"AESTHETICS OF HATE: R.I.P. DIMEBAG ABBOTT, & GOOD RIDDANCE -- Time For Conservative Imagination!
by William Grim, Iconoclast Contributing Editor
You've undoubtedly heard by now that a demented fan last week killed heavy metal guitarist Dimebag Abbott at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio. While I am extremely happy to hear that the assassin was shot to death by a brave Columbus policeman and I in no way want to engage in a blaming the victim scenario, I cannot deny that there much in Mr. Abbott's demise of one being hoisted on one's petard. The squalor, inhumanity, filth (both in the metaphorical and hygienic senses), depravity, ugliness and ignorance of everything that heavy metal represents (Like rap, I cannot use the noble term music in a description of heavy metal) creates a mindset among its devotees in which Mr. Abbott's assassination was an event that was all but waiting to happen.
It was highly amusing, and also terribly sad, to watch on television fans conducting a "vigil" for the slain Mr. Abbott outside of the Alrosa Villa. It was an assemblage of ignorant, semi-human barbarians who were filthy in attire and manner, intellectually incoherent and above all else, hideously ugly to the point of physical deformity. Here is a definite case in which the outer appearance of these "fans" accurately represented the hideousness of their souls. That the physical deformity of their ugliness was self-inflicted makes the spiritual tragedy of their misspent lives all the more tragic.
But one can see why the heavy metal fans so closely identified with Mr. Abbott. He was an ignorant, barbaric, untalented possessor of a guitar and large amplifier system. Freakish in appearance, more simian than human, he was the performer of a type of "entertainment" that can be likened only to a gorilla on PCP. Lacking subtlety, wit, style, emotional range and anything approaching even the smallest iota of intellectual or musical interest, Mr. Abbott was part of a generation that has confused sputum with art and involuntary reflex actions with emotion.
De gustibus non disputandem est. Matters of taste are not subject to argument. That has been a general principle of aesthetics for some time, and when we are talking about the visceral preference for Mozart or Haydn or Beethoven among civilized human beings we are on pretty safe ground. I do not understand exactly why I prefer Haydn to my good friend who prefers Beethoven. But we both agree (as do all civilized human beings) that both Messrs. Haydn and Beethoven are numerous steps further along the evolutionary trail than Dimebag Abbott.
Here is one area in which conservatives have failed and failed miserably. Whether it is out of a lack of interest or despair, conservatives for too long have ceded the entire field of aesthetics to the trust fund red babies of the blue states. And look at what this has brought us. So-called heavy metal music, so-called rap music, operas and stage plays in which modern "stagings" reduce Verdi and Shakespeare to the condition of a schizophrenic's finger paintings. Leftist domination in the visual arts has made a mockery of the aesthetic greatness of modernism and replaced it with the turd encased in Lucite. And the grammatically-challenged racist rantings of Amiri Baraka now pass for poetry.
However, we conservatives should not confuse family values with aesthetics. In the realm of art, our evangelical brethren have many crimes to answer for. When a church replaces Bach with Bacharach it has engaged in the aesthetic rape of the liturgy. Just because one has good intentions and approaches the numinous with "sincerity" and "authenticity" (the latter term ironically being a buzzword among the Marxist aestheticians of the Frankfurt School), that does not absolve one from aesthetic responsibility.
As far as I am concerned, those who advocate a dumbed-down liturgy and schlocky pop music substitutes for Bach, Handel and the masses of the Renaissance, are as offensive as the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church and his perverse sexual politics.
Part of the hard work of civilization is teaching young to be able to distinguish between the good and the bad in all aspects of life. If we teach our young children to obey the 10 Commandments and to obey the laws of the land, but don't teach them to realize that Johann Sebastian Bach is superior to Dimebag Abbott, we have failed as parents and mentors. If a person has gone through 12 or 13 years of education and has not developed an appreciation for the greatest artistic achievements of mankind, that education has been an utter failure.
While laissez-faire is the correct approach to economics it has no place in the realm of aesthetics or morality. A confidant civilization imposes its morality and aesthetics on it young people. Yes, you heard it right. We impose. The Rousseauian noble savage is a myth. Left unchecked and untutored the savage will never attain nobility.
There are those who will accuse me of elitism. And I admit it. I am a conservative elitist. I want the very best. The very best form of government, the very best of civilizations, the very best educational system, the very best literature and art, the very best music, the very best way of life. If I need open heart surgery I want to go to an elite heart surgeon.
Mediocrity is the goal of socialism. Americans should aspire to greatness.
In the past forty years, conservatives have won great victories in the political, economic and moral realms, but we stand to throw all our gains away if we do not reclaim ascendancy in the aesthetic realm as well.
And while the murder of even a semi-human barbarian like Mr. Abbott is tragic and to be lamented, it would be wrong to ignore Mr. Abbott's complicity in contributing to the soul-deadening culture of death, ugliness, depravity and inhumanity that spawned his killer.
Hugo von Hofmannsthal once remarked that "all powerful imaginations are conservative." It is time for conservatives to utilize their imaginations and reclaim the field of aesthetics from the left-that is, while there is still something left in the aesthetic realm worth reclaiming.
Iconoclast contributing editor William E. Grim is a writer who lives in Germany and is a native of Columbus, Ohio. He may be reached at wgrim@myrealbox.com"
Well now, I'm sure that pissed a lot of you off. But maybe for the wrong reasons. First of all, that is a harsh man for his personal attacks on Dimebag. But he does bring up some good points about our modern society. But he also missed a lot of points, that lay a deeper than MTV-metal. First of all he made the comment several times that the people there mourning Dimebag's death were "ugly". Now I can only assume he meant their long hair, among other things maybe. Not putting words of the motivation in the mouth of these said people but, long hair is more Nobel for the European stock than short. This person probably doesn't realize that for a (I'd like to think) good amount of men with long hair (myself included) it is a representation of European ancestry and pride. The old use(the folk use) was to actually keep the back of your neck from being burnt while working in the sun in fields. But beyond the folk us, the Germanic (and other European tribes no doubt) nobility wore their hair long as a sign of that nobility. The man who wrote this article would probably be the same man to say that Finns should be speaking Swedish or Russian right now, not Finnish, which in essence is the language of the Finn folk(I won't use the word peasant for the imagery that might bring.) This is probably the kind of person that would say that European folk music has no value, because it is the music of the people, not just the nobility. But there has to be a healthy bond between the folk and the rules of that folk, in that bond this guy misses the point. Now I'll be the last one to defend the "culture" of America, but, you have to understand that even though it is a very distorted version of old European "tribalism" it is still a reflection of it in some way, musical culture. Now if we like it or not in America there is a "metal culture" of sorts, albeit a very sick and twisted one for the most part. We have to respect the tribal aspects of this, even though we should not promote it ourselves or exactly accept it fully either.
Joined: Wed Dec 08, 2004 8:58 pm Posts: 1148 Location: Green Bay
That article isn't some sort of sick, twisted joke? Wow.
_________________ When the last living thing Has died on account of us, How poetical it would be If Earth could say, In a voice floating up Perhaps From the floor Of the Grand Canyon, "It is done. People did not like it here.''
That was pretty amusing. Does this guy realize that Pantera wasn't really all that popular? Pantera's best song, "I'm Broken", ripped-off a Zeppelin riff, which was probably ripped off from Robert Johnson. They were a piss poor band if you ask me, which you didn't. But these are people who died, and it's definately not cool to mock them. I guess this guy must think he's the fucking Man for having exposed the Truth about Heavy Metal. I bet he jerks off while reading over his oh-so-brilliant writings before he goes to sleep.
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 11:04 pm Posts: 39920 Gender: Male
Kenny wrote:
That was pretty amusing. Does this guy realize that Pantera wasn't really all that popular? Pantera's best song, "I'm Broken", ripped-off a Zeppelin riff, which was probably ripped off from Robert Johnson. They were a piss poor band if you ask me, which you didn't. But these are people who died, and it's definately not cool to mock them. I guess this guy must think he's the fucking Man for having exposed the Truth about Heavy Metal. I bet he jerks off while reading over his oh-so-brilliant writings before he goes to sleep.
If you mean Beatles or Nirvana popular than no, but when you compare any European metal band Pantera were insanely popular. And yes, shitty riffage.. that goes for almost all heavy metal though, don't pick on one guitarist, a dead one at that.
That article isn't some sort of sick, twisted joke? Wow.
Yeah, I'm pretty sure this website is a satire site. At the bottom of the page there is a link for "more satirical news"
Edited to say that I still don't quite get the jist of this site though. I don't think it really fits any reasonable definition of satire. It seems to just more or less taking a piss on anything they don't agree with.
Joined: Fri Oct 22, 2004 12:47 pm Posts: 9282 Location: Atlanta Gender: Male
He fails miserably as a culturalist because he is too ignorant and prejudiced to see the similarities between the music of his beloved Hayden and Beethoven and that of Dimebag Darrell Abbott and other so called "heavy metal" guitarists. There are just as many deranged lunatics that listen to Faust and Bach as there are that listen to Dream Theatre.
If this failed excuse for an intellectual culturalist actually took five minutes to read an article by Darrell Abbott or view some of his music in sheet form his opinion would probably be quite different.
If "heavy metal" music is such a black mark on society why when they sell millions and millions of records aren't all of those people raping, pillaging, and otherwise reaking havoc? Could it be that rational people can determine right from wrong regardless of their choice of appearance, clothing they wear, car they drive, or music they listen to?
This guy is an absolute idiot. I for one would like to know something about the culture before I decide that I am above it.
Joined: Sat Oct 16, 2004 10:53 pm Posts: 20537 Location: The City Of Trees
Quote:
Of course, it would be wrong to suggest this sort of mayhem began with rock-and-roll. After all, there were riots at the premiere of Mozart's "The Magic Flute''. So, what's the answer? Ban all music? In this reporters opinion, the answer, sadly, is 'yes'.
Joined: Sun Oct 17, 2004 12:36 am Posts: 3556 Location: Twin Ports
Green Habit wrote:
Quote:
Of course, it would be wrong to suggest this sort of mayhem began with rock-and-roll. After all, there were riots at the premiere of Mozart's "The Magic Flute''. So, what's the answer? Ban all music? In this reporters opinion, the answer, sadly, is 'yes'.
_________________ Rising and falling at force ten
We twist the world
And ride the wind
Joined: Tue Oct 19, 2004 10:10 pm Posts: 2154 Location: Rio
goeatgod, i wish he was just talking about hair length (sorry, i think it was kinda lame your boasting around about your european heritage just kidding... but I LOVE MAN WITH LONG HAIR, it's sooooooo sexy!). now, seriously, the venom seemed to be dripping from his mouth (or pen ... or keyboard... whatever). if civilization and culture mean this, i think i'd rather be a monkey, a good, peaceful, loving monkey! and maybe start the evolution all over again, FCS!
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just kidding... but I LOVE MAN WITH LONG HAIR, it's sooooooo sexy!). now, seriously, the venom seemed to be dripping from his mouth (or pen ... or keyboard... whatever). if civilization and culture mean 
