“Blood Tracks”, also known as Shocking Heavy Metal or simply Heavy Metal, is Sweden’s contribution to 80s slasher films. Here, we meet the glam metal band Solid Gold, played by Easy Action, who head up into the snow-covered mountains to shoot a music video. However, their plans are interrupted when an avalanche traps them in a cabin. Soon, the band, the video crew, and the groupies accompanying them realize that something is seriously wrong—the cabin they’ve taken refuge in is also home to a murderous family.
Swedish director Mats Helge Olsson attempted to break into the international market with Blood Tracks, making an English-language slasher film and even using the pseudonym Mike Jackson to give it a more global appeal. Olsson was known for making some of the craziest films Sweden had to offer, ranging from westerns to family-friendly ghost movies. He is perhaps best remembered for The Ninja Mission, a Swedish ninja film where the KGB kidnaps a Swedish scientist, and CIA-trained ninjas must rescue him. However, Olsson eventually ran into trouble with the Swedish tax authorities and was forced to flee the country.
Adding to his notoriety, Olsson was “honoured” by Swedish musician Eddie Meduza with tracks such as Mats Olsson E En Jävla Bög (“Mats Olsson is a Fucking Gay”), Kuken står på Mats Olsson (“Mats Olsson’s Dk is Hard”), and Mats Olsson runkar kuken (“Mats Olsson Jerks Off”). What exactly Olsson did to deserve such tributes from Meduza remains unclear, but there was obviously some bad blood between them.
What makes Blood Tracks even more interesting is that the main characters are played by the Swedish glam metal band Easy Action, who released a couple of albums in the 80s and later reunited for Sweden Rock Festival in 2006. You may not have heard of the band, as they never became hugely successful—but you’ve definitely heard of Europe, the band that dominated the mid-80s with The Final Countdown. After Blood Tracks, Easy Action’s bandleader Kee Marcello disbanded the group to become the guitarist for Europe. The band also featured vocalist Zinny Zan, who later formed Shotgun Messiah.
On paper, Blood Tracks should be highly entertaining—a movie filled with naked women, brutal killings, and a hair metal band being slaughtered one by one. But it isn’t. Instead, it’s boring. There are moments where the sheer stupidity of certain scenes makes them unintentionally funny, and for a while, you can enjoy it as a cheesy, over-the-top 80s slasher. But as soon as the killings start, the film completely falls apart, and you’re left just waiting for it to be over.
About The Author
