‘Rock journalism is written by
people who can’t write for people who can’t read’
– Sir Frank of Zappa
Just what
is it about the Midlands and hard rockers?
Is it
something in the air?
Is it something
in the water?
Is it
something in the air and in the water?
Maybe
it’s the accents?
Until
science shines its all-seeing light on the matter, we’ll never know for sure,
but in the meantime, there can be no denying that the Midlands is the
birthplace of the highest form of human artistic achievement outside of the
Sistine Chapel.
I
refer, of course, to Heavy Metal.
All
that is needed to prove this bold statement is to name check a handful of bands
who have so enriched the metallic life our nation.
They’re
all from around here.
Here
goes:
Black
Sabbath, and if that’s not enough evidence for you then there’s…
Judas
Priest, and if you need further proof then how about…
Diamond
Head? and if you haven’t heard of them…
there’s
always Slade, who were so important that they even named an art school after them
three-hundred miles away in London,
of all places.
If all
of that that wasn’t enough to convince you, then the coup the grace, the
clincher, the absolute final word on the matter belongs to a Midlands band that
has had massive commercial success everywhere in the world.
The
band that stands at the vibrating and vibrant heart in the pantheon of all
things authentically leather-clad, rifftastic and screechworthy; the very
apotheosis of the heavy musical experience.
I
refer, of course, to Duran Duran.
Wild Boys! You betcha.
Or, as
their best-selling biography, ‘Make-Up is
for Boys’, should have been called, ‘The Toughest Band the Midlands Ever
Produced’.
I
mean, have you seen the video? Turn this
one up to 11, eh, boys?
Who’s
with me?
Long
Live Synthesizers!
By Len Zebbelim
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