Written By Caine Blackthorn
Metal gatekeepers, the self appointed riff police have been around as long as denim vests and patches. Metal is supposed to be the land of outsiders. No rules, no teachers, no hall passes. Just distortion, volume, and chaos. And yet, somehow, we managed to create our own Ministry of Metal Purity: the gatekeepers. The self-appointed riff police who treat subgenre boundaries like holy scripture.
Spend five minutes online and you’ll find them:
The old-school purists clutching their Venom LPs like religious relics. The edge lords ready to excommunicate you for enjoying Ghost. The Gen Z warriors insisting metal isn’t metal unless the growls register on the Richter scale. Metal gatekeepers often argue that unless the vocals are extreme, it doesn’t qualify but that mindset misses the bigger picture. And let’s not forget the “that’s not real “thrash brigade”, who argue Metallica vs. Megadeth like it’s a Supreme Court case.
It’d be funny if it weren’t so exhausting. Actually, scratch that, it is funny. Because nothing screams “rebel culture” like gate-checking strangers on Reddit.
The Subgenre Civil War
Metal’s internal drama isn’t far off from politics. You’ve got your traditionalists (“only ‘80s thrash counts, everything else is poser junk”) and your progressive fusionists (“if it has breakdowns, blast beats, and two vocalists fighting for air, it’s obviously metal”).
Both camps think they’re saving the culture, when in reality, they’re just arguing over riffs like two drunk uncles at Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, most fans are stuck in the middle, wondering why it matters if you like Pantera and Parkway Drive. Spoiler: it doesn’t.
The Slipknot Incident
Case in point: r/metalmemes once purged their entire follower list of anyone who dared to also follow r/Slipknot because apparently nine guys in jumpsuits and masks are “too mallcore” to be metal. It was the perfect case study in how metal gatekeepers draw imaginary lines in the sand. Imagine the paperwork. Picture moderators in corpse paint sweating over spreadsheets like accountants at tax season. All because Corey Taylor hurt their purity codes.
If aliens ever land and ask what’s wrong with humanity, I’m just showing them that thread.
Why Metal Gatekeeping (Hint: It’s Not About the Music)
Here’s the ugly truth: gatekeeping has less to do with riffs and more to do with ego. Humans crave boxes. Labels. Identity badges. Saying “you can’t sit with us” makes people feel superior whether it’s about politics, fashion, or blast beats.
In metal, that superiority complex wears a battle jacket. “Oh, you like Metallica? Cute. Call me when you’ve memorized every demo from Dark Angel.” It’s the same energy as high school cliques, only now it’s grown adults hissing “poser” at strangers online.
As Manuel Gagneux of Zeal and Ardor pointed out in Decibel, ‘metal purists might contort their faces at the more melodic bits’, which shows how thin the line gets when people decide what counts as authentic.
Freedom to Bang Your Head
Here’s the irony: metal was built on rebellion. On saying “fuck you” to parents, teachers, politicians, church leaders, and anyone else who tried to tell us what to do. Yet somewhere along the way, we became the ones handing out permission slips. (If you’d rather dodge the drama and just hear killer new music, our Seven Deadly Songs roundup drops weekly.)”
You want clean vocals? Fine. You want gutturals that sound like a swamp monster gargling gravel? Fine. You want to call Slipknot metal even though half the internet wants you jailed for it? FINE. Nobody’s going to revoke your Metal License.
The Pit Is Big Enough for All of Us
At the end of the day, music isn’t a gated community. It’s a pit. Sometimes chaotic, sometimes ugly, sometimes transcendent, but always shared.
So let’s stop tripping each other on the way in. Let kids wearing Sleep Token shirts figure it out on their own. Let the boomer with the Sabbath tattoo rant about “back in my day” and then hand them a beer. Let’s argue, sure, but let’s also laugh at the absurdity of it all.
“Because if there’s one thing more ridiculous than calling someone a poser online, it’s forgetting that we all got into this because we loved the sound of music with meaning. If you’re into discovering underrated gems, check out our ongoing Deep Cuts series it’s all about finding the riffs beyond the gate.”
Love them or hate them, metal gatekeepers will never disappear. The pit is open. Enter at your own risk. And remember: the riff police can’t arrest you “…unless you’re double-parking in front of a venue, then you’re on your own.”
