Abstract (eng)
The devil as a subject in heavy metal music evolved from the fascination of occultism in rock music and drew inspiration from popular representations in new media. From the beginnings of metal music, the narrative use of the devil was an important part of the genre. The devil was embedded in the cultural memory of heavy metal culture and used in all musical sub-styles. Still, there is not just one single image of the devil, which is portrayed in heavy metal music, but rather multiple images, depending on the different musical styles. The aim of this thesis was to examine the transition of devil images in heavy metal music by an analysis of song lyrics. Throughout the history of metal music, the narrative of the devil first changed from being a provocative stylistic device of metal culture to being an ideological figure, including the propagation or encouraging of Satanism, until in the mid-1990s, in a second shift, the metal culture refrained from using the devil as an ideological device, but started using it for nostalgic reasons. The aforementioned first change goes hand in hand with the musical development to “extremes” (considering tempo, volume, sound and vocals). Due to the limits of the devil as a narrative resource, change in the image of the devil in heavy metal mainly occurs through the music itself and ideological influences. Therefore, the use of the devil´s figure changes from a provocative use towards Satanism to the usage as a mythological figure for the music.