How Heavy Metal Gave New Meaning to My Jewish Identity
Growing up Jewish, I never thought much of it. I went through the motions — Hebrew school, bar mitzvah, candles at Chanukah and Seders at Passover. I wasn’t shy to profess my Jewish identity, but it wasn’t exactly something I touted. In recent years I’ve grown wary of religion in general. With that, my view of Judaism has shifted. Something that has been a big part of my life for over a decade now is heavy metal. Its ethos embodies a firm “anti” stance, whether it be anti-religion, anti-government, even anti-humanity. I’ve been pondering the seemingly contradictory pairing for some time; A number of legendary metal bands have musical ties to Jewish history in some way, and examining them has stimulated my thinking about what it means to be Jewish. Of course, this peculiar lens yields some controversial subject matter. However, a people and culture with such a complex history deserve a challenging examination, one as challenging as heavy metal music itself.
ON DIVINE INTERVENTION: METALLICA’S “CREEPING DEATH” AND THE ESCAPE FROM SLAVERY IN EGYPT
The Jewish holiday of Passover has arguably the most intriguing origin story. Basically, the Jews are slaves in Egypt under the Pharaoh. Moses tells the Pharaoh to “let my people go,” he refuses, and he and his people suffer 10 gnarly plagues ranging from locusts to the death of every firstborn son. Honestly it’s a pretty metal story, which had to be Metallica’s reasoning for turning it into “Creeping Death,” from their 1984 album Ride the Lightning.
Right from the get go, the pounding intro led by Lars Ulrich’s toms ushers in feelings of defiance and conquest. Throughout the song, his steady but thunderous drumming retains an ancient rhythmic quality. James Hetfield and Kirk Hammett’s guitars are also reminiscent of traditional rhythms and scales used in Egyptian and Arabian music. Metallica’s telling of the Passover tale builds itself around the theme of retribution from the perspective of God, who is referred to as “the deliverer” and “the destroyer.” Some of the plagues are described of course, and other biblical references include the “Land of Goshen” — the area of Egypt which the Israelites inhabited — and the “400 years” of slavery that ensued before Moses led them to freedom.
The joke among Jews is that they are “the chosen people.” The moniker celebrates their resilience after having faced persecution for millennia. I must say I think it’s well deserved, albeit quite pompous. Whether or not that deservedness comes from God’s grace is up for contention. I consider myself more or less agnostic, so I’m slow to attribute the Jews’ historical triumphs to a divine presence. However, I do think it’s worth noting that freedom of belief is a human right. For the sake of humanity and its goodness, justice in this regard must always be served. “Creeping Death” exemplifies the heavy hand of a God who shows no tolerance or mercy for a cruel and dehumanizing regime. “Die, by my hand/ I creep across the land/ Killing firstborn men,” chants Hetfield in a refrain that follows a ripping Kirk Hammett guitar solo. Metallica’s version of this biblical tale represents the classic narrative of good prevailing over evil. For hundreds of years the Jewish people were enslaved because of their identity. Once having feared that these people would threaten their way of life, the Egyptians eventually got a taste of what it really means to be afraid.
“Creeping Death” is a dark personification of karma. The escape from Egypt is a turning point in Jewish history, catalyzed by the prophet Moses armed with the word of God. Both the lyrics and music evoke that tension, built up and then forcefully broken down by the metal masters in their prime (RIP Cliff Burton). To me, “Creeping Death” is about freedom and retribution. I am not a supporter of violent justice, but alas, the Pharaoh was warned 10 times with increasingly worsening plagues. It’s only when death becomes personal to him that he realizes he’s in the wrong. Witnessing the loss of life, above all things, is the most powerful change in perspective.
ON AWARENESS: SLAYER’S “ANGEL OF DEATH” AND THE HOLOCAUST
In the story of Passover, an “angel of death” is often referenced as being sent by God to carry out the tenth plague on the Egyptians. In Slayer’s “Angel of Death” however, that name takes on an entirely different meaning. Quite contrary to the biblical context, the name of the song was inspired by Dr. Josef Mengele, the infamous Nazi doctor responsible for countless executions of innocent Jews at the Auschwitz death camp. The intensity and terror of the opening track off Reign in Blood (1986) more than sets the tone for the album, widely considered as one of the heaviest of all time. A frantic intro led by guitarists Kerry King and Jeff Hanneman (RIP) gives way to a blood-curdling scream by bassist/vocalist Tom Araya and a Dave Lombardo double bass drum pummeling. The music and lyrics of “Angel of Death” are intertwined in a strong visceral way that sends chills down my spine with each listen. The first line, “Auschwitz, the meaning of pain/ The way that I want you to die,” boldly sets the horrific scene. The lyrics go on to detail, in grotesque fashion, the practices of Dr. Mengele. Many of these are historically accurate, like his experimentation on twins that included surgical conjoining. “Sewn together, joining heads/ Just a matter of time before you rip yourself apart,” shouts Araya.
Slayer has repeatedly denied accusations of anti-Semitism and Nazi-sympathizing stemming from this song. Hanneman was even known to be an enthusiast and a collector of Nazi memorabilia. Addressing the controversy, he said that, “When [people] read the lyrics, there’s nothing I put in the lyrics that says necessarily he was a bad man, because to me — well, isn’t that obvious?!” In the same interview, he stated that Mengele was “pretty sick,’ although the connotation of “sick” is uncertain. I can definitely see why this song offends so many people. As a Jew this is particularly clear to me. I started learning about the Holocaust at young age. New levels of understanding have been added to my perspective though the years. While the Holocaust is widely understood as having been one of the worst mass tragedies in human history and the textbook example of genocide, it can still be hard to grasp for those without ties to the Jewish community. Yet, I choose not to see this piece of music as an assault on my identity.
I do think it’s worth considering that the members of Slayer might be anti-Semitic, but they get the benefit of the doubt from me because of how I perceive the song. The magnitude of an event as horrendous as the Holocaust can only truly be comprehended through an uncensored approach. “Angel of Death” is a shocking account of the real conditions millions of Jews once faced. It’s a story of utter dehumanization and senseless torture. Through the repeated use of the pronouns “you” and “your,” the listener is put in the position of those in the death camps. Slayer’s music is undeniably hard-hitting, but the historical context with which “Angel of Death” is written makes it particularly weighty. I’ve always been drawn in by the graphic nature of heavy metal. Plenty of metal bands — especially those in the late 80s and early 90s — have carefully crafted songs with an intentionally lurid lexicon. What sets “Angel of Death” apart from songs by the likes of Cannibal Corpse or Carcass though, is its historical accuracy. Shock and discomfort pave the path to awareness. As a society, we must be made aware of atrocities like this because they do in fact still occur in parts of the world. Many people may think an event of this nature and scale could never happen again, but as poet Martin Niemöller famously explained, oppression and genocide succeed when people remain silent and turn a blind eye. In today’s world where misinformation runs rampant, Slayer’s sonic assault on “Angel of Death” is a timeless reminder of passivity’s most extreme consequences.
ON TAKING SIDES: MEGADETH’S “HOLY WARS…THE PUNISHMENT DUE,” SEPULTURA’S “TERRITORY,” AND THE ISRAELI-PALESTINIAN CONFLICT
Israel has long been an advocate for peace and acceptance. After its statehood was granted following World War II, millions of Jewish immigrants from around the world flocked there in pursuit of a “homeland.” But despite its self-imposed reputation of being a sanctuary state, its maintenance of such reputation has been marred by constant regional conflict stemming from the Zionist movement on which it was founded. In the Zionist view, Israel is considered the rightful homeland of the Jewish people based on biblical accounts of Jewish inhabitance.
In Megadeth’s “Holy Wars…The Punishment Due,” guitarist/vocalist Dave Mustaine decries the religious violence provoked and perpetuated by countries like Israel, which he references specifically. The song is as thematically rich as it is musically. Its two parts (“Holy Wars” and “the Punishment Due”) work to convey a feeling of two sides trading attacks with one another, primarily through the lead and rhythm guitar roles of Marty Friedman and Mustaine. After nearly a minute-and-a-half-long intro of throttling thrash, Mustaine opens with the line, “Brother will kill brother, spilling blood across the land/ Killing for religion, something I don’t understand.” The more I hear that line, the more I’m forced to confront my contradictory affiliations with the Jewish religion and the politics of Israel. From a young age — both in religious school and in through my family and friends — I was given the narrative of Israel as a land under constant threat. This has been true throughout much of history, from the days of slavery in Egypt to their expulsion of Jews from Spain during the Spanish Inquisition. To go into the intricate history of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict would be too much here. In short, it’s a story of violence begetting violence, which is precisely the point that Megadeth seek to make.
Both sides of this conflict view themselves as being on the defensive in an ongoing struggle to establish peace. To borrow a line from another Megadeth hit, “peace sells, but who’s buyin’?” The convictions of each side are steeped in age-old religious beliefs. These are beliefs that are not easy to let go of, and over time have fostered fervent and discriminatory sentiments. I personally share in Mustaine’s view that neither side should keep perpetuating ethnic and religious violence for the sake of territorial gain. While I do stand by Israel’s right to defend itself in times of violence, I try my best not to associate a flag to the acts of any supposed “aggressor.” In other words, I don’t see Palestinians as being inherently bad either. Violence is bad, and a few violent acts can tarnish the reputation of an entire people and their ideology. The land on which we walk, after all, does not discriminate. It’s the narratives embedded within the land and perpetuated by those in power that keep hate alive. Brazilian groove metal outfit Sepultura highlight this idea through the lens of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict in their video for “Territory.” Filmed in both Israel and Palestine, it features shots of the band positioned defiantly around iconic sites like the Dead Sea, woven together with footage evocative of the conflict there.
“This isn’t a news thing, so I tried to balance it,” explains director Paul Rachman. “If you count the amount of footage of Palestinians and Arabs and Israelis, it’s almost even. It was all about the coexistence of these two cultures at odds over land and territory. That was really the idea: to show how they could coexist.”
Neither Megadeth nor Sepultura seek to decry any one side in their songs. Rather, their takes on this complex issue represent a broader critique of conflict and those who see it as a means to an end. I can only hope that one day Israel and Palestine will be able to settle on a solution that benefits their respective peoples and does not create further divisions. However, I can’t deny that my belief in the Jewish right to statehood in the Middle East comes partially from a place of retaliatory anger. While not an inherently violent proposition, Israel’s strategy has been criticized for its eye-for-an-eye mentality. That is, in seeking an end to decades of displacement and murder, Israel has been criticized for doing the same to its neighbors. At the core of Jewish identity is the very search for identity, as the Jewish people have been displaced and threatened time and time again. At times it can be difficult for me not to look at the situation as a one-sided issue, but I realize that failing to do so only perpetuates an identity that I would never wish for the Jewish homeland.
While it’s true that an overwhelming amount of heavy metal music comes from a place of anger, it has long been a community built on challenging beliefs. It can be easy to forget why society is the way it is, and why people think the way they do. This can indeed be dangerous. For a long time, I let the history and heritage of Judaism drape over my mind without paying it much attention. I subsequently shed this indoctrinatory upbringing. I realize now that changing your beliefs isn’t necessarily about rejecting the old and adopting the new, but a process of reshaping and re-contextualizing. After all, a lot has happened in some 2000+ years.
