In this work, we present a sociological investigation of perceptions concerning the contemporary presence and reception of women in the heavy metal community. Framed in feminist perspectives of “doing gender,” this study is based on semi-structured interviews, which for comparative purposes include both men and women who self-identify as fans of heavy metal, in order to assess some of the dynamics and relevance of gender in this traditionally hypermasculine sphere of popular culture. This examination is specifically developed within the framework of the perspective of “doing gender” and relies on an original set of interview data to address specified research questions. What do metalheads themselves think about the manner in which metal women “do gender” when there are (still) relatively few, though undeniably more than before, of them around? What do heavy metal fans themselves see as the opportunities and the obstacles of the process of women claiming their place in the heavy metal (sub)culture? And, how do observed changes of the increasing presence of women in heavy metal lead the way to foster greater equality with respect to gender in this world of rock music. To address these questions, we rely on a unique data set of original interviews and, in the development and discussion of relevant themes, also develop a serious engagement with the existing relevant literature on heavy metal, popular culture, and gender.

The publication of this work as a book that is relatively brief but, we hope, also insightful, rather than in the form of either a journal article or a lengthier monograph, is fitting given the scope of our investigations. The findings of our work rely on semi-structured interviews with a relatively small sample of 20 respondents. This study therefore cannot be oriented at generalization, but is meant to illustratively show the value of our sociological perspective on gender in one area of popular culture. Our approach is most critically aimed at an in-depth qualitative strategy to empirically uncover meaning and identity of self and others in a relatively unique and surely fascinating subculture of popular music.