New Wave Of British Heavy Metal Memories
Do you remember the new wave of British heavy metal. A musical movement originating in the late 1970s which almost overnight catapulted a seemingly endless supply of British heavy metal bands on the road to either superstardom or obscurity.
If you were a teenager in Britain during the late 1970s or early 1980s with a fondness for rock music you surely must remember as it gathered momentum and became affection ally known as NWOBHM.
The new wave
of British heavy metal saw the emergence of bands which went on to become global stars of their craft. Examples including Iron Maiden and Def Leppard who even now some thirty years later continue at the top of their game selling millions of albums every year.
Some other NWOBHM stalwarts still recording or touring today include Saxon, Motorhead, Girlshchool , Diamond Head and Praying Mantis. And not forgetting the much missed White Spirit. Band personnel were reasonably fluid and interchangeable as well as I recall. Like Janick Gers starting out as a Ritchie Blackmore impersonator with White Spirit before getting the call to join Gillan and then ending up in Iron Maiden. Long time Maiden singer Bruce Dickinson used to ply his trade singing with another NWOBHM act by the name of Samson.
Many bands associated with the new wave of British heavy metal had their fifteen minutes of fame before disappearing in to smoke as quickly as they burst on to the scene. Some examples here being Mythra, Varis, Zorro and literally hundreds of others.
Early recordings by NWOBHM bands are these days extremely collectable if you can find them. Way back in my youth my record collection was full of singles and albums by many NWOBHM bands most of which have been lost or otherwise misplaced over the subsequent decades. If only I still had them.
If, like me, you do recall NWOBHM and are still slightly stuck in the past I wager your CD collection is sprinkled with reissues from the good old days which when played bring back hazy memories of nights spent in obscure venues watching equally obscure bands trying to make it big.
We probably will not see the likes of the new wave of British heavy metal again. The mid-1980s saw the decline of NWOBHM with the emergence of the glam rock scene epitomised by the likes of Motley Crue, Ratt and others. But it wasn’t quite the same was it. Glam rock had its moments though could never match the earthy grit of the new wave of British heavy metal.
Some of my earliest recollections of those ways are seeing Iron Maiden open for Judas Priest, Def Leppard supporting Sammy Hagar and travelling quite some way to watch Praying Mantis on a support slot with Gamma fronted by the great Ronnie Montrose.
I hope this short article has triggered a few NWOBHM memories for you and sent you scurrying up to the attic to see if you still have that rare pressing of Death and Destiny by Mythra.
Watch videos from the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal on your computer. Visit http://www.newwaveofbritishheavymetal.com to search for videos of your favourite NWOBHM band.