New wave of British heavy metal
The new wave of British heavy metal was a nationwide musical movement that started in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Editor Alan Lewis coined the term for an article by Geoff Barton in a May 1979 issue of the British music newspaper Sounds to describe the emergence of new heavy metal bands in the mid to late 1970s, during the period of punk rock's decline and the dominance of new wave music.
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 are usually sewn on the denim jackets of 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.
Sounds was a UK weekly pop/rock music newspaper, published from 10 October 1970 to 6 April 1991. It was known for giving away posters in the centre of the paper and later for covering heavy metal and punk and Oi! music in its late 1970s–early 1980s heyday.
Cover of Sounds (24 May 1980)