KISS THE GOAT

Amid the collections of Dr. Seuss books, travel guides and writings on drinking, Green Apple has some dark and ugly creatures tucked away in some of its dustier corners. These things mutter. They fester at the thought of day and shun the eye of God. Hidden as they may be though, they are not invisible to the naked human eye. It is my humble opinion it's about time to exorcise these demons and bring them out in to the light (i.e. your hands).

If you hadn't already taken a guess, I am talking about all things at Green Apple that one can call nothing but METAL. I don't know if it's just me, but over the last couple of years it seems like there has been a resurgence of interest in this strange and often times frightening subculture.

Shorty after Peter Beste's 2008 release of his book True Norwegian Black Metal (currently unavailable through our distributor, sadly) I think just about every stockpiled copy of Lords of Chaos flew off our shelves. The 2007 Two Hunters album by Wolves in the Throne Room sold a couple of extra copies around that time, as did the 2008 self titled album by Krallice. Of course, maybe that didn't have so much to do with the aforementioned hit book as it did the Winter Solstice. Even the most brutal of all men delight in a thoughtful gift, right?

Now in no way is it possible for me to cover in brief the eighty million variants of metal; death, black, speed, grind, thrash, etc. The legends are out there though, and they are in print. These are books containing grim tales of a lifestyle that goes far beyond a musical preference, maybe dancing a little on the brink of insanity. From the specifics, such as the 33&1/3's coverage of the importance of Reign in Blood, to the broader histories like Lords of Chaos, Swedish Death Metal, or Choosing Death, there are stories of murder, suicide, (a particularly famous one was used as an album cover) church burnings and some seriously strange rituals from a fanatical scene.

Then again, perhaps none of this is of any real interest to you. Perhaps the abyss just rolled its eyes and never stared back. I just felt like mentioning it I guess. To be clear though, there is something for everyone here at Green Apple. Even for people who bury their clothes six feet deep before wearing them to infuse them with the essence of the grave (I'm not making this up!). Just don't take it all too seriously.