Glam metal (also known as
hair metal[1]) is a term used to describe the visual style, fashion or sound of certain
heavy metal music bands that arose in the late 1970s and early 1980s in the United States, particularly on the Los Angeles
Sunset Strip music scene. It was popular throughout the 1980s and briefly in the early 1990s, combining the flamboyant look of
glam rock and playing a power-chord based hard rock musical style.
"Hair bands" was the derogatory term popularized by MTV in the 1990s and derives from the tendency among such bands to have styled their long hair in a teased-up fashion.
Musically, glam metal songs are traditional hard rock or heavy metal songs with pop-influenced catchy hooks. Like other heavy metal songs of the 1980s, they often feature shred guitar solos. Glam metal performers became infamous for their debauched lifestyles of late-night parties (widely covered in the tabloid press), very long teased hair, use of make-up, gaudy clothing and accessories (chiefly consisting of tight denim or leather jeans, spandex, and headbands). Many of these traits were influenced though not necessarily reminiscent of glam rock.
The glam metal visual style was heavily influenced by 1970s glam rock acts, with most bands sounding like 1970s/1980s hard rock bands such as Alice Cooper, Queen, David Bowie, Aerosmith, Kiss, New York Dolls, Sweet, Slade, Mott the Hoople, T.Rex, Gary Glitter, and others. Hanoi Rocks have been credited for setting a blueprint for hair metal.[2] Ted Nugent has been cited as a seminal influence on the hair metal movement.[3] Angel provided a, "virtual spot-on blueprint for '80s hair metal"[4]
