Phew – What a blizzard! Black metal and the UK popular press

What is it about?

The second wave of black metal, with its most shocking moments coming from the Oslo-centred scene of the early 1990s, was, as one might expect, also a media sensation in its native Norway, as the non-stop news coverage of the time shows. Yet this article will instead focus on another nation’s coverage. Namely, that of the United Kingdom, and how it covered the antics of the Norwegian black metal scene, up to and including the trial of ‘Varg’ Vikernes in 1994. An initial study provides an oddly mixed picture. The UK's niche music media (such as Kerrang!, Terrorizer and the like) could of course be trusted to cover this lurid and, indeed, often dangerous fringe music scene. Yet how did the politically powerful UK popular press cover it? If early 1990’s black metal's power to shock and strong aesthetic made it good tabloid fodder, the UK popular press with its own traditions, hobbyhorses, and harsh right wing politics might at first seem a good combination. What, then, did UK press coverage reveal not just about black metal at this time, but also its own mores and attitudes? Was black metal seized upon by the UK press or ignored, and why? And lastly, what does this reveal about UK journalism and black metal itself?

Featured Image

Photo by Zac Durant on Unsplash

Photo by Zac Durant on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This addresses how the UK popular press helps maintain and perpetuate an existing set of cultural and political norms, and blinkered cultural horizons.

Perspectives