The Press reported Thursday that resistance was being organized to denounce the programming of the Mass of the Dead, which would welcome four groups associated directly or indirectly with Nazism, in Montreal.
The organizers for their part refute these accusations which they consider unfounded, specifying on Facebook that “there is no political aspect to the Mass of the Dead, and [qu’ils n’ont] never discriminated against who could see or perform at the festival.
Elected officials and organizations signed a letter this week demanding the cancellation of concerts by the groups in question, believing that artistic freedom stops “when these speeches incite hatred or violence.”
To understand where the link between certain branches of the black metal and neo-Nazism, we must go back to the origins of this musical genre from Norway, according to the cultural journalist at Urbania, Benoît Lelièvre, who knows this style of music well.
Mr. Lelièvre explains that the black Metal is a style that rejects contemporary society and reveres the past.
“People who reject contemporary society and revere the past in Norway, there are people from black metal and there are the Nazis who love Norwegian mythology. These people met, got along very well and continued to convey ideas through music.”
Mr. Lelièvre insists that far from all black metal followers or artists are interested in Nazism. THE National Socialist Black Metal (NSBM) is a marginal sub-community within the black metal community itself.
The Mass for the Dead is being held at the Théâtre Paradoxe in Montreal until Saturday. According to the organizers, the event will take place under increased security measures. The SPVM will also be on site to prevent excesses surrounding the planned protests.
