Listen to Heavy Metal!: Exploring a Musical Genre

Listen to Heavy Metal! presents an easily readable, diverse, and inclusive approach to the study of heavy metal in the 1970s and its subsequent substyles that are still present around the world.

Focusing on heavy metal and its corresponding substyles, this volume discusses a host of representative groups that have experienced the limelight between 1970 and the present. Discussions include major heavy metal bands, representative albums, notable concerts, and significant substyles with representative examples.

While heavy metal as a genre is the catalyst for this book, attention is paid to substyles that grew out of the roots of heavy metal. Most interested readers already know Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Steppenwolf, and Deep Purple; however, this work also includes discussions of thrash metal bands such as Anthrax, nu-metal bands such as Linkin Park, and alternative metal bands such as Faith No More. Additionally, for each substyle is a specific entry describing the style. This work provides a solid first source for readers at the high school and college/university levels. Music jargon is kept to a minimum, making the book accessible to nonmusicians.

* Discusses the seminal heavy metal bands in Western Europe and the US

* Gives readers 50 examples of must-hear music that define the genre

* Includes explanations of and representative bands/works for more than a dozen substyles

* Contextualizes heavy metal in American history