In the 1980s, heavy metal went mainstream. The dark themes and brain-busting riffage of bands like Black Sabbath and Deep Purple suddenly fell out of favor--replaced by a new legion of metalheads whose themes of girls, partying, girls, drugs, and girls were presented amid shredding solos and power ballads and who were, for some reason, more acceptable to the masses.
In this ultimate guide to the subgenre, acclaimed heavy-metal
journalist Martin Popoff examines hair metal in an
all-encompassing oral history jacked up by a kaleidoscope of outrageous
and previously unpublished quotes, anecdotes, photos, and memorabilia.
The Big Book of Hair Metal
features the observations of dozens of musicians, producers, promoters,
label execs, and hanger-ons in examining hair metal's rise and fall as
well as all the bands that kept Aqua Net in business through the Reagan
recession: Twisted Sister, Bon Jovi, Poison, Mötley Crüe, Ratt, Warrant,
Great White, Whitesnake, Cinderella, Vixen, Skid Row, L.A. Guns, Guns
N' Roses, and dozens more.
In crafting a narrative of hair metal, Popoff
also examines the factors that contributed to the movement's rise
(including MTV, Reagan's "morning in America," and a general move toward
prudish morals); the bands that inspired it (the Sweet, New York Dolls,
Alice Cooper, and KISS, for a start); and the scenes that nurtured it
(the Sunset Strip, anyone?). The ride finally ended circa 1991, when
hair metal was replaced by grunge, but what a ride it was. Here it is in
all of its primped-up glory.
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