State College headbangers, get ready.

While heavy metal has not been completely absent from the local music scene, neither has it been a huge presence. The closing of clubs such as the Scorpion and Carl's Bad Tavern during the past few years have further restricted venues available to metal bands.

But Paul Kruzelock, a 1990 University graduate, wants to change that. Last Sunday Altoona band Fatal Maim played the first in a series of "Metal Nights" organized by Kruzmeister Productions, which was founded by Kruzelock.

Although he earned his degree in quantitative business analysis, Kruzelock said concert promotion is not as much of a stretch for him as it might seem.

"I love all kinds of music," he said, explaining it has always been his hobby. But after a band-booking agency in Harrisburg offered him a job, he realized music could be more than a pastime, and decided to start promoting concerts on his own, he said.

So why heavy metal?

"It's my favorite form of music and I never get tired of it," he said, adding on a more practical note that "it's something there's a market for and I think the market's grown."

The crowd of about 50 at the Happy Valley Brewery, 452 E. College Ave., last Sunday seemed to enjoy Fatal Maim's show, although they weren't extremely loud or rowdy. The group gave an energetic show, with lead singer Troy Earnest often leaving the stage to dance among the crowd.

Despite the group's somewhat gruesome-sounding name, bassist and spokesman John Scarfone said people should not jump to the conclusion that they promote violence, devil-worshipping or anything with which metal bands are stereotypically associated.

"A lot of people are misinterpreting the band's intent by the name and the album cover," Scarfone said, calling Fatal Maim an environmentalist group.

In the the band's media kit, Scarfone's definition of "Fatal Maim" reads "to alter or mutilate to the point of death or destruction."

"That's basically what we're doing to our planet, whether people know it or not," he said. "It all adds up to one big monstrosity."

While not many of the songs on the group's current nine-song demo album One Beyond the Grave are about environmental destruction, Scarfone said the next album will focus on it more. Meanwhile, One Beyond the Grave covers issues such as the abuse of drugs, alcohol and sex, he said.

But whether fans actually get the messages in songs such as "No Tomorrow," "Molest and Maul" and "Sin-O-Rama" is another matter. Scarfone acknowledged that at many concerts, a lot of the audience is there just to hang out and party.

"The ones that really have a clear head" pick up on what the group is trying to say, and the group plans to publish liner notes with its next album to avoid misinterpretation, he said.

Future metal nights will feature other local and national bands and venues will change, Kruzelock said. Fatal Maim plays at the Happy Valley Brewery again this Sunday night at 8.