Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Woodie Guthrie … Megadeth?
When we talk about the music of resistance, many of us picture bell-bottoms, tambourines, and daisy chains — not leather pants, flying Vs, and pentagrams. But for all its machismo, pale skin, and goat-skull imagery, heavy metal—like all musical genres—has been a medium for social justice messaging. Its mostly white, mostly male fan base may not realize it, but many of those headbanger anthems were screaming for economic justice, human rights, and demilitarization. So, closet metal heads, polish off your “devil horns” (a hand gesture popularized by Ronnie James Dio) and take these classics to the streets!
1. Megadeth, “Peace Sells” (1986)
This song from the album Peace Sells … But Who’s Buying? speaks to the corruption of the military-industrial complex and NATO. The band’s name refers to megadeath, a term used by nuclear strategists to stand for 1 million deaths.
2. Black Sabbath, “War Pigs” (1970)
Bass guitarist Geezer Butler noted that the lyrics are “totally against the Vietnam War, about how these rich politicians and rich people start all the wars for their benefit and get all the poor people to die for them.”
3. Sepultura, “Refuse/Resist” (1993)
“Inside the state/War is created/No man’s land/What’s this shit?!” These Brazilians are pretty much the protest singers of metal. The cover of the single features a photograph of a South Korean student taking a flying leap at a riot police barricade.
4. Metallica, “One” (1989)
Metallica created its first music video for this song, whose lyrics tell of a soldier left without eyes, ears, mouth, or limbs following an artillery explosion. The video features scenes and dialogue from the 1971 film adaptation of the 1939 novel Johnny Got His Gun.
5. Slayer, “Mandatory Suicide” (1988)
Given metal music’s preoccupation with all things dead and violent, lyrics like “Ambushed by the spray of lead/Count the bullet holes in your head” can get lost in a sea of bloody imagery. But a closer listen reveals a searing critique of the war machine.
6. Judas Priest, “Some Heads Are Gonna Roll” (1984)
Another example of metal’s examination of the torments of combat and anger at irresponsible warmakers, this Judas Priest single showcases the band’s two lead guitarists, who trade off solos, and its singer’s trademark operatic falsetto. (Fun fact: vocalist Rob Halford came out as gay in 1998 on MTV.)
7. Iron Maiden, “Run to the Hills” (1982)
The band’s first top-10 UK single, which appeared on its first number-one UK album, is a cry of disdain for “white man [who] came across the sea” and “killed our tribes, he killed our creed.” Like many 80s metal bands that stuck around through the 90s, Iron Maiden also contributed to the body of songs featuring returning Gulf War soldiers suffering from post-traumatic stress.
8. Body Count, “Shallow Graves” (1994)
Rapper Ice-T formed Body Count in 1990 to explore his interest in metal. “I won’t die in your bullshit wars no more/I won’t fight to my death for you” are particularly powerful lyrics coming from a veteran of both the Crips and the U.S. Army.
9. Anthrax, “Indians” (1987)
Another thrasher mourning Native American genocide, this was one of Anthrax’s biggest singles. Fans may remember that during the anthrax attacks in 2001, the band joked it would change its name to “Basket Full of Puppies” to avoid confusion with the biological weapon.
10. Ministry, “N.W.O.” (1992)
“N.W.O.,” which stands for “New World Order,” was this industrial metal band’s biggest hit. The song is a clear protest against George H.W. Bush and includes recorded samples of the then-president as well as Senator Joseph McCarthy and clips from the Vietnam War film Apocalypse Now.
C. Moen is half of the editorial team of this issue of WIN as well as half of the southern Vermont-based folk rock band Scrap Iron Spine (which does a mean Danzig cover).
