Louder Than Hell
The Definitive Oral History of Metal
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5.0 • 2 Ratings
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- £8.99
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- £8.99
Publisher Description
The definitive oral history of heavy metal music, Louder Than Hell by renowned music journalists Jon Wiederhorn and Katherine Turman includes hundreds of uncensored interviews with the giants of the movement, conducted over the past 25 years.
Unlike many forms of popular music, metalheads tend to embrace their favorite bands and follow them over decades. Metal is not only a pastime for the true aficionados; it’s a lifestyle and obsession that permeates every aspect of their being. A must-read piece of music history, Louder Than Hell is an examination of that cultural phenomenon and the much-maligned genre of music that has stood the test of time.
This definitive rock biography, Louder than Hell, features more than 250 interviews with some of the biggest bands in metal, including Black Sabbath, Metallica, Megadeth, Anthrax, Slayer, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, Spinal Tap, Pantera, White Zombie, Slipknot, and Twisted Sister; insights from industry insiders, family members, friends, scenesters, groupies, and journalists; and 48 pages of full-color photographs.
This is the story of metal in the words of the icons who lived it:
Sex, Drugs, and Rock and Roll: Uncensored stories from the tour bus, the studio, and the hotel room with bands like Led Zeppelin, Mötley Crüe, and Pantera.The Birth of Subgenres: Trace the evolution of thrash, death, black, and glam metal through firsthand accounts from pioneers like Slayer, Black Sabbath, and Twisted Sister.Behind-the-Scenes Stories: Go beyond the music with insights from industry insiders, family members, friends, and the groupies who saw it all.Band Rivalries and Alliances: Read the real stories of bitter feuds and surprising friendships, from Ozzy’s split with Sabbath to the rise of Metallica.Rare Photographs: Features 48 pages of full-color photographs, many never before seen, capturing metal’s most iconic moments.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Compiled from over 250 interviews conducted by the long-time music journalists Wiederhorn and Turman over the past 25 years, this work conveys the history of heavy metal through the words of the men and women who created it, played it, re-invented it, and continue to carry the torch for this much-loved and much-maligned subgenre of rock 'n' roll. Bookended by an introduction by Anthrax's Scott Ian and an afterword by Judas Priest's Rob Halford, metal's lifespan is broken up into chapters that tell the story of metal in chronological order, basically starting with Black Sabbath's formation in the late '60s to the death of Slipknot's Paul Gray in 2010. For those looking for all the classic touchstone moments of heavy metal, they are here, including Ronnie James Dio perfecting the metal "devil horns," Ozzy Osbourne biting the head off a bat, the debauchery of the L.A. glam scene, Kiss's Gene Simmons "over 4,600 liaisons," and Alice Cooper killing a chicken on stage. But the authors dig deeper into the other hard rock related stories, like black metal death that included Norwegian Count Grishnackh murdering fellow countryman and musician Euronymous, and the Swedish frontman of the band Dissection Jon N dtveidt "helping to kill" a gay man in 1997. While proponents of classic bands such as Iron Maiden or AC/DC may take issue with the inclusion of rap-rock band Limp Bizkit, alternative act Marilyn Manson, or industrial group Nine Inch Nails in a book about metal, the authors inclusiveness give this examination a weight that is just as heavy as the music. (Color photos not seen by PW.)
