Black Metal Revolution - A Question Of Duplicates

Black Metal Revolution Blog #3 - Originally posted at Metal Maniacs March 13th, 2010

For those of you who may not of heard of this project, Black Metal Revolution is a forthcoming book that will profile a series of black metal musicians and artists from across the ages discussing their most revered black metal record.

The approach is as subjective as you will and the goal is to capture the personal experience of the person writing as well as something of the essence they have drawn from the record in question.

Take a look at a selection of previews from the book to gain a better idea by clicking here.

A question I have found myself answering a lot of late is one pertaining to duplicate entries. The answer is yes, there will be duplicate submissions. Can you really imagine only one person wanting to write about ‘Under The Sign Of The Black Mark’? Naturally, I can’t have a book filled with 200 commentaries on Bathory, so I have to cap it somewhere, but the idea of the book is not for people to find records that they alone can write about; rather, the point is for the artist writing to express for the readers just what it is that the record they are writing about means to them.

When you think about it, even the greatest records hold zero significance if people don’t listen to them and neglect to bestow acclaim onto them. Without getting into debate as to what even constitutes “the greatest”, the book is looking to hear from people who have themselves made contributions, be they musical or artistic, and what it is that makes their most revered records the cult classics they believe them to be. So if five people wrote about ‘Under The Sign Of The Black Mark’ ideally those five experiences are different and engaging enough to inspire readers as well as providing insights into the authors of the piece. While a select few exclusives have been granted, it’s not something I want to do too much of and on a case by case basis this will continually be assessed.

The other peril of course with granting exclusives is that the opportunity to write about your most acclaimed record may be lost. An individual enamoured with the book’s idea and concept sees that ‘Fallen Angel Of Doom’ has already been written about. Are they not to be included? Is the assumption to be made that whoever got to it first proffered an all encompassing essay on this opus? The answer is NO! The way that certain records inspire and are seen as revolutionary is dependent on more than existence alone. What lurks within the grooves of these illustrious platters is something potentially unique for all who indulge.

I mentioned earlier the inclusion of musicians and artists. I am really blown away to reveal that I received a piece from none other than Joe Petagno this week. A really killer offering on none other than Bathory. For those unfamiliar with Joe, check out a troupe called Motorhead and you’ll get an idea of what’s Joe’s art is all about. And in addition to that, Dennis Dread has recently revealed the new Darkthrone cover as well as his acceptance of our invitation to be part of the book.

For more on these amazing artists:

Joe Petagno's official site
Dennis Dread's official site