Sound of the Beast

All I knew about heavy metal beforehand was that I wanted to know more. Sound of the Beast filled in the blanks, and surprised me a lot. It's a little overwhelming, but what did I expect? Overall, I was left feeling a lot more respect for metal -- this is really the book that metalheads deserve. They were the rejected, and they built their own universe. Powerful stuff, and plenty funny and scary at times. It's an instant classic, and the lists are very useful, too.

There is not a bad thing I can say about this book. I found it insightful and most historic. It took me back to many of the bands that I grew up listening to and renewed my appreciation of heavy music as I watched it form. Being in my mid thirites I grew along with this stuff and also played a lot of it in my band. So it was interesting reliving some of the legendry and also some of the fictions we always heard. It is broken up over the years and focuses on the music of that time and how it all broke off from metal in one way or another. The part that was most alarming was the section of Scandinavian Death Metal. Whoa was that harsh stuff.I recommend this book to fans of the genre in particular, and pretty much fans of rock music, since so many of the acts listed arrived at their stylings based on the classics of the 60's and 70's. A great read straight through from page one to page 400.

Having read quite a few music histories and biographies, the one thing that really stands out about Ian Christe's book is the writing; in a word, superb! Many of the reviews of this book that I've read miss this and gripe, simply because their favorite bands did not get enough coverage. Sure I could complain that Black Flag or the Obsessed or Corrosion of Conformity doesn't get enough coverage, but that wouldn't change the fact that Metallica is simply the most important band in metal. Doesn't mean they are the best, but they, more than any other band, are responsible for metal being as popular as it is today. Christe nails it on the head that heavy metal really started with Sabbath (I like Zeppelin, the Who and Hendrix too, but they were rock bands and spawned an entirely different generation of music). EVERY metal band around owes a debt to Sabbath (for the heaviness, the look, and the orchestration). In addition, he does an excellent job of covering the whole metal scene and a brilliant job in breaking down the genre by sub-genre. The fact that bands such as the Accused, Die Kreuzen and Exodus are mentioned is awesome and the depth and breadth of metal knowledge that Christe has accumulated over the years is impressive. If you are interested in the hard rock-punk evolution, read Rock and the Pop Narcotic (Joe Carducci). For metal, this is the book. Hats off to you Ian! Great book!

Having heard that there was an author out there attempting to summarize the past 33 years of metal in a single volume, I was shocked and awed at the superb quality of the outcome. Christe begins with Black Sabbath I and quickly moves forward with his battle plan -- almost nothing escapes his field of vision along the way. The pop culture moments -- like Van Halen's arrival on the scene, MTV's discovery of metal, Crue's Shout at the Devil, and Metallica's big crossover in the 90s -- float like beacons above a morass of fascinating detail on bands like Celtic Frost, Napalm Death, Sepultura, and the creepy crawlers of Norway. Nobody has done better at depicting the difference between Stryper and Deicide, two bands at the opposite poles of planet metal. If your idea of heavy metal is Guns N Roses, you will enjoy this book immensely -- if you swear by Slayer, Metallica, and Megadeth, Sound of the Beast will outright be your Bible, read and re-read until its pages are tattered and torn.

I was quickly hooked on this wide-ranging history of the origins of metal music. Expect late nights, factoids you never would have guessed, and background on worthy bands you never knew existed. All that's missing is a sampler CD! When you have read it, you will be much more aware of metal's place in the music business AND you will have a list of new and old bands to seek out. More and more headbangin' music!! What's not to like!