Rock and the dark forces have always been tied together. It’s been part of the appeal, an additional edge that used to pull it away from the mainstream. However, the passive association became a lot more active during the 1980s, initiated by a distinct rise in conservative Christian values. The Reagan administration allowed for the rise of Evangelical Christians, spearheaded by Jerry Fallwell Sr. and the Moral Majority, which had a major cultural impact on what was deemed “wholesome” and what was “evil.” The biggest targets were hard rock, metal, and rap: the former two leaned heavily into this new association with songs and albums centered around the Devil himself and aspects of Satanism, and artists embracing the hedonistic lifestyle of sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll.
Though the era of the Satanic Panic passed with the rise of grunge in the 90s, the lasting effects still permeate alternative subcultures today. Symbols like the pentagram and Baphomet still appear on album covers and merch, the tradition of music about devil worship still carries on today, and artists revel in the debauchery of legends before them. Such a prominent association makes for good movie material, and two insiders in the subculture did so. Both Rob Zombie’s 2012 film The Lords of Salem and Ash Avildsen’s 2017 release American Satan serve as both love letters and critiques of the now inextricable link between rock and the Devil.
The Lords of Salem follows Heidi LaRoc (Sheri Moon Zombie…who else?) as she slowly descends into madness after listening to a black metal record sent to her radio show. The album details the events of the very real Salem Witch Trials but mostly focuses on the fictional massacre of an actual Satan-worshipping witch coven. The record itself sounds like a funeral dirge with the closest real life comparison being black metal bands like Bathory, who also heavily reference witchcraft and Satanism like their recurring use of a red-eyed goat on their album covers. This imagery appears frequently in The Lords of Salem appearing in Heidi’s visions when she’s listening to the record. Heidi becomes more entangled in the influences of the album, she then begins falling back on her previously-kicked vice of heroin: a common drug of choice during the 80s especially amongst hard rock artists and their groupies. The connection between witchcraft, hard rock, and drugs comes to fruition in the final sequence when a very high Heidi finally is possessed with the Antichrist while the dirge blasts in the background thus thematically linking the three together.
Zombie is also no stranger to referencing Satan and witchcraft in his own work. He cited Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, named one of the first “goth icons” by some, as a personal inspiration and has an album literally named “The Electric Warlock Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser.” These “demonic influences” have been a part of Zombie’s brand since the inception of his musical career, so Zombie is well-versed in the bonkers lifestyle of the Satanic Panic era. Though Zombie himself is sober, his music career began in the mid-80s, so he witnessed the rotation of drug and booze-fueled artists of the day in real-time. While not necessarily an outright critique of the drug culture and Satanic influence on metal musicians and fans, The Lords of Salem certainly pays a thorough homage to them.
Contrarily, American Satan is more of an outright commentary on the lasting influence of the Satanic Panic. Inspired by the tale of Dr. Faustus, the film outright mentions and highlights the artistic and social effects that rock artists of the 80s left on rock culture today. Singer Johnny Faust (Andy Biersack) seals a pact with the Devil (Malcom McDowell) to ensure the success of his band The Relentless; the pact works at the cost of the members’ innocence, as they all spiral into some vice be it alcoholism, hard drugs, or sex. Additionally, the band gets caught up in Satanic Panic-inspired scandals, involving fans using the band to justify violence, sacrifice, and the (eventually self-fulfilling) sex with underage girls — all actual scandals reported during the Satanic Panic. The rise of metalheads, goth kids, and punks was met with scorn by the general conservative public as they were labeled as “violent”; of course while there were some kids that did take out their anger on their antagonists, it wasn’t an inherent part of the subculture unlike what was implied by the media at the time. Even in the decades following the height of the Satanic Panic, alt subcultures were still implicated as influences for individuals performing violent acts. The most common instances in recent history are the associations of metal and goth subcultures with school shooters — Columbine for example — despite the actual motivations being rooted in white supremacy.
Avildsen is no stranger to bands using Satan and the rock gods of the 80s as influences; he’s the founder of Sumerian records, which primarily represents the bands playing in your local Hot Topic, such as Asking Alexandria, Black Veil Brides, Palaye Royale, and Sleeping with Sirens. Biersack is the lead singer for Black Veil Brides, and his music takes a lot of inspiration from his rejection of his Catholic upbringing and embrace of all things dark. Much like Faust, Biersack has also cited bands from the Satanic Panic — namely KISS and Mötley Crüe — as musical and aesthetic influences. Notably, KISS and Mötley Crüe were also targets of Satanic accusations (see: the rumor KISS stood for Knights In Satan’s Service) and Mötley Crüe was certainly no stranger to the underage sex scandal. These modern descendants of the Satanic Panic artists still use the same imagery and struggle with the same issues as their predecessors. American Satan gives a farcical take on literal Satanic influences on artists of this ilk.
Although the influences are not quite the same, both The Lords of Salem and American Satan explore the lasting effects of the rebellious counterculture of the 1980s. Though the moral panic has died down considerably and Evangelical Christians are slightly more sidelined and side-eyed, American culture still resents or mocks a large portion of alternative subcultures. Consequently, the link between a rejection of purity still persists in modern subsects of rock and other semi-related genres (the Lil Peep brand of rap mostly) now. There’s a near inextricable link between darkness, the Devil, and rock — and though it’s probably not due to supernatural influences, it shows no signs of dying down.
