The Heavy Metal Hangover

This week on The Heavy Metal Hangover, Rex and Duff open the show with a look back at the 1988 schlock-fest Hard Rock Nightmare—complete with garage bands, cabin-in-the-woods slasher tropes, and peak '80s hair.
Then, we transition to the real life pit: Crowd Etiquette at Metal Shows. We’re asking if the old school rules apply or if the younger generation of metalheads has a new etiquette to follow in the pit. But one thing remains... "You guys in the front here, keep an eye on each other, alright? If you see someone going down, help 'em out, alright? That's what you're here to do, help each other out." (thanks Tom Araya). 
Finally, we tackle one of the most controversial topics in heavy music today: Does Gatekeeping Actually Have a Place? We explore the fine line between elitism and cultural preservation. What happens when a subculture gets co-opted or sanitized by outside trends, and does it actually hurt the members of the subculture of scene? 

This week on The Heavy Metal Hangover, Rex and Duff dive headfirst into the new Reformatted Edition of the iconic 1986 Transformers: The Movie soundtrack. We peel back the curtain on the Knights of Unicron—the underground house band featuring death metal royalty Matt Harvey and Ross Sewage (Exhumed, Ghoul) alongside drum powerhouse Gus Rios (Gruesome). We talk about their work backing up massive guest vocalists like Sebastian Bach, Mark Osegueda (Death Angel), Brittney Slayes (Unleash the Archers), and original legends Stan Bush and Vince DiCola to see if this reboot lives up to the 1986 classic.
Then, we shift gears to pay tribute to Teutonic heavy metal royalty as we check out a brand-new tribute album honoring the mighty Accept. From "Fast as a Shark" to "Balls to the Wall," we discuss how these modern acts handle the German legends' iconic catalog.
Finally, Rex brings a shocking story straight from the rink: what happens when you’re hanging out with your hockey team and realize nobody in the room knows who a world-famous classic rock band is? We rant about the sudden generation gaps, locker room music culture, and the existential dread of realizing your team's playlist needs a serious rescue mission. Grab a drink and join the conversation!

The dust has settled, the hiatus is officially over, and we are back in the studio! On this long-awaited episode of The Heavy Metal Hangover, Rex and Duff are catching up on where we’ve been, what we’ve been up to, and why we’re hitting the ground running. We dive straight into the recent industry shifts and a rising retro trend that have pushed us back to buying physical media—from killer special features to the satisfaction of actually owning your music and movies on disc and vinyl.
We’re also talking about some of our absolute favorite metal concert releases on Blu-ray, DVD, and VHS that belong on every headbanger’s shelf. And finally, the moment you’ve been waiting for: Case Closed! We are officially solving a long-standing mystery that has been an inside joke with Rex and Duff for decades regarding a horror character's hat and how it clearly indicates his love of a certain band. Its tie to the heavy metal scene and how the truth is finally revealed!