Classical Antiquity, Heavy Metal Music, and European Identity

This paper explores the nature of, and reasons for, the increasingly frequent use of Classical antiquity in heavy metal music. There are two phases of this use: an initial, sporadic one in which Greece and Rome offer just another source for non-quotidian material; and a more recent and widespread one, in which bands primarily from parts of the former Roman Empire use this material to treat nationalistic themes at length. This latter development, “Mediterranean metal,” follows the earlier development of Viking metal and reflects the recent rise of nationalism in the European Union.Fletcher K. F. B. Classical Antiquity, Heavy Metal Music, and European Identity. In: The Present of Antiquity. Reception, Recovery, Reinvention of the Ancient World in Current Popular Culture. Besançon : Institut des Sciences et Techniques de l'Antiquité, 2019. pp. 223-246. (Collection « ISTA », 1476