Page - 86 - in JRFM - Journal Religion Film Media, Volume 05/02

like the sword of Damocles over humanity. Thus, the need to react becomes imperative, besides all biblical connotations: We also find in “Brighter than a Thousand Suns” a possible connection between the image of nations rising (Jesus) and the powers of darkness described in Revelation when the songwriters introduce the terms “hate”, “fury” and “Satan”. The latter (Rev. 12.9) comes to the earth full of rage. … It also comes as no surprise to those reading Revelation (or listening to Maiden’s “Number of the Beast”, for that matter) that the Devil’s “time is short” (Rev. 12.12), so once again we find the songwriters aligning present-day enemies.65 By these means, heavy music may be aligned, surprisingly, with conventional morality and point toward positive solutions: [E]ven with its carnivalesque reversal of values, heavy metal is often a conservative art form, relying on a clear demarcation of good and evil, God and the Devil. … the stress on dark elements in biblical apocalyptic contribute to a forceful and emotively charged call for peace.66 One of the most purely classical-apocalyptic songs ever composed is “My Apoc- alypse” (Metallica, 2008. A–16). Metallica musically recreates the aesthetics of destruction and horror, with violent drums and guitars, crushing beat, and an aggressive voice singing: “Hard explosive / … Feel thy name extermination / Desecrating, hail of fire”. Once more an unofficial video clip is recommended as a visual reference for the song (elaborated by Jankler TV in 2014) as it shows the iconography and fears that the audience were associating with dystopian mu- sic. It consists of brutal sequences from the Second World War. In general, mu- sic in the years after the terrorist attacks in 2001 evinces a strong concern, e. g., Jay Sean’s “2012 (It Ain’t The End)” (So High, Japan Edition, 2012) displayed a resigned desolation and hopelessness with no option for escape, advocating for a hedonistic night before the disaster. This music was to some extent a re- gression to older stages of dystopia, warning the audience of a nuclear end but seemingly impotent, unable to impede it. Quite possibly the economic decline of the Great Recession, in the late 2000s and onwards, also exerted an influence in this relapse into pessimism: “The economic downturn commencing in late 2008 generated predictions that ranged from the apocalyptic to the sanguine, across all sectors”.67 “Apocalypse Dreams” by Tame Impala (2012. A–17) somehow re-categorised dystopia in critical-constructive terms, fostering a sense of shared group mem- 65 Gilmour 2017, 75. 66 Gilmour 2017, 75. 67 Felton et al 2010, 619. 86 | Javier Campos Calvo-Sotelo www.jrfm.eu 2019, 5/2, 69–94