HM Magazine, Issue #117 featuring P.O.D., January/February 2006 | |
Editor | David Stagg |
---|---|
Categories | Christian metal |
Frequency | Monthly |
Publisher | David Stagg |
Founder | Doug Van Pelt |
First issue | Summer 1985 |
Final issue | 2011 (print) |
Company | HM Publications LLC |
Country | United States |
Based in | Houston, Texas |
Language | American English |
Website | hmmagazine |
ISSN | 1066-6923 |
HM Magazine is a monthly, digital and print on demand publication focusing on hard music and alternative culture of interest to Christians. It is based in Houston, Texas. Originally published as Heaven's Metal, it was renamed to HM in 1995, and in late 2004 Heaven's Metal was reissued as a separate publication from HM, with some shared editorial overlap.
History
In 1985, a journalist Doug Van Pelt started Heaven's Metal as a fanzine. It changed its name in 1995 to HM, standing for Hard Music, but the Heaven's Metal branding was brought back in 2004 and was released alongside HM. Heaven's Metal achieved more popularity and became an official publication, with five full-time journalists working for the magazine. In 2000, HM achieved a regular subscription base of 15,000 readers.
During the 1990s, HM sealed a distribution deal with a major magazine wholesaler that immediately increased its print-run from 13,000 to 22,000 copies, and it allowed Van Pelt and his co-workers to double ad rates, making HM a stable business enterprise. The most popular issue of the publication was No. 77 (May/June 1999), where Doug Pinnick of King's X came out as homosexual. A subsequent wave of Christian music retailers refusing to sell the music of King's X is attributed to the publicizing of Pinnick's sexuality in that HM issue.
In 2010, Heaven's Metal ceased print and its content was merged into the digital issues of HM. In February 2013, Van Pelt sold HM to current editor David Stagg. Van Pelt remains the owner and publisher of Heaven's Metal, which is officially a separate publication even though it shares some editorial coverage with HM.
References
- "HM Magazine". Linkedin. Retrieved May 22, 2020.
- Moberg, Marcus (February 26, 2015). Christian Metal: History, Ideology, Scene. Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-4725-7986-7.
- Heaven's Metal Re-launches As A Fanzine. The Phantom Tollbooth. Archived September 18, 2023, at the Wayback Machine October 4, 2004
- ^ Langer, Andy (August 7, 2000). "Heaven's Metal". Austin Chronicle. Retrieved December 11, 2007.
- Van Pelt, Doug (March 25, 2010). "Heaven's Metal Fanzine Subscription". HM. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
- McCallister, Daniel (September 1, 2020). "HM Magazine". HM Magazine. Retrieved December 12, 2024.
- "Meet the Crew". Heaven's Metal Magazine. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
- Pelt, Doug Van (November 12, 2020). "The great HM/Gwar Commercial Spots". Heaven's Metal Magazine. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
External links
Categories:- 1985 establishments in Texas
- 2011 disestablishments in Texas
- Christian metal
- Defunct Christian magazines published in the United States
- Magazines established in 1985
- Magazines disestablished in 2011
- Magazines published in Houston
- Monthly magazines published in the United States
- Online music magazines published in the United States
- Online magazines with defunct print editions
- Defunct music magazines published in the United States