I have written at length about the many different facets of metal. My goal for Metal Mondays was to write about my favorite subject and introduce music enjoyers of all types to my favorite genre.
However, I am not sure I have done the best job of introducing new listeners to metal in an accessible manner. Many bands I write about are familiar names in metal circles (Sodom, Arch Enemy, etc.) but are completely unknown outside these groups.
Fixing this massive oversight is very important to me. After all, I did not start listening to metal on my own accord; my dad and friends have heavily influenced my music taste. To address this grievance, I have assembled a comprehensive guide for fledgling metalheads to follow. Although I may have missed some things, I hope at least one person reading this starts listening to music’s best genre after reading this.
Definition and a brief history of metal
The metal music genre is characterized by distorted guitar and bass playing, loud drumming and aggressive vocals.
Metal was created because of a workplace accident; Tony Iommi, the legendary Black Sabbath guitarist, sliced the tops of his fingers on his right hand in a factory. This led to pain while Iommi would play guitar and impeded his ability to play. However, Iommi and his rock band (then called Earth) decided to down-tune his guitar to make it more comfortable for him to play. This created a dark sound rock music had never experienced and led to the creation of an entire genre.
Other metal bands sprouted around Black Sabbath in their home country of Britain and beyond. Judas Priest formed the same year as Black Sabbath but took significant inspiration from the band. American groups like Van Halen and Metallica also took Sabbath’s innovation and ran, bringing new interpretations of metal overseas.
Subgenres of metal (and which ones you should listen to)
There are so many different subgenres of metal I get dizzy looking at lists of them. It can be fun to listen to the obscure ones, but I am sticking to the basics for this article.
Popular subgenres of metal include thrash metal, glam metal, death metal, nu metal, metalcore and black metal. Other subgenres are doom and stoner metal, goth metal, symphonic metal, industrial metal, power metal and many more. Genres often associated with metal include punk, grunge and hard rock.
My personal favorite genres are thrash, death and hardcore (an offshoot of punk that has lots of overlap with metal). I recommend that people listen to metal bands that are not as heavy—I started my foray into metal as a huge Black Sabbath, Dio and Iron Maiden listener.
When people start listening to more extreme groups like Cannibal Corpse too early into their metalhead journey, they may be turned off to a whole subsect of innovative metal artistry. This is something that happened to me, and I avoided death metal for a long time despite really enjoying it as a result.
Some other great beginner metal bands are Metallica, Megadeth, Korn, and most mainstream hard rock and metal groups from the 1980s and 1990s. For avid listeners of emo music (another genre with some metal influences), I recommend looking into metalcore bands like Avenged Sevenfold, Killswitch Engage and 2010s Bring Me The Horizon if you have not already.
Struggles you may face in metal
A major hurdle people face when just getting into metal is gatekeeping, especially people who are not masculine presenting. I very rarely have encountered gatekeeping, but I know my girlfriends who enjoy heavy music often receive the infamous “name three songs” demand when repping a band’s merch.
Additionally, some people try to say certain bands are not metal even though they can be classified as such. Just remember, if you find yourself listening to a lot of nu-metal—a highly controversial subgenre—that is totally fine. Do not let people convince you otherwise, and try to find other nu-metal listeners—a rather easy task, considering its popularity.
These people are the worst, but they exist. My advice is to stand up for yourself and persevere in your metal journey.
At the end of the day, there is really no wrong way to get into metal music. If somehow you find yourself jamming to slam day one, good for you. If you start your journey with Deftones and make it as far as Alice In Chains, you are still valid. As long as you enjoy the music, you’re a metalhead.
Jackson McCoy is a freshman studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to share your thoughts? Let Jackson know by emailing or tweeting him at jm049122@ohio.edu or @_jackson_mccoy_.
