(ThyBlackMan.com) As with any genre of music, metal and rock has songs that didn’t age well. This can be in part because the production makes them sound outdated or attitudes towards this kind of content changed with the times. In the latter’s case, it’s often that the content wasn’t acceptable at the time but no one was rallying that hard against it.
That’s what we’re focusing on as we get into five songs that didn’t age well from a content stance. This isn’t to say “Stop listening to it” because all of these are still songs I listen to, songs I enjoy, and some are from bands I love.
It’s important to be critical of the content and not just blindly defend it. Also, a trigger warning is necessary here as some of these songs deal with sexual assault and homophobia.
Savage Grace – “Master of Disguise” from Savage Grace (1985)
This is one of my favorite albums as it’s a prime example of the U.S breed of 80s speed metal and power metal. I’d say 95 to 99-percent of album’s tracks aren’t problematic. They’re fantasy-oriented with tales of bravery, betrayal, and so on.
Then you get the title track, number six, on the B-side.
Back up, let’s talk about the album cover because that’ll let you know where I’m going with this. It depicts a nude woman handcuffed to a C.H.I.P officer’s motorcycle with the officer—known as Knudsen—smiling evilly as red glowing eyes behind his aviators.
There’s an ongoing story with Knudsen in the successor band Masters of Disguise where he’s a cop who uses his position and power to rape women. Hence the “Master of Disguise.” This was 1985, thirty years before Oklahoma City officer Daniel Holtzclaw was given 263 years for doing the same thing.
Bad Brains – “Don’t Blow No Bubbles” from Quickness (1989)
I’m a big Bad Brains fan and I enjoyed the direction of Quickness as it saw the band evolve towards the alternative metal sound that was on the rise while also mixing it with reggae. The song “Don’t Blow No Bubbles” is problematic purely for homophobia.
At the time, A.I.D.S was a problem and gay people were the scapegoats in the media. The condition was hitting the Black community hard as well. When you take the time this song was written, “Don’t Blow No Bubbles” meaning “stop being gay” and the call to ask God to help gay people not be gay, it’s easy to see why this song is a problem.
Manowar – “Hail and Kill” from Kings of Metal (1988)
“Hail and Kill” is one of my favorite metal songs and probably the fifth metal song I learned the lyrics to (Judas Priest’s “Tyrant,” Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades,” Iron Maiden’s “Iron Maiden,” and Savage Grace’s “Master of Disguise” in that order). It’s one of those heavy metal power anthems.
The problem with “Hail and Kill” doesn’t come from it’s call for killing enemies and glorifying warfare. Make no mistake, those are problems and no different from a lot of hip-hop calling for people to fight others and glorying violence and misogyny.
The issue comes from a lyric calling for the legions fighting against their foes to “rape their women as they cry” followed by a devious laugh.
This is sandwiched between torturing enemies and torturing then killing said enemies. Oh, and earlier in the song there’s a call for swords to remain wet “like a young girl in her prime” which also raised concerns because it’s vague.
Speaking of that…
Virgin Steele – “Seventeen” from Age of Consent (1988)
This is another band I enjoy and like Master of Disguise, most of this album is made up of unproblematic, well-written and performed fantasy-themed songs. The album title will have you expecting the worst but it’s actually the song “Seventeen” that’s the problem.
If your thought went to what the song title and album title allude to then you’re correct. This song is romanticizes sex with a seventeen-year-old stripper—or rather the desire to have sex with one. This wasn’t a song that was going to age well at all.
I mean “Master of Disguise” galloped along so fast that you would’ve probably missed what it was about until you got to the chorus and played it back.
Judas Priest – “Eat Me Alive” from Defenders of the Faith (1984)
Now, I couldn’t do a list on five problematic metal and rock songs without mentioning one song from my favorite band. It would be bias and protecting my band. “Eat Me Alive” was the second B-side track on the monstrous Defenders of the Faith album.
It’s a song about passionate sex which wouldn’t cause you to blink an eye since most of us have heard such songs in different genres anyway. However, the verse:
Gut-wrenching frenzy
That deranges every joint
I’m gonna force you at gun point
To eat me alive
Eat me alive
That verse will change the whole context of a song. It rose the question of “Is this a song about passionate sex or low-key rape?” It’s a great song to the ear and fits in with how near-flawless of a Judas Priest album this is but that verse throws the song into a quagmire.
In Closing
There are other songs that didn’t make the list so expect a part two sometime in the near future unless our readers found most of the list unsettling. If you did, my apologizes on behalf of ThyBlackMan.
I do many articles on rock and heavy metal for this site and recently for AfroGamers and it’s important to point out that there are problematic as hell songs in the genre I love that I’m introducing to all you. It’s not right to just point out what’s so awesome about it and give recommendations and not give a heads up on stuff that didn’t age well over time and could trigger some readers.
Staff Writer; M. Swift
This talented writer is also a podcast host, and comic book fan who loves all things old school. One may also find him on Twitter at; metalswift.
