Pop Metal

With the success of Heavy Metal in the '80s came a crop of musicians who were half head-bangers & half marketeers. Turning their attention to catchy hooks and MTV-friendly looks, while taking cues from Glam bands T. Rex, Gary Glitter and Sweet, these bands crafted a new image & clean sound for popular metal. Dismissed by critics as "Hair Metal" for their over-the-top fashion, Cinderella, Poison and Motley Crue, created a calculated stage and camera presence with the effeminate edge of their Glam ancestors. But the bands' attitudes were all testosterone, their songs endlessly reworking the ancient themes of sex, love and rock 'n' roll. The realm of Pop Metal extends beyond the '80s, both backwards and forwards in time. The forefathers of the movement are certainly early Kiss and ghoulish rocker Alice Cooper.