Tenacity: Heavy Metal in the Middle East and Africa

by Beth Winegarner

After the Satanic Panic faded in the United States, a similar panic surged in parts of the Middle East and Northern Africa, where many metalheads were arrested and interrogated. In other corners of the region, government and market forces have made it difficult for metal bands to perform or record their music. And yet, a rich network of metal subcultures is hanging on in places like Lebanon, Egypt, Syria, Iran, South Africa and Botswana. In this collection of essays and articles, find out how moral panics, political unrest and civil wars have challenged metalheads to keep going, and why they’re so loyal to the music. A portion of the proceeds from this book will benefit Syrian Eyes, an agency in Lebanon caring for refugees of the Syrian civil war.

51 pages, Kindle Edition

Published May 9, 2018

About the author

Beth Winegarner is a journalist and author who has written for the New Yorker, The New York Times, The Guardian, Wired, Mother Jones, and many others. Her most recent book is Francisco's Forgotten Cemeteries: A Buried History."