Professional wrestling: a bloodsport of champions for some, a parade of weirdos in spandex playing tough guy for others. So, too, is heavy metal, whose fans recognize it for the vital art form it is while outsiders wonder when that dude with the skullet is going to sell his spiked shinguards so he can afford a car with power steering. The two cultural institutions have long been intertwined due to their shared appreciation for loud sounds, violent scenes, and sweaty beefcake making definitive statements. But throw wrestling and metal into the ring together, and who would come out victorious is anyone’s guess.
This lifelong courtship and occasional rivalry is the subject of this week’s episode of our heavy metal talk show Last Words. This time around, hosts Katy Irizarry (Season Of Mist), Doc Coyle (Bad Wolves/Ex Man Podcast), and Zeena Koda (Everything’s Political Podcast) sit down with professional wrestler Brody King to discuss the history and mutual appreciation that has always existed between metal and wrestling. Doc and Brody especially remember wrestling theme songs, which so often lean towards the heavy and brolic.
“Every wrestling riff is just some hard pseudo-Pantera riff,” laughs Brody, going on to say, “Professional wrestling has been in my life since before I could remember. My dad was a fan of it, and made me a fan of it, so I grew up watching it until I was about…13? And then I kind of fell out of it and found punk and metal music.”
Watch Brody give metal the chair in the video below:
And if you’re sick of the YouTube algorithm forcing us to cut out the really fucked-up bits, make sure to listen to the full, uncensored podcast version of Last Words, where you can hear us say fuck and nutsack all goddamn day long:
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Words by Chris Krovatin
