Author: Snowy Shaw
Publisher: Wunderworld Music
Price: $38 /€32 (multiple editions are available)
In order to avoid coming as a “know it all”, I will bluntly admit that I knew Snowy Shaw as that cool-looking drummer in KING DIAMOND, MEMENTO MORI (what a cool band that was!), DREAM EVIL and THERION (not as a drummer though). However, the more I squeezed my brain, the more I realized that this tall, white-haired musician has been involved in more stuff that I had previously noted, but for some reason, was not able to recall right away. Maybe my urge to connect all the Snowy dots and establish a timeline in his music endeavors was my motivation to get his autobiography, cleverly titled “The Book Of Heavy Metal”. By the way, this was my first encounter with DREAM EVIL and, in fact, I interviewed Gus G back then.
I love reading biographies from Metal/Rock artists because I believe I get to see what’s going on behind the scenes and maybe get some interesting insights of how that album or that song was created. Sure, reading about all sorts of shenanigans is entertaining too, but we all (should) agree that some of these ‘impossible’ stories are served with a grain (or multiple grains) of salt as they have been exaggerated and blown out of proportions just to make the writer look cool(er). Honestly, I’m full of such stories, although I still enjoy fast-reading them and only spend more time when it feels that the writer has returned to earth. And this is why it took me more time than usual to go through Snowy’s storytelling because it feels like he likes to stay on earth – but let’s take first things first, shall we?
It is worth to note that there is only one writer credited here, meaning that the text has not been ‘adjusted’, ‘changed’ or heavily edited to make it more accessible or even politically correct. How do I know this? Well, having gone through a significant amount of autobiographies, I’ve started recognizing patterns and similarities in the structure, and even in the English used. There is a personal character in Snowy’s writing style, and after some pages, you’ll get the sense that you’re listening him talking. The new element in “The Book Of Heavy Metal” is the nonlinear storytelling, meaning that one story will stop and continue several pages later with some back and forth in the timeline. Confusing? In the beginning it might be, but once you get the hang of it, you will enjoy it and in the end, find yourself going through the pages like potato chips. And there are like 444 chips… Yeah, it’s a big one, and if you add the smaller than usual font, you should understand that there is a lot going on here. The smaller font is my only complaint though, because my eyes were strained after a couple of hours. OK, I am not a youngster anymore, and maybe I should start using reading glasses…
Another thing that falls outside of the usual autobiography-template is having pictures everywhere and not just at the middle of the book. On top of this, Snowy has added some cool comic-styled drawings and even a bonus section at the end with more photos. The English are easy to follow and you will have no issue. Wherever some explanation / translation is needed, Snowy has taken care of this.
I loved the stories about MEMENTO MORI (come on, Messiah!), DREAM EVIL and the often scary stories from the SABATON bus from hell (well, almost). Snowy shines light on the DIMMU BORGIR adventure and seems honest when he is discussing his personal stories touching upon his love relations. Not a fan of those, but it really paints a vivid picture of the struggles and challenges a touring musicians has to face, being on the road for a really long time.
For the aforementioned reasons and for a boatload more, I would propose adding “The Book Of Heavy Metal” in your Xmas gift lists, and spend an entertaining time as you try to follow Snowy all around the world. Now, I am curious to check his solo stuff and NOTRE DAME, even though he may have removed some of the mystery of the latter... (I am sorry, no spoilers here)
+Pros The nonlinear storytelling keeps the reading interesting, and I think it gives a taste of how chaotic the life of a touring musician can be. Great to read more info on bands I like, but really did not know much because it was during the “no-internet” days.
-Cons As I said, the smaller font size was a bit of a challenge for my kind of old eyes, but I understand the book would have been like a bible, size-wise... (“The Bible Of Heavy Metal” - does have a ring to it, right?)