Wouldn't It Be Cool? An Idea For A Classic Metal and Philosophy Conference

I posted a picture of my mother-in-law and me earlier today, in Judas Priest t-shirts, and it sparked an interesting conversation with a friend and colleague who is equally appreciative not only of that band, but of classic heavy metal more generally.  He jokingly wrote:  "At some point, I’d like to hear your thoughts on whether evil ever dies." 

For those who aren't up on their contemporary classic metal, "Evil Never Dies" is not only a controversial philosophical claim, but also the title of one of the songs on Judas Priest's most recent album, Firepower.  He clarified that he was asking me about the metaphysical and moral issue.  And that got me thinking.

Classic heavy metal songs often raise, play with, and even explicitly reference philosophical doctrines, problems, concepts, and perspectives.  Bands, musicians, albums, songs, tours, and all the other things connected with them can be looked at through philosophical lenses (I do that sporadically over at another blog, Heavy Metal Philosopher).

Wouldn't it be cool to put together a conference specifically devoted to conversation about those sorts of issues?  I think it could be done in such a way as to combine rigorous thinking, collaborative and critical conversation, with die-hard love of metal.

Set up the right way, it could attract professors and practitioners who have devoted years to reflection (and perhaps even research) about various aspects of heavy metal, but also - I expect - appeal to a much broader general audience.  So then the big question becomes how to bring it off.  Maybe at first it would need to be a virtual conference, i.e. carried out through online platforms.  Then, of course, the trick is to find ways to make it as interactive and participatory as possible.

As a side-note, while I wouldn't exclude the much more specialized genres of metal that have developed as their own little sonic universes in the last three decades, I think I'd want the central focus to be what's often now called "traditional heavy metal", or what I prefer to call classic 70s-80s metal.  That's what was - and remained - at the core of the heavy metal community as I grew up in it and experienced it. 

There's obviously a LOT of fleshing out that would be required - even just as an idea - but there it is.  Wouldn't it be cool?