Subgenre in 90s-2000s Music

The music industry by the 90s had firmly established umbrella genres like rock and roll, Latin, pop, and more; therefore throughout these three decades the proliferation of subgenres began to be reflected in magazines as well. Magazines like Movie Mirror Presents were focused on specific artists and their contemporaries, such as the October 1997 issue which highlights shock rock musician Marilyn Manson and other bands popular at the time. Genres like Latin could now be divided by geography, as seen in the Planet Tejano focusing specifically on the Southwestern Tejano music scene. These subcategories within genre did not stop with just listening preferences, the outfits and cultures were unique too. This distinction between subgenres is exhibited in the DeathRock magazine which features not just musicians but everything a death rock enthusiast would need to show off their love for the genre like fashion tips, home project ideas, and reviews of movies and books that reflect the death rock genre. 

These magazines reflect not only the shifting music industry but also how enjoying a certain music genre also defined part of the listener's life. Movie Mirror Presents and DeathRock both address how the alternative music, fashion, and lifestyles of their supporters had garnered judgement from people outside of the genre. These magazines exhibit how even for a concept as innocent as music, some listeners claimed moral superiority over others based on music choice alone. These two magazines specifically feature predominantly white artists; Planet Tejano on the other hand features almost exclusively latinx artists. Perhaps this reflects the racialized nature of the music industry; while there were almost certainly death rockers and shock rockers of color, and likely some Tejano musicians who were not latinx, they are not the ones featured in the magazines. 

Overall, the genre magazines of this time period reflect both the burgeoning number of subgenres and their listeners, the link between music and lifestyle choices, and how people of certain races were not represented in the genres.

  • Marilyn Manson holds a green apple with "America's Most Wanted" printed next to him.

    At nearly 90 pages long, this issue is dedicated almost entirely to Marilyn Manson as an individual performer and Marilyn Manson the band with interviews with former band members like Olivia Newton Bundy and Daisy Berkowitz. All of the original members of the band formed their stage names by combining female sex symbols with serial killers — Marilyn Monroe and Charles Manson, Olivia Newton John and Ted Bundy,  and Daisy Duke and David Berkowitz. Later band members followed this tradition; the first to opt out of this name scheme was Zim Zum, interviewed in this issue on page 30.

  • Table of contents for Movie Mirror Presents; black and white image of Marilyn Manson band next to table of contents

    None of the musicians interviewed in this issue use their real names while performing, opting for stage personas or nicknames like Ozzy Osbourne, Alice Cooper, or simply titles like “The Starchild” in the band KISS’ case.

  • Executive editor's letter to the reader, underneath letter Marilyn Manson sits on sofa wearing ripped pantyhose

    The magazine directly addresses groups, mostly religious groups, parents, and even some government bodies, that criticized Manson and the shock rock music genre as a whole for being anti-religious and promoting violence, and tells these groups that Manson and his contemporaries are nothing more than musicians, not dangerous cult leaders. At the same time, the magazine utilizes religious phrasing — “The Gospel according to…”, “Prince of Darkness,” “Antichrist Superstar,” etc. — to describe these artists, seemingly walking the line between shock rock anti-establishmentarianism and the desire for the magazine to sell by assuring skeptics that the musicians are nothing more than that.

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  • Bobby Pulido sings on stage in white bedazzled vaquero suit.

    The star of this issue is Bobby Pulido, a Tejano singer from Texas. The magazine features a chance to win a trip for two to see Bobby Pulido perform. In 2025, Pulido announced he was running for Senate for Texas’ 15th congressional district as a democrat in the November 2026 election.

  • Table of contents for Planet Tejano, images of other Tejano singers scattered throughout page

    Another featured artist with a prize give-away through the magazine is Elizabeth Gutierrez y Texas Fire, a band composed of the eponymous singer, Daniel, Damon, Isaac, and Israel Gutierrez, Ray Robler, and Julian Rodriguez. Another story in the magazine boasts that the charity Tejanos for Children founded by Tejano singer Emilio Navaira raised over $40,000. Adjusting for inflation, that is $81,737.32 today.

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  • Unknown woman in goth makeup and dress with pins on jacket stands next to list of artists featured in the magazine

    The cover of the magazine features an unknown woman with many pins and patches on her jacket; some are unidentifiable, but others like the U.K. Subs and Gang of Four refer to English punk bands, both formed in 1976. Another pin perhaps says Voodoo Church. At the time of this publication, this L.A.-based band had only released two albums 22 years apart from each other, the first in 1982 and the second in 2004.

  • Table of contents for DeathRock, featured artists' photos on left side of page

    The item is over 100 pages long, the magazine covers many different content forms like reviews, interviews with musicians, comics, DIY guides, and more. One interview is with Patrik Mata, a member of the band Kommunity FK. The other member of the band is his wife, Sherry Rubber. Three of the interviews are with members of the band Christian Death. Fyan Wildstar, Eva O, and Gitane Demone speak on the the suicide of their late band member, Rozz. The cabinet in which Rozz hanged himself is on display at the Los Angeles Museum of Death.

  • Letter from the editor and list of magazine staff and contributors

    The editor in chief, Alex Baker, is now the editor in chief for the website post-punk.com and has interviewed artists like Danny Elfman, the composer for many Tim Burton films.

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