How can we explain to those who didn’t live through the 1980s that the colorful, bouffant, and ‘grandiose’ look was purposefully tacky? In the first years of MTV, largely evangelizing rock, everything was extra: the videos, the hair flying, the shows in packed stadiums. And even though pop was always on the rise with new wave and gothic waves, heavy metal experienced its heyday but was also nicknamed “hair metal” precisely because of the look copied, multiplied, and exhausted by so many bands that sounded the same as they looked the same. The great Paramount Plus documentary, I Wanna Rock: The ’80s Metal Dream rescues this period with great testimonials and perspective.

On the platform since July 2023, the documentary is divided into three episodes and follows the current lives of some artists who shone in that decade of exaggerations, tracing in detail and good analysis how it all began and ended (legend claims that grunge killed hair metal, but the series suggests something more plausible).

Interviews with Janet Gardner of the all-female band Vixen, Kip Winger, Skid Row co-founder and guitarist Dave “Snake” Sabo, lead singer John Corabi, and, of course, Twisted Sister lead singer, the ever-accurate Dee Snider report behind-the-scenes stories, crossed with journalists and other people who lived through that period of the record companies’ heyday. Is too good.

Everyone’s analysis, remembering the important rock scenes in Los Angeles and New York, ‘educates’ us about what the movement was like and how MTV was essential for its popularization as well as its demonization. As they explain, the broadcaster had 24 hours of programming to fill and the artists’ visuals were even more relevant than the music. That way, when they identified something that resonated with young people, they cloned the formula in almost everyone. Leather, chains, androgyny, and coiffed, spray-styled hair became the norm, as did strong choruses and blaring guitars. Yes, there was also machismo and misogyny: sexually objectified women were also the norm in rock videos.

The sincerity of these former rock stars is moving. When hair metal “ended”, it seemed sudden to many of them who literally from one day to the next, not only lost prestige and fortune but the credibility of continuing to make the music they loved. For example, today Janet is a dentist (in addition to having a rock group) and Kip is a classical music composer, but the road to fame and downfall is addressed with vast video material that makes us want to hear it all again. In fact… I made a playlist after I finished watching it.

It all ended in 1991 when the band Nirvana made the opposite choice of these bands and exploded – literally – everything that the 1980s represented. From alternative, grunge has now moved to the mainstream, also multiplying into look-alikes. It’s an excellent music history lesson. And seriously, you’ll want to rock non-stop when it’s over. I highly recommend it!

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