After going out of print with its 150th issue in early 2012, Heaven’s Metal (HM) Magazine has returned with a 40th Anniversary special edition.
Editor Doug Van Pelt was discussing print options with his friend Anthony Gober of Anchor Merchandising, who wanted to print a program for the upcoming two-weekend Immortal Festival events this summer (July 25-27 & August 29-31). One thing led to another, and Van Pelt volunteered to take on the whole project when he proposed, “Why don’t we make the festival program a legitimate 40th anniversary issue of Heaven’s Metal Magazine?”
The idea took off like wildfire, with the 14-man Heaven’s Metal editorial team quickly and enthusiastically taking on the 18 feature-article writing assignments and 18 advertisers immediately jumped on board within a matter of a few days. “My concern of having enough advertising revenue to pay for the printing and shipping was covered in only two days,” said Van Pelt. “I forgot how much fun laying out a magazine could be.”
“Designing a Heaven’s Metal Magazine cover has been a lifelong dream,” said Seth Metoyer, President of Broken Curfew Records, “especially for the 40th anniversary issue. The entire Heaven’s Metal team poured countless hours into this release, and I hope the passion, legacy, and sense of community we’ve all built together in the Christian metal scene shines through for all the fans.” You can see Metoyer’s design skills with the Saint cover.
This issue is a flipbook, with one half covering the bands playing the first 3-day weekend of the festival and the other half upside-down (until you flip it over) and see coverage of all the bands playing the second weekend.
“It’s about time Heaven’s Metal Magazine was back in print,” said Senior Staff Writer Chris Gatto (and curator of Heaven’s Metal Streaming Radio). “Make paper magazines a thing again!”
“It’s so cool to see Heaven’s Metal in physical print again after all these years,” said Senior Staff Writer Loyd Harp. “I started reading the magazine as a teenager in the late 80s, and getting to work on this issue has been really rewarding.”
This issue is available in a few stores around the nation. It will be sold at the Immortal Festival, where Anthony Gober’s Anchor Merchandising handles the bulk of the band booths in the exhibit area. The official release date of this commemorative issue is July 25th. HM Press online store is offering pre-orders.
One of the bands playing the Immortal Festival is “that Christian parody band,” ApologetiX, who recently recorded a parody of the Sammy Hagar movie soundtrack hit, “Heavy Metal.” The new parody title is, of course, “Heaven’s Metal.” The band has graciously donated the mp3 as a free bonus for anyone who buys this issue.
For an advance (PDF) copy of the magazine for review or interviews with any of the Heaven’s Metal staff, email heavensmetalmagazine@gmail.com or call (512) 350-3556.
