CNN is reporting:

When it comes to heavy metal music, there is one UK city that can claim to be its rightful home: Birmingham.

Known for its former bleak industrial zones and often rainy streets, Birmingham is not normally synonymous with show business.

And Brummies, as they're known, are unlikely to shout their musical pedigree from the rooftops of the city's Victorian terraced houses.

But a summer of events titled Home Of Metal, celebrating all things heavy metal both in the city and in the aptly named Black Country surrounding it, should change all that.

The bill includes an exhibition of metal memorabilia at the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, where metal fans can play guitars, gaze at glittering costumes, original posters and LP artwork, and hear heavy metal blasted through the normally quiet galleries.

Also on the bill are exhibitions showing metal-inspired visual art; one devoted to stage costumes (the area's tanneries are credited with inspiring the heavy metal "look"); and several exploring the region's history of metalworking and the heavy metal sound, suggesting that the genre is a curious legacy of England's industrial revolution.

"Perhaps it's been a little backwards about coming forwards," said Nic Bullen, founder of Birmingham-based "grindcore" band NAPALM DEATH.

"Birmingham has to some extent always been insular, not by some sort of elitist philosophy, simply because it exists within itself, so why reach out? But this musical heritage is important to people across the world, so it's worth celebrating," he continued.

Birmingham has spawned some of the pioneers of the genre, such as BLACK SABBATH - all of whose members, including rocker-turned-reality-TV star Ozzy Osbourne, grew up in the city and worked in its factories.

Their shared experience of heavy industry was an important factor, said guitarist Tony Iommi, in shaping the band's uncompromising sound.

"It influences you and your music, wanting to get away, to break out in some way," said Iommi.

Read the entire report and view photos here.

Home Of Metal - Celebrating Music From Birmingham And The Black Country, is a one-of-a-kind exhibit celebrating 40 years of heavy metal and its unique birthplace. The exhibition runs until September 25th at the Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery.