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Podcast Episode

Detroit Metal vs. LA Glam: When Ugly Met Pretty in 1987

Best Music Artists of Rock·Podgo·8 September 2026·13 min

About this episode

In the same year, two versions of rock stardom collided: Detroit's gritty MC5 disciples were forging aggressive, blue-collar metal while LA's Sunset Strip bands perfected hairspray and power ballads. Both claimed to be rock's future, but only one survived the '90s—and it wasn't the one that sold more records.