Heavy Metal Youth Identities

Paula Rowe, PhD, is a Social Work scholar at the School of Psychology, Social Work and Social Policy, University of South Australia. She is on the Editorial Advisory Board of the journal Metal Music Studies.

• 1. Introduction Part One: Becoming Metal 2. "Metal is my drug": The Comforts and Pleasures of Listening to Metal 3. "It's true, metal gives you power when you're powerless": Embodying Metal Identities for Social Protection 4. "That sense of metal community is great": Narrative Constructions of Acceptance and Belonging Part Two: Being Metal 5. "No shit I wanna be a rock star, but for real you need a Plan B": Heavy Metal Dreams Reprised 6. "Dude, you're doing it, you're living the dream": From Dreams to Reality, What Does it Take? 7. "Mum hates it, she thinks all metal dudes are evil": Practical Wisdom for Parents and Others 8. "It Sucks That People Get the Wrong Idea About Metal": Concluding Remarks

This accessible study seeks to go beyond the deficit framework of most research on young fans of heavy metal music. Author and researcher Paula Rowe, a metalhead herself, interviews metal youth in Australia and the US and deepens the perspective with participant observation at concerts and festivals. The introduction gives background on social disapproval of metal music and reviews previous studies of metal youth. The first part of the book explores metal identity formation during high school, detailing how youth use identities through metal music and subculture to cope with problems such as bullying and feeling like an outsider. Part 2 follows the lives of metal youth after completing or leaving school, seeking links between music preferences and educational attainment as youth transition from school to career.