Facing declining sales and an industry-wide slump, record
companies seem ready to shrug off the corporate bubble-gum pop of
the past few years and start supporting a genuine sound.
MTV’s “Headbangers Ball,” a show featuring solely
heavy metal music videos, has returned to the airwaves eight years
after its cancellation.
“Since it went off the air, the big labels were just
looking for a gimmick (metal) band that would sell,” said
Trevor Phipps of heavy metal band Unearth. “It’s taken
more than a decade for the underground to build real music again,
and MTV’s decided to reinvest in it.”
Now airing on MTV2, the re-emergence of the classic program is
accompanied by the first-ever Headbangers Ball Tour and heavy
metal’s return to the mainstream. The tour is scheduled to
sweep Los Angeles off its feet next Wednesday night at the Henry
Fonda Theatre.
The tour began bandmembers of Lamb Of God, Killswitch Engage and
Shadows Fall, decided to tour together. MTV soon got wind of the
idea and offered to support the tour under the name of
Headbanger’s Ball. The three bands were more than happy to
gain not only a sponsor, but a connection to a seminal influence in
modern metal. It didn’t hurt that they would get to be part
of a show that they had watched back in the 1990s, either.
“If you were into metal, you had to watch it,” said
Howard Jones of Killswitch Engage. “The older Headbangers
Ball was more geared to established bands. Now they’re
showing a lot more underground bands, which is really cool. You can
definitely tell things are changing.”
This is a big step for MTV, the longtime driving force of pop
music. Album sales have fallen drastically in the last few years,
and the authenticity of bands promoted by the network has come into
question.
“Everything goes in cycles,” said Phipps.
“Like pop punk, that’s been really big for a couple
years and it reached a certain point where bands like Good
Charlotte really kind of ruined the scene by being overly
ridiculous with costumes and make-up. I think people see right
through that.”
Heavy metal bands see themselves as carriers of the gauntlet of
honest music. In their view, whether they follow metal morals or
not, compromising their sound for record sales is seen as
synonymous to blasphemy.
“I can’t think of a real true hardcore metal band
that would ever write a radio hit,” said Kieth Buckley of New
York metal band Every Time I Die.
About to begin his own tour with his band, Buckley feels like
the record industry is rediscovering something that’s been
off the radar for the last few years.
“People in the industry are picking up on the sense that
there’s a lot of kids coming to these shows, and they could
have a huge demographic if they were to support the bands,”
said Buckley.
Though it has waned in popularity over the years, the metal
underground has never really disappeared.
“I think it’s just gonna get to a certain point
again like it did in the late 1980s, early 1990s when it was really
at its peak,” said Phipps. “There are enough talented
bands out there, there are enough bands that actually love real
music that are writing good records.”
The general mood of the bands on the tour is optimistic. All the
groups have large numbers of hardcore fans, but being under the MTV
banner will certainly increase their range of recognition.
“I think it’ll bring some new fans just because
MTV’s backing it,” Jones said.
Like all underground bands, heavy metal groups build grassroots
fan bases through constant touring, and the bands involved with
this tour are self-described “tour dogs” who rarely
break from playing. Most have spent the last few years on tour with
only the occasional month off before they return to the trenches of
tour vans and cheap hotel rooms.
“It takes a long time of touring to start to break even,
much less make any money,” said Randy Blythe of Lamb Of God.
“I’ve come home from so many tours completely broke, in
debt and homeless.”
The possibility of receiving the greater attention that comes
with MTV2 video airplay is very important to these bands. With the
Headbangers Ball, MTV is providing the only mainstream outlet for
the genre. For a band like Every Time I Die, having its video
played on the network is an impressive accomplishment and will
probably net them new fans ““ albeit only ones who are awake
at 2 a.m. when it airs.
Dozens of groups, both old and new, are on the verge of breaking
through thanks to the newfound MTV coverage.
“Poison The Well is about to blow up, they’re
amazing,” said Brian Fair of Shadows Fall. “All of the
bands on this tour are amazing.”
Heavy metal seems poised to make a big comeback. If shredding
guitars and growling isn’t your thing, though, fear not.
Metal’s popularity will always hold itself in check, as
it’s not a genre likely to cater its sound to record sales.
If there’s one thing metal will never be guilty of,
it’s softening its edges to appeal to a wider audience Ã
la the method of certain pop punk bands.
“(For instance,) Blink-182.” said Jones.
“(They’re) a little easier to digest than, say, Lamb Of
God. If you’re into it, you enjoy it and you know what you
like. Those who are into metal are into metal. Most of them are not
fly-by-night fans.”
MTV’s Headbanger’s Ball comes to the Henry Fonda
Theatre on Nov. 19 at 7 p.m. Tickets are available at
www.ticketmaster.com for $17.