
Guitarist Nita Strauss believes the rock and metal community could benefit from embracing change, just as fans of other genres often do.
Strauss, who recently toured with pop star Demi Lovato after a break from Alice Cooper‘s band, expressed this sentiment in the January issue of Metal Hammer. She observed that while rock and metal fans are incredibly passionate and dedicated, they can sometimes be resistant to artists exploring new musical directions.
Strauss, who encountered this while working with Demi Lovato on her Holy Fvck album, said: “Demi made a really cool rock album, so they hired a rock band to do a rock show… Demi‘s a metalhead at heart. I’d walk past her dressing room and she’d be listening to MEGADETH. She turned me onto this great deathcore band called BODYSNATCHER. She’s the real deal.”
She continued: “If a band makes a slight departure from what they’ve done before, the fanbase cries about it: ‘Everything they’re doing is terrible now!’ METALLICA are the biggest band in the world and people still s**t on their new stuff.”
Strauss attributes this resistance to a prevalent gatekeeping mentality within the genre, where fans feel compelled to “protect” rock and metal from external influences.
“I think a big part of that is because everybody feels like they have to protect our scene and keep it safe – no external people can get in, which I think is crazy,” she said. “If a pop artist wants to make a rock album, great. If a rock artist wants to make an R’n’B album, great. Music is for everyone.”
Reeder, the visionary behind Metal Addicts, has transformed his lifelong passion for metal into a thriving online community for metal aficionados. As a fervent devotee of black metal, Reeder is captivated by its dark, atmospheric, and often unorthodox soundscapes.