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The CHAIRMAN. Thank you, sir.
Dr. King.
Dr. KING. My name is Paul King, and I am a child and adolescent
psychiatrist. I treat kids with serious drug problems. I have been
treating adolescents for 9 years.
Senator RIEGLE. Excuse me. Could you pull the mike a little
closer?
Dr. KING. I have been treating adolescents for over 9 years, and
have formerly also been a New York City high school teacher. So I
have been working with teenagers for over 14 years now.
The kids that I treat, some are delinquent, some are suidical,
others are violent, even homicidal. Many are sexually promiscuous.
Nearly all of my patients worship heavy metal music.
My comments are not really my own but reflect what I have
learned from the kids that I see each and every day in my practice.
I would like to talk about two points. One is to answer the
question about whether music influences young people or not, and
the other is the issue about parents and the type of guidance, and
what is the nature of sufficient guidance for parents in this
issue.
With the aid of sophisticated marketing techniques, entertainers
are elevated to the role of deities, to be worshipped by youth as
if they are gods. Long hours are spent listening to heavy metal
rock music, with some performers portraying themselves as
charismatic leaders. The young person may then identify with the
words of the song, "You've given me a new belief."
"Belief" has religious connotations, "And soon the
world will love you sweet leaf." Sweet Leaf, by Black Sabbath,
Warner Brothers Records. Adolescents tell me sweet leaf refers to
marijuana.
Rebellion and hate are common themes. "Children of the
Grave," by Black Sabbath: "Revolution on their minds/The
children march/Against the world they have to live in/Oh the hate
that's in their hearts." The group leader is a preacher,
and the young person who becomes involved with the lyrics develops
a belief system, internalizes a belief system based on those
lyrics.
Heavy metal refers to a type of music that was first developed
in England. The music is loud and powerful, with most of the
strength coming from electric guitars. The makeup or facial
expressions are either hateful or demonic or have symbols and
costumes representing power, which is the basic core issue.
Examples, facial painting in what Kiss used to wear, tatoos of
snarling animals, black leather, chains, motorcycles. We have seen
examples. Members of the group Motley Crue [sic] wear pentagrams.
Verbal overtures are extremely philosophical. Let me give you a
few examples. "The Number of the Beast" by Iron Maiden,
which is Zomba Enterprises, and it goes "Woe to you, oh earth
and sea./ For the Devil sends the beast with wrath,/because he
knows the time is short./Let him who has understanding reckon/the
number of the beast,/for it is a human number./His number is
666." The 666 refers to the Beast from Revelations.
Young people "Shout at the Devil." It has a prologue.
It is not even the music, it is a prologue with a very clear
message, the idea so that that could be clearly listened to.
"In the beginning/the court of good always overpowered/the
evils of all man's sins./But in time, the nations grew weak,/
and our cities fell to slums/while
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