after midnight, that former Disney girl turned pop tart got a pass. 

Yeah I saw that.  I didn't think it was too bad especially compared to what others pop stars have done. 
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« Reply #21 on: November 30, 2016, 02:34:08 PM »

I love the original post.

My parents were the opposite. There were a bunch of born-again Christians in my school. One of my friends was "saved" and she and her youth group leaders wanted to save me.  So I got a free trip to Disney World in exchange for letting them deprive me of sleep talking about Jesus until 4:00 am then waking us up at 7:00 and repeat for a few days. My (still) best friend came along as a buffer. My dad believed in letting his kids make mistakes - so he didn't object.

I have never seen him as tense as the moment I walked in the door after that trip. He and my stepmom were sitting at the dining room table, completely silent and very stiff. My dad, making a transparently desperate effort to seem casual, started asking questions. At some point I said, "Dad, I''m not converted or anything." He said, "thank god" (haha).

He snarked - literally if snark means a sarcastic snort and remark to you - if I listened to music he thought was bad quality - about which we had several arguments. Otherwise, no issue.
« Last Edit: November 30, 2016, 02:38:01 PM by Emily » Logged
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« Reply #22 on: December 01, 2016, 04:27:14 PM »

all religious people have a screw loose.  all of them are brainwashed.  the funny thing is when you tell them that, they say
'no we are not'!!  That's when I say 'yep, just what I just said'.  Religion, which is a type of pride and power, is the main
reasons why there has always been war between mankind. 
F&ck the c&nts!
You're angry with God because your life sucks.
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« Reply #23 on: December 01, 2016, 04:38:53 PM »

I've got to find that video where plants are exposed to heavy metal and the plants to die. That one was funny.
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« Reply #24 on: December 02, 2016, 05:15:29 AM »

I've got to find that video where plants are exposed to heavy metal and the plants to die. That one was funny.

One of Lemmy (RIP)'s most iconic quotes was that if Motorhead moved next door to you, your lawn would die. 
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