China Daily has issued the following report from Christine Laskowski:

"All right, Beijing!" screamed Johan Hegg, lead singer of the heavy metal band AMON AMARTH, to an audience of die-hard fans toward the end of their set at Mao Livehouse on December 1st. "It's time to bleed... for ancient gods!"

The band, whose music is classified in a sub-category of heavy metal music known as Viking metal, then launched into the song 'Bleed for Ancient Gods' from their 1999 album. The five long-haired, blond Swedes clad in black and leather were then enveloped in clouds of smoke and blue light and began to head bang, their heads swirling in unison.

Hegg stepped forward to address the audience. "Beijing!" he growled. "Show me your horns!" The crowd went wild. Dozens of arms shot up into the air with the pronged hand signal commonly associated with heavy metal music. They soon began to chant.

Before the show, I spoke with 20-year-old Siyao, or Cook, as he prefers to be called, and his 18-year-old friend Wanfei. Both grew up in Beijing and they are in school studying sound engineering and guitar. Cook said that he first became interested in heavy metal after he heard the band KISS about 10 years ago.

"I thought they were very cool," he said, nodding emphatically enough to cause his long black hair to rustle.

For Wanfei, it was Ramstein - a German hard rock band. He zips open his leather jacket to show the black RAMMSTEIN T-shirt beneath. For both Cook and Wanfei, heavy metal music represents freedom.

While Cook admits his parents are not big fans of his appearance, Wanfei's had a different reaction: "They understand it, I think. They have also heard the music and they actually like it a little."

The majority of the 200 or so people who descended on Mao Livehouse that night were in their late teens and early 20s. While many who came sported long, untamed manes, leather jackets, SLAYER T-shirts, black leather jackets and boots, there were also exceptions that defied the stereotype.

Read the full report at this location.