I am proud to admit, I love punk rock and metal music for it is worthy to listen and progress one’s knowledge on culture. The past years, I have proclaimed punk rock as a social statement against government establishments in order to promote the general will. The metal to disperse aggression for those who trespassed your way in a positive manner. Though I have explored many bands within these two genres of music, I have never captured the fans preference on sexuality and acceptance to outré behavior.

All happened at the Vans Warped Tour. The fans crowded like sardines in thick lard cans to view the bands playing. Musicians standing on the stage like relics from a holy temple and the listeners will proclaim their loyalty. It goes for the same to all fans because it is love and empathy that circle around the nostalgia of music. However, a huge third eye comes when a fan who is open to observe the remarkable alternative approach of Vans Warped Tour counterculture event. Between the two genres (punk and metal), these eccentric tastes have crossed paths to share a common exploration of humane rejection. Those who feel threatened to express their sexuality and behavior are not doomed but enlightened to this new stream. In this way, I am stating teens and young adults find to expose a lot of skin or romantic bonds, which Amish people will find disgraceful. Although these actions are provocative and insulting, the crowd did not start a riot over the hottest “chick” or “hubby.” A little revolution to expose some skin or figure one’s attraction to another is very common which leads to the crowd to act comfortable and respectful. Thus, the more frank sexuality and behavior this counter culture defines increases a high tolerance for the two sexes to create a nonjudgemental and peaceful environment.

For once in my life, I have never went to a festival that featured more than 50 bands. Countless groups of brainless, masculine, mystical and expressive fans collided together to mob and crowd surf. I can tell the level of aggression and passion are related to the music. I watched one metal band called Wage War, which I believe to blend in hardcore metal with a touch of death and new wave of american metal. The loud oppression from the guttered drum beats and evil hard pounding guitar made fans create a mosh pit behind me. As the band played, I felt my body mauled left and right. It was like I was a rag doll with hardly any bones or skin. All of these brute men with long hair pushed and dominated one spot to the next. This anger generated is not to discourage metal music but to verify metal music requires a strong sense of masculine aggression. Into further links, the crowd surfing is faster pace because the music is high tense and overwhelming. As I am looking at the crowd, I can see a battlefield of fans create a struggle between each other to form a sense of brotherhood. This is an example of sexuality that takes place. Let the record show these men are not wanting homosexual relationships; these men have the desire to attract men to form an aggressive bond and pride with each other. After all of the violent and fast paced mayhem, in a split second, fans walk away handshaking, talking and laughing about the great “war”. Like the Vikings hoping one day when in death reach Valhalla, the metal headbangers want to test their dominance in order to accomplish a peaceful brotherhood from the music they enjoy. The women in the audience did not engage as much in the mosh pits. Doing so it would mean the women will want to absorb the masculine aggression the men felt. However, I have not observed any woman doing this action. Instead the women in the metal audience listened to the music, engaged more in the crowd surfing and stood closer to the band. I found surprising considering more women were upfront to the stage then the men. Even they wanted to crowd surf more than the men. Based on my empirical eye, I have to say the women in the metal audience do not have to express anger and frustration but understanding and feeling. The women in the audience have a deeper sense of hearing than the men because the creative music captures the metal women’s mind. The sexuality I believe the women audience display more is demisexaulity. They are drawn to the feeling of the band and did not care what they appear to act or endorse. Main concern is confident in how they feel and create music to capture their lost outcast hearts. Overall, the men and women in the metal world have separate sexuality. This works out in the end. The men thank each other by acting brutally while the women have felt like they were in a utopia.

The strange various punk crowd grew enormously along with the metal fans. This occurrence I believe proves that punk culture in itself contains the most relevant music for the human soul. Moreover, it is melody and harmony that arranges self actualization to the point where anyone can convert to the sound. Many fans enjoyed the bands such as Good Charlotte, Less than Jake and Sum 41 as create death circles and mosh pits. The bands will speak vulgar language to the crowd because fans in this festival feel oppressed from the world and want to disperse a little anger how things are in the world they don't belong. The straight definition of the outsider. As for the mosh pit goes the slightest touch from the mosh can make you feel like a cheerful pinball going from one pin to the next pin. You can easily score points to win the hearts and care of these punk fans because if you fall down and slide in the mosh, it will feel like you can never touch the ground. But there was no preference for the men and women on sexuality. The surfing on top of these crazy headbangers and jump fanatics holds a gilded experience to any one feels like the sun is smiling at their face. This means any gender did not abide to any specific clothing or action. Everyone in a punk audience does the exact same thing. A culture shock to the metal community. My guess is the sexuality the punk rock community is very similar to pansexuality where the majority of people do not care what gender or any specific body feature you have. What a welcome place to enjoy and love.

A huge factor for the punk and metal audience is fashion to promote the outré behavior and sexuality. The fashion from the metal fans was hardcore and implied resurrection of the dark ages. Good versus evil, dungeons and dragons, machine guns, nuclear war. Basically dark ages times modern doomsday prophecies. The battle jackets most metal fans have harvest the badges of many other metal bands. The way I see it, every metal fan must go to war with metal fans. If say one is listening to black metal which is Mayhem, Gorgoroth and Venom, their makeup is covered in black and white makeup for to resemble a dead corpse. Except, a thrash metal fan will most likely wear heavy thick clothing that is rugged to spread masculine features. I can go on to state many variations of the metal culture but the preference for sexuality is exhorted in the same way. Most metal fans (males) lust for a warlike concert in order to spread love for a brother: a metal brother. But let us move to the power of the black! The women and men both wear this color to represent their separation from mainstream and sexuality. Thinking about when the Western culture will wear black: funeral and black tie affair. This color is recognized as leadership and bravery in most African countries. The women may wear black latex tied and look dead from their makeup to express how they want to separate from society and feel confident as outcasts. The men will wear a black shirt to sponsor the band they enjoy or wear makeup like the women. A weird scenario built around the men and women wearing a death makeup but wear different fashion statements. The metal culture does see a cisgender fashion statement to know man and woman. If so a fan was wearing latex and tied leather while showing most of the skin, it is most likely a metal woman. Men will wear t shirt and latex or leather pants but won't show a lot of skin. Despite this, both sexes of the metal community have a sense of death makeup. There is no way I will state metal fans have a sexual desire to die. The death makeup resembles death but as a way to escape and feel free. Surely if someone feels like they are dead then they do have a sense of a despairing comfort. They are welcomed to enjoy this time and unloose their previous cultural bonds. Somewhat awe inspiring for both genders to share the same escape manner. Which is why the color black is more important than the sex gender’s clothing. Without the black color, the sexes are not equal or equivalent. Black expresses leadership, courage, and bravery to both genders. A tremendous leap of trust for metal men and women to love each other the same in the “black” path. Punk fashion is extremely diverse. One second you can have a guy who only wears high neon color shirts and MC Hammer pants, the next to have a mohawk with piercings on their face as well tats on their body. The same theme is in the punk audience: the feeling of “all is one.” Like the previous paragraph talking about the punk audience is more likely a pansexual legion. The fashion does explore this way. In the early punk rock stages, the torn out jeans and paper clip ear piercings was the very fashion of the punk fan but times have changed. The explosion of ska, shockabilly, grunge, no wave, etc. Punk has reached more styles of music than any other genre. Doing so, this fashion statement to discriminate any person who says they love punk not wearing a mohawk is insane. No matter what you wear at the punk audience your fashion does not matter. It is all in one comfortable atmosphere and vibe inside the punk walls.

Sadly, the Warped Tour nostalgia had to end and I am left to see the real world again. However, the bold thing leaving the concert series was my perception of the outcast who strictly wanted to have love and attention. Their sex culture made me realize the advertisements of women show off their half naked bodies are shameful and dishonest. The outcast culture is free from sexual oppression and represent staunch affection to one another. Even though, metal community creates specific gender preferences, they still abide to an equality code under the color black. This to me is the most courageous thing any independent woman and man can do to secure a healthy sexual lifestyle. Let alone the punk audience protects all is one. The personal freedom to wear what you want and share one cultural clothing at a time. I am more of a punk and metal music fan than ever after this amazing experience. After reading this I hope everyone touches base on how music can discover a person’s sexual preference and never feel alone.