It's one of the great debates in musicology and the answer is as complicated as it is hotly contested. Popoff's Who Invented Heavy Metal? provides the most detailed, well argued, reasonable, ridiculously complete, and most lively and readable telling of the early history of heavy metal yet, arming the argumentative headbanger with all the facts and figures one needs on hand to win those bar room bets around this provocative question. Ultimately, Who Invented Heavy Metal? aims to be a book that doesn't limit itself to heavy metal fans. The book provides wide instructional scope of teachable moments through unfolding, subconscious, telling by osmosis of the very history of heavy metal's origins through events inside the genre but, surprisingly, many events outside of its own kerranging reverberations. Divided into four parts: Trace Elements: 1250 BC - 1966, beginning with the Battle Of Jericho through shocking concerts in ancient Greece, Vikings, Paganini, the blues, the invention of the electric guitar and why Little Richard, Elvis, Eddie Cochran, Jerry Lee Lewis - but most notably, Johnny Burnette, might be called the first headbangers. Lead: 1967 - 1969: Discussing extreme vocals, distortion, feedback, guitar heroes, psychedelics, amplification, the first riffs, the first power chords and the first heavy metal songs. Steel: 1970: where Martin argues for the "real" or "correct" answer to the titular question being Black Sabbath given their groundbreaking Black Sabbath album, but also that band's Paranoid, Uriah Heep's debut, and most important of this set of three, Deep Purple's In Rock. Dozens of other bands are discussed as well. Titanium: 1971: In the final stretch Popoff talks about the wildest, heaviest full albums of 1971. Readers should come away with a new way to look at this question, whether they become convinced of Martin's arguments completely or not!

Taking cue from the do-it-yourself attitude of their country's punk movement, Britain's up-and-coming heavy metal bands that comprised the New Wave of British Heavy Metal (NWOBHM) were not content to wait for record labels to come knocking. Instead, they took to issuing their own music, typically in the form of 7 inch singles but also 12s and full-length album, many indie, some on small labels, and some on the major labels smart enough to get on board (essentially EMI and MCA). Martin Popoff, writer of more record reviews than anybody in history across all genres), has undertaken the task of documenting virtually every record large and small from heavy metal's most fabled period (beginning essentially in `79 with a hard stop at 1983) providing catalogue information, mini reviews as only he can do, plus a gob of thumbnails of those wonderful 7" picture sleeves and LP covers. Additional features: * Includes hundreds of rare 45 picture sleeve and album cover images. * Every record rated out of 10. * Layout designed so that LPs are distinguished from 7", 10" and 12" singles/EPs. * Label, year of release and catalogue number for almost every entry. * Two appendices, displaying all 9's and 10's for singles as opposed to LPs.

Extreme metal--one step beyond heavy metal--can appear bizarre or terrifying to the uninitiated. Extreme metal musicians have developed an often impenetrable sound that teeters on the edge of screaming, incomprehensible noise. Extreme metal circulates on the edge of mainstream culture within the confines of an obscure 'scene', in which members explore dangerous themes such as death, war and the occult, sometimes embracing violence, neo-fascism and Satanism. In the first book-length study of extreme metal, Keith Kahn-Harris draws on first-hand research to explore the global extreme metal scene. He shows how the scene is a space in which members creatively explore destructive themes, but also a space in which members experience the everyday pleasures of community and friendship.Including interviews with band members and fans, from countries ranging from the UK and US to Israel and Sweden, Extreme Metal: Music and Culture on the Edge demonstrates the power and subtlety of an often surprising and misunderstood musical form.

Foreword by Whitesnake bassist Neil Murray, over 130 concert photos from UK gigs as far back as their third ever gig in Wolverhampton on the first "back to the roots" tour-Birmingham on the band's first full scale UK tour promoting the debut album Trouble, by which time Coverdale's former Deep Purple band mate Jon Lord had joined. The Deep Purple connection continued when drummer Ian Paice joined in 1979 in time for the band's first appearance at the Reading Festival in 1979 from which there are many photos included along with shots from later in the year during the Lovehunter Tour. The concert photos conclude with shots from their appearance at the 1981 Monsters Of Rock Festival. Visions of Whitesnake also contains a superb range of photos from the personal collection of bassist Neil Murray who collaborated on this publication. Armed with his trusty Pentax, Neil was always on hand to catch the band in many different situations and locations. His collection includes photos from several recording sessions-Lovehunter album at Clearwell Castle, Come an' Get It at Startling Studios and the sessions for the Saints & Sinners album in the Autumn of 1981. Neil's collection also includes many backstage, off stage and soundcheck shots from the first Japanese tour in 1980, UK and German tours from the same year as well as the US tour where they supported Jethro Tull. Neil kept diaries during his years in the band and these have helped Neil to add his memories and recollections to go alongside many of the photos making this a wonderful addition to any Whitesnake collection.