Headbanging is a kind of "dance" that follows the rhythm of hard rock and heavy metal. Do you want to look cool in the eyes of your metalhead friends? Headbanging is not as easy as it seems, you have to do it correctly or you will get painful neck discomfort. So follow the advice in this article if you want to practice the dance of the true metalhead as a professional!
Steps
Step 1. Relax your neck, doing some stretching, before practicing headbanging and remember to keep your head slightly turned to reduce the chances of a muscle tear
These simple steps will keep you from having a sore head the next day.
Step 2. Begin by shaking your head up and down lightly, as a short nod, to the beat of the music; every three or four beats, depending on the tempo of the song, make a more marked and deeper downward movement
Repeat this pattern so that you follow the rhythm of the song.
Step 3. Now switch to the rhythm of the drums:
lean forward and shake your head up and down on drum hits.
Step 4. Try the "hard slammer" movement:
bring your head down almost to your knees and then back up. The hard slammer is suitable for the less frenzied moments of a song, since the execution of the movement is too long to be repeated quickly.
Step 5. Practice the "windmill" (in Italian, "windmill", also known as "circular swing")
Move your head in a circular fashion and let your hair fly in all directions. However, add some personal variation to these movements or you will look like a poser.
Step 6. At the end of each song, stay in a bent position for a few seconds, until you feel the sense of balance returning
Step 7. Decide how many measures per beat to follow with headbanging and at what speed
Step 8. A good way to prepare is to look for videos in which the band performs a certain song and study the movements of the musicians
Step 9. After a few days of practice, not only will you be able to pog like a god, but you will also be able to hit people with your hair
Advice
- Do not be intimidated by the headbanging of others, the important thing is to let yourself go and have fun!
- If you're a beginner, don't be surprised if your neck feels stiff for a couple of days after a headbanging session.
- Get carried away by the music, but not to the point of head-butting someone by accident!
- My guide is just an introduction to headbanging, there are other movements that have not been covered here. To learn more, watch rock concerts and observe the movements of the musicians.
- Practice by jumping! You will get an even better effect if you can do jump headbanging.
- Practice on a song you like. Headbanging applies from classic rock to speed metal. If the song catches you, your head will start moving by itself at the right rhythm!
- When shaking your head up and down by moving your neck only, do not bend it at an angle greater than 45 degrees; In fact, you risk causing quite serious damage to your neck muscles.
- Try moving your whole body, for example by standing on tiptoe as you bend your torso forward. This will energize your movement and you will not look like a piece of wood.
- Long hair helps a lot. Once you have mastered the movement and have achieved a good fluidity of execution, the hair will act as a choreographic apparatus … and the longer it will be, the cooler the final effect.
- From a practical point of view, long hair counterbalances and lightens the neck of some of the effort. Short hair increases the risk of neck problems.
- Headbanging varies according to the genre of music. The particularly intense sequences of a song (known by the technical terms of "breakdown" or "bridge") require slow and long movements that emphasize the downward fluctuation of the hair. On the contrary, the fastest moments are the right occasion for some healthy aggressive and quick headbanging! Short, lightning-fast moves are the key.
- Do not move your head only downwards, also try backwards and to the sides.
- The hard slammer can be painful if performed poorly, so bend your knees, move your head back and bend forward at the hips, following the movement of the head with the torso. Avoid stopping your head with a snap: pain is just around the corner!
Warnings
- The first few times you headbang, at some point you may feel like your neck is made of rubber, to the point where you can hardly hold your head. If this happens to you, relax and consider that the more you headbang the stronger your neck will become. Either way, after a night of hard headbanging, your neck will be stiff for a couple of days no matter how many gigs you have on your back.
- Keep in mind one thing: there is a good chance that headbanging will give you severe headaches. If you are unwilling to accept this side effect, better let it go!
- If you don't warm up before the concert, get ready for days and days of painful stiff necks.
- Practice the headbanging movements one step at a time or your neck will not withstand the stress.
- Following each snare drum hit with headbanging is possible when you are listening to music below a certain speed; but keeping up with the rhythms imposed by bands such as Origin and 1349 is pure madness and a desire for physical self-destruction.
- It seems superfluous to remember, but the head is particularly exposed in headbanging. Try not to hit her anywhere. Pay attention to the people around you and check that no one is wearing spikes or studs on their arms and shoulders. It can be very painful to throw a flip on a sharp spike!
- Respect other people's space or you'll end up butting someone's head. It goes without saying that such an eventuality may not end well.
- Don't headbang with a full glass in hand! You will wash yourself and everyone around you. Finish your soda or buy bottled drinks before hitting the track.
- Don't overdo it the first time: you don't know what awaits you the next day.
