By Maya A. Weisinger

Fresh on the map, MacMetalheads pushes its way onto the airwaves in a cacophony of aggressive enjoyment. MacMetalheads is a student org that was chartered by Abigail Rankin ’12 last November. Along with their regular Metalhead meetups, the group has taken their devotion to the radio station this year. With a little over 40 members, they take turns at the mic spreading the voice of metal through the veins of listeners. Dustin Studelska ‘12, co-head with Rankin, remains the regular host of the show. Assuring the listener that there is usually head-banging, screaming and air-guitaring, Studelska lets the studio become a canvas for the expression of different metal-styles all over campus. “We don’t really repeat songs. We have a lot of diversity in our music selection,” he said. Ezra Wise ‘12, guest co-host of the most recent show, said, “If there’s something everyone can agree on, it’s Metallica. Otherwise it’s a good space to get exposed to a bunch of music you wouldn’t hear otherwise.” The drum-clash filled studio gives way to a real discussion on the variations that exist within the title “Metal.” Defining metal for a student body that hasn’t traditionally taken pride in representing this field of music is a singular goal of the group. Making the distinction between subgroups like “prog metal,” “celtic metal” and “power metal,” Metalheads pushes their extensive knowledge of the music’s history and nuances into the mainstream. Alongside hosting the weekly radio show, MacMetalheads is dedicated to making the metal scene around the community and Twin Cities more accessible to closeted metalphiles. Beside making sure to drop releases of new metal albums and upcoming gigs, the collective focuses on building a group of supportive metalites by sharing concert-going experiences and musicswapping events. Part of their group-building initiative includes the upcoming event, Metal and Mayhem hosted by MacMetalheads with MacDagohir, a live-action combat sport group on campus. Proof that metal fits any occasion, the battle event will feature MacMetalheads as the DJs, providing a grungy, dynamic soundtrack to the Mac campus.