Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book deals with specific reference to the musical development of both Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin. It suggests that Black Sabbath, through radical transgressions of their origins, initiated the evolution of heavy metal whilst Led Zeppelin, through a re-working of blues conventions significantly contributed to the evolution of hard rock. It examines the aesthetics of each band to discover whether the same dichotomy found in the musical syntax is mirrored in the verbal, visual and ideological strands. It also suggests the musical and aesthetic dichotomy between these two bands, thus contradicting the work of major academic authors on heavy metal such as Deena Weinstein and Robert Walser, who would each consider both Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath to be heavy metal. The book also explores the establishment of male/female solidarity and the rapidly growing proliferation of important women in modern metal.