The First Amendment and Heavy Metal

Why do we in this country seem to have so much difficulty taking responsibility for our own mistakes and actions? I point you to the countless throngs of parents taking lawsuits out against entertainers and, especially, musicians, after their troubled kids hurt themselves or others because of what is all-to-often a case of a medically depressed child or a terrible upbringing or homelife. I was spurred on to write this blog by a random encounter with a very powerful documentary. This regards something about our culture of blame and scapegoating that has mystified and troubled me for years.

I recently came across a google video stream of a very, very rare documentary that I've been trying to find a copy of for some time. The name of the film is "Dream Deceivers," and the documentary is a very emotionally heavy look at one of the very important courtroom cases of the latter half of the 20th Century. I HIGHLY recommend seeking out this obscure gem. History will look at this case as having set a very important precedent regarding the First Amendment, but more concisely, as having made a very unequivocal statement regarding personal responsibility.

The case regarded the case of James Vance, et al, vs. Judas Prient. Judas Priest, for the uninatiated, is quite a phenomenon in the "metal music industry" having sold untold millions of records, performed to packed arenas, and having been on the PMRC's black list for at least thirty years now. Theatrical and shrill, to be sure, the band is also recognized as a turning point in heavy music among fans worldwide.

The story goes like this, on December 23rd, 1985, two deeply troubled teenagers, James Vance and Ray Belknap got stoned in the latter's bedroom in Reno, Nevada. They also drank alcohol and put on one of their favorite records, the now infamous 1978 "Stained Class" LP by Judas Priest. The music, according to Vance "was beautiful," "powerful," and "took us places." So influential was this music from the "Gods" (rock stars) on these youngsters (18 and 20 years old) that Vance's mother Phyllis Vance recalls James as having become more and more belligerant, quoting song lyrics as if they were the Scripture he formerly followed. After the binging and listening, both youths climbed outside the bedroom window, found their way into a nearbye churhyard cemetery, and each in turn shot himself in the head with a 12 gauge shotgun. Ray went first and died at the scene. James, for better or worse, survived, although he was horribly mutilated, and doctors, after intensive work, could never restructure his face. Three years after the case he hospitalized himself for depression and died mysteriously of a drug overdose.

James wrote a letter to Ray Belknap's mother, saying he felt that drugs and heavy metal music, like Judas Priest, essentially coerced them into this unspeakable act. Both families filed suit against the band, on the grounds the band recorded backwards messages in their music, instigating subconscious thoughts and messages to the listeners in a process called backmasking. Bands the likes of the Beatles, Queen, and most notably Led Zeppelin, have been accused of this practice, and in only a few vcases have intentionally backmasked messages been found. Most of the time these intentional messages were harmless jokes and didn't even concern the bands that have been accused of trying to "hypnotize" their listeners.

The grueling case against Judas Priest was waged in Reno in 1990, and untimately, the band emerged victorious, although both families appealed the decision. Comedienne Bill Hicks even based one of his routines on this "ridiculous" case, presenting a clever and ultimately hilarious scenario in which the band, talking among themselves, admit they are sick of being rich, of luxury, and of girls who throwing themselves at the members, and decide to kill their "profit margin," so they "can go back to selling shoes again." Herein lies only a fraction of the ludicrous nature of such a case.

The judge ruled at the outset that the lyrics, act, etc, were not on trial, as they are Constitutionally protected. What was on trial, he affirmed, was whether or not the band intentionally produced backwards messages on the record, specifically on the now notorious track "Better By You, Better Than Me." This song was originally recorded by British prog-rockers Spooky Tooth. The messages were said to sound like "Do it" when played backwards. These were played in the course of the trial. Vocalist Rob Halford was even pulled up to the witness stand to sing lyrics from the song acappela in front of the whole courtroom. Whether the messages existed or not, how effective would they have been on a subconscious level? Would it even work on fans?

In the end, the latter question never needed answering, as the subliminal "Do its" on the record were found to have been an accidentall combination of noises.

At the time of the trial, during metal's waning years in 1990, hundreds of fans protested the lawsuit outside the courtroom. They felt what was at stake was "rock 'n roll." In the end, there was much, much more at stake. Rock music is an envelop-pushing medium by its very nature, both musically and thematically, and for such an extreme representation of freedom of speech to emerge unscathed from such a direct assault by "the religious right" is a testament of the strength and forethought of the 1st Amendment of the U.S. Constitution. Think of all the rock controversies since then that haven't really gone anywhere. A few of my personal top ten are listed below:

Artist: AC/DC
Offending Track: "Night Prowler"
Song Release Date: 1979
Trial Date: None to speak of
Synopsis: These Aussie rockers were subjected to a litany of complaints, album burnings, bannings, and accusations after Richard Ramirez, A.K.A. "The Night Stalker" made the mistake of leaving his hat, labled AC/DC, at the scene of one of his grisly murder sites, one of many he left as he blazed a trail of brutality across Southern California during the mid eighties. This killing spree and media sensation kept families housebound in terror for months on end. If the hat and the fact that Ramirez was a self-proclaimed Satan worshipper and AC/DC fan weren't enough, he reportedtly took his pseudonym and inspiration from a the similarly-titled final track of the band's 1979 album "Highway to Hell." The band have defended themselves vehemently, saying the song is a joke about a boy sneaking into his girlfriend's bedroom at night. This record was lead singer Bon Scott's last album before he froze to death, the result of having nearly drank himself to death in a jeep in sub-zero weather at night. This death became, ironically, the inspiration for the writing of the next controversial track on my list . . . . . . .

Artist: Ozzy Osbourne
Offending Track: "Suicide Solution"
Song Release Date: 1980
Trial Date: January 13th, 1986
Synopsis: The song title is routinely read to indicate that suicide is the solution, meaning the solution to life. The song was very controversial following its release, but on January 13th, 1986, Ozzy Osbourne was taken to court by parents of John McCollum, a teenager who shot himself in the head while listening to this song. The prosecution in this media circus of a case contended that the gibberish a listener hears near the midfdle of the song is, in fact, Ozzy shouting "Get the gun and . . . Shoot! Shoot! Shoot!" It still sounds like gibberish to me, although many listeners continue to wonder what Ozzy is saying part way through the song. IBAR, The Institute for Bio-Acoustics Research, analyzed the song and found that subliminal message-like noises were recorded in the song. Ozzy, however, denies anything of the sort, only admitting "There is an effect on there, but I didn't say 'Get the F&^ing Gun!'" "Get the flask out" or "Get the shot glass" is a more logical translation since the song is dealing with alcohol abuse.

Another tragic case is when a rock music obsessed 14 year old (Eric A.), shot himself with a .22 caliber rifle. His parents blamed the following bands/artists: Ozzy Osbourne; AC/DC; Judas Priest; Black Sabbath; and Mötley Crüe. Ozzy, however, was the prime target, due to his song, "Suicide Solution."

Ozzy, never articulate enough to be his own best self-promoter, has repeatedly said emphatically that the song was "about DRINKING yourself to DEATH," and was written in a fit of sadness after his friend Bon Scott was found dead, a victim either of frostbite or of alcohol poisoning. In this context, the song title makes sense as a clever PUN, depicting alchohol as a prescription, a chemical compund, or, literally, a "solution" for death. As such, the song is claimed to be a warning, a warning Ozzy himself, a recovering addict, should know all too well after his Black Sabbath days.

Artist: Metallica
Offending Track:: "Fade to Black"
Song Release Date: 1984
Trial Date: None I know of
Synopsis: A myriad of suicides have been attributed to this desperate track. In 1987, friends Karen Logan, 17, and Nancy Grannan, 19, entered into a suicide pact. Their bodies were found in a garage, inside an idling car. 17 letters to friends and family members were found on the dashboard and a note containing the lyrics to Metallica's ode to suicide were found under the windshield wipers. Out of the myriad of other suicides in which this song played a small role, I can recount one account another example in the mid- to late-nineties, during which time I witnessed a new broadcast in which two teenage girls also left a note with the lyrics, along with a suicide note saying they simply "couldn't cope with the pressures of life." Metallica themselves have gone on record a great many times saying they constantly recieve praise and letters from fans citing this song, this lightning-rod for controversy, as the reason they decided not to end their lives.

Artist: Marilyn Manson
Offending Track: Pick one
Song Release Date: Whole career
Trial Date: None that I know of
Synopsis: The pop cultural wars between the likes of Tipper Gore and the PMRC and the risque rockers really hit the fan in the wake of the Columbine high school shooting in 1998. The two youths, Eric Harris, and Dylan Klebold went on a rampage, using heavy automatic firearms, grenads, etc, to ransack their school two weeks before their graduation, killing tens of their schoolmates in the worst school shooting in our countries history. Both kids reportedly played a lot of the computer game "Doom," Harris even having submitted an assortment of levels for the game he himself designed. One of these levels is even supposed to have matched the blueprintes for Columbine School itself. It was also asserted they may have listened to Marilyn Manson (though this has been disputed) and other German metal bands like Rammstein.

It was at this point that the battlefield for the cultural wars was set and the war was waged in earnest as America began a long, cold look at its own conscience. Manson was on magazine covers nationwide, and has even said he feared for his life, recieved death threats, and became a hermit. The result of these wars: Squeaky clean teen-pop, the likes of N'Sync and Britney Spears for the next twenty years! Yes, "plastic pop" has certainly been a regrettable (in my opinion) reaction to the public's fear of "dark" entertainment.

Can any readers come up with other examples of "backmasking" cases or entertainers on trial for such "crimes?"