Heavy Metal 101

Wherein Eric, John, and special guest Quinn, of the And Vol. 4 All podcast, chit-chat delightfully about many of the most important heavy metal albums of the 1990s. Like Heavy Metal 101 , And Vol. 4 All can be found EVERYWHERE you listen to podcasts. Do check out Quinn's wonderful show! You can also reach Quinn at: https://x.com/AV4APod For a written version of Eric and Quinn's lists, as w...

Wherein Eric and John, following a vanishingly brief look at the early history and development of doom metal, investigate the fragmentation of doom into various sub-sub genres in the 1990s, including death doom (Paradise Lost, My Dying Bride, Anathema), gothic metal (Type O Negative), stoner metal (Sleep, Electric Wizard), and more. Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks...

Wherein Eric and John explore three significant, influential branches of Swedish death metal, the Stockholm scene, the Gothenburg scene, and progressive Swedish death metal, discussing bands including Entombed, Dismember, At the Gates, In Flames, Edge of Sanity, Opeth, and MANY more. Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: Listening Break #1: Entombed- &q...

Wherein Eric briefly introduces the listener to the storied career of Bay Area thrash legends Testament before sitting down to chat with Testament frontman Chuck Billy about their fantastic 2025 album, Para Bellum, and their 2026 US tour, Thrash of the Titans, with Overkill and Destruction. For more information about Testament visit: ⁠https://www.testamentlegions.com/site/ Suggested Testament song...

Wherein Eric and John unleash their inner chaotic neutral bard and lawful evil cleric and explore the D&D-laced fantasy world of power metal through bands including: Manowar, Helloween, Hammerfall, Stratovarius, Rhapsody, Nightwish, and more! Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: Listening Break #1: Manowar- "Hail and Kill" from Kings of Metal (1988) ht...

Wherein Eric and John rekindle their friendship whilst exploring the radiant majest of the holiest of holies that was Slayer from 1988-2001. Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: Listening Break #1: South of Heaven (1988) Choose Your Own Adventure! A) "South of Heaven" - ⁠ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=74nTzbgDGWM B) "Behind the Crooked...

Wherein Eric celebrates the holiday season by presenting an informal fireside chat discussing some of the best books ever written about heavy metal in a variety of different categories! This episode is being offered on the main podcast feed as a "Patreon Sneak Peek" for non-members. Please consider signing up to the Heavy Metal 101 Patreon page for just $3/month. Members get access to ex...

Wherein Eric battles John, at his very most Johnniest, in a doomed effort to convince him that nü metal can actually be pretty damn cool in the hands of practitioners including Korn, Limp Bizkit, Sevendust, System of a Down, Slipknot, and Deftones. Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: Video Break #1: Comparing and contrasting nü metal with groove metal...

Wherein Eric and John pay tribute to our beloved, dearly departed Prince of Darkness, Ozzy Osbourne. Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: Listening Break #1: Earth "Blue Suede Shoes" (by Carl Perkins) early demo (1969)- ⁠ https://youtu.be/IYxkYHqOjLY?si=YNkxQ-5fIrOehY31&t=576 Listening Break #2: "You Said It All (Live)" from Ozzy Osbourne Live EP (1980...

Wherein the Heavy Metal 101 podcast dresses up for Halloween as a true crime podcast, and Eric and guest host author Josh Putnam explore the fascinating history of Jack the Ripper, his horrifying crimes, and the heavy metal music they would eventually inspire. Josh Putnam's wonderful book A Heavy Metal History Lesson is available for purchase here: https://a.co/d/hOqyAT9 Click here for the very sp...

Wherein Eric struggles mightily in his efforts to convince John of the many virtues found in the music of early groove metal masters including Pantera, Machine Head, Fear Factory, Sepultura, and more. Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: Listening Break #1: Bad Brains "Voyage Into Infinity" from Quickness (1989)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NfYAifi...

Wherein Eric and John put on their big boy panties and finally discuss arguably the most important proto-metal band of all time: Led Zeppelin! Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: (Optional) Listening Break #1: "Communication Breakdown" from Led Zeppelin I (1969)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2atkj_KWLl0 or "Heartbreaker" from Led Zeppelin II (1969)...

Wherein Eric and John surprise the world with a midsummer bonus episode dedicated to the life and times of one of the most important metal artists of all time, Quorthon, and his legendary black metal/Viking metal band Bathory. This bonus episode would not have been possible without the support of beloved Heavy Metal 101 Patreon members like Quorthon100, who requested this specific topic. Please do...

Wherein Eric and John celebrate the 4th season finale by looking in on some of the most monumental heavy metal ever made, including ...And Justice for All and The Black Album ( Metallica ). Click on the links below for all the music listening/video breaks in this episode: Video Break #1: "One" from ...And Justice for All (1988)- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WM8bTdBs-cw Listening Break...

Wherein Eric and John gird their loins, say their prayers, and set forth on an exploration of two of the most frightening, awe-inspiring, and odd monuments in the history of rock music: Use Your Illusion I and Use Your Illusion II , while also peaking in on some of the bad behavior that was so deeply interwoven into the legend of Guns N' Roses. Click on the links below for all the music listen...

Wherein Eric and special guest co-host Ross explore the decline and fall of the most beloved musical genre of their shared misspent youth, glam metal, looking in on the life, times, and repertoire of bands including Slaughter, Poison, Ratt, Warrant, Skid Row, Kiss, Mötley Crüe and many, many more as the 90's death-marched all of them slowly but surely towards (a temporary!) cultural irrelevanc...

Wherein Eric explores a collection of the coolest new metal releases from February of 2025. Heavy Metal 101 is, at last, (almost!) up to date! This minisode is being offered on the main podcast feed as a "Patreon Sneak Peek" for non-members. Please consider signing up to the Heavy Metal 101 Patreon page for just $3/month. Members get access to exclusive content (like this!), as well as t...

Wherein Eric takes John on a scenic tour through some of the darkest and lowest circles of Hell via an exploration of the tragic tale of Mayhem and the music of many of Norwegian black metal’s founding fathers, including Darkthrone, Burzum, Immortal, and Emperor. Click on the links below for all the music listening breaks in this episode: Listening break #1 : “Black Metal” by Venom from Black Meta...

Wherein Eric transcends the very fabric of reality as we know it and takes full advantage of the extraordinary opportunity to interview one of his great musical heroes, Kory Clarke of Warrior Soul, discussing the earliest portion of his music career, Warrior Soul's iconic 90s albums, and what he and the band are up to these days. For more information about Kory Clarke and Warrior Soul visit: https...

Wherein Eric and John once again examine some of the gnarled roots underneath the heavy metal family tree, exploring the development and formative influence of golden age 1950s rock 'n roll, and, just maybe, find the very first heavy metal song ever all the way back in 1956! Click on the links below for all the music listening breaks in this episode: Listening break #1- "Rocket 88" by Jackie Brens...

Wherein Eric and John celebrate the holiday season first via a nostalgic deep dive into the 90s catalog of arguably the greatest heavy metal "should have beens" of that entire decade, Warrior Soul, and then explore the ever-growing catalog of seasonal themed metal releases. Click on the links below for all the music listening breaks in this episode: Music listening break #1- Warrior Soul "The Lose...

Wherein Eric and John rhapsodize over three of the greatest heavy metal albums ever made, Judas Priest's Painkiller , Megadeth's Rust in Peace , and Black Sabbath's Dehumanizer , in an episode so great that even John doesn't hate it. Click on the links below for all the music listening breaks in this episode: Music listening break #1- Judas Priest "Painkiller" from Painkiller (1990) https://www.yo...

Wherein Eric and John deep dive into the moldering early history of American death metal and British grindcore, exploring the fetid formative tales of an assortment of bands including Death Possessed, Morbid Angel, Obituary, Deicide, Napalm Death, and Carcass. Click on the links below for all the music listening breaks in this episode: Music listening break #1 - Possessed "Death Metal" from Seven...

Wherein Eric and very special guest Patrick, of the Rewind of the Living Dead Podcast, celebrate the spooky season by exploring the intersection of heavy metal and horror movies and take a deep dive into the delightful 2016 heavy metal horror comedy Deathgasm and its accompanying metal soundtrack. Boo! Here is a link to a YouTube playlist featuring the discussed bands/songs from the (truly excelle...

Wherein Eric and John sip hot, black coffee and burn nag champa incense while exploring the diverse and wonderous "alt" branch of the metal family tree, discussing an assortment of bands including: Faith No More, Rage Against the Machine, Nine Inch Nails, White Zombie, Melvins, Alice in Chains, Tool, and many more! Click on the link below for the episode video break: Video break: Tool- &...