New Wave of British Heavy Metal

The New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) or (N.W.O.B.H.M.) emerged in the late 1970s, in the United Kingdom, as a reaction in

The New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) or (N.W.O.B.H.M.) emerged in the late 1970s, in the United Kingdom, as a reaction in part to the decline of traditional heavy metal bands such as Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath. It was also a reaction against punk, although ironically it incorporated many of British punk's innovations, and some of its aesthetic.

NWOBHM's music reacted against the artifice of contemporary pop, placing an emphasis on musicianship and amplification, the former trait setting it apart from punk. Yet, unlike progressive rock, which placed a far greater emphasis on musical complexity, and unlike post-punk, which emphasized 'strangeness' and innovation, the NWOBHM thrived on volume, speed, and directness, with an idealised working class image. (Its closest counterpart in the British rock-musical landscape of the time was Oi! -- a stripped-down, working-class variant of punk, which usually had little of heavy metal's technical prowess, but cross-fertilized with the new wave of British metal bands via groups such as the Cockney Rejects.)