Hard Read |
"The Sound of the Beast"Ian Christie by Paul Autry I managed to get through this book, cover to cover, in a single day. It wasn't because I had to write a review. It was the fact that it was good enough to make me feel like I couldn't put it down. After taking in the wealth of knowledge that's contained within this book, there's a few thoughts that came to mind and I'll try to present them here as best as I can. First of all, it's a well written book that gives you a lot of information that most people should already know. But, that information is presented here in a more organized fashion, which is what really gives you an idea of how heavy metal came into being and became what it is today. We begin our story on Friday, February 13th, 1970. On this day, Black Sabbath would release their debut release and heavy metal, as we know it, was born. From here, we're introduced to Judas Priest, Motorhead, Kiss, AC/DC, Scorpions and many others. We're told of the history, how these bands came into the picture to create a musical force that's still growing to this day. Besides a healthy dose of Black Sabbath, we're also given a lot of insight to the rise of Metallica which, when you think about it, is probably the best band to use in this context. "Sound Of The Beast" takes you on a journey that also explores various styles of music, including punk, doom, death, hardcore, alternative, thrash and black metal...and pretty much anything else you can think of. This book covers it all...well, most of it anyway. There was hardly any mention of Doro Pesch. You can't have a history of heavy metal without looking into the career of Doro Pesch. Also, when talking about the rock and rap world coming together, there's a little on the Anthrax classic, "I'm The Man," as well as "Bring The Noise." But, no mention of the Metal MC album "Born To Party," which was one of the first full length releases to explore the whole rock and rap combination. Finally...there's no mention of Grim Reaper, who gave us the classic "See You In Hell" album or Helix, who have been around, in one form or another, for the past 30 years...and they're still going. "Sound Of The Beast" also touches on the subject of subliminal messages in heavy metal. I feel this was a topic that should have been explored a bit more due to the fact that backward masking was, at one time, used as a way to bring down heavy metal. Led Zepplin, Queen, AC/DC and a lot of big names came under fire for this back in the day. Even Michael Jackson and Madonna were accused of trying to corrupt the youth of America with hidden messages in their music. I wouldn't go so far as to call this the "definitive" book on heavy metal. A "definitive" book, in my opinion, will never be written due to the fact that it would have to be three times the size of the Bible...if not more...and, besides, I don't believe the true spirit of heavy metal can ever be contained in a single book. But, I would say that "Sound Of The Beast" gives you a better understanding of the music and it's something that any true heavy metal fan should read. We wouldn't be where we are today without the history that's contained within this book. It's all here to sink your teeth into and that's just what I would suggest doing. |
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