To those on the outside, metal is often pegged as dealing exclusively in violence, Satanism, death, swords, dragons, etc. and while all of that stuff rules, we know there’s a lot more to this realm of music when it comes to the lyrics. Parents always come down on kids for filling their heads with these themes and often condemn listening to music while trying to study or get homework done. Here, our purpose is to examine 10 bands that you can listen to and fire back, “But I AM studying!”

There’s plenty of education to be had in metal with so many groups covering a variety of themes. Want to brush up on literature? Comb through Iron Maiden’s discography and amongst all the sci-fi and fiction, there’s songs sourced from poems and other legendary works. How about delving further into the almost mystical world of ancient Egypt? Karl Sanders and the rest of his crew in Nile will have you up to speed pretty quickly.

Countless metalheads have become inspired to research these topics on their own to further educate themselves, spurred by many of the bands contained within this list. There’s teachers and professors everywhere dreaming up new ways to excite their students about whatever class they’re teaching, but all too often they fail to turn to one of the most universal interests out there: music. That's where we come in. Scroll through the gallery at the top of the page and you just might learn something!

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