Deathly Fighters: Metal Punk Fusion

Ariana Black
I’ve explored, what makes punk “punk” and metal “metal” for several days now. And after all the headaches from reading about the dissent I’ve come to the conclusion that there are so many umbrella terms it would be physically impossible to hold a universal sentiment for what we consider these two terms. Punk and metal have different connotations for every single person. I’m not going to spew out a million definitions regarding it though. Whether you view punk stylistically or for the do-it-yourself and individualistic ethos, this is more about the sounds. There are different spectrums of metal-punk but they are all linked through hybridism. The fusion of punk attitude or some sort of social conscience and uptempo metal riffs or vice versa is the stronghold in making up this shadowed over "subgenre".  I hate to even call metal-punk a subgenre because it deserves a name of it’s own standing, but for purposes of not knowing what to call it that’s how I’ll refer to it as. In a Sam Dunn Lock Horns band debate livestream I referred to Motorhead being rooted in punk and thrash most of all, followed by Lemmy’s own witty interpretation where he even claims it himself in an earlier interview. In all honesty, as much as I’ve always wanted to stray away from merging metal and punk, they both borrowed from each other in undisputed ways. The similarities in how aggression is presented musically strike the same chord and I think the best bands need to have a punk or metal aura about them. I take a dip into both the extreme, this includes crossover and the more simplistic.

The essence of metal-punk is best summed up by the band Warfare. They are not the pedestal for metal-punk, that spot forever belongs to Motorhead, but they had the ability to effortlessly craft records that were unique and break the sound barriers simultaneously. The DIY nature is for sure apparent in the funny opening track that features a Sound of Music intro off their Metal Anarchy album. Warefare's work is a blitz attack of speedy riffage. Warfare are also NWOBHM pioneers, featuring heavily in the Metal City DVD alongside Venom, Avenger, and Saracen. 


Aside from Warfare, this particular blog is born out of my fascination with Wendy O. Williams and the Plasmatics. Joining the ranks with Lemmy, her no bullshit rebel rouser attitude coupled with some of the grittiest vocals ever contend for one of the greatest bands that ever existed and even this is an understatement. WoW is crowned "The Metal Priestess", rightfully so. The Plasmatics Coup d'Etat was a revolutionary record in the effort of attempting to merge the two subcultures and in my eyes, a heavy metal/punk masterpiece. In proper Clockwork Orange language, Wendy and the Plasmatics erupt in ultraviolence onstage as evident from all the live footage. 

My foray into metal-punk starts with the most well-known of the bands, but for good reason. I remember going into the candy shop with my grandmother across the street from my childhood home. She’d go for her chocolate and cola fix, I’d accompany her to bond because of course candy drives any kid nuts, and never had I seen as much as I did in that little confectionery. Sometimes she would give me change and say, “Go on over to Vinnie’s”.  I remember, very vaguely, the owner Vinnie being the absolute sweetest old man. The owner once compared the shop to the Twilight Zone and that’s about right, it's a world of itself, likened to a 50s parlor frozen in time. This said candy land is known as Cardy’s Sugar Bowl in Lodi, New Jersey. I didn't know it still existed today, one of the few places that serves as nostalgia for me, but also gave me a glimpse into my future interests despite knowing it at the time. You know it’s a metal place when the slogan is “Have a bad day”. Upon entrance, it wasn't hard to make out the overhead, it was plastered with a barrage vintage posters. You can get a glimpse of this here. Harley Davidson, Action Comics, Maiden, Hendrix, and the Stones adorned that ceiling. Ones that stood out in particular were the Misfits posters. Jerry Only’s devilock resting on his menacing kohl lined eyes and Danzig looking as if he could even topple a giantess like the fifty-foot woman had my total and full attention. It was Halloween galore and I was enamored. Turns out this candy haven was also a go-to place for the bands members themselves. It wasn't until around nine years later that I would ever actually hear The Misfits in their glory. What they contribute to metal-punk almost does not need to be mentioned. They've practically spawned fans from all paths of music, without intentionally trying to step into any genre to begin with.

 

The Misfits photographed by John Rynski (1980)

Straying back to the main function of this blog, the tensions between metallers and punks was one I always understood. Doro Pesch describes an incident playing an early live show at a punk club, stuck playing her set with destroyed instruments after some punks ravaged their equipment. To top the story off, all with a gun being pointed at her. The dispute between the two is even detailed many times in early editions of Creem Magazine's letter column. But what exactly were we quarreling about? To distinguish ourselves or to assert superior taste? I never connected to most punk music much growing up if you want the reality of it… if anything some early 70s punk bands was my territory and that was the extent of it, but as I grow older and expand my musical horizons, falling across lost gems that I had been to stubborn to listen to previously, I’ve come to appreciate the world that this subculture has given rise to.
Tank bridges the divide between New Wave of British Heavy Metal and punk exceptionally. The best way to describe Tank is Warfare's little sister (probably not surprising considering the fact these band's members have collaborated in the past). Algy Ward, the bassist and founder of Tank having been in bands like The Saints and The Damned gives the band automatic punk credentials. Off the bat, Tank has an energetic drive that propels the songs forward. It's one hundred percent clear if you upon hearing their work that they aren't about adhering to conventions which isn't easy to boast about in this day and age. 

Algy Ward and Dave Vanian on the left / Tank group photo on the right

The most surprising tour of the year would have to be the unexpected Discharge and Toxic Holocaust. But it proves the point that in this day and age, there is more in common than diversion between the genres than anyone in the eighties would have thought. Popularizing the D-Beat percussive musical style (derived from The Buzzcocks or Motorhead depending on who you ask) Discharge offers an edge that a lot of bands can not vouch for. Most close to Discharge, Amebix exemplifies the bordering of punk into metal to a T. Several bands have replicated the signature style perfectly, and others to no avail. 

G.I.S.M. joins the leagues with my favorite metal-punk bands hands down. The frontman, and total madman Sakevi breathes life itself into the band. Not to mention, the late, great Randy Uchida unleashes total destruction on his Gibson Flying V. The guitar work is worthy of being turned up to an eleven and a private air guitar-ing session or two. Japan's premier hardcore punk band and Uchida's solo project Randy Uchida Group are straight from the gods of hellfire. Uchida's "Deathly Fighter" is recognized as a metal anthem today. One person describes G.I.S.M. as, "Iron Maiden on acid while Discharge play in the next room. The brutal and schizophrenic vocal delivery of Sakevi makes you feel like bombs are dropping and one could land on you at any second." The broken English is easy to overlook in favor of the captivating rhythm. Of course G.I.S.M. has it's fair share of psycho (special shoutout to The Mentors) with titles like "Endless Blockades For The Pussyfooter" but that's what makes them G.I.S.M.


The Dictators, New York street warriors. In a time where bands on the scene tried to control their image to a point of nausea, they were one of the first that played with vital force. Their gritty East coast street image matched their gritty rock music. Everyone seems to categorize them as punk rock or at least proto-punk, but to hell with that notion. They have more to their sound that lends them to the metal zone as well thanks to the turbulence and excitement, not to mention taking a liking to the more melodic landscape that speaks in all the guitar solos.
 
D.R.I., Cro-Mags, S.O.D., and Cryptic Slaughter are the irrefutable kings of crossover thrash. Old school at it's finest, merging hardcore and metal, and a production full of blast beats, all have bred bands from the eighties like Slayer and bands of the modern generation like Municipal Waste. Dirty Rotten Imbeciles' album entitled Crossover stemmed the usage of the term. The early Hirax era, in particular the record Raging Violence is an immaculate example of the heavier possibilities in thrash, the brainchild of heavy metal afficianado Katon W. De Pena. Bands like Wermacht and Carnivore who stick to concepts do justice to the genre by supplying their interpretations as well.

 

Frazetta Metal Crossover

Ariana Black

Frank Frazetta, fantasy art maestro, cult idol supreme, illustration maven, among other titles is a prominent figure within and out of the metal community. Surveying the countless imitations of his work plastered on tattoos, motorcycles, and Volkswagen Microbus’ throughout the seventies and eighties there is no denying that Frazetta was HEAVILY rooted in heavy metal culture. My personal favorite pieces being his Vampirella draw-ups and his contributions to Fire and Ice (1983), Frazetta has breached many territories including the comic and movie world (from posters for screwball comedies to horror comedies like Roman Polanski’s The Fearless Vampire Killers). His craftsmanship can be traced back most notably to the covers of the infamous Conan novels, Jon Mikl Thor vibes on that
one anyone? For someone who has seemingly rejected rock and metal in  his interviews, Frazetta is a critical figure for metal iconography. The many metal songs that revolve around fantasy themes pose no shock that their accompaniment are grandeur covers of barbarians mounting their stallions, wielding spiked maces and warrior women clad in chains and leather (in the holy words of Running Wild). Frazetta’s work exudes the dream worlds we all create at some point in our heads.


The do-it-yourself attitude he had toward his work is one comparable to many metal bands. In a Juxtapoz Magazine interview by George Petros in reference to his work, “What you see is what you get,” he proclaims. “There’s nothing complicated about it. But, if you see deeper into it, far be it from me to say anything different.” The mysticism surrounding the worlds he’s built can be directly linked to the process most band's take when developing albums, the open interpretation mindset that urges listeners to develop their own understanding of songs despite the band’s original intent. Heavy metal after all is an art form in itself. Heavy Load, Cirith Ungol, Manowar, Manilla Road, Attacker, Visigoth, Warlock, Yngwie Malmsteen, have all featured the master’s art or have borrowed heavily from the concepts portrayed on canvas. Certain artists for these bands like Ken Kelly (Rainbow, Manowar- and interestingly, Frazetta’s nephew), Michael Whelan (Cirith Ungol, Sacred Rite, Sepultura), Eric Larnoy, Boris Vallejo, and others have interpreted and produced work with an uncanny resemblance to Frazetta’s.

I’ve been reflecting on why heavy metallers are so drawn to the ideas of mysticism implemented in this category of art. Maybe we associate the liberation of these characters as something we can attain through listening and playing our music? It makes us feel like holier-than-thou figures and give us the might to detract from everything else in the world due to the illusory nature of it all. Swords, magick, and wonder are the equivalent of a kid in a candy store for some. Manilla Road’s Spiral Castle is a prime example as a pictorial trope. The attention to details borders on hypnotizing.

As a sucker for bizarre album covers, I’ve come across the conversation of the importance of album art more times than I would like. You’ve heard it all before, “It’s all about the music, who cares about the rest?” The music is certainly a deal breaker, but aesthetically displeasing artwork is almost as irritable as musical material that is terribly lacking. Cover art is a strong component in the desire to buy a physical copy. Being immersed in both the artistic and production realm, it’s important that an album serves as a full package. For a teenager in a bygone era like the seventies, immersing oneself in the world of Dungeons and Dragons and supernatural paperbacks certainly must have warranted an attraction to darkness and wonder, in turn offering a sense of enchantment whilst listening to the music that accompany those visions. Icons like Frazetta’s Death Dealer are made that much more interesting in that regard, paired with the fact that they are an embodiment of true metal spirit.

Spanish Metal Militia

South America, like in Brazil, Argentina, Chile, Ecuador, Colombia, Bolivia to name a few and other Spanish-speaking countries in the Western hemisphere like Spain had a flourishing underground of heavy metal that is oftentimes overlooked, especially when compared to some European countries.  The metal beginnings of Spain took it’s reign starting in the early eighties, like most heavy metal bands. As an avid fan of foreign metal, along with having a Spanish-speaking mother I’ve always been intrigued by language. Since I never took the time to learn Spanish myself, opting to learn French instead, something I don’t fully regret, I just wish I could time travel and learn Spanish earlier so I would be able to understand the lyrics in some of these masterpieces. Over the past few days, I’ve been especially interested by the work coming out of Spain ever since stumbling upon a band called Santa. Though I had breezed past their seminal album, Reencarnación in the past, this was the first time I had re-visited it since along with the rest of the bands albums and was able to fully appreciate it. In conjunction with this re-discovery, someone had brought to my attention the existence of a Facebook group called “Spanish Metal Militia”, solely focusing on bands that surfaced in Spain during the eighties through photos, footage, and information curated by Spanish metal fanatic Pedro Ocete. I’ve found it to be the perfect resource for an introduction into this country’s musical landscape.

To compare the divisions between South American territories and European, countries like Brazil adapted to their signature “jungle metal” and cemented the roots for death metal, whereas Spain took a more melodic approach where we see more bands that are speed metal and traditional heavy metal oriented. This hints that there was strong borrowing from the already developed New Wave of British Heavy Metal bands. Many tried to replicate this sound but in doing so, created their own unique styles.

The most prominent scene to arise would have to be the one that joined the likes of bands that have gone down the commercial route (but who very much so started on the same level of obscurity as the other bands that will be mentioned later on), the face of this movement being Angeles del Infierno. They achieved widescale success, while for the most part keeping true to their roots sonically. Opening for bands like Motorhead and Saxon helped boost their ranks. Obús and Barón Rojo can arguably be added into this categorization.A big trademark of Spanish metal would be the inclusion of the word ‘metal’ appearing every .5 seconds in the lyrics. But let’s be real, what’s a heavy metal band without this element? If you can look past the cheesiness of some of the lyrical themes, you’ve found yourself a musical goldmine.

Lesser known acts in terms of popularity or what I would call cult bands representing the more traditional heavy metal side and are more of my zone include Banzai, Excalibur, Tigres, EVO, Muro, and my personal favorite being Panzer. Of course there is a representation of thrash in bands like Legion and other more extreme bands, but they are more difficult to scope out as there was not a strong scene for that at the time in the particular area. Power metal and symphonic metal are perhaps the most widely produced subgenre of them all and to name them would be a burden in itself.

Spain is still home to churning out some badass metal. Bands like Leather Heart, Hitten, Lizzies, Sofire and Iron Curtain have helped preserve that raw and gritty eighties style of production and sound. Another component drawing me to Spanish metal would be the intensity of the crowd that appear at shows which I’ve seen through festival and concert footage. Much like other European audiences, I have noticed that Spanish headbangers are the first to go out and display the fanfare. Spain is home to some wonderful festivals that showcases these talents like Pounding Metal Fest, Leyendas del Rock, Rock Fest in Barcelona, and more. To prove just how “true” Spain is they have erected a statue in honor of ‘la abuela rockera’ or ‘the grandmother of rock’ seen on the cover of Panzer’s Toca Madera album. This woman on the cover was in fact a real metaller involved in the scene during the eighties. The video below shows that her heavy metal spirit is not a force to be reckoned with. At eighty-three years old this was a woman who never missed an AC/DC concert and was more real than a lot of people in the scene today.

 

That being said, the impact of Spanish metal is undeniable and the impact lingers on today. I leave you with some gems of the country to familiarize yourself with...