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Welcome, all ye who dare enter Sound of the Beast, the first definitive look at the madness and mayhem of heavy metal. From its cataclysmic beginning with Black Sabbath over 30 years ago to the hyperactive new metal bands ripping apart the charts today, heavy metal has become the dominant musical force around the globe. Yet despite selling over a quarter-billion albums and breaking into new markets wherever it can be heard, there has never been a complete overview of metal's dark, powerful, and untamed history, until now. Pieced together through countless hours of research and first-hand accounts from the masters of metal themselves, Sound of the Beast reveals the underground history to the first three decades of headbanging mania. Included here are heavy metal's primitive origins, the rise and fall of MTV hair metal, Metallica's successful quest for world domination, the devilish frenzy of Florida death metal, the church-burning fever of Scandinavia's morbid teen terrorists, and metal's return to center stage at the hands of Ozzfest and Ozzy Osbourne. Plus, readers will get: 20 chapters based on interviews with Black Sabbath, Metallica, Slayer, W.A.S.P., Slipknot, and over 100 of heavy metal's greatest bands. A timeline of the most explosive happenings in metal from 1970 to 2002. Never-before-seen color photos and over 100 images from the metal revolution. A listing of 25 heavy metal masterpieces that changed music history. Genre boxes breaking down dozens of metal styles, from thrash and black metal to avant-garde and beyond, including essential CDs. Exclusive insight from Chuck D of Public Enemy, Iron Maiden artist Derek Riggs, the directors of Paradise Lost, and more. With hairs bristling and fangs bared, Sound of the Beast is the must-read story of heavy metal for die-hard fans, fresh new converts, and musical thrill-seekers alike. Hear the call of the wild as this extreme, elusive, and ear-splitting form of music finally gets its justice, and leaves everyone in its wake banging their heads and flipping the devil sign for years to come.… (more)
I LOVE books like this. Tons of history, great quotes, stories and in this case a lot insight and some great writing. I was really sad that it wasn't written more recently so I could hear the author's take on more modern metal and current situation. But really this was about nostalgia for the "glory days". This book reminded me about bands I had loved in the past and forgotten and got me listening to bands I either missed somehow or didn't really care for back in the day. It made me regret missing concerts from some of these bands and reminded me of some of the amazing shows I've been too.
Another cool thing about this book is that it covers the entire world and metal starting from Iommi's first power chord (and even before that somewhat) until around 2003 when the book was published. Hearing about how restrictive some countries are about visiting bands and even their citizens owning heavy metal albums was saddening and interesting, but also exciting to think of metalheads in other countries fighting the good fight to keep their artistic freedom.
It's been quite a ride, now I can't wait to pour over this book and look up all the bands he mentioned that I have never heard before or don't remember. ( )
ADDENDUM - June 2011: I finally had to part ways with my copy of this book after vomiting red wine all over it as it sat unawares on my toilet tank. A fittingly metal end to this fine book.
This book has lived on my toilet tank for four years now, through several different residences. I mean that as high praise; it lends itself to being opened to a random page, and providing five-minute doses of facts, stories, perpective and humor. ( )
I bought this for £1 in a charity shop at that price it was a bargain, nicely printed and well written Christe has a great knowledge on the subject. As a general history it is about the best i have seen and a great introduction for newcomers; however, given that heavy-metal is a very fractured subject with a myriad of sub-genres each with their own tangled and colourful histories. Inevitably certain areas suffer in trying to condense them into one tome and those well-versed may find it less revelatory. ( )
Arguably no one has studied Metal history more extensively than Ian. And this book demonstrates that. His graphic metal timeline is truly something to behold. ( )
I love heavy metal. It's agressive and artisitic, angry and beautiful. I was attracted to this book by the cover, which resembles several of the best metal albums of the 80's and 90's. This book takes a look at the birth of heavy metal - from Zeplin and Sabbath, to the death metal bands that pushed the genre to the extreme. It tries to stay in a chronological order, but it does get a little off at times. And, there is a little too much on Metallica. I did learn some interesting facts and even discovered some new bands along the way. So three devil horns up. Okay, that was corny... ( )
Welcome, all ye who dare enter Sound of the Beast, the first definitive look at the madness and mayhem of heavy metal. From its cataclysmic beginning with Black Sabbath over 30 years ago to the hyperactive new metal bands ripping apart the charts today, heavy metal has become the dominant musical force around the globe. Yet despite selling over a quarter-billion albums and breaking into new markets wherever it can be heard, there has never been a complete overview of metal's dark, powerful, and untamed history, until now. Pieced together through countless hours of research and first-hand accounts from the masters of metal themselves, Sound of the Beast reveals the underground history to the first three decades of headbanging mania. Included here are heavy metal's primitive origins, the rise and fall of MTV hair metal, Metallica's successful quest for world domination, the devilish frenzy of Florida death metal, the church-burning fever of Scandinavia's morbid teen terrorists, and metal's return to center stage at the hands of Ozzfest and Ozzy Osbourne. Plus, readers will get: 20 chapters based on interviews with Black Sabbath, Metallica, Slayer, W.A.S.P., Slipknot, and over 100 of heavy metal's greatest bands. A timeline of the most explosive happenings in metal from 1970 to 2002. Never-before-seen color photos and over 100 images from the metal revolution. A listing of 25 heavy metal masterpieces that changed music history. Genre boxes breaking down dozens of metal styles, from thrash and black metal to avant-garde and beyond, including essential CDs. Exclusive insight from Chuck D of Public Enemy, Iron Maiden artist Derek Riggs, the directors of Paradise Lost, and more. With hairs bristling and fangs bared, Sound of the Beast is the must-read story of heavy metal for die-hard fans, fresh new converts, and musical thrill-seekers alike. Hear the call of the wild as this extreme, elusive, and ear-splitting form of music finally gets its justice, and leaves everyone in its wake banging their heads and flipping the devil sign for years to come.
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Another cool thing about this book is that it covers the entire world and metal starting from Iommi's first power chord (and even before that somewhat) until around 2003 when the book was published. Hearing about how restrictive some countries are about visiting bands and even their citizens owning heavy metal albums was saddening and interesting, but also exciting to think of metalheads in other countries fighting the good fight to keep their artistic freedom.
It's been quite a ride, now I can't wait to pour over this book and look up all the bands he mentioned that I have never heard before or don't remember. (