Black metal has always been known as a musical force that, at its core, has stood for rebellion. However, among the bands and artists who have used black metal to speak out against religious extremism or write captivating songs about the occult, there are those who have taken this music and turned it into something vile, using it to spread messages of hatred and bigotry.
This is an ugliness that is difficult to ignore and truly repulsive; but black metal has also attracted artists who will not stand for such cruelty. Artists that embrace anti-fascists beliefs, queer artists, and those who want to fight against hate.
While there are those who may strive to gatekeep black metal, or use it as a weapon to preach hate, there are those who want to use the music as a means of promoting love, unity, and to speak out against injustice. In a new book titled Black Metal Rainbows, one can learn about the black metal bands and artists striving to use the genre for good.
Per the description associated with the trailer for this new book: “Black Metal Rainbows is a radical new vision of black metal – a book like no other: a unique collection of stunning artworks and thought-provoking writings by a wide range of 80+ writers, artists, activists and visionaries.”
Such writers include that of Laina Dawes (author of What Are You Doing Here? A Black Woman’s Life and Liberation in Heavy Metal), Kim Kelly (author of Fight Like Hell: The Untold History of American Labor), Ravenna Hunt-Hendrix of Liturgy, Margaret Killjoy of Feminazgul, and many more.
Black Metal Rainbows is a remarkable work that not only covers the LGBTQA+ artists who are working within the genre, but also the efforts being made to create an inclusive and powerful space of love that welcomes all into black metal. You can check out the trailer for this book below and pre-order it via this link here.