What is a True Metal Fan?

You’re not a true metal fan!  This is the allegation I have read in several metal forums over the years.  It always boggled my mind when I saw someone say that to someone else.  I mean, who gets to define what a true fan is?  What constitutes being a fan of something at all, let alone being a “true” fan?  What the hell does that even mean?  In the context of heavy metal I have heard this phrase expressed for at least a couple of reasons.

Judging a Book by Its Cover

In my free time when I’m not attached to some video game or repeatedly listening to whatever album I’m currently hot on I like to scour through Bandcamp and Metal State’s Haulix promo pile (for those who don’t know, Haulix is a commonly used streaming/downloading platform for giving reviewers access to promo albums) and see if anything catches my ear.  With literally hundreds of records to choose from at any given moment I don’t have the time nor the will to listen to everything.  So, what do I do to narrow down my selections?  Well, first there are certain P.R. reps we have a good rapport with as well as the very rare, well written review request (for another article, but, independent bands, proofread your shit, keep it short, and use Bandcamp or some other super easy streaming service).  Otherwise, I break a Golden Rule.  I judge a book, errr, album by its cover.

Let’s also steal their shoes

If we’re starving them by taking the food out of their mouths, why not also hobble them? Everyone knows musicians all have lots of money and plenty of opportunities to become rich.

Let’s ask a couple of questions up front:

1. If you’re a musician, can you honestly or confidently say it’s never happened to you?

2. Whether you’re a musician or a fan, can you think of an inspired way to stop the rot?

I came across an essay that eloquently and also bluntly expresses the frustration so many artists must feel when their work, their passion and maybe their livelihood is whipped away from them without the slightest qualm.

The author, Lord K. Philipson, is a more than “just a musician,” if there can be such a thing. Have you ever met “just a surgeon” or “just a parent”?