As Messi and Ronaldo line up at the World Cup, both providing a masterclass for the ages, here in Ireland we have our own battle of the Titans this weekend. At the Aviva, in what geography pedants call \u201cthe capital\u201d, we have Metallica; at P\u00e1irc U\u00ed Chaoimh, in what locals call \u201cthe real capital\u201d, we have Zach Bryan.<\/p>\n
Let\u2019s hope no one gets confused. Turn up at Metallica in a Stetson, cowboy boots, a check shirt and your Norn Iron girlfriend and things won\u2019t end well for you. On paper at least, Metallica and Zach Bryan are matter and anti-matter. If they collided, both acts would disappear. But in the real world, things are never that simple.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s their popularity for a start\u00a0\u2014 they sure have that in common. Both playing double shows at enormous venues. Gigs that size were hens’ teeth a few years back. Now two in each city \u2014 not to mention others by Kasabian, CMAT, David Gray \u2014 in the same week: it must be witchcraft.<\/p>\n
How can such different music universes exist simultaneously? How can both draw such huge audiences? What makes you a metal head as opposed to a country fan? Are you born like that? Is it peer group pressure? Can you swap? Can you like both? Can you catch Country?<\/p>\n
Scratch the surface, though, and it starts to get strange. Both Metallica\u2019s James Hetfield and Zach Bryan were raised in what you might call \u201cunusual\u201d communities, and both lost their mums at an early age, Hetfield when he was 16 and Bryan when he was just 20 (although you could argue he\u2019d lost her before that).<\/p>\n
Hetfield\u2019s family were strict Christian Scientists. It is a religion that believes prayer is stronger than medicine and works best without medicine. All well and good until someone gets sick. When his mum got cancer, they just prayed harder. Her tragic death has informed songs like And Justice for All and The God that Failed.\n <\/p>\n
Bryan was a \u201cnavy brat\u201d born in Yokosuka, Japan, in 1996, when his dad was stationed there with the US navy. His mum had alcohol problems even then, and although the family returned to Oklahoma for high school, his parents were divorced by the time he was 12. She was dead before his 20th birthday. His debut album, DeAnn, is dedicated to her.<\/p>\n
But the navy was in Bryan, and he had signed up himself by 17. He was already making music and was honourably discharged by 25 in order to concentrate on that career. He speaks fondly of those years in a way that suggests it was at times as much of a family to him as his actual family was.<\/p>\n
Both Hatfield and Bryan turned to music for salvation. Both used song writing to make sense of their lives and feelings. Both have forged bonds with their audiences that transcend the everyday. For both of them, music is the air they breathe.<\/p>\n
I am probably a little more impressed by the Metallica journey than Zach\u2019s. The metal bands had to create their own universe, forge a career in an industry where radio wouldn\u2019t touch them with a stick. They had to find an audience the hard way, but once found, God has it been loyal. It has its own ecosystem now, but it wasn\u2019t always like that.<\/p>\n
Country is easier. In many parts of America, country is a form of religion. There are standards, recurring themes, respected heroes. Hitch your wagon to a train that says Cash, Nelson and Jennings, and people will listen to you. Mention the old boys, drinking and a pick-up truck and you\u2019re quids in.<\/p>\n
The bottom line is, of course, suffering. Life isn\u2019t easy and troubles will find you in the end. That\u2019s as true in Metal as it is Zach\u2019s universe. The only real difference is your poison of choice, your wheels and your apparel. Nothing Else Matters or Something in the Orange, the choice is yours.<\/p>\n
If I was trying to choose between a metal life or a country one, I think I\u2019d go country. The songs are easier to write, facile almost, and theme wise \u2014 I miss my dad, my woman done me wrong, I love my car, and tonight the bottle let me down \u2014 are ones I feel I could get behind. They speak to me.<\/p>\n
The clincher is the car. I\u2019m not sure metal heads drive at all. Bikes maybe? A \u201957 Chevy wins hands down.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"As Messi and Ronaldo line up at the World Cup, both providing a masterclass for the ages, here…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":505269,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[28],"tags":[93,61,60,278,6405],"class_list":["post-505268","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-music","tag-entertainment","tag-ie","tag-ireland","tag-music","tag-music-movies-reviews-munster"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505268","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=505268"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505268\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/505269"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=505268"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=505268"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=505268"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}