Enough rednecks! The city doesn’t need anymore

Is it "a new age disease"? Obviously yes! None of the metalheads from Hyderabad were born with a guitar in their hand or a silver spoon in their mouth. Many rose from the ashes with their intense passion and love for music. But on the contrary few are just a sham. We are talking about a scanty crowd and a few select bands which hail from Hyderabad- who may just account for a micron level of the metal culture in city or the country.

These bands of gen Y or gen ‘M’ that proclaim to address all the societal and civic issues with their retaliation through their obvious screaming vocals- most probably have lost it! So, do we categorise these youngsters the way Jeff Daniels symbolised the Republican Tea Party? Well apparently, there is a lot in common- like a fundamentalist belief in scriptural literalism-denying science- unmoved and alienated by facts—undeterred by new information- a hostile fear of progress-demonisation of education- a need to control women’s body (in obscene and atrocious ways)- severe xenophobia- tribal mentality- intolerance of dissent and nevertheless a pathological hatred for the government and the societal establishment. It cannot be called Taliban.

Metal commenced in a very crude way. But oblivious of the fact that metal evolved where the cultural ethnicity was dominant, the scene in Hyderabad with few select bands is awful now and calling them rednecks becomes too sub-standard for them again! Or does it?

None to blame, the crisis is growing each day. No more complaints that the metal scene in Hyderabad is at a nascent stage. Apparently they are the same sect of music enthusiasts who retaliated against the derogatory lyrics of Honey Singh. Why? Maybe because it was too colloquial and not that niche, but what are the niche bands doing- for theirs is crude obscenity on women and ghastlier than the rapes that moved the nation.

There was a time when metal was good and few bands justified the genre in the Indian scene. They commanded respect. Many proved it wrong that “the metal world is an ugly scene inhabited by misanthropes, misfits and non-conformists who buck authority at every turn.” Yet for all of its hostility and blatant nonconformity, metal is a panacea for its followers, the only way to make sense of a chaotic, callous society in which they don’t fit. Few spent their lives, to prove it to the society that they were not the real misfits. But the juvenile behavior and attitude among some bands in Hyderabad is taking itself back and they are becoming the real misfits.

You may look at the others, from the metal scene in the city like Primal Abuse, Perpetual Void and you’ll find a community of individuals that bond through their favourite music. While they often express their collective identity with monstrous tattoos, tribal piercings and band t-shirts, penetrate their defensive armour and you’ll also find a group of affable, often knowledgeable music fans who listen to metal for catharsis, energy and empowerment. Going back to the same line; there are two kinds of people in the world, where do you belong?