To you, my new friend, I say, “Hello! You are welcome here. So, yes, there’s a chance that you’re reading this column for the first time because you’ve found your way to us via Stranger Things. Honestly, this infusion of new fans is one of my favorite things to happen in metal this year. For a spell, until everyone started complaining about Amon Amarth, nearly everything in our corner of the world felt good, and metal’s pop-culture-facing presence felt earned and not embarrassing. Metallica’s plea to stop policing playlists is shockingly good advice and momentarily blotted out such thoughts as “Metallica has a TikTok account?” and “Are those 335,435 Napster users welcome in the Metallica family?” It was another PR win for the thrash ambassadors during one of the most likable runs of the band’s post- Black Album career. All of you started at ground zero at one point in time.” “Whether you’ve been a fan for 40 hours or 40 years, we all share a bond through music. “FYI – EVERYONE is welcome in the Metallica Family,” the band posted in the comments on its TikTok account, preempting gatekeeping grumblers and substantiating its gateway band status.

While I saw nothing but cheers, apparently some straw-stuffed “individuals” were very concerned about new listeners learning about the most popular metal band on the planet. While the bump may be outside my jurisdiction, I am interested in the different responses to Metallica’s good fortune. To wit, it doesn’t seem like Jørn Lande’s “ Running Up That Hill” cover received any spillover listens, and I don’t think anyone is going to pay attention to my compelling attempts at reclassifying “ Waking The Witch” as a prog/power song. The bump seems isolated to Metallica, not unlike how the metal news cycle focuses on metal’s biggest pop culture emissary for the clicks. And besides, the story is, on its face, not that metal of a news item.

Bush explainers, which is not a phrase worth Googling, have been running for weeks.

Am I going to dive into the hows and whys behind the Stranger Things bump? No. “Master Of Puppets”‘ chart ascent was Stranger Things‘ second act of revivification, following Kate Bush’s deserved return to the zeitgeist.

The thrill lyrics miguel