Extremity Retained: Notes from the Death Metal Underground
Extremity Retained: Notes from the Death Metal Underground (Handshake Inc) By Jason Netherton In 2013, Jon Wiederhorn and Katherine Turman released their ambitiously titled…
book review
Do You Have Anything to Declare? By Kevin Stewart-Panko and Justin Smith
It’s a brilliant idea for a book and for the most part, the idea is brilliantly executed. Stewart-Panko and Smith have done an admirable job of gathering and organizing first-hand accounts from dozens of metal/hardcore scene luminaries, including members of Red Fang, Fuck the Facts, KEN Mode, Jucifer, Brutal Truth, Dying Fetus, and Dillinger Escape Plan. Needless to say, their stories are alternately illuminating, hilarious, and cringe-worthy.
Metalion : The Slayer Mag Diaries
Metalion is one of the greatest books about metal ever produced.
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.
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.
GIMME AN R! – THE STORY OF BRIAN VOLLMER, LEAD VOCALIST OF HELIX
Gimme an R! is one of those books that’s so bad, it’s awesome.