Abstract: This thesis aims to conduct a study of battle jackets using painting as a recording and analytical tool. A battle jacket is a customised garment worn in heavy metal subcultures that features decorative patches, band insignia, studs and other embellishments. Battle jackets are significant in the expression of subcultural identity for those that wear them, and constitute a global phenomenon dating back at least to the 1970s. The art practice juxtaposes and re-contextualises cultural artefacts in order to explore the narratives and traditions that they are a part of. As such, the work is situated within the genre of contemporary still life and appropriative painting. The paintings presented with the written thesis document a series of jackets and creatively explore the jacket form and related imagery. The study uses a number of interrelated critical perspectives to explore the meaning and significance of the jackets. Intertextual approaches explore the relationship of the jackets to other cultural forms.
David Muggleton’s ‘distinctive individuality’ and Sarah Thornton’s ‘subcultural capital’ are used to emphasise the importance of jacket making practices for expressions of personal and corporate subcultural identity. Italo Calvino’s use of postmodern semiotic structures gives a tool for placing battle jacket practice within a shifting network of meanings, whilst Richard Sennett’s‘material consciousness’ helps to understand the importance of DIY making practices used by fans. The project refers extensively to a series of interviews conducted with battle jacket makers between 2014 and 2016. Recent art historical studies of still life painting have used a materialist critique of historic works to demonstrate the uniqueness of painting as a method of analysis. The context for my practice involves historical references such as seventeenth century Dutch still life painting. The work of contemporary artists who are exploring the themes and imagery of extreme metal music is also reviewed.

Abstract: This thesis focuses on the relationship between young people who affiliate with alternative subcultures and self-harm and/or suicide. Alternative subcultures can be described as groups that are distinct from 'mainstream' cultures. Affiliation with such groups can be broadly defined as having a strong collective identity to a group with specific values and tastes, typically centred around music preference, clothing, hairstyles, make-up, tattoos and piercings (Greater Manchester Police; GMP, 2013; Moore, 2005). Some alternative subcultures have also been associated with 'dark, sinister and morbid' themes, such as Goths, Emos, and Metallers (Young, Sproeber, Groschwitz, Preiss, & Plener, 2014). Self-harm can be defined as the deliberate act of harming oneself, with or without suicidal intent. This commonly involves cutting and self-poisoning (NICE, 2013). Other behaviours that can be described using this term include non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI; the intentional destruction of body tissue without suicidal intent) and suicidal behaviours such as suicidal ideation and attempts (self-harm with some intent to die; Klonsky & Muehlenkamp, 2007; Nock, Borges, Bromet, Cha, Kessler, & Lee, 2008).
Some would argue that NSSI is distinct from self-harm, and as such it features as a disorder in the DSM-V as Non-Suicidal Self-Injury Disorder (NSSID; APA, 2013), however there remains some controversy over the latter (Kapur, Cooper, O'Connor, & Hawton, 2013). The associations between alternative subgroup affiliation and self-harm and/or suicide were explored through a systematic review and empirical research study using quantitative methodology. It is well documented in the literature that the prevalence of self-harm and suicide is particularly high in adolescents and young adults, with suicide being one of the leading causes of death in this population (Hawton, Saunders, & O'Connor, 2012; WHO, 2014). Self-harm has become a clinical and public health concern with up to 30,000 adolescents receiving hospital treatment each year (Hawton, Rodham, & Evans, 2006) and prevalence rates rising to between 7-14% for young people in the UK (Hawton & James, 2005; Skegg, 2005; Swannell, Martin, Page, Hasking, & St John, 2014).
Minority groups are another population who appear to have elevated rates of self-harm, including Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT; Jackman, Honig, & Bockting, 2016), ethnic minorities (Bhui, McKnezie, & Rasul, 2007) and alternative subcultures (Young et al., 2014). However, there is a paucity of research into the latter population. This presented a gap to conduct a systematic review of the available literature in an attempt to understand the association between alternative subculture affiliation and self-harm and suicide. Chapter 1 describes the systematic process taken in an attempt to understand the links between alternative subculture affiliation and both self-harm and suicide. Ten studies were included which focused on self-harm and/or suicide and alternative identity through subculture affiliation (e.g. Goth) or music preference (e.g. Heavy Metal). The results indicated that there is an association between alternative subculture affiliation and self-harm and suicide, though the lack of research in the area and methodological limitations impact on the extent to which the underlying mechanisms can be understood.
Leading on from the systematic review, Chapter 2 presents the empirical study which investigated the factors that might contribute to the increased risk of NSSI in alternative subcultures, specifically focusing on variables that have been found to be linked to NSSI in young people; emotion dysregulation, depression, identity confusion and exposure to self-harm. The aim of this study was to increase our understanding of the mechanisms involved that might explain this increased risk of NSSI. Alternative subcultures were found to be at a greater risk of NSSI in comparison to affiliations with other subcultures, though this association lessened when the other variables were accounted for. A key predictor of NSSI in this population was emotion dysregulation. The findings highlight the importance of raising awareness of the potential risk of self-harm/suicide in alternative subcultures in order to create a greater understanding and direct resources appropriately.

Abstract: The Southern Metal scene depends heavily on the performance of a Southern Identity. While considerable research has been done on other musical genres and scenes from the American South (country music, blues, gospel music), less attention has been given to the extreme metal scene of Southern Metal. Using scholarship of Nadine Hubbs, Philip Auslander, Jefferey C. Alexander, and Keith Kahn Harris, among others, I analyze two films, Slow Southern Steel (2010) and NOLA: Life, Death, and Heavy Blues from the Bayou (2014), and one song, Down’s “Eyes of the South” as cultural productions of this Southern Metal scene. In this project, I define the musical elements and scene ethos of Southern Metal as they relate to a wider, more mainstream American audience and describe how these identities and cultural forms are produced, negotiated, and embodied.

Abstract: Since the first album that Black Sabbath released in 1970, the 50-year-long history of heavy metal music makes it has developed into a diversified but controversial subculture all over the world. Even though several big names, such as Metallica, Iron Maiden or Judas Priest, have gained commercial success and mainstream exposure, most of the heavy metal bands, fans and communities are still far from a stable status. The market scale is threatened by poor social acceptance and incorrect stereotypes and is too limited to develop an operational model for heavy metal music communities as mature as mainstream music production in this current state. The goal of this thesis is to: 1) explore the core value of heavy metal subculture and design an organizational strategy to strengthen the connection between various roles within the community. The research was divided into three parts. The first part is the quantitative research on the development of heavy metal music in different regions, shows the regional trends of heavy metal subculture. The second part is the qualitative evaluation of heavy metal albums’ covers and lyrics, and documentary films about heavy metal music. The third part is the interviews with record shop owners. The first part Borrowing the CIS (Corporation Identity System) from the business field, the data collected during the second stage could be categorized into visual identities, communication identities, and behavior identities. The data collected from interviews are organized into a system map to show the current organizational strategy. The conclusion, this thesis proposes a new type of organizational strategy that supports the local heavy metal subculture community, in order to help stabilize the market and strengthen connections of community members through participation in it. Furthermore, inspired by the proposed strategy, more universal strategies and guidelines for other types of subculture are discussed.