The Perils of Rock n’ Roll Decadence: Deviance in the Lives of Guns N’ Roses 1988–1991, a Bourdieusian Analysis With Implications for Strain and Desistance Theory

Guns N’ Roses were one of the most popular rock bands in the world in the late 1980s and early 1990s. This article examines why Guns N’ Roses engaged in serious deviance, especially drug use, and especially heroin, between the years 1988–1991, that is between the years that they made their debut album Appetite for Destruction and its follow-ups, Use Your Illusions 1 and 2. This article argues that musicians can engage in deviance when there is a mismatch between their established habitus and new fields. This mismatch, which Bourdieu calls hysteresis, can generate alienation, which can in turn lead to the generation of highly risky and destructive coping strategies, or dispositions in Bourdieu’s terms. Implications for this case study for strain theory and desistance research are highlighted.