Whether you’re in the studio with a producer or on stage in front of thousands of jostling fans, Metal is very much an all-in genre. Bass, pace, and energy drive it to its highest form, encouraging vast crowds to rave along to the rhythm. It takes a very particular kind of person to master Metal, but some of those who have might surprise you with their somewhat conversely low-key hobbies.
Catching the Trend by the Lakes
Fishing is having a moment in entertainment. We’ve seen a comeback of classic and newer fishing TV shows, from Deadliest Catch to Gone Fishing, to the number of anglers increasing, and even online gaming hubs seeing their in-theme games surge. After all, you can judge the quality of casino promotions by their tied-in games. The platform has pushed forward the fishing-themed slot Crabbin’ For Cash Extra Big Catch Jackpot King with a 50-free-spin offer for new customers.
Most fishing TV shows and games, like the Crabbin’ slot and River Monsters, focus on the catch, as do many newer anglers. For a couple of Metal superstars, however, while the battle is a selling point, so is the tranquillity. In stark contrast to their day jobs, Adrian Smith loves to unwind and recharge by the waterways of the world with a rod and reel. Roger Daltrey even opened his own trout fishery in Heathfield to be his and his fellow anglers’ sanctuary.
Keeping Critters, Rather than Catching Them
As one of the foremost bands in the Metal genre, people have certain expectations of Metallica’s members whether they’re on-stage or backstage. On-stage, they still pump out the all-time hits and send reverberations through the turf to get their huge following in the mood. Away from this, James Hetfield prefers a more low-key buzz to focus on between gigs and studio sessions.
Hetfield has developed a fondness for beekeeping. He’s got a bunch of hives set up on his property and has spent a lot of time cultivating them. He isn’t, however, immune to the potential pitfalls of dealing with the pollinators. As he recounts in an interview, one time he had to move a hive. In doing so, he irritated one bee, which set them all off. They swarmed to the only vacant spot outside of his bee suit, his ankle, and delivered around 20 stings.
The Art of the Duel
Iron Maiden’s star performers happen to have a bunch of interesting hobbies in play between them. Perhaps the most intriguing is the sophisticated but very skilful sport of fencing. This is Bruce Dickinson’s choice of pursuits beyond the stage. He notably sparred an Olympic silver medallist in the early 2010s, nicking a couple of points but ultimately losing to the man with about a foot height advantage. In his 20s, he was top ten in the UK.
With Metal performances being so energetic and impactful, it makes sense that many of its top performers need distinctly different hobbies to enjoy in their downtime
