Thrashing around in a mosh pit while a heavy metal band screams at you might not sound very chill, but for fans of the genre, it can be extremely therapeutic. So says Australia’s kings of metalcore, Parkway Drive, who have performed at some of the biggest metal festivals in the world. In an interview with ABC’s Australian Story, lead singer Winston McCall describes heavy metal as being incredibly cathartic.
“It’s the place to let out all of these repressed feelings,” he says. “What do you think most people are doing when they’re in the mosh pit just losing their mind and throwing their limbs around and jumping on each other? They’re not trying to hurt anyone. They’re just, [letting] it out. And then you walk out of that venue better than when you walked in.”
Lead guitarist Jeff Ling told Australian Story it’s all about the energy: “I’m not an aggressive or assertive person in my everyday life. But there’s something in me that needs to be released. There’s only two ways I can seem to get that out, and that’s through playing heavy metal live, and surfing seems to help with that too.”
Metal and mental health
Moshing at a concert is certainly one way to achieve an emotional release, but heavy metal doesn’t just provide a physical outlet for getting those good vibes. For many, it’s simply about the raw music: screaming vocals, heavy distortion, dense bass and emotionally charged lyrics.
True, it’s not everyone’s cup of tea. In the past, critics of the genre have unfairly stereotyped heavy metal as being aggressive for the sake of being aggressive. So much so that some bands, like Cannibal Corpse, have had their music banned in certain countries, and acts like Ozzy Osbourne and Judas Priest have faced lawsuits related to the content of their music.
But ask a true metal fan how they feel when the music starts and it tells a different story. “During my teenage years particularly, when I felt very isolated and different due to my mental health, it was cathartic to listen to this aggressive music,” says 32-year-old Natalie Shears. “It taught me that these intense feelings can be channelled into something meaningful and even positive.
Hearing someone else verbalise what I was feeling, through their lyrics or through their riffs, or even through their blast beats, gave me solace. I knew there were other people out there who were going through what I was going through.”
Rammstein, Metallica, Opeth, Septicflesh, DevilDriver and Leprous are just a few of Natalie’s favourites. She credits heavy metal bands like these with being an invaluable resource for dealing with her complex post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety and depression. There’s no denying the link between mood and music is a unique one. While some people might find listening to “sad” or “angry” music accentuates such feelings, others find it therapeutic. Emotional reactions vary greatly from person to person.
For Natalie, heavy metal music helps her feel re-energised and upbeat. “Often it makes me feel like I can take on anything,” she says. “There’s a great feeling of strength and resilience that comes from it.”
Natalie certainly doesn’t stand alone in her experience. A 2015 study by the University of Queensland put the music to the test. Researchers Associate Professor Genevieve Dingle and Dr Leah Sharman set out to explore the relationship between anger and what they considered “extreme” genres of music, such as heavy metal, punk, hardcore and screamo. The study involved an induction that stimulated feelings of anger in 39 participants, who were then assessed as they either listened to 10 minutes of “extreme” music of their choice, or 10 minutes of silence.
The results confirmed that headbanging for your health isn’t such a bad idea, with the participants who listened to heavy metal mostly left feeling calmed and inspired. The study also revealed that listening to metal was as relaxing for participants as sitting in silence.
“We found the music regulated sadness and enhanced positive emotions,” says Leah. “Results showed levels of hostility, irritability and stress decreased after music was introduced, and the most significant change reported was the level
of inspiration they felt.”
The study also observed that, much like Natalie, participants were reportedly using music to immerse themselves in feelings of love and enhance their happiness.
Love, happiness and heavy metal
“Love” and “happiness” probably aren’t the first words that come to mind when you see a heavy metal band perform. It’s loud, chaotic, and some bands like to incorporate dark stage personas in their acts. Heavy metal band Slipknot, for example, is famous for rocking out in their iconic horrifying stage masks. But as lead singer Corey Taylor explained in an interview with the BBC, it’s actually about embracing honesty and getting past niceties, manners, morals and rules. “The mask for me has always been that physical representation of the person inside of me that just never had a voice,” he says. “It allows me to be me.”
This philosophy could be applied to the heavy metal scene as a whole. From the outside it may appear aggressive in its music or gruesome in its lyrics, but there is intent there, and much like poetry or artwork, finding meaning requires a deep dive beneath the layers.
Sometimes happiness isn’t about feeling giddy but experiencing honesty and acceptance in who we are. Metalheads seem to get this. They’ve long been pigeonholed as the outsiders, the anti-social and the angry, but a closer look reveals a tight-knit, like-minded community of music fans seeking connection, solace and emotional release. They acknowledge anger and sadness and understand the need to experience and regulate their own emotions. In this context, it’s a shame this community isn’t better known for its mindful, healing qualities.
Interestingly, there is one place in the world where metal has gone mainstream. In 2022, Finland was crowned happiest country in the world by the United Nations-sponsored World Happiness Report for the fifth year in a row. Is it any coincidence, then, that the country boasts more heavy metal musicians per capita than anywhere else in the world — a reported 70 metal bands per 100,000 people? Maybe the Finnish are onto something there.
Lauren Furey is a freelance writer who loves deep dives into tough topics on all things culture, society and the messiness of humanity.
