Book Review: The Bloody Reign of Slayer
Overall, a fine, well-researched read, worth getting for the amazing story of Slayer’s support slot with the mighty Venom, which brings new meaning to the phrase ‘taking the piss’!
Reviews – Books
Deep Purple and Beyond: Scenes From The Life of a Rock Star
I won’t ruin this wonderful rollercoaster ride through the history of rock with spoilers, but man! I will say it’s like the reader suddenly enters a time machine and travels back to through the history of rock and metal, and finds it’s both better and worse than they ever believed. And of course, everyone from Yul Brynner, Ozzy, David Coverdale (which is as it should be!) to Tony Iommi turns up!
Metalion : The Slayer Mag Diaries
Metalion is one of the greatest books about metal ever produced.
Overkill: The Untold Story of Motorhead By Joel McIver
Oh, I loved reviewing this book, it was like a time machine back to a golden age, one that importantly still continues, as Motorhead are still as awesome as ever.
All Pens Blazing: A Rock & Heavy Metal Writer’s Handbook, Volumes 1 & 2, by Neil Daniels
All Pens Blazing is less a guidebook and much more a map to heavy metal writing. Anyone interested in a back-stage view of the rock music industry will get a kick out of these two volumes.
Orgasmatron: The Heavy Metal Art of Joe Petagno
If the title, or Orgasmatron image on its cover, wasn’t enough, the foreword – in the words of Lemmy Kilmister himself – marks this coffin table eye-catcher a worthy piece of Motörhead paraphernalia. And it’s Petagno hand, after all, that gave the band’s viciously iconic mascot its unmistakable face.
Mean Deviation: Four Decades of Progressive Heavy Metal by Jeff Wagner
Mean Deviation is an amazing compendium of everything weird in the world of metal—a book as grand and unlikely as the music it documents.
AC/DC: High-Voltage Rock ‘n’ Roll: The Ultimate Illustrated History, by Phil Sutcliffe
“Written by veteran British music writer Phil Sutcliffe, High Voltage Rock ‘n’ Roll follows the model set by the Jim DeRogatis book on the Velvet Underground: a good sized, hard-bound book crammed with extensive essays and a plethora of band photos and memorabilia. However, seeing how a) we’ve already seen numerous AC/DC biographies come along over the years, and b) the band put out an illustrated coffee table book as part of last year’s Backtracks extravaganza, just how essential is Sutcliffe’s volume?”
Adrien Begrand reviews AC/DC: High-Voltage Rock ‘n’ Roll: The Ultimate Illustrated History, the new book by Phil Sutcliffe
Book Review: From The Graveyard Of The Arousal Industry By Justin Pearson
From The Graveyard Of The Arousal Industry isn’t a perfect book, but it’s a very good one. Metal and punk fans often greet the world with a raised middle finger and a grimace; this book is about how a wry smile and a good joke will take you much further.
Book review – Only Death is Real: An Illustrated History of Hellhammer and Early Celtic Frost 1981–1985
Like many pioneers, Hellhammer took their lumps from everyone, including its own members. They were hobbled by geography and underdeveloped talent, but they built a great mystique around themselves as they toiled to spread their malodorous gospel, only to be sent back to the drawing board after every recording session and demo release. This unlikely but glorious book celebrates their restless existence and enduring influence. It all goes to prove that history—this little slice of history, anyway—is written by the victors.
Rob Hughes reviews the new Hellhammer photo/history book, Only Death Is Real, released recently by Bazillion Points.