Exodus Frontman Steve “Zetro” Souza Doesn’t Believe In Growing Out of Metal: “You’re Either a F***ing Metalhead or You’re Not”
Many of us have grown out of one genre of music or another over the years. Whether the bands’ sounds changed or we just weren’t feeling the vibe anymore, we one day decided that the music and fashion we’d become accustomed to no longer fit the person we were growing into (especially during our ill-advised electronica phase in college — hey, the Molly was good). But apparently, Exodus frontman Steve “Zetro” Souza lumps that idea in the same category as life-saving vaccines — he doesn’t fuckin’ believe in that bullshit!
Speaking to Audio Ink Radio, Steve made it clear that he didn’t believe in growing out of metal, or even being a casual fan — you’re either in it, or you’re not.
“It’s the only form of music that has to have both [fans and musicians in order for the scene to thrive],” said Zetro as transcribed by Blabbermouth, obviously failing to mention every other music scene. “The musicians, we couldn’t survive without the fans, and the fans aren’t gonna get it anywhere else, because there’s no media that plays it for them. Nobody cares. So, we have each other, which is fine.
“You’ve never heard a guy come up and go, ‘Yeah, man, I was into Slayer last summer,’” he continued, apparently failing to mention any non-metalhead who had metal friends growing up. “That doesn’t happen. You’re either a fucking metalhead or you’re not. I mean, look at Rob Halford. Go on his Instagram or his Facebook. Every single day, Rob’s got ‘metal this’ or ‘metal that’, or ‘this is what I’m listening to today.’ He’s a pure ambassador, and he’s 70-plus years old.
“It’s your mindset,” concluded Zetro. “And that’s how we all look at it. I know the metal fans will always be there. There’s not gonna be anybody that’s ever said, ‘Yeah, I listened to you guys when as a kid, but I don’t really listen to you anymore.’ That was never a fan. He listened because everybody else did back in the day. If you’re into it, you’re still into it, ’cause I’m still into it. It never passed me — ever. It’s your religion. Even if you’re into God or whatever, it’s a religion because you believe in it that much. And that’s the way it is.”
Welp, there you have it, folks — if you had a period where you dug metal, but then moved on to indie rock or whatever, Steve Souza thinks your poser ass should leave the hall.
Check out the full interview below:
