Glam metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam rock.
Early glam metal evolved directly from the glam rock movement of the 1970s, as visual elements taken from acts such as T. Rex, David Bowie and New York Dolls (and to a lesser extent, the punk and new wave movements taking place concurrently in New York City) were fused with the decidedly more heavy metal leaning and theatrical acts such as Alice Cooper and Kiss. The first examples of this fusion began appearing in the late 1970s and early 1980s mainly in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles Sunset Strip music scene. Early glam metal bands include Mötley Crüe, Hanoi Rocks, Ratt, Quiet Riot, Twisted Sister, Bon Jovi and Dokken. Glam metal achieved significant commercial success from approximately 1982 to 1991, bringing to prominence bands such as Poison, Cinderella, and Warrant. From a strictly visual perspective, glam metal is defined by flashy and tight-fitting clothing, makeup, and an overall androgynous aesthetic in which the traditional "denim & leather" aspect of heavy metal culture is replaced by spandex, lace, and usually heavy use of bright colours. In September 2023, Ratt frontman Stephen Pearcy told AXS TV that only a small number of bands had "really kickstarted things" on the Sunset Strip, naming Roxx Regime (later Stryper), Dante Fox (later Great White), W.A.S.P., Quiet Riot, Mötley Crüe, and Ratt as the core group.
Glam metal suffered a decline in popularity in the early-mid 1990s, as the grunge and alternative phenomena revolutionized hard rock, and fans' tastes moved toward a more natural and stripped-down aesthetic and a rejection of the glam metal visual style. During this period, many of the most successful acts of the genre's 1980s pinnacle suddenly found themselves facing disbandment as their audiences moved in another direction. Glam metal has experienced a resurgence since the late 1990s, with successful reunion tours of many popular acts from the genre's 1980s heyday, as well as the emergence of new, predominantly European bands, including the Darkness, Crashdïet, Reckless Love, and American bands Steel Panther and Black Veil Brides.
Characteristics and fashion Musically, glam metal combines a traditional heavy metal sound with elements of hard rock and punk rock, adding pop-influenced catchy hooks and guitar riffs.C. Smith, 101 Albums that Changed Popular Music (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2009), , pp. 160–2. Like other heavy metal songs of the 1980s (most notably thrash metal songs), they often feature shred guitar solos.D. Bukszpan, The Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal (London: Barnes & Noble Publishing, 2003), , p. 63. They also include extensive use of harmonies, particularly in the characteristic power balladsslow, emotional songs that gradually build to a strong finale.G. T. Pillsbury, Damage Incorporated: Metallica and the Production of Musical Identity (New York, NY: CRC Press, 2006), , p. 45. These were among the most commercially successful singles in the genre and opened it up to a wider audience that would otherwise not have been attracted to traditional heavy metal. Lyrical themes often deal with love and lust, with songs often directed at a particular woman.
Aesthetically glam metal draws heavily on the glam rock or glitter rock of the 1970s,P. Auslander, Performing Glam Rock: Gender and Theatricality in Popular Music (Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press, 2006), , p. 232. often with very long backcombed hair, use of hair spray, use of make-up, gaudy clothing and accessories (chiefly consisting of tight denim or leather jeans, spandex, and headbands).D. Bukszpan, The Encyclopedia of Heavy Metal (London: Barnes & Noble Publishing, 2003), , p. 60. The visual aspects of glam metal appealed to music television producers, particularly MTV, whose establishment coincided with the rise of the genre. Glam metal performers became infamous for their debauched lifestyles of drugs, strippers and late-night parties, which were widely covered in the tabloid press.R. Batchelor and S. Stoddart, The 1980s (London: Greenwood Publishing Group, 2007), , p. 121.
Etymology Sociologist Deena Weinstein points to the large number of terms used to describe more commercial forms of heavy metal, which she groups together as lite metal. These include, beside glam metal: melodic metal, false metal, poodle bands, nerf metal, pop metal or metal pop, the last of which was coined by critic Philip Bashe in 1983 to describe bands such as Van Halen and Def Leppard.D. Weinstein, Heavy Metal: The Music and Its Culture (Cambridge, MA: Da Capo Press, 2000), , pp. 45–47. AllMusic employs the umbrella term "pop metal", which refers a late-1980s variation of pop metal characterized by flashy clothing and heavy makeup influenced by glam rock (as embodied by Poison and Mötley Crüe)."Hair metal", AllMusic. Retrieved November 2014. Use of the derogatory term "hair metal" started in the early 1990s, as grunge gained popularity at the expense of 1980s metal. In the "definitive metal family tree" of his documentary Metal: A Headbanger's Journey, anthropologist Sam Dunn differentiates pop metal, which includes bands like Def Leppard, Europe, and Whitesnake, from glam metal bands such as Mötley Crüe and Poison.Metal – A Headbanger's Journey, DVD, ASIN B000FS9OZY (2005).
From the 1980s to the 2000s, the term "butt rock" was used derisively to refer to glam metal bands. The phrase was a semantic continaution of cock rock, referencing the bands in the genre as overly hedonistic. The name's use was particularly commonplace amongst Seattle grunge bands who viewed the genre as overly corporate and misogynistic. This use of the term eventually fell out of favor, as its meaning shifted to refer to post-grunge bands who adopted elements of nu metal, such as Breaking Benjamin, Puddle of Mudd and Seether.
History Predecessors
Music journalist Stephen Davis claims the influences of the style can be traced back to acts like New York Dolls, Aerosmith, Kiss, Cheap Trick, and Boston.S. Davis, Watch You Bleed: The Saga of Guns N' Roses (New York, NY: Gotham Books, 2008), , p. 30. Other influences were Sweet, and to a lesser extent Alice Cooper.I. Ellis, Soft Skull Press, (Soft Skull Press, 2008), Finnish band Hanoi Rocks, heavily influenced themselves by the New York Dolls, have been credited with setting a blueprint for the look of hair metal.B. Macdonald, J. Harrington and R. Dimery, Albums You Must Hear Before You Die (London: Quintet, 2006), , p. 508.
Van Halen has been seen as highly influential on the movement, emerging in 1978 from the Los Angeles music scene on Sunset Strip, with a sound based around the lead guitar skills of Eddie Van Halen. He popularized a playing technique of two-handed hammer-ons and pull-offs called tapping, showcased on the song "Eruption" from the album Van Halen. This sound, and lead singer David Lee Roth's stage antics, would be highly influential on glam metal.
Mainstream success (1981–1991)
First wave (1981–1986) Def Leppard, often categorized with the New Wave of British heavy metal, mixed glam rock with heavy metal, helped to define the sound of hard rock for the 1980s decade.V. Bogdanov, C. Woodstra and S. T. Erlewine, All Music Guide to Rock: the Definitive Guide to Rock, Pop, and Soul (Milwaukee, WI: Backbeat Books, 3rd edn., 2002), , pp. 293–94. In March 1980, Def Leppard released their initial album On Through the Night, its first song "Rock Brigade" provided a hint of this future sound style. In July 1981, Def Leppard released their second album High 'n' Dry, which contained the power ballad "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" and the instrumental "Switch 625", examples of their signature sound style prevalent in their next album Pyromania. High 'n' Dry stayed on the Billboard 200 chart for 123 weeks.
Bands from across the United States began to move towards what would become the glam metal sound. In the fall of 1981, Mötley Crüe (from Los Angeles) released their first album Too Fast for Love, Kix (from western Maryland) released their first album Kix, and Dokken (from Los Angeles) released their first album Breaking the Chains in Europe (later remixed for September 1983 re-release in USA). In November 1982, Night Ranger (from San Francisco) released their initial album Dawn Patrol which reached the top 40 in the United States.
Glam metal broke out in 1983: Def Leppard released its third album Pyromania on January 20, and was the first glam metal album to reach top ten in the Billboard charts on March 12, later it peaked at number two on May 14, then staying in the top ten albums until it dropped to eleventh place on November 26, eventually falling off the Billboard 200 chart after 123 weeks. Quiet Riot's Metal Health was released on March 11, then marched upwards until it reached number one on November 26, eventually falling off the Billboard 200 chart after 81 weeks. The success of Def Leppard and Quiet Riot paved the way for many heavy metal acts, both glam and otherwise, as the decade progressed.E. Rivadavia, [ "Quiet Riot"], AllMusic. Retrieved 7 July 2010. Quiet Riot drummer Frankie Banali said there had been "no question" that once Metal Health reached number one, the band had "opened up the door for everyone else," having achieved sales "unheard of for most bands, and certainly at the time unheard of for a hard rock or metal band." Bassist Rudy Sarzo cautioned that several other prominent Sunset Strip acts predated Quiet Riot's breakthrough, noting that Ratt (then performing as Mickey Ratt), Great White, Dokken, and future Mötley Crüe bassist Nikki Sixx (then in the band London) were all already active in the late 1970s.
That same year saw a larger wave of heavy metal albums achieve previously unheard-of commercial success. All of the following were released in September: Mötley Crüe releasing its second album Shout at the Devil, Kiss releasing Lick It Up, and Dokken re-released their first album Breaking the Chains in the USA.
Def Leppard's Pyromania, later certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), reached number two on the Billboard 200. The singles "Foolin'", "Photograph", and "Rock of Ages", helped by the emergence of MTV, reached the Top 40. "American album certifications – Def Leppard – Pyromania". RIAA. Retrieved 17 November 2011.Pyromania: Def Leppard AllMusic. Retrieved 17 November 2011 Pyromanias style was widely emulated, particularly by the emerging Californian scene. However, remarked Leppard's Joe Elliott, "I don't know how anybody could confuse us with that lot. We weren't even around when all those so-called glam bands came up. We were in fuckin' Holland making Hysteria. While they were out banging chicks or whatever, we were looking at windmills and playing pool on a table without any pockets. We were as far away from LA as any band could be."