Roots and Foundation of Heavy Metal

In an attempt to explore what is “wrong” with heavy metal, or to discover why this form of music is consistently undercut as a legitimate form of music we must understand what IS musically legitimate about metal. The best place to start is at the basis of most heavy music. Now, I won’t be cataloging or attempting to make a tree of all the sub-genres of heavy metal (an endless pursuit), but rather justifying everything from the distorted bass lines of early Metallica to the screaming wails of Judas Priest as a legitimate musical form and one to be respected as well.

The orchestrated musings of bands like Opeth and Iced Earth (who became the famed Transiberian Orchestra) bring about the first basis of metal’s musical roots. Drawing, again, on the ideas from Sam Dunn in his documentary, Mozart, Bach, and Vivaldi were known as improvisers much like revolutionaries of metal such as Edward Van Halen and “Dimebag” Darrell Abbott. Complex layering and creating a wall of sound was standard for Beethoven and Wagner as well as Megadeth and Metallica. Metal is infamous for creating progressions, chords, and solos based in the Minor Pentatonic, Hungarian Minor, Enigmatic Minor, and Melodic Minor scales. These same scales were created and used in some of the darkest music of the romantic and middle ages. These great composers also had a tendency to push the allowable standard in music. The flat fifth, or the tritone was known, then, as the devil’s note, and was actually banned in several countries. The superstitious believed that this interval was used to summon the devil as it made the hairs on their arms rise. Metal heavily relies upon this interval to create the dark music and arousing sound that hits fans in the chest. In this sense, heavy metal is the next progression in lasting classical music.
To understand the musical basis of heavy metal the earliest stages of this music must be explored, and the roots of the earliest versions revealed. I look to three major contributors as the first: Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and Led Zeppelin. Many may argue with me as to the very beginning of the “heavy metal sound,” but these three will be MY reference point. Black Sabbath began as a blues band called Earth before they developed something darker and heavier in Sabbath. Early Deep Purple songs are littered with blues licks and common blues guitar sounds of the 60’s. Zeppelin was known for using harmonica, twelve-string guitars, classical guitars, and various percussion that are all related to early blues music. “When the Levee Breaks” is a premier example of the blues sound that Zeppelin became so famous for. The roots of metal clearly lie heavily in the realm of the great American south, and the traditional blues sound.
Not only is the blues “sound” clear in much of heavy metal, but so is the message that the music presents. Hold on tight because this may get complicated and even a bit philosophical. The roots of the blues lie in slave chants from the cotton plantations and ideas of salvation from oppression. The blues developed from the working class, blue-collar workers of the south. Great guitarists like Robert Johnson were said to have sold their soul to the devil at the crossroads, hence the legend surrounding the blues. As most of us know, heavy metal as the demonic and masochistic imagery surrounding it as well. It is the message of nonconformity and resistance to that which we don’t agree with that makes both of these kinds of music so abrasive. The happy coincidence is the similar sound that the blues and metal share. The shout of resistance and the call for freedom comes from the gospel fields as well as the screaming guitar.
The musically elite that disband metal as a mindless form of music disregard all of these roots and influences. They base their judgments on the sound that they dislike, often a distorted string instrument or screaming vocalist. Discrediting heavy metal as a musical force then becomes a simple matter of opinion. I personally hate the screech of a solo violin playing long drawn out notes, and a symphony is amazing, but I don’t discredit the talent or musicality of either. The true irony is when you take the distortion and screams from metal and put it onto a more traditional instrument the music has a very classical sound with a blues twist. Groups like Apocalyptica are breaking down these barriers as they play heavy metal on a quartet of cellos. They have been so successful playing covers that they have now started writing heavy metal pieces only for a cello quartet, seen in the first video. The following video exemplifies what happens when you take away the distortion to a great metal song. I could play this piano video of “Cemetery Gates” for my grandmother (a polka fan that’s 90 years of age) and she would love it, but playing the original Pantera version (below) she would scoff and walk away. I leave you with these three incredible works of music…

Keep it Metal

Chris Fox