Let’s get those flannel shirts opened and let the facial hair go scraggly as we head to Seattle for the latest installment of the “Metal Evolution” series by VH1 Classic and its “Grunge” episode. Depending on your age, I am wondering what this genre did for you as a fan of Hard and Heavy music.

In This Episode: On April 5, 1994, Kurt Cobain pressed a shotgun to his head and pulled the trigger extinguishing the life of one of rock’s most enigmatic but tortured geniuses and symbolically ending the storybook reign of grunge. In Episode 7 of Metal Evolution, Sam explores grunge, a.k.a. the Seattle Sound, from a decidedly fresher approach, inspiring two fundamental questions: “Why did grunge polarize the Metal community?” and “What are the true roots of grunge?” The Melvins, Soundgarden, Nirvana, Alice in Chains and Pearl Jam are featured in this episode, as well as post-grunge bands Creed and Nickelback.

Living in the USA when Grunge first made its appearance was like watching a number of styles of Metal you liked go away. I am not kidding because the emphasis was suddenly placed on this more simple form and barely a blink given to the stuff that I loved to much. I was in a band that was playing a blend of the now referred to Traditional Metal with dabs of Thrash to it and suddenly this sound was not on anyone’s interest plate. It was all Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Alice in Chains and while I really enjoyed some of that stuff I sure didn’t want to see my favorite stuff be hidden away. Oh well. I am very interested in seeing how Dunn works this chapter out. Hopefully you are too.

Looking to spend a little of that holiday present money? Well, start with some super cool documentaries that I have assembled in the widget below.

Let’s speed up that traditional Metal to a few notches and focus on some razor sharp riffing as we get ready to enjoy episode six of “Metal Evolution”, the VH1 Classic Metal documentary by Sam Dunn with their “Thrash Metal” chapter that airs tonight.

In This Episode: How could metal go so horribly wrong? These were the bitter thoughts of scruffy outsiders Lars Ulrich, Dave Mustaine, Gary Holt and Scott Ian, cursing as the glorious clang of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal echoed across America, only to die in LA. Ratt, Dokken, Quiet Riot – where was the power? Where was the fire in the belly? From this crucible of embarrassment, a virulent strain of metal called thrash was born, the likes of Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax wreaking vengeance on hook and melody through a rhythmic discipline of chugging palm-muted guitar riffs and screaming solos executed at breakneck tempos topped by harshly barked vocals laying bare the horrors of nuclear holocaust, drug use, war, and other forms of death. Later in this episode, it is revealed that thrash metal had a major influence on first, the Swedish death metal movement, and later, the creation of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. (taken from Wikipedia).

I’ll tell you that when I first heard Thrash Metal I said “eek” and “not for me” but that changed as the years went by. There is some really awesome stuff and I have covered a great number of Thrash Metal shows over on the main PiercingMetal.com site. We even attended that little “Big Four” event that happened a few months ago at Yankee Stadium. This should be an interesting episode.

Check out these films if you have not done so already.

It’s time to fix up your hair with as much spray as possible and do whatever touch ups your makeup might need before you head out and oh yes ladies, please feel free to do the same thing. Yes I was talking to the guys and that must mean that we are at the chapter of VH1 Classics “Metal Evolution” that focuses on the “Glam Metal” genre. For the past four weeks this enlightening documentary has brought a lot of information to the table. Thank you Sam Dunn.

In This Episode: Purveyors of glam such as Mötley Crüe’s Vince Neil and Michael Anthony of Van Halen, will divulge their side of the story, revealing the attitudes, influences and decisions which guided them during those heady days of rampant excess on L.A.’s storied Sunset Strip. Contemporary musicians like Scott Ian from Anthrax and Slash from Guns N’ Roses will discuss the reasons behind the vilification of glam—the notion that glam reduced Metal to caricature, drawing on a shallow combination of pop cliché and sophomoric sexual pandering for its inspiration. (taken from Wikipedia)

Tease me all you like but I have generally had an appreciation for the Glam side of Hard Rock and Metal music. It might have been more of “what the girls liked” as some folks would have said but that was fine by me when it was in its heyday because I was a drummer back then and musicians often like to meet members of the opposite sex after all. Nowadays I view the older Crue and Poison and Ratt stuff as classic Hard Rock even if it was called “Glam” back then and I’ve seen all of these bands time and time again and left the shows satisfied. Who thinks that this episode is going to be “Nothin’ But A Good Time”? (sorry it was too easy). I’ll be setting the DVR for this one I am afraid because my evening plan is for the Twisted Sister Christmas show and that is something entirely too difficult to explain here. Just wait on the show report and photos for that okay.

Required musical documentaries can be found below so do some shopping if you have the extra scratch.