A
quality of
something which makes you
recoil for a moment when you see it and, depending on your personal
beliefs, either remain
disgusted or
smirk intelligently and
move along. Now, when applied properly,
shock value can be both a powerful tool of
artistic expression and an
exploitable marketing gimmick. However, when one removes the
content from the object which has this shock value, it becomes
cheesy and
manipulative.
For example, take
Nine Inch Nails. They had
pigs' heads on turntables and beating
disembodied monkey hearts. But, in addition, they had (and still do have)
talent. Now, for the other extreme, take
Marilyn Manson. He is shocking, sometimes
disgusting and almost entirely about
the money now. Maybe, at some point previous to now, he had
artistic integrity, and yes, I am aware that he was once
Trent Reznor's protege. But I
digress. Its important to understand why you like the
musical act you do. Is it because they
scare your parents shitless or because they
scare your parents shitless and write great lyrics?