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In 2022, the association of scholars interested in metal studies in Czechia, Czech Metal Studies, (CMS) celebrated its fifth anniversary. The article retrospectively looks at the origins of CMS in the context of the deficit of academic study of metal in Czechia and reflects on the development of metal studies abroad. The very origin of CMS was closely connected with the Department for the Study of Religions at Masaryk University in Brno, resulting in the primary research orientation of CMS toward the topic of metal and religion. The text surveys the current academic production of CMS members and other CMS activities, including the organization of Czech academic conferences on metal. Finally, the further direction of CMS is discussed in connection with the effort for greater  ultidisciplinarity and internationalization. The multidisciplinarity of CMS is manifest in attracting scholars from outside the field of religious studies, and internationalization is apparent in the founding of the research network Metal Studies in Central and Eastern Europe. 

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This article comprises a case study of the lyrical program of the Hungarian folk metal band Dalriada. I employ a close reading based method that relies on ideas drawn from reception studies, metal studies, history and literary studies toward an understanding of Dalriada’s reinterpretation of elements of Hungarian history (e.g., Medieval figures, the period of Ottoman occupation), folk traditions (e.g., folk songs) and high literature (the works of János Arany). I conclude by discussing some common patterns in these interpretations that run through Dalriada’s overall output.

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The main subject of this article is the artistic activity of one of the first thrash metal bands in Poland, the Acid Drinkers founded in 1986 in Poznań. The text outlines the state of indigenous metal music studies and identifies selected theoretical contexts related to song studies and the multimodality of popular music culture. In the analysis of the Acid Drinkers’ work, particular attention is paid to the intertextuality of the iconography of Acid Drinkers’ album covers, selected protest songs created by the band, and ironic interpretative covers, which also constitute an important element in the group’s discography.

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This work focuses on the concept of heaviness and its use in the context of metal music. It first examines the concept in the works of other academics interested in metal music and then seeks to find a common point of convergence between the various definitions of heaviness through Deleuzian and Deleuze-Guattarian philosophy. In doing so, this thesis brings together both a cultural approach to the study of music and an ecological approach, creating a cognitive-semiotic conception of heaviness as a perplexity of the physical-spatial properties of sound and the listener’s musical experience.

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This article deals with the development of local metal scenes in Africa and Asia in relation to the metal mainstream. The article addresses the problem of Western centrism in the current perception of metal music and introduces researchers to the current interests of non-Western music scenes. The article also proposes a psychosocial perspective on local metal scenes and, at the same time, the imaginary global metal community.

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This article offers a short introduction to Czech pagan metal. I offer a brief summary of the main trends within the local scene and analyze how Paganism is discursively constructed in the music and lyrics of three bands representing different metal sub-genres: Inferno, Silent Stream of Godless Elegy, and Žrec. I seek answers for some important questions. How do Czech bands approach Paganism? In what ways, if any, is Czech pagan metal unique? Or do Czech pagan metal bands simply copy global trends? How important is spiritual identity in the personal lives of Pagan metal band members? The main theoretical inspirations for the article are Robert Walser’s discursive study of heavy metal and Keith Kahn-Harris’s concept of scene. The analysis of lyrics and music is enhanced by data from ethnological and quantitative research among listeners of Czech Pagan metal music.

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The author of this article seeks to verify the thesis that proclaims that metal culture can be classified as counterculture. The author supported her arguments with research she conducted in Poland in 2018–2020. The main research questions concerned controversy in metal music and manifestations of social discord, as well as other issues that might constitute the recognition of metal culture as a counterculture. Based on the research, a redefinition of the term was proposed to make it more useful today.

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The term “female metalhead” may sound rather abstract. What does she look like and what does she think? Is there a typical female metalhead? This article summarizes qualitative research on woman’s motivational resources for participation in the contemporary Czech metal subculture. It discusses factors related to why women listen to metal and the role of men in this process. The research is based on seventeen semi-structured interviews with women in Czech metal. Respective research questions focus on female metalheads’ understanding of their position inside the subculture, their visual appearance, reasons for inclination to metal (e.g., partner’s influence or an attraction to the metal community), the issue of sex symbols in the metal industry, and issues of elitism and exclusivity. Results show that women within the metal subculture strike a balance between masculinity and femininity and often judge their surroundings from the perspective on these two poles. However, the primary inspiration still drives from the male perspective with its typical visual and musical characteristics.

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Some criticism Pagan oriented folk metal music as “commercial”, i.e., created primarily for profit. We are convinced that this distinction is worthless, unmeasurable, and unverifiable from an analytical point of view. However, within a given musical genre, music fans and critics still distinguish very different works in terms of quality. Therefore, we propose to replace the vague term “commercial production” with the term esoteric kitsch (eso-kitsch), which is based on Tomáš Kulka’s analytical-aesthetic theory of kitsch. Using examples from the Czechoslovak folk metal scene, we show that eso-kitsch is a suitable tool for identifying musical creations that are characterized not by economic, creative, or spiritual value but primarily by aesthetic value.