share your controversial music opinions

could be about anything, genre, artists, or the industry itself 

DSBM gottta be the worst metal subgenre I've ever heard in my life. Like don't get me wrong, I love Wounded Masquerade it's my favorite band ever, but I tried listening to the big bands of the genre and other one off tracks and it just sounded awful to me. Maybe I wasn't digging it at the time but I don't think much can change my opinion on it tbh.

@smokingintheshop

Lol thank you thank you 😂

@Kommando Mutiliid I CAN SO AGREE ON THE FIRST POINT YOU MADE!! 

also, KILL JOHN LENNON!! 

@Somedeadpoet i wish this site had some way to give negative kudos

Maybe not a controversial take here, idk, but:

Elitism & gatekeeping are both good and necessary aspects of ANY music scene.

Let me explain. It is a matter of dilution and authenticity. Musical scenes of all stripes, either mainstream or alternative, are built on a collective, cohesive, shared identity. Like it or not, these groups are not open to everyone.

The more people join a subculture and attempt to impose their external wills upon it, the more the subculture is diluted. The authenticity of a community is called into question if it can no longer define what its core audience acts like, looks like, listens to, etc. Authenticity is lost when the core turns outward and the entire genre is reduced to trends, aesthetics, and algorithmic attention.

Look no further than goth and the "TikTok-ification" and sexual marketing of goth fashion and aesthetics, without ever placing emphasis on the post-punk musical scene, for an example of how a scene can be so damaged by this demand not to gatekeep—a demand that comes from an ideological position of openness and welcoming everyone. If the scene is for everyone, it is for no one.

This was less of a problem in the '90s and prior, before the advent of the internet, as most scenes evolved through tape trading, zines, labels, and radio cultures. However, due to the prevalence of the internet, it is easier than ever before to listen to music that was usually kept to a smaller crowd. While this is awesome for the artists and a great way to spread a subculture to individuals who excitedly and happily learn the unspoken rules and act properly, it is terrible when people chase trends, bandwagon, or otherwise enter a space without properly learning its rituals and customs.

Often, these people attempt to impose change upon a scene and describe it as progressing the genre forward or opening it up to wider audiences, but this is false. Many scenes, like neofolk or black metal, were never meant for a wider audience and don't ever intend to be. The harsh unlistenability and coldness of these scenes are not merely aesthetics; they are defense mechanisms, not something to plaster on your social media profiles. What was once meant to make old ladies turn pale has become an entry on the Aesthetics Wiki and a personality/hyperfixation for kids on the internet.

We all need a tribe, and keeping people out is necessary sometimes. Not everyone can be accepted all the time; you have to earn your stripes. So get comfortable being called a poser or a LARPer for some time. And, in all honesty, you will have to LARP before you actually understand the scene. That is okay. That is called growth.

In this algorithmic world of instant gratification, people expect to be accepted into things right away. You don't gain max level before you beat the tutorial, and there is no pay-to-win. This isn't a Ubisoft game. Take your time to understand the scene, understand the movements, and understand your place within them. If you are genuine, acceptance with come with time.

So, for now, accept the hazing. Accept that you don't know enough, and work hard to be welcomed into the tribe. Then, one day in the future, you can help gatekeep and do the same to others.

Love it or hate it, this is the cycle of subcultures. Either gatekeep them or lose them.