Chad Bowar: How did the idea for Decibel’s “Hall Of Fame” interview series come about?
Albert Mudrian: I conceived the Hall of Fame as a nice excuse for us to talk about our favorite records. I'm a pretty nostalgic guy and I still love dozens of the albums that I worshiped in high school, so the success of the Hall of Fame article suggests that there are actually plenty more dorks just like me who can't really grow out of certain classic albums. I always wondered why other publications never did anything like this until I discovered what a complete nightmare it is to assemble every month. I honestly can’t remember the last time one of these features went smoothly. There’s always some unwilling band member, or someone who’s since left the band who proves difficult to track down, but in the end, it’s obviously worth the work.
What was the response from the music industry and the fans?
It’s been overwhelmingly positive. It’s become the magazine’s most popular feature, which, I guess, is kinda surprising. I think a lot of industry people were shocked to see us regularly devoting six or seven pages of editorial real estate to old records, but I think it’s important for a music magazine to provide a sense of history to its readership. Yes, you want to feature exciting new bands – and I think if you take a look at some of our past cover stars, you’ll see that we aren’t afraid to occasionally take risks, and are often ahead of the curve on a lot of bands and movements – but it’s important for people to realize that extreme metal has been going strong for nearly three decades. And it’s never going away. I think the HOF hammers that point home very month.
What was the impetus to collect them in book form?
I just thought that the stories would be really effective of they were anthologized. Also, we had a lot of extra material that I felt deserved to see the light of day in print. Plus, it seems like a great way to promote the magazine in some mainstream media outlets (like About.com!) through reviews of the book.
How did you choose which ones to use for Precious Metal?
It was a combination of the pieces I felt that were the best, pure stories and what were some truly indispensable records. Sometimes, you get an amazing story on a genre-defining album (Repulsion’s Horrified). Other times you take a great, but perhaps not universally revered album, like Monster Magnet’s Dopes to Infinity and you uncover an amazing back story.
What extra material is there in the book compared to the original magazine articles?
Even though a HOF piece is normally upwards of 5,000 words in the magazine, there’s always tons of material on the cutting room floor that we just don’t have the space for. The HOF pieces on Opeth’s Orchid record and Cannibal Corpse’s Tomb of Mutilated album, in particular, are nearly twice the length of the features that original ran in Decibel. Plus, I contributed an extensive HOF on Darkthrone’s Transilvanian Hunger that hasn’t been previously published in the magazine. I like to think of it as the book’s “bonus track.”
Which HOF feature was the most difficult to set up?
Metallica’s And Justice for All. You could pretty much write a book about assembling that HOF, but I really don’t wanna get too into the specifics, since I’ll surely say something now that I’ll regret later. And, it didn’t make the cut for the book, which will probably surprise a lot of people, but I think it’s just further illustrates the strength of the albums that are in it.
What were some of the revelations or insights that surprised you the most?
Man, there are just too many to mention. Mostly, it’s the hilarious anecdotes that seem to stick with me the most. The bit from the In the Nightside Eclipse Hall of Fame where former Emperor bassist Tchort recalls Varg Vikernes parading around Grieghallen studios in full chain mail eating ice cream during the recording of the Nightside record -- that’s just priceless.
If this book is successful, will there be a part 2?
Honestly, that’s up to the publisher, Da Capo. As of July 2009, we’ve completed 55 HOF articles, so there’s certainly enough material to put together a second volume right now. Ideally, it would be great to produce another volume every two years or so, but that will obviously be dependant on the success of this book.
Tell us about the book release concert in NYC on July 31st.
I just wanted to do something really special, so I asked Repulsion if they’d consider performing a set that included the band’s classic Horrified album in its entirety. Amazingly, they were into it! A promoter friend of mine was already putting together a show in Brooklyn that included Pig Destroyer and Brutal Truth, so we thought it made complete sense to get Repulsion added to the bill to create a grindcore gala event. Unbelievably, this will be Repulsion’s first New York City show ever, so if you’re in the area, do yourself a favor and come check it out. It’s taken them almost 25 years to get there and there’s no guarantee they will ever be back!
