The new wave of British heavy metal was a nationwide musical movement that began in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Editor Alan Lewis coined the term
A miners' strike rally in 1984
Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister of Motörhead was a reference figure for the whole movement.
Patches with band logos and cover art usually sewn on denim jackets were introduced during the NWOBHM and are still common among metalheads.
Iron Maiden's Eddie in a horror/sci-fi setting. Horror and science fiction were recurring themes in both lyrics, show scenography and cover art for NWOBHM bands.
Thrash metal
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Thrash metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music characterized by its overall aggression and fast tempo. The songs usually use fast percussive beats and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid wit
New wave of British heavy metal
…the NWOBHM bands waned, a new succession of far less mainstream metal subgenres began to emerge and attract many British metalheads. Power metal and thrash metal, both stemming from the NWOBHM and maintaining much of its ethos, were gaining critical acclaim and commercial success in the second half of the 1980s…
Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield of Metallica (pictured in 2008). Metallica's early work is regarded as essential to the development of the thrash metal genre in the 1980s.
New York band Anthrax was among the earliest and most successful thrash acts.
Venom's early work is considered a major influence on thrash metal.
Slayer released Reign in Blood in 1986, considered a landmark achievement in the genre's history.