For The Sake Of Heaviness: The History Of Metal Blade Records

By: Brian Slagel with Mark Eglinton
Released: August 29, 2017
192 pages
Publisher: BMG

Presenting a time when there was still some mystery behind your favorite bands, and discovering new music took some hard work and dedication. For The Sake Of Heaviness: The History Of Metal Blade Records isn’t just a book about a record label, it’s also the story of the metal scene that was springing up around it. Well worth picking up for anyone interested in the birth of the metal genre, and one of its defining labels.

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Metal Blade Records was founded at a time when the burgeoning metal scene was just beginning to emerge. It was a time when being a fan of underground music required hard work and dedication. This was a time well before the internet with its instant access to music on a global scale. Instead, most people learned about new music through word-of-mouth and tape trading, and discovering a new band required money and faith in equal parts because there wasn’t a way to ‘try before you buy’.  People had to find their music in catalogs in the back of independent music publications, and then wait the weeks it required to mail an order and get the music in return. This is where the story of Metal Blade Records begins… with a teenage Brian Slagel trying to do everything he could to discover new bands and immerse himself in the emerging metal scene. This is also why For The Sake Of Heaviness: The History Of Metal Blade Records works, because the history of Metal Blade Records is so intertwined with the beginning of the metal genre that the book can’t help but be a history of both.

As if to drive that point home, the book opens with a forward from Lars Ulrich of Metallica. For those of you that are unaware, it turns out that Metal Blade Records and Metallica’s early histories are also very intertwined. Scattered throughout the early portions of the book, we learn that Lars Ulrich and Brian Slagel were friends well before there was a band and a record label. In fact, when Brian Slagel was first toying with the idea of releasing a compilation album, he offered Lars a spot on the album. At that time Lars didn’t even have a band, it was just an agreement between two friends. For those that are interested in the birth of a scene, these early chapters are chock full of stories of a time long past. From seeing Motley Crue playing live when they were still a heavier, Judas Priest-inspired band to the effort it took to get music from bands in Europe and vice versa.

A few of Metal Blade’s earliest releases.

It’s so cool to read about how the initial metal scene was such a grass-roots movement where fans and bands had to be actively involved in order to make the whole scene better. It seemed like everyone had their own bootleg tapes of various concerts and a fanzine with a distribution in the dozens. It turns out, this is where Brian Slagel started too. He was just a teenager trying to find new bands and get the word out on some of his favorites in the process. He did the fanzine thing, he worked at a record store, he traded tapes and sent off for European albums you couldn’t buy locally. In fact, the first Metal Massacre album wasn’t the result of Brian starting a record label; the record label was a result of the first Metal Massacre release which was just the result of Brian trying to get some of his favorite bands/friends some exposure.

Some early Metal Blade reccomendations

There’s an interesting story that comes from the time of the first Metal Massacre release. When the first pressing of what would become Metal Massacre was being put together, Metallica almost missed the cutoff because they only really existed as a name at that point. More so, the only reason they were given a slot on the album in the first place was because Brian and Lars were friends, and Lars asked to be on the album if he could get a band together. There wasn’t a deal between lawyers and reps, it was a couple of buddies putting back some beers and listening to some music. That’s also why the first version of “Hit The Lights” only features James, Lars, and their buddy Lloyd Grant — because there wasn’t actually a band yet. “Hit The Lights” was a song by James Hetfield’s previous band, Leather Charm, that was hastily recorded by James and Lars the night before it was due to Brian Slagel. The guitar solo was performed by their friend and was literally recorded on the way to drop the song off. Lars and James had no choice but to do it that way because they still weren’t really a functioning band, but they really wanted on the compilation.

Metallica: Hit The Lights (Metal Massacre, 1st Pressing)
James Hetfield: Rhythm Guitar/Bass/Vocals, Lars Ulrich: Drums, Lloyd Grant: Guitar Solos

Of course,  I have no intention of ruining every cool story in the book, but it does serve as a great example of what can be found within its pages. In addition to the Lars connection, there are also stories and interviews involving other notable bands that got their start (or at least some help) from Brian and Metal Blade Records. These include The Goo Goo Dolls, Slayer, Fates Warning, Armored Saint, and Cannibal Corpse to name a few. They all recount, in their own words, their earliest days and their connection to Brian Slagel and his label. Again, that is really the main draw of For The Sake Of Heaviness: The History Of Metal Blade Records — the label and Brian Slagel were so involved in the early metal scene that you can’t help but learn about a little metal history along the way. It also presents a pretty unified picture of Brian Slagel as a music lover that runs his label to this day as a music lover and not a business man (much to the chagrin of his accountants and lawyers).

Metal Blade has definitely had some diverse releases.

A vast majority of the book seems to focus on the label’s first decade; and why not? Those were the youthful years where Brian was flying by the seat of his pants. He was running the label out of his mother’s garage and making decisions with no real idea that he was building his own future. The book also goes into the alternative rock years in the 90s and how the label managed to get by. There’s some good stories from that era that are well worth reading, as well. Let me just say that much like the punk guys in the 80s couldn’t be associated with metal, the alternative rock bands felt they had to hide any love of the genre too, and it leads to few entertaining moments. The book ends in the modern era with Brian Slagel sharing his philosophy on the internet, the modern metal scene, as well as his vision for the label going forward. It seems as long as Brian maintains the philosophy he has presented in For The Sake Of Heaviness: The History Of Metal Blade Records, the label is in good hands.

A few personal recommendations.

Final Words:

I admit to being a bit skeptical about a book highlighting the history of a company, even if it is a record label focusing on metal. Why would I care about the ups-and-downs of a business, especially when I know it survives into the present day? I mean, where’s the hook in that? It turns out the hook is the way in which the history of Metal Blade Records is presented. Brian Slagel (and by extension his label) was around for the beginning of the metal movement, and his stories from that time make up quite a bit of For The Sake Of Heaviness: The History Of Metal Blade Records’ pages. It was very interesting learning about just how invested fans were back then and just how much work had to be put into really finding those undiscovered gems. It was also cool to read from some of the bands themselves as they talked about those first days, and Metal Blade Records’ part in their own personal histories. It shows beyond a shadow of a doubt that Brian Slagel was in it for his love of the music; something bands that are currently on his label still attest to. Brian Slagel’s stories of working his label out of his mom’s garage while scraping money together to finance fanzines and concert trips is really cool. As are his stories from the 90s alternative rock era and even his opinion on the current scene and Metal Blade’s place in it. Anyone that has any interest in the origin of the metal genre and one of its most influential labels owes it to themselves to read For The Sake Of Heaviness: The History Of Metal Blade Records because it’s not just a boring book about some business.

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To pre-order For the Sake of Heaviness: The History of Metal Blade Records, please visit: Indie Merch – where an exclusive box-set is available, with the following contents:

–For the Sake of Heaviness: The History of Metal Blade Records book
–For the Sake of Heaviness cassette
–Metal Blade Records 35th anniversary bookmark
–bookplate autographed by Brian Slagel
* box dimensions: 9.375″ x 6.375″ x 1.25″

For the Sake of Heaviness cassette track-listing:
SIDE A
1. Fates Warning “Guardian”
2. Lizzy Borden “Lord of the Flies”
3. Omen “Holy Martyr”
4. Cirith Ungol “Black Machine”
5. GWAR “Gor-Gor”
6. Cannibal Corpse “Stripped, Raped, and Strangled”
7. Six Feet Under “War Is Coming”
SIDE B
1. Mercyful Fate “Egypt”
2. King Diamond “Voodoo”
3. The Black Dahlia Murder “Funeral Thirst”
4. Unearth “Black Hearts Now Reign”
5. Amon Amarth “Twilight of the Thunder God”
6. Visigoth “From the Arcane Mists of Prophecy”