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Heavy metal has long been saddled with a reputation for attracting admirers more interested in decibels than Descartes. New research however promises to rescue the genre from the mosh pit of intellectual obscurity.
A study of some of Britain's most intelligent schoolchildren has revealed that death metal and
thrash bands such as Slayer and Slipknot produce the music of choice for today's best and brightest.
A survey among students at the National Academy for Gifted and Talented Youth, a cohort drawn from the top 5 per cent of the nation's youngsters, drew praise for metal's "visceral brutality" with more than a third rating it among their favourite styles.
Researchers admitted they were surprised to find that "intelligent" genres traditionally associated with the bright, such as classical and jazz, were the least popular.
What they discovered was that youngsters liked to let off steam to hardcore sounds, particularly if it had an emotionally charged or overtly political message behind it.
One respondent said: "You can't really jump your anger into the floor and listen to music at the same time with other types of music."
According to Stuart Cadwallader of the University of Warwick, who conducted the survey, heavy metal was found to provide a form of "catharsis", particularly among those suffering from low self-esteem. They found the aggressive music a useful conduit for their frustrations and anger, according to the findings revealed at the British Psychological Society conference in York.
"It is a popular misconception that gifted students are listening to classical music. When they were feeling stressed, a surprising number said they liked to listen to heavy metal," he said.
Mr Cadwallader said: "Perhaps the pressure associated with being gifted and talented can be temporarily forgotten with the aid of music. As one student suggests, perhaps gifted people may experience more pressure than their peers and they use the music to purge this negativity."
While traditional musical forms such as rock, pop and RnB were rated as the most popular, students said they felt particularly attracted to the "thrashiness" of heavy metal.
Answering questions in an on-line survey, one student said Systems of a Down's anti-war track Bring Your Own Bombs particularly appealed. Another track, Aenima by Tool, was praised for its subject matter - "the stupidity of the celebrity culture".
Another praised the "the visceral brutality offered by metal bands like Slipknot and Machine Head". The student added: "The cathartic release offered by heavy music played loud, either by my hi-fi or myself on guitar, is a wonderful thing when it's needed."
Others responded on a more aesthetic level. One said: "The first time I heard Tears and Shadows by a band called From Grace I was just amazed. In the midst of all the swearing and screaming, there was this beautiful guitar solo."
One student concluded: "As with most music, it depends heavily on the person's mood at the time. So whilst there probably is your "average Metalhead fan", there will also be a lot of other fans who just feel "Metalheady" every so often. Which I guess goes some way to justify my play lists being named after emotions."
- INDEPENDENT