Headbangers Ball

Not to be confused withThe Headbangers Ball.

Headbangers Ball
Classic logo
Genre	Heavy metal glam metal thrash metal speed metal black metal death metal doom metal alternative metal grunge(mid '90s)
Presented by	Kevin Seal(1987–1988) Adam Curry(1988–1990) Riki Rachtman(1990–1995, 2021) Vanessa Warwick (1990–1997 in Europe only) Jamey Jasta(2003–2007) Jose Mangin (2011–present; website only)
Country of origin	United States
Original language	English
No.of episodes	410
Production
Editor	Danny Hinnenkamp
Running time	90 mins. (1988–1989) 120 mins. (1989–2008) 60 mins. (2011–present)
Original release
Network	MTV MTV2
Release	April 18, 1987(1987-04-18)– September 13, 2012(2012-09-13)
Related
Heavy Metal Mania Superock(1995)

Headbangers Ballis amusic televisionprogram that consisted ofheavy metalmusic videos airing onMTVand its global affiliates.The show began on MTV on April 18, 1987,playing heavy metalmusic videosfrom both well-known and more obscure artists. The show offered (and became famous because of) a stark contrast toTop 40music videos shown during the day.

However, with the mainstream rise ofalternative rock,grunge,pop punkandrapmusic in the 1990s, the relevance ofHeadbangers Ballcame into question, and the show was ultimately canceled in 1995. Over eight years later, as new genres of heavy metal were gaining a commercial foothold and fan interest became unavoidable, the program was reintroduced onMTV2.It had remained in varying degrees on the network's website, but by the early 2020s, it was no longer shown on television. A similar show, titledThe Balland hosted by formerHeadbangers BallhostRiki Rachtman,debuted in March 2021.

Many of the videos that aired on the first incarnation of the series would find a home on the similarly themedMetal Mayhemon sister channelMTV Classic.

History

Hosts

"The Ball", as it is commonly called, replacedHeavy Metal Mania(which began airing monthly in June 1985), helmed byDee SniderofTwisted Sisterfame.In doing so, MTV expanded the format and added more live interviews with bands. At its premiere it was hosted briefly byKevin Seal,then byVJAdam Curry,before ultimately settling onRiki Rachtman,who to many viewers became the most identifiable host of the show.

Popularity and influence

The name "Headbangers Ball" was originally invented and used by DJ John Brent of Bury, Greater Manchester and was used on his rock and metal roadshows from 1980 onwards and toured throughout the UK with great success. John's Headbangers Ball Rock charts were also regularly featured in the pages of Rock publicationsKerrang!andSoundsalong with many features on the show in local periodicals.

Headbangers Ballwas one of the most popular music shows ever to air on MTV, on the air for nearly 8 years, and for a time, it was one of the network's flagship shows. For some time in 1988 and 1989, the show was increased to 3 hours.Hard 60was a daily version that aired for an hour every weekday afternoon.

Its influence was made widespread with the rise of heavy metal in the 1980s and early 1990s. While the program primarily showed videos from the mainstream friendly "hair metal"during the 1980s, it gave time to more aggressive-sounding heavy metal music from the late 1980s and early 1990s.Three North American tours were presented by Headbangers Ball. The first in 1987 withHelloween,Armored SaintandGrim Reaper,the second (the 1989 tour) withAnthrax,ExodusandHelloween,and in 1992 withMegadethandSuicidal Tendencies.

The European MTV Headbangers Ball tours have taken place since the late 2010s. Heavier alternative acts, spearheaded by the likes ofThe Cult,Faith No More,PrimusandJane's Addiction,were finding increased residence onHeadbangers Ballat the turn of the decade,but it was early into the 1990s that grunge and alternative rock bands likeNirvana,Pearl Jam,SoundgardenandAlice in Chainsbegan to uproot the "hair metal" scene and led to its final decline. Bands such asStone Temple Pilots,White Zombie,ToolandBlind Melonwould follow suit, resulting in a major shift in identity for the show, where metal mainstays such asMetallica,Megadeth,Pantera,Testament,Suicidal TendenciesandDream Theatershared airspace with the new crop of alternative hard rock acts.Several punk rock bands, including theRamones,The Offspring,Rancid,Bad ReligionandSick of It All,also received airplay on the show, which, by 1995, would continue to focus on less mainstream forms of heavy metal.

Other notable TV programs have emulatedHeadbanger's Ball,such asFuse TV'sUraniumandVH1'sRock Show.The popularity and effectiveness ofUraniumin the early 2000s may have been cited as a strong influence to the revival ofThe Ballin 2003.

Road trips

Bands would visit the set for interviews, and in some instances, the show would follow bands on trips to assorted locations across the world. Memorable road trip episodes include theMoscow Music Peace FestivalwithOzzy Osbourne,Mötley Crüe,Bon Jovi,Skid Row,CinderellaandGorky Park,Monsters of RockinDonington,Alice in Chains' trip toAction Water Park,bowling withSoundgarden,skydiving withMegadeth,OktoberfestinMunichwithDanzig,andVan Halen's adventure atCabo Wabo.

Death ofThe Ball

The show remained on the air until January 1995, when MTV abruptly canceled the show without any prior warning to viewers, host Riki Rachtman, or the production staff. The European version, hosted by Vanessa Warwick, was on the air until 1997, but limited to an hour and a half (as opposed to the three hours given in past years).

Rachtman was informed of the cancellation days afterward when, after filming what would end up being the final episode, he was simply informed via phone call that he would not have to show up to work the following week.No official reason was given for the show's cancellation, but it is suspectedto be because MTV was then playinggrunge,alternativeandpop punkmore often during its main programming, although they did not play a lot of metal or interview the bands.

Many MTV fans were outraged at the show's abrupt cancellation,as well as denying Rachtman and the production staff the chance to inform viewers that the show was going off the air, or to allow them to put together a "farewell show" for the loyal viewers ofHeadbangers Ball.Some regular-citizen critics of MTV even cite the cancellation ofHeadbangers Ballas one of the key decisions which caused the network to "jump the shark".The demise ofThe Ballalso came in at #4 onVH1's40 Least Metal Momentsin 2005.In mid-February The Ball would be replaced by the short-livedSuperock,a show featuring videos and interviews with metal, alternative and rap artists.

Over the years, MTV Europe attempted to fill the void left by the cancellation ofHeadbangers Ballwith other rock-themed block programs such as the Julia Valet-hostedSuperock,but all have failed for various reasons – including MTV Europe's addition of pop, dance and alternative videos to some of the shows which made them not much different from the rest of the day.

Rebirth

Headbangers Ballvolume 2 logo

After nearly a decade of the show being off the air, MTV2 started up the series again on Saturday, May 10, 2003, at 11 p.m. The revivedHeadbangers Ballinitially had the same type of playlist as its latter "sister shows" in MTV Europe, as well as interviews with metal artists (current and classic). The debut episode was hosted byMetallica,a trend which continued with various artists. Later on,HatebreedvocalistJamey Jastabecame a permanent host. However, the show still continued to have guest host artists at times. The show eventually returned to its roots (in types of music) of showingunderground music,as well asmetalcore,Hardcoredeath metalandthrash.

During VH1's40 Least Metal Momentscountdown, musicians criticized the 2003 incarnation ofHeadbangers Ballin comparison with the original, citing its "scripted" studio feel and lack of excitement. The new version mostly shows only music videos and in-studio interviews, which was not true of the original show.

When asked in September 2015 about a possible return ofHeadbangers Ball,former hostRiki Rachtmanstated, "It's not gonna happen. I tried, I told them I would do it for free, they never even returned my calls."

Although the show has not been on the air for years, there have been European tours called "MTV Headbangers Ball" since 2016, with the exception of 2020 and 2021 due to theCOVID-19 pandemic;this tour package traditionally takes place from late November to mid-December, and features four metal bands. The European "MTV Headbangers Ball" tour has included mostly thrash metal bands such asExodus,Overkill,Death Angel,Sodom,Vio-lence,Artillery,Xentrix,WhiplashandSuicidal Angels‒ as well as other acts likeMax+Igor Cavalera,Iced Earth,Kataklysm,Insomnium,Ensiferum,Unearth,Deserted Fear,Whitechapel,Fleshgod Apocalypseand Dyscarnate ‒ as a headlining or opening act; the only band so far that has taken part of the tour more than once is Kataklysm.The concept of the MTV Headbangers Ball Tour in Europe was possibly inspired by the 1989 US tour with the same name that includedAnthrax,Helloweenand Exodus.

Removal of the show fromHeadbangers Ball

Since the January 13, 2007, episode,Headbangers Ballsimply became the title for a block of metal videos, rather than an actual show.However, the June 23, 2007, episode went behind the scenes of the induction ofPanteraguitarist"Dimebag" Darrell Abbottat theHollywood's RockWalk,including segments covering the event in between music videos.Also, brief interview segments still frequently air before and after commercial breaks, typically re-airing on several consecutive episodes for a long period.

On April 14, 2007, MTV2 began to air the show from 11 p.m. to 1 a.m. and putSaturday Rock the Deuce,a hard rock–alternative show, at 10. The week's episode was also re-aired on Tuesday mornings from 4:00 to 6:00 a.m.

Starting in 2008,Headbangers Ballhad been aired erratically, sometimes airing several hours later than its normal airtime or not being aired at all. Its last on-air time slot was Tuesdays 3AM-4AM.

On July 21, 2011, Jose Mangin took over as host ofHeadbangers Ball,which is now a web-only show.

The Ball

On March 17, 2021, it was announced that Rachtman would be hostingThe Ball,airing on Gimme Metal TV and presented byKnotfest.com.The show finds Rachtman "reviving that classic heavy metal music video show feel in an episode that would feature videos from the likes ofMegadeth,Metallica,Power Trip,and so much more. "The first episode premiered on March 27, 2021.

Discography

Headbangers Balllabeled products, including a guitar tabs book and three CD sets including artists such asHatebreed,Opeth,DevilDriver,God Forbid,Chimaira,Dirge Within,Sevendust,Lacuna Coil,Atreyu,Mushroomhead,Shadows Fall,Children of Bodom,Lamb of God,A Life Once Lost,Cradle of Filth,Deftones,andGodsmackhave also been sold.

Each album has at least one live song. The firstHeadbangers Ballcompilation featured "Raining Blood"bySlayeras its live track,the second compilation used an in-studio performance of "My Tortured Soul" byProbot,and the latest compilation had two live tracks: "A Bid Farewell" byKillswitch Engageand "Now You've Got Something To Die For" byLamb of God.The earliest-released CD has famous bands, and the second has obscure ones. Songs featuringSlipknotband membersCorey TaylorandJoey Jordisonappeared on all three CDs through their other bands. Other bands that have appeared on all three compilations includeKillswitch Engage,Lamb of God,andIn Flames.

• MTV2 Headbangers Ball(2003)
• MTV2 Headbangers Ball Volume 2(2004)
• MTV2 Headbangers Ball: The Revenge(2006)

External links

• Official show sites
  • United StatesArchivedNovember 20, 2008, at theWayback Machine
  • UK
  • Denmark
  • Finland
  • Sweden
  • AustraliaArchivedNovember 5, 2009, at theWayback Machine
• Official site for albums spawned fromHeadbangers BallArchivedMarch 23, 2018, at theWayback Machine
• Headbangers BallatIMDb
  • MTV Europe's Headbangers BallatIMDb
• Jump The Shark - Headbangers Ball