I reviewed the “Collection of Heavy Metal Music Material, 1964-2016.” The materials in this collection suggest a narrative that rock music started to become popular in the late 1960s. Since then, it has evolved significantly and has continued to be a popular aspect in American society. It also focuses on how rock music bands has influenced other aspects of American culture, including the fashion industry. For example, in 2012 Levis Strauss denim started to accent clothing pieces with patches of popular rock bands.
I personally think that the content of the collection is quite vast. However, it is limited in the sense that most of the pieces are posters, photographs and newsletters. In addition, the sources seem to primarily be objective and limited to only sources in California.
I think that the collection would benefit it it included more subjective accounts from either the rock band artists, fans, or even individuals who disliked rock music. I think this collection should include more interviews with rock musicians. I know that heavy metal music also had a negative stigma in American culture. It would be interesting to read various opinion pieces (whether it be newspaper articles or personal accounts) on how people believed that heavy metal was controversial and contributed to many problems particularly among American youth. Also, the sources are geographically limited, focusing on content in California. We would benefit if we had more varied content, with sources coming from across the country.
Yes, it’s very limited! But remember, no archival collection aims to tell a comprehensive story of the phenomenon it’s documenting. Perhaps the best way to think of an archival collection is as one window into the phenomenon. In some ways, they’re more valuable that way, because the construction of the collection itself can tell you something about the person or organization who did the collecting!