Ten Tips For Overcoming Metal Exhaustion

Metal is inherently overwhelming. The genre self-identifies as a boundary pusher — stronger than all, blackest of the black, everything louder than everything else. So it’s totally understandable that your casual fan might sometimes need a break from the onslaught that is heavy metal and heavy metal culture.

But every so often a diehard metalhead will find themselves exhausted by metal, at which point an identity crisis ensues. How can you call yourself a true metalhead when you’re rolling your eyes every time you hear a killer riff? Why have you developed a sudden distaste for random longhaired dudes throwing you the horns in recognition of your Temple Of Void shirt? Could you be — gasp — growing out of it?

Relax — metal exhaustion is perfectly normal. Even people who live and die by intense entertainment can find it tiresome and unhealthy if consumed too often; one can only eat so many steaks before they need a salad to clear out the works. You’re no less of a hesher — if anything, the thought process that causes you to fear that you might be over metal is born of your metalheaddom, your urge to take any emotion, even a negative one, to extremes.

So here are some tips for surviving a bout of metal exhaustion. Good luck, and know you’re not alone.

1. The P-Word

It’s the least metal virtue in the world, but if you’re feeling tired of metal, it’s your best friend: PATIENCE. We want to see our problems get fixed immediately, but that can often lead to rash decision making. So for fuck’s sake, do not throw out your awesome concert shirts, tear down all your posters, or sell your colored vinyl. Even if you decide that you’re done with being a metalhead, put those things in your mom’s basement or wherever — that shit is cool to have around. And if you do come back to metal with excitement and enthusiasm, you’ll feel like a dick if you dove head-first into what was basically a phase.

2. Sinatra, Sinatra, Sinatra

Frank Sinatra’s voice is like chocolate-covered honey laced with a hint of pipe smoke. All of his songs are about simple topics — usually broads and how they hurt him real bad — but are beautifully arranged, especially those involving the input of one Nelson Riddle. The Chairman is the perfect balm for the ear that’s chaffed by too many guitar solos and death-growls. You can relax to it, you can sing along to it, and all the while you can still drink to it. Old Blue Eyes has a ton of material, too, so you can just put on one album after another and get the same soothing effect.

3. The Root of All Evil

If something — a genre of music, for instance — is a vital part of your daily grind, and you suddenly find yourself disliking it, then there may be other aspects of your life that need examining. Take a moment and think: is there something else going on here? Are you feeling too much pressure towards or against metal? Is there trouble at work, or with your significant other? Chances are, another issue will come to mind that elaborates upon, if not totally explains, your sudden distaste for metal.

4. Treat Yo’self

A certain distinction in one’s vice makes it more special; for example, cigarettes are disgusting when you consume twenty a day, but one after dinner is nice and classy. Similarly, it’s not always metal that you grow tired of, it’s metal all the time. So just lower your intake, and make the moments you listen to metal count. Rather than blast through new material and entire discographies all day, play a few songs or one album that you know you’ll enjoy (an especially effective song for me is Arch Enemy’s “Enemy Within”). If that gives you the desire to hear more, you should even hold off a little, to keep yourself hungry enough to re-open the floodgates when the time is right.

5. Keep It Offline

In this modern day and age, it’s easy to immediately record any thought you might have by posting it on social media. But while the urge to tweet “I’m done with metal” or “Metal is dead” may be intense, you’ll feel like a total goiter if you have to take that statement down later as you re-embrace your love of Watain. If metal isn’t doing it for you right now, don’t make an declarative statements where the whole fucking world can see them. Take your time and figure it out on your own (this tip is also applicable to relationship thoughts, anger at friends and coworkers, and just about any other personal thought an individual might have).

6. Allow Yourself Some Quiet

Sometimes, it’s just about hearing yourself think for a hot second. Find a time when you’d usually listen to music without question — your commute, your lunch break — and keep the stereo off and the headphones in your pocket. You’ll have a moment’s quiet to hear the voices in your head and the rumble of society around you, which can be refreshing. Do this consistently for a while, so that you’ve become more attuned to the everyday sounds of your life. This way, metal can be your soundtrack rather than just background noise.

7. Enjoy Some Garden Burgers

There’s plenty of music out there that’s ‘metal’ in a That’s So Metal! way, but doesn’t sound anything like Slayer. Take this opportunity to enjoy the other aspects of your musical tastes that aren’t metal, and have no bearing in the metal scene, but are a step up in aggression from your average pop song. A little Misfits and Bauhaus, some Los Straightjackets or ZZ Top, maybe the occasional Rasputina track. This way, you don’t have to go cold turkey and fly straight into the arms of Phish or Jack Johnson.

8. Soberkommando

Sometimes I find myself getting drunk at a concert I don’t really want to be at, and I wonder if going to metal shows is sort of an excuse to get wasted, and that it kept me from caring about the music (Nate Garrett from Gatecreeper and Spirit Adrift mentioned something along those lines to me when I interviewed him for Noisey). So, as much as it pains me to suggest it, try cutting back on booze and weed, to see if your love of metal is being muddied by them. With a clear head, you can better evaluate what exactly is making you tired of listening to metal.

9. Back To The Primitive

Who were your first bands? Were there a couple that, looking back, were pretty ridiculous and kind of stupid? A Rush, or a Cinderella, or a Powerman 5000 that you worshipped? Go back and spin a couple of those records. Something about wallowing in your laughable past gives you a broader understanding of how you got into metal, and why. It also reminds you that metal doesn’t have to be something you invest too much serious thought into or worry about, which, for us lifers, can occasionally be the problem.

10. Don’t Believe The Naysayers

You probably have someone in your life — a friend, parents, teacher, spiritual guru — who does not care for metal, and is excited at the prospect of you no longer listening to metal. If this person gets wind that you’re having a crisis of The Faith (you’ve ignored Tip #5, haven’t you?), they will most likely take the time to nudge you towards fully forsaking metal, and they might even be nice and complimentary while doing it (“I knew you’d come to the smart conclusion! Welcome to the real world, dude!”). Fuck these people. They just want you to agree with them so they can feel right.

Any metal exhaustion recovery methods I might have overlooked? Feel free to add them in the comments section.