British metal fans launch campaign to make metal music a religion

A chart-topping heavy metal song by Metallica, called Enter Sandman, starts with "Say your prayers little one, Don't forget my son, To include everyone, I tuck you in, Warm within, To keep you safe from sin, 'Til the sandman he comes ..."

NOTE: This article was revised on January 29 by the author. United Kingdom - Metallica, around for over 20 years, is one of the quintessential heavy metal bands, and the lyrics to Enter Sandman sound almost ... spiritual. With metal fans describing their listening experience as akin to a religious experience, is it too far-fetched to want to note one's religion as "heavy metal music?" Far-fetched or not, a movement hatched in the United Kingdom last week asking Britain's metal fans to declare their religion as "metal" on the upcoming 2011 British census. Heavy metal music is not the sort of thing one automatically connotes with religion. Think 'heavy metal,' and what is the first image that comes to mind? Black clothing? Lots of chains? Sharp and shiny pointed metal objects? Stylized boots and exaggerated make-up? That's how Hollywood likes to dress up heavy metal. But the truth is, heavy metal music appeals to a wide variety of people all over the world. In spite of it's rap as being "bad' by the mainstream, heavy metal

"... continues to be possibly the most successful and tenacious element of modern popular music."

Initiated by Metal Hammer, a British heavy metal magazine, there is a Facebook page where interested people can become fans. The site has over 11,000 fans as of January 28th. If successful, the movement will see Saxon front man, Biff Byford become the first Peace Ambassador for heavy metal music in Britain. Byford said

“People live and breathe heavy metal. As a band, we’re fanatical and passionate about the music and the fans are the same. Metal is bigger now than ever before. Somebody might be suffering in this economic climate, but it’s not heavy metal bands! Ha ha! This is a great time to be a fan of metal and we should celebrate that.”

Metal Hammer staffers attribute the idea to a similar movement that emerged for the last census which saw Britons urged to declare "Jedi" as their religion. The Jedi movement saw some 390,000 people mark "Jedi" as their religion on the census and there is now a Jedi Church. It's not certain if there will be a church of heavy metal music forming in the future, but the movement has the potential to generating more responses than other listed religions on the census. Census officials caution people that a notation on the census does not make any belief a religion. Heavy metal music becomes more popular all the time. Last year, heavy metal band, Iron Maiden was the first metal band to be given a Brit Award -- for having the best British live act. According to L.A. Weekly, Metallica put out one of the best metal albums in 2008.