Death Metal MusicMusic and Culture on the Edge

March 11 (Bloomberg) -- The wheels temporarily came off Metallica’s bandwagon this week as it cranks its way around the globe. Frontman James Hetfield was taken to hospital with a stomach bug, forcing the cancellation of a Stockholm gig.

The other night my 10-year-old, Sam, was standing at the kitchen table painting a skull on the back of a worn out skateboard. He had removed the wheels and was desirous of affixing this work of art to his bedroom wall when it dried. Sam is partial to skull-emblazoned objects. He’s constantly asking me to buy him hats, shirts, and shorts (which fills the boys’ racks at Rich’s these days, for some reason) and shoes decorated with skulls."Why in Heaven’s name are you fixated on all these dark, ugl