Alcohol
The best Christmas gifts are the most useful ones. Slapping a bow on a bottle of Jack is the easiest gift you can give a metalhead. The great thing about it? Even if they have a preference, they aren’t going to turn down free alcohol. Type any brand and the words “gift set” into Google and you’ll find something. However, premade gift sets have a tendency to be overpriced and generic. You’re better off grabbing an empty box and filling it up with a variety of airplane bottles. It’s kind of like a box of chocolates—But booze.
Recent spirits and beers by bands include:
Lamb of God (non-alchoholic) with BrewDog
And for those non-alcohol drinkers – Get you some Liquid Death 100% Mountain Spring Water! Save 10% off your order with our code – GHOSTCULTMAG!
Cigarettes
This one might sound insane to a non-smoker, but you’ll be shocked how much a chainsmoker will appreciate it. Their bank account will thank you, too. On average, a pack-a-day habit will cost $188 a month. You’ll be doing them quite the favor by stocking them up. If you’ve got a Costco membership, you can pick up a carton of 10 packs for most popular brands. Be cautious though; While some smokers will smoke literally anything, others have a hard preference.
Makeup
Not all metalheads wear makeup, but the ones that do have a tendency to keep scraping the bottom of a five-years expired face paint pot from Spirit Halloween. This is a really great gift if you’re looking for something inexpensive. Steer clear of liquid liners, especially where your more masculine friends are concerned. Your best option for the blackest and most user-friendly results will be gel or mechanical pencil liners.
Of course, there’s more to makeup than eyeliner. NYX is going to be your best bet for affordable makeup with alt-friendly color palettes. For the corpse paint wearers in your life, NYX also has a low-cost line of face paint. If you’re looking for something more high end, the pros usually recommend Mehron. Not only can you find great face and body paint on Mehron’s site, but they’re also host to countless SFX products, for your bloodier friends.
Fun fact: You’ve more than likely seen a band that covers their arms in black paint for a show. When bands are first starting out and don’t know any better, a lot of them will use acrylic paint. You know, for actual painting. This holiday season, save your local goth musician from chemical poisoning by gifting them some non-toxic body paint.
Funko Pops
Alright, disclaimer: The aesthetic of Funko Pops is a polarizing topic. Though they’re highly collectable, some people absolutely despise the way they look. However, if you have an established Pop owner in your life, you can’t go wrong. The Pop! Rocks series includes figures of just about every rock legend you can imagine, from Jimi Hendrix and ZZ Top to Rob Zombie and Marilyn Manson. If you’re up for spending a little extra, you can also pick up entire member sets for bands like KISS, G’N’R, Crüe, and Rush.
Funko also recently introduced their Pop! Albums line. These boxes are formatted differently than the standard Pop box in order to showcase the album artwork responsible for the figurine. Currently, Black Sabbath’s self-titled, AC/DC’s Back In Black, and Linkin Park’s Hybrid Theory are available for pre-order.
Other Toy brands to shop we rep!
Vinyl
You only have to be around a music lover for approximately half a second to hear about how vinyl is the superior listening format. A fair amount of LP purists will even happily listen to an album they’ve never heard of if you give it to them on vinyl. A brand new vinyl will cost you around $30. If you have the patience to comb through a lot of dust, you can find some cheap and rare gems at your local antiques mall. The best option, however, is to find a locally owned vinyl shop. Tell the shop owner of your gift recipient’s music taste and they’ll be happy to help you find something they’ll like.
A great bonus of local shops is they’re bound to have random metal-themed gifts. Disk Go Joe’s, a vinyl shop just outside Nashville, also sells jewelry, books, and Jesus candles with David Bowie’s face on them.
In addition to supporting your local record shop, support some of the best music of 2020 from our Album of the Year countdown!
We also support:
Leather
Leather and metalheads go together like bees and honey. Just about anyone that falls under the alternative umbrella will love a good quality leather jacket. Companies like Harley Davidson and BodaSkin are great for a classic look, while places like Forgotten Saints and Wornstar specialize in the metal style and offer extensive custom orders. However, this is easily the most pricey item on this list. If you need something more within your budget, you can find genuinely good leather accessories online and support small businesses while you do it.
The type of product you go for will depend on the subculture you’re shopping for. For thrash and black metal, grab something with spikes. Look to MetalMausolem, BlackShipCrafts, and ArmorAgainstFate on Etsy—Three shops run by metalheads themselves. Etsy is where you’re going to want to pop over to for any viking, folk, or pirate metal needs as well. For this one, find something with celtic imagery, whether that be a handmade book, bracelet, belt, you name it. And for your goths, check out places like Deandri for chokers and harnesses (Just make sure you only go for this kind of gift if you’re BDSM educated because Christmas morning might be a little awkward if you accidentally give your sister a slave collar).
Another less pricey option here would be the gift of leather care items. It’s easy to buy whole kits online, but kits tend to lean towards leather footwear care specifically. You can pick up things like leather conditioner and cleaner at a local biker shop, or you can even poke around at a department store. Many fashion brands like Coach and Kate Spade sell leather care products as accessories to their purses and shoes.
Another custom clothing brand our staff has used and abused:
Books!
There were a ton of great books from the world of rock and metal this year! Get the hell off the computer and feed your mind! Here are a few we liked:
Micheal Alago – I Am Michael Alago: Breathing Music. Signing Metallica. Beating Death. https://amzn.to/3gWEyJy
Rob Halford – Confess https://amzn.to/3nsehFj
Jon Zazula – Heavy Tales https://amzn.to/3r3nLJh
Jessie May – Moneyhacks for Metalheads and Old Millenials: https://amzn.to/2Wl41CC
Don de Leaumont – Southeast of Heaven https://amzn.to/37o3MgG
Jordan Blum – Dream Theater -every album, every track https://amzn.to/3nsxJSm
Michael Centrone – How Much is Self-Worth https://amzn.to/2Wkwvwj
JJ Anselmi – Doomed to Fail https://amzn.to/3gViSgT
John Cooper and Skillet – Eden II – The Aftermath https://amzn.to/3gSyEcl
Alan Robert – The Beauty of Horror IV https://amzn.to/3mljz40
and Haunt This Journal – https://amzn.to/34kCPIM
Jeremy Saffer – Daughters of Darkness https://amzn.to/3nxATEh
Charity: Please consider giving this holiday to many worthy causes that will help the community and the world:
https://www.saveourstages.com/
https://blacklivesmatters.carrd.co
https://bailproject.org/
https://colorofchange.org/
https://www.rainn.org/
And after you have shopped and you need a little recovery from the stress of shopping- check out Tour support CBD Products, endorsed by Rockstars and Metalheads! Use our affiliate link here:
LJ DEWITT