What got me into Heavy Metal?
What got me into Heavy Metal was the attraction to the forbidden fruit.
I was about 13 years old, I was frequenting a Catholic school where the nuns were the teachers, and it was during the Satanic Panic of the 80s.
I was reading a pop music magazine (WOW mag I think?) in the section were readers can post their questions and be answered in the next month issues.
First there was this picture, Iron Maiden’s singer Bruce Dickinson looking diabolical with vampire fangs.
A young reader asked: Are Iron Maiden possessed by the devil?
The journalist answered him with the simple and reasonable truth, unlike the nuns at the time. He, I suppose he was a guy, answered that Heavy Metal musicians aren’t possessed by the devil because they use snake, skulls, etc as shock value. And that Heavy Metal music is a big fuck you to the etablished authorities like church, government, and parents. Then, that’s where the magic happened, he listed several Heavy Metal bands.
The bands listed in the article were:
- Iron Maiden
- Ozzy Osbourne
- Mötley Crüe
- KISS
- Twisted Sister
- Quiet Riot
- AC/DC
- Black Sabbath
- Led Zeppelin
- Venom
