Abstract: << Twenty years after the first appearance of Heavy Metal in the western world, the first heavy metal bands were born in The Popular Republic of China spearheaded by Tang Dynasty. Their pioneer status as well as their music that is the product of a mix between heavy metal and Chinese traditional-inspired music will have a lasting impact on the Chinese Metal scene, that still either claims their legacy or calls to go beyond it. From the debuts of Metal in China until it's folklorisation or the refusal to“ sound exotic”, the numerous incarnations of Chinese metal are made between globalization and stakes of national/local order, like these bands that choose to express a pro-Han national identity or those who claim “another” Chinese identity.
Through a Nine months field investigation in the Chinese metal scene in Beijing, as well as the analysis of Chinese Metal diffusion supports (album artworks, lyrics, instruments, scenic visuals, etc..), this thesis aims to question the identities and imaginaries at work in the Chinese Metal using the researcher-amateur's perspective.
By focusing my work on the metal music's actors in China( mainly musicians and producers), it appeared to me that Metal is a cultural bridge( or a battlefield ) between local, national and transnational imaginaries. Far from the “exotic” image that is being maintained by the Metal scene in the West, the Chinese scene appears to be way more diversified and contrasting than the bands with a “ folkloric” sound that are way more popular outside of China's borders. Our research shows that Metal in China has made itself into Chinese Metal, a musical subculture that is crossed by musical, political and identity stakes. >>
[SOURCE: https://theses.hal.science/tel-04152882/]