Yesterday, the New York state legislature passed a bill legalizing same-sex marriage, and NY Governor Andrew Cuomo signed it into law shortly before midnight. Legal gay marriages can begin in New York by late July. With the passage of that bill, New York became the sixth U.S. state — and the largest — to legalize gay marriage. Overnight, it doubled the number of Americans living in states where gay people can legally marry.

Criticism of the new law has already started pouring forth from religious leaders, such as the official statement by the Catholic Bishops of New York that “both marriage and the family will be undermined by this tragic presumption of government in passing this legislation that attempts to redefine these cornerstones of civilization.” I’ve never understood that argument, but then again, I admit I haven’t tried very hard to understand it. To me, you can believe that marriage has a religious/moral component if you want, but it also undeniably has legal consequences, too, and laws like the one NY passed is a matter of extending equal legal rights (and obligations) to gay people. That seems like progress to me.

The metal scene isn’t exactly welcoming to gay people. For the most part, it’s a male-dominated, testosterone-fueled style of music. To steal a line from journalist Amanda Hess, “the human sexuality analysis generally runs along the lines of ‘that band is fuckin’ gay.’” I’ve never really understood that attitude either. To me, metal is about living the way you want and letting other people do the same. It ought to be a culture that fully embraces diversity, requiring only one criterion for admission — that you love metal. But that’s just my ideal, not the reality. The reality, as I perceive it, is that there’s a pronounced prejudice against gay people in the metal scene, which probably explains why metal musicians who self-identify as gay are so few and far between.

But, to commemorate the historic event in New York, I’m going to feature music from a few gay metal musicians who’ve come out of the closet, or were never in it (and credit again to Amanda Hess for these prominent examples). That’s after the jump . . .

The line-up, dates, and venues for the 2010 edition of Ozzfest have now been released. I don’t really know why I’m giving space to this announcement, which is still fairly hot off the presses. Maybe because some of you will care about it more than I do. Maybe because it’s nice to anticipate that Goatwhore and Skeletonwitch will pick up some new fans (which they certainly deserve). Other than that, I’m afraid it’s a big yawn for me, tinged with a little nausea.  First, the line-up (as recited in the official press release):

The main stage will feature full sets from Ozzy, Motley Crue and Rob Halford (who last appeared on Ozzfest in 2004 with Judas Priest), performing songs from his solo career along with material from Judas Priest and Fight. DevilDriver and Nonpoint will round out the main stage line-up.

Second stage headliners and six-time Ozzfest veterans Black Label Society will be joined by Drowning Pool, Kingdom of Sorrow, and Goatwhore, Skeletonwitch, Saviours, Kataklysm.

The second stage is far stronger than the first, that’s for sure. DevilDriver puts on a kick-ass live set, but the rest of the performers on Stage 1 look like nothing more than half-baked nostalgia. No question, Ozzy and Priest were hugely influential once upon a time, but Ozzy and Halford aren’t pushing metal in any new directions today, and they certainly don’t have the stage chops they used to have. Nonpoint is completely meh, and Motley Crue? Give me a fucking. Break.

Of course, feel free to telepathically tell me to fuck off if this news makes your day.  Ticket info and the predictably small list of dates and places follow after the jump . . .