Metal can be a pretty polarizing musical genre, and fans often get a bad rap for listening to it because of how intense it sounds.

But there are loads of benefits to listening to music, and it turns out metal is no different. A study found that people who listen to metal and other extreme music have an easier time doing something that’s difficult for a lot of folks, proving that all expressions of art contribute to society.

Extreme music genres like metal actually have a calming effect on angry listeners, helping them process their feelings.

The study, which was published in Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, was conducted by honors student Leah Sharman and Dr. Genevieve Dingle from the University of Queensland. They observed 39 people aged 18 to 34 who regularly listened to extreme music for the study.

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Sharman and Dingle defined extreme music as being “characterized by chaotic, loud, heavy, and powerful sounds, with emotional vocals, often containing lyrical themes of anxiety, depression, social isolation, and loneliness.” Previous theories suggested that this kind of music encourages listeners to become angrier and, sometimes, even engage in dangerous behavior.

The researchers put participants through something they called an “anger induction,” where they asked them to talk about something that upset them, like a bad relationship, for 16 minutes. Then, they listened to songs they had picked themselves for 10 minutes, followed by 10 minutes of silence.

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They proved that metal music does not cause anger, as previously believed.

Instead, the participants felt calmer because, as they hypothesized, “extreme music matches and helps to process anger.” Sharman told The Guardian. “We found the music regulated sadness and enhanced positive emotions. When experiencing anger, extreme music fans liked to listen to music that could match their anger.”

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It turns out that just because some music sort of sounds angry doesn’t mean it makes people feel that way themselves. She continued, “Results showed levels of hostility, irritability, and stress decreased after music was introduced, and the most significant change reported was the level of inspiration they felt.”

Sharman and Dingle felt that their study proved that people who listen to metal and other kinds of extreme music find inspiration and positivity in it, the same way a fan of more sedate music might find comfort in an acoustic track.

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Metal music is no less beneficial than other genres because of its sound.

Nurse Stephanie A. Wright explained that the idea that metal music is more “violent” than other genres is simply inaccurate. As long as you like the music, listening will have a positive effect on your mental health, just as music has always been known to do in general.

Musician Alexander Farmiga addressed this in a 2021 TEDxYouth talk. “Our judgments regarding heavy metal music aren’t just limited to the performers, though, as we often judge listeners of the genre just as much,” he said. “We assume that they are unsuccessful and lagging behind compared to the rest of society.”

Obviously, there’s no evidence to support this idea. Instead, metal is an effective outlet for listeners to process their anger. Experts say that many people struggle to do this because they let their anger go unexpressed or suppressed. It’s better to focus on calming that anger internally, which is exactly what listening to metal music did for the study participants.

Everyone is interested in different kinds of music, and they shouldn’t be judged for that. There’s no stereotypical image that should be applied to everyone who listens to a certain genre. It’s better to just let people enjoy what they like, even if it doesn’t sound quite right to you.

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Christine Schoenwald is a writer and performer. She’s had articles in The Los Angeles Times, Salon, Bustle, Medium, and Woman’s Day.