Heavy Metal Islam: Rock, Resistance and the Struggle for the Soul of Islam. Mark LeVine, Three Rivers Press, 2008. 296 pages. Reviewed by Vanessa Karam.
 
"Follow the musicians, not just the mullahs." (p. 3)

This is, literally, what Mark LeVine has done in this fascinating study of the rock, metal and hip hop cultures of the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). In 2002, the author set out to examine one of the rarely reported mediums through which Muslim youth explore their identities, critique their societies, and give voice to their hopes. In this book, LeVine, professor of Middle Eastern history at U.C. Irvine and an accomplished rock guitarist in his own right, retraces his footsteps, chapter by chapter, through the rock and hip hop scenes of Morocco, Egypt, Israel/Palestine, Lebanon, Iran, and Pakistan. Along the way, he elaborates the socio-political contexts that shape the music of groups like Hoba Hoba Spirit, the Kordz, Dam, and Junoon. It is clear from his writing that LeVine 'has a good ear'. He listens to his subjects, often letting them speak for themselves, and also looks beyond the jam sessions (which he sometimes takes part in), introducing the reader, for example, to a religious scholar in Lebanon who defends heavy metal-not because he likes it (he doesn't) -but because "culture is something owned by everyone, and not something that a few persons should decide upon" (p.159).

LeVine adeptly explains why the music of Western groups and artists such as Led Zeppelin or Tupac Shakur resonates strongly with the youth of the MENA, and how Middle Eastern musicians in turn are melding the Western sounds with their indigenous musical traditions to create an expression all their own. The result, according to LeVine, is "extreme music as the antidote to extreme religious and political systems" (p.7). The author pays attention not only to the music and lyrics but also to the very often prohibitive--if not downright dangerous-- conditions under which these musicians work and play, and the particular challenges that female artists have to navigate.

All told, in Heavy Metal Islam, LeVine combines astute cultural and political analysis with a passion for the music and palpable empathy for the people of a part of the world that is too often painted with the monochromatic brush of religious fanaticism, traditionalism, and cultural stagnation. His well-researched book shows a much more complex, textured and, in the final analysis, hopeful reality. Oh, and did I mention? It's a really fun read. Rock on!