&#8220;We play heavy metal because our lives are heavy metal.&#8221;<br>&#8212;Reda Zine, one of the founders of the Moroccan heavy-metal scene<br><br>&#8220;Music is the weapon of the future.&#8221;<br>&#8212;Fela Kuti<br><br>An eighteen-year-old Moroccan who loves Black Sabbath. A twenty-two-year-old rapper from the Gaza Strip. A young Lebanese singer who quotes Bob Marley&#8217;s &#8220;Redemption Song.&#8221; They are as representative of the world of Islam today as the conservatives and extremists we see every night on the news. Heavy metal, punk, hip-hop, and reggae are each the music of protest, and in many cases considered immoral in the Muslim world. This music may also turn out to be the soundtrack of a revolution unfolding across that world. <br><br>Why, despite governmental attempts to control and censor them, do these musicians and fans keep playing and listening? Partly, of course, for the joy of self-expression, but also because, in this region, everything is political. In <i>Heavy Metal Islam</i>, Mark LeVine explores the influence of Western music on the Middle East through interviews with musicians and fans, introducing us young Muslims struggling to reconcile their religion with a passion for music and a desire for change. The result is a revealing tour of contemporary Islamic culture through the evolving music scene in the Middle East and Northern Africa. <i>Heavy Metal Islam</i> is a surprising, wildly entertaining foray into a historically authoritarian region where music just might be the true democratizing force.