Christian Metal

Christian metal has always defined itself in contrast to its non-Christian, secular counterpart, yet it stands out from nearly all other forms of contemporary Christian music through its unreserved use of metal's main musical, visual, and aesthetic traits. Christian metal is a rare example of a direct combination between evangelical Christianity and an aggressive and highly controversial form of popular music and its culture.
Christian Metal: History, Ideology, Scene is the first full exploration of the phenomenon of Christian metal music, its history, main characteristics, development, diversification, and key ideological traits from its formative years in the early 1980s to the present day. Marcus Moberg situates it in a wider international evangelical cultural environment, accounts for its diffusion on a transnational scale, and explores what religious meanings and functions Christian metal holds for its own musicians and followers. Engaging with wider debates on religion, media and popular culture, Christian Metal: History, Ideology and Scene is a much-needed resource in the study of religion and popular music.

Marcus Moberg is Senior Researcher in the Department of Comparative Religion at Abo Akademi University in Turku, Finland. His research interests include the sociology of religion, media and culture, religion, markets and consumer culture studies, and the discursive study of religion.

Introduction 1. Origins, Definition and Historical Development 2. Verbal, Visual, and Aesthetic Traits 3. The Sensory and Bodily Dimension 4. Ideological and Discursive Traits 5. Contemporary Transnational Scene 6. Christian Metal in Context Bibliography Index