Shock rock

Shock rockers most often use the attributes of horror films: costumes, masks, fake blood. The performances of many groups are accompanied by theatrical shows, where performers or extras are “hanged”, “tortured”, “crucified”. For this, shock rockers are constantly condemned by the public, but this also adds to their scandalous popularity.

Skrimin Jay Hawkins is considered the pioneer of this trend, back in the 50s he shocked the audience with unusual costumes and manner of performance ^[1] . Alice Cooper , nicknamed the “king of horror”, staged a performance at his concerts in which he “ate” fake animals, allowed himself to be hanged, his head chopped off, etc. Ozzy Osbourne also resorted to some of these tricks at the same time. The Misfits has founded a horror punk band dedicated to horror.

In the 1980s and 1990s, shock rock was developed by such musicians as Rob Zombie , WASP , King Diamond , Marilyn Manson . Shock performances with a demonstration of blood and terrible make-up are often at concerts of black metal and death metal groups. In industrial rock, some groups came up with a different kind of shocking ideas: sexually explicit. The undisputed leaders in this direction of shock rock were Rammstein , at concerts of which you can see fake penises, naked women and stage rape.

By the mid-90s, shock rock became boring and ceased to revolt and frighten the audience. Some bands, such as Piledriver , Slipknot and Mushroomhead , still use costumes and masks, but the horror show tradition at concerts is smoothly a thing of the past. Recently, shock rock is gradually losing its “shock”. Only its comic, humorous branch, with self-irony and self-parody, develops. GWAR , Lordi , Mindless Self Indulgence , Corrosion of Metal , etc. went along this path.

• Horror punk
• Glam rock
• Grindcore
• Visual kei
• I Put a Spell on You

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• Real Shock Rock Artists at Last.fm
• Horror 'n' Roll! 100% Horror, 100% Rock 'n' Roll!