It does all sound like a big joke. You have a two day music fest in hipster infested Brooklyn, NY. It's billed as an anti-fascist extreme metal festival. Mostly all of the bands are complete unknowns. And it's promoter is a former tour slut turned corrupt journalist turned far left political activist. Yeah to most fans of extreme metal it all sounds funny but to your typical SJW (aka: social justice warrior) as well as a few laughable metal music sites, it's serious.
Welcome to the closed minded world of Black Flags Over Brooklyn 2019. The fest, which took place on January 25th and 26th at some place called The Brooklyn Bazaar, was not billed as an all inclusive show where everyone was welcome. On the contrary it was an exclusive show for people who follow radical left wing ideologies as well as identity politics. Oh yeah they're also anti-fascist as one of the fest's merch items (what every metal fan craves) tote bags printed with the gothic-font phrase “Fuck NSBM”.
I became aware of this "fest" by way of a friend's Facebook posting of a show review link by that bastion of all things metal, Rolling Stone. At first I had a good laugh over it and why not. This is basically a culture of hipster-dom which has more ties to anarcho-punk than metal. They promote bigotry disguised as identity politics. They ally themselves with the domestic terror group Antifa. And they're obviously offended by everything about metal. Which is why I think it's funny when these people use the phrase "take our scene back"! Excuse me but it was never "your scene".
This fest is the creation of the one and only Kim Kelly. She's not really a household name amongst your average metal fan. But for people who you could call metal nerds aka: avid readers of everything metal (I guess that means me) she has an infamous history.
(Kim Kelly)
Long before she was indoctrinated by the far left and became de facto renaissance woman of the new hipster fascism movement. Kelly was known as a privileged trust fund baby from Philadelphia who in her youth slept her way into the metal scene. Whoa now don't get mad at me. I'm just going on what I've read from people who were around her at the time who's information has not been debunked. She then went from being a band slut / groupie to show promotions, a merch girl and journalism. As for that last career choice Kelly is most known for penning elaborate metal hoaxes including fabricated stories about Iranian and Chinese metal acts.
Now just to be fair to Kelly she's recently come clean about her past and admitted that, before she became indoctrinated in political correctness, far left ideology and identity politics, she listened to and supported musical acts that she "would never in a million years condone or give a platform to now." OK fine because I, as well as many other people, have some common ground in that idea. But the difference is that we laugh it off but for Kelly, she has turned her dislike into something resembling religious fervor. And as the saying goes, There is no greater prude than a reformed whore.
As it says in the sidebar of this blog: Extreme Metal or Music is generally a form which is accepted by 1% of all of the music loving public. It is elitist in every way and that's important to those of us who call ourselves fans. The 99% of people who will not like it are Not Supposed To. The music wasn't made for them, "the masses". It's music that's for those who take things to that "other" level. There is nothing hip or fad about it. In fact I treat those two notions very harshly. Just to add to that, Extreme metal contains a lot of material that is uncomfortable or potentially offensive to some people. If it bothers you then fine, mock it, laugh at it or simply don't listen to it. That's called Freedom of Choice.
Unfortunately for people like Kim Kelly and her ilk, as well as the nobodys who played this goddamn hiptard congregation and the sparse crowd that actually attended (not only was attendance underwhelming but reports say it wasn't as diverse as it's promoters would have liked. Mostly white men showed up, oh no) giving people choices is not good enough. These people want you all to see the errors of your ways, repent, convert or else. You know if there's one thing metal fans don't respond to well its being subjected to a lecture about the morality of their music tastes by a bunch of losers who don't even like metal. Ya know it's bad enough that half the world thinks metal fans are nothing more than a bunch of devil worshiping reprobates. It's worse when actual hipster reprobates think they're metal.
(where's the support? where's the crowd?)
As far as anyone criticizing this event, Kelly's attitude has already been made clear. In one write up to this event she said "If reactionary jagoffs are crying about in some piss-stained corner of the internet, good. That means we're doing something right." Fine you have your right to an opinion but what is that "something you're doing right?" Maybe it's fabricating a non existent crisis in order to legitimize your bigotry as well as your political motivation. Just because we see Kelly and her ilk as buffoons, losers and shit for brains idiots doesn't mean we don't take them for granted. In fact we take them seriously and debate them in order to show the world that they truly are buffoons, losers and shit for brains idiots.
So let's look at their main claim. They hate NSBM (National Socialist black metal). They also believe that there's a worldwide rise of violent white supremacy and fascism. And that metal should not be allowed to become a breeding ground for right-wing extremism. Now frankly you'd have to be a fear mongering nut job who sees a William Luther Pierce accolade behind every corner to believe that farce. Sure in the mid to late 90s NSBM was popular but not in the way these people think. I also believe it's ironic that for a group-think of people butt-hurt over national socialism probably support national socialists like US Senator Bernie Sanders or newly elected Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
But getting back to the NSBM thing, no there is not a rise in popularity as if you think it's all about nazism which NSBM was not all about. Sure these people can sight a few examples of people acting foolish or saying something. Still that does not make a movement of white supremacy and fascism. The reason why Kelly and her ilk believe this to be so is because they see anyone who disagrees with their left-wing extremism as a fascist. That's painting a whole lot of people with a broad brush which by the way is the definition of bigotry. But that would be lost on her if you tried to explain it. That and the fact that fanatics always turn into the ones they hate.
(the face of the resistance. Yeah sure we're scared.)
But I continue, having some sort of pride in yourself or your national identity to them is fascism unless you are part of a so-called marginalized group aka: anyone who is not a straight white male. Once again that's another form of bigotry which Kelly and her ilk, which includes self loathing white men, like to push. Ya know for a group of people who hate bigotry they certainly act like a bunch of bigots. As far as their other complaints or perceived offenses well they all look like the same shit being put out by your typical left wing crybabies who are perpetually offended. My simple answer to you all is just leave. We don't need people who have no problem glossing over their own past imperfections but act puritanical towards others. Go Fuck Yourselves!
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