Библейско: Хевиметъл писания

by Rob Halford, Роб Халфорд, Сибин Майналовски (Translator)

ЩЕ КРЕЩЯ ДО ПРИПАДЪК В РАЯ ИЛИ В АДА!
Самият Метъл бог ще ви проповядва!

БИБЛЕЙСКО – хевиметъл писания, е още една „Изповед“ на Роб Халфорд от „Джудас Прийст“. Защото кое е по-библейско от това – да се изповядаш!

Още по-искрен, още по-непримирим, още по-яростен, когато защитава схващанията си! Наистина е библейски по своите мащаби този потоп от спомени и разсъждения, разкази за срещи и раздели, откровения за колебания и за успехи, които Роб споделя.

БИБЛЕЙСКО е изповед за самотата и болестите, за татуировките и наркотиците, за любовта и смъртта.

Роб ще ви довери интимни подробности. Ще ви каже какво мисли за социалните мрежи (ако не сте го последвали, поправете тази грешка) и за реалититата. За парите. За Spotify.

Оголен до болка, ще ви разсмее и ще ви разплаче.

Това е БИБЛЕЙСКОТО пътешествие на Роб Халфорд!

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Autobiography, Biography, Memoir, Audiobook, Rock N Roll

324 pages, Hardcover

Published November 1, 2022

About the author

Rob Halford is a British musician, songwriter and an author. He is best known as the lead vocalist of the Grammy Award-winning heavy metal band Judas Priest. He is famous for his powerful wide-ranging voice and his trademark leather-and-studs image.

Reviews

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was growing up, it seemed like if you were into the NWOBHM, you were either more into Maiden or more into Priest. I confess I was more a huge Maiden fanatic. But damn...every time "You've Got Another Thing Coming" started playing on the radio or MTV, everyone was an acolyte of the Priest! Another confession: Halford always seemed so intimidating and unknowable to me. It was a surprise to me when reading this book, I found that Halford is, in fact, quite funny, humble, and insightful. (And he loves cats!) 😻 I truly enjoyed every word of this.

This book is about Rob's experiences with Judas Priest and everything that goes along with the music business and fame. It has everything: how the band struggled to survive and become successful, to all the ins and outs of touring, merch sales, recording, songwriting, temptations of alcohol/drugs/sex, and how much Rob hates Spotify. And it's notable that he doesn't gossip or slag off on anyone. He's respectful, and that is refreshing.

Throughout the book, Rob offers up his reflections on everything he has learned and experienced in the 50 (FIFTY!) years Priest has been around. I was unaware he had prostate cancer recently, and his musings about the eventual end of the band and his life made my heart ache. You always hope that the people you admire are good. I was pleased to find that Halford (despite scaring me a bit in my teen years) IS a good guy. He's up front about his shortcomings, his addictions, his mistakes. His down to earth talk made me feel like I had sat down across from him and had a long listen over a cup of tea. I learned a lot about Priest, Halford, and the music business, all told in his charming Black Country way. The closing chapter made me tear up. He speaks wisdom gained through his own blood, sweat, and yes, tears, because his life has not been all posh and pretty.

I highly recommend this book to all Metal and rock fans. Hell, I recommend it to everyone, even to those who still subscribe to the Tipper Gore way of thinking because this is a very human guy talking about his work and art and the incredible amounts of work you just do to become successful. I'll be watching when Judas Priest is inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this fall. Well deserved and long overdue!

Mr. Halford, thank you for the decades of music and memories, and thank you for this wonderful read. I hope there will be more to come from you, both in print and in music.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfection. One of the best nonfiction books about rock n' roll I've ever read -- ten times better than his first one (which I did enjoy thoroughly).

[J Earl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Biblical: Rob Halford's Heavy Metal Scriptures, by (you guessed it) Rob Halford, is a fun mix of memoir, advice, and commentary.

I admit to being an early fan of Judas Priest, so I am predisposed to liking this book. I think the first time I saw them was on a Foghat tour in 1978 or so. In other words, they were a part of the long and varied soundtrack of my life.

If you've read Halford's autobiography there is certainly a little overlap, but this is a completely different type of work, so well worth your time. Halford doesn't take himself so seriously that he becomes annoying, which makes the format of this book that much more fun.

There really is some advice in here for aspiring musicians, though admittedly I think of it as more of a heavy metal history (not "the" history but "a" history) with anecdotes and quite a bit of insightful reflection.

Certainly a must read for Priest and heavy metal fans but also for those interested in the history of music in general. While definitely about a specific genre of music, the parts about life on the road largely speak across genres.

Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley.

[༺ Jason ༻ · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently read Confess and enjoyed it. It’s one of the better rock biographies I’ve read. I decided why not read this one. It’s like a detailed look at aspects of his experience in the metal world on select topics…Guitar players, set lists, album covers, etc. Its a great companion to Confess. I actually like it better than Confess in a way. Great read. Horns Up!!! >;)~

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

It seems writing one book isn't enough these days. Just look at David Jason, you know it's getting near Christmas as he has another one, on the shelves, and I'm left wondering just how many books someone can write about themselves, I mean they must be scraping the bottom of the barrel for stories at some point.
Then of course when it's someone you love all that goes out of the window and you're happy to lap up absolutely anything they say. I thought Halford's autobiography 'Confess' was a perfect mix of his personal life and life in Judas Priest but there's always that one person, who writes a review, and says "but I wanted to know more about the music industry" well if you're that person then this is the book for you. This really does cover everything from management, touring, Robs thought on things like Spotify (which he unashamedly hates, good for you Rob) and his thoughts on other band members. Rob says he enjoys a good natter and that's what this books feels like, having a really nice and funny guy tell you about themselves and if you love Rob and Priest then it goes without saying you'll enjoy it.
So go on Rob, give us another book in time for next Christmas, everyone else does.

[Read By Kyle · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book was mildly entertaining, but if you've read Confess, unless you absolutely love Judas Priest or Rob Halford, there's not much reason to pick this one up. It's separated into distinct categories like "Lawyers" and "managers" and "drummers" and "playing shows" and are some random musings on each subject by Halford. I didn't dislike it, but I also didn't consider it time particularly well spent.

[Rahul Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much fun reading this book🤟🔥!!

[Victor · Rating 5 out of 5]

When I was in elementary school my dad and I would listen to music on the way to and from school every single day. We would play a plethora of different artists, and that meant I was naturally locked in to many of the things my dad enjoyed. Thankfully, he and I have always shared a kinship with music and he has constantly inspired me and supported me with not only my musical tastes, but also any of my musical pursuits. Granted, I’ll never get into a realm of being a professional musician or anything like that, but it’s something that he and I have always shared. As opposed to the common story of kids getting into heavy music for the simple fact of subverting expectations of their parents and its inherent rebellious nature, it was the opposite for my dad and I, and something that I will always be thankful for. One of the many artists we would listen to consistently was and still is Judas Priest. My dad grew up listening to them, and consequently so did I. I can’t remember the first song I ever heard from them, but I do recall many memories with my dad listening to many Priest songs in his Pontiac coupe (later a Ford Explorer that we rigged up a fantastic sound system to) with the two of us jamming out singing, me playing air guitar and drums, and having the time of my life. I recall first seeing the Metal Works ‘73 - ‘93 double disc cd in my dad’s car and staring at the artwork over and over again. Looking through the booklet and seeing Rob Halford, to me, the coolest guy I had ever seen (and heard) of. Halford was my hero and my metal idol. And while much of my influence and drive to play guitar came from KK and Glenn, it was Halford, the front man that always stood out to me. To this day, Priest is still my favorite band. They hold such a special place in my heart and always will. I’ve loved this band practically my whole life, their music has carried me through various seasons of life and continues to live on.
Picking up Confess a couple years ago was one of the most entertaining and intriguing music biography reads I’ve experienced in some time. It was such a treat. So naturally, when I heard Biblical was coming out, I had to get my eyeballs on it. This was also, such a treat. I’d say that anyone looking at this should certainly look into reading Confess prior to this book. It’s not a necessity, but you’ll kind of be missing out and doing yourself a disservice if you jump right into this. There’s a bit of a connection between the two where this feels like part continuation, part companion book, so you should certainly pick up both if you can.
It’s also worth noting that while Confess is a bit more of Halford’s personal story and reflection, Biblical feels more akin to a band profile told from the perspective of an individual within the band. That said, there’s still plenty of auto-biographical anecdotes and details to keep this fresh, while there is certainly a heavier (pun intended) focus on the musical/business side of the story in this book. When combining Confess and Biblical, you really get a more fully formed picture of Rob Halford as an individual and as a musician/band mate. At first I wondered what more could there be to tell? To be fair, there is a bit of opinionated talk about this or that subject, and some points that echo or refer directly to stories that appeared in Halford’s first book. Be that as it may, I still found this to be thoroughly enjoyable and a fantastic study into the character and personality of Rob Halford himself. One thing I learned and enjoyed after reading Confess as well as this book is that Rob is unequivocally himself. He doesn’t put on any sort of appearances, he is 100% authentic, and I love that. He pulls no punches when it comes to his level of honesty with regards to himself and his opinions on other subjects. While I can’t say he and I are 100% alike; pretty much like any other human being; I completely respect him for who he is, what he has done, and what he continues to do. For many years, prior to him even releasing a book I always saw him as one of the most relatable and down to earth fellows out there that has arguably reached super star status. He is the Metal God, but to himself, he is just as much a human as you or I, and he fully embraces that and acknowledges it time and time again. He’s incredibly humble, honest, and forthright, the typical of what he would call a “yam-yam” bloke, and I love that about him. Sometimes they say, don’t learn too much about your heroes. We tend to idolize them, put them on a pedestal and when we find out who they are and that they’re flawed humans just like us all, we get disappointed. For me, I’ve always felt connected to Priest and particularly Rob Halford because he is able to connect with such a vast audience because of his authenticity, his genuine love and passion for music and fans, and his hard-working, humble roots, all ideals that I find not only attractive, but relatable. For me, he’s still my hero and probably always will be. Thank you Rob for sharing your story/stories with us, for fighting against adversity and always for inclusivity. I for one, hope you keep screaming your tits off on stage for many more years to come. 🤘🏻

[Steph Elias · Rating 5 out of 5]

Biblical by Rob Halford is basically a heavy metal guide of sorts that talks of everything from producers, tours, groupies, health, and even mental health. It gives some solid advice for aspiring musicians and gives us fans an interesting history of Judas Priest. I found it very well-written and enjoyed everything from the metal facts to the yam-yam dialogue. Throughout the book, Halford comes across as not only smart but funny and empathetic. He never really calls out people who he probably had every right to, he simply wishes them well, and off we go onto the next adventure. I really felt for the band when I read the Spotify parts, I was not familiar with how badly they screw over musicians, and I hope that people will learn a bit from what he says. Reading the book was like sitting and listening to a friend talk, he really comes across as a stand-up guy. Be prepared to go on some Youtube journeys to watch old videos after you get the behind-the-scenes info and yes, there is a yam-yam Black Country dictionary of sorts online which is fun. All in all, this is fantastic and fans and newcomers alike will love this book. If you enjoy this one he has previously released an autobiography called Confess which delves more into his personal life.

[Andrew Ten broek · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an enjoyable read with some good anecdotes and gave the reader a good insight in what it's like to battle to establish one's band as successful heavy metal band. Written crisply, with some British humor and some West Midlands humbleness.

[Brian Cohen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great compliment to Confess about everything involved with being in a band. I’ve always been interested in how those organizations run, and there are great supporting anecdotes for each section. If Confess didn’t have enough fun band stories for you, here they are.

[Mike S. · Rating 4 out of 5]

So much of this book is breaking down how to be in a band and a behind the curtain look at what bands do, what it's like, etc. It was fine but also a bit slow. I think "Confess" would have been the better book for me and I'll get to it too sometime. (My copy of this is a signed first that was an opportunistic grab at B&N in 2022. If presented with both, I'd have gone autobiography first instead of "life lessons learned through being a rock musician.")

[Garth Jones · Rating 4 out of 5]

More of a 3.5, but whatevs.

Rob’s a genial geezer, admirably switched on, considering.

You won’t learn much new about the Priest, but some asides about mouths full of cum and wanking rituals will have the faint of heart polishing their monocles occasionally.

Diverting fluff.

[Iosiv Basarab · Rating 3 out of 5]

quite entertaining lecture, however not as good as Rob's first memoir, and some sections feel like being there only because of the structure of the book

[Shayla Sherwood · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still love Robs writing style. While this did not grip my like confess did I still highly enjoyed reading his heavy metal scriptures!

[Ronson Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Rob, please never stop singing, and never stop writing! This felt like the perfect companion to Confess. And bless Richie Faulkner for kickstarting Priest for hopefully what are years to come.

[Titus Hjelm · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved Confess and wondered whether this would be a diluted follow-up. But it's a different kind of book, although many of the stories intersect with the earlier book. This is required reading for anyone not familiar with heavy metal culture and simply a pleasure for every insider. I love the humble humour, which makes this so much more better than the Gene Simmons type endless bragging. There's only one blip: At some point Halford talks about 'woke culture' and 'cancel culture' as if these were phenomena existing outside the heads of far right keyboard warriors. That sounds a bit rich coming from a gay man, whose suffering in a homophobic culture Confess so well describes. In the very next sentence, however, the author himself gives an example of how things have moved on--and are better for it. I think the reference to 'woke' only attests to the huge influence that such far right discourse has on today's culture. The substance is what matters, of course, and here Halford shines as an honest, reflective, and open-minded witness to metal culture. Highly recommended.

[Mike Balsom · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a ton of fun to read. I don’t know what possessed this self-professed “yam-yam” from Walsall to sit down and write his “bible” of rock and metal, but whatever it is, we are richer from the result. Halford ingeniously outlines his Book of Genesis (the early days of Judas Priest), his Book of Job(s) (descriptions of each role and responsibility tied to rock bands, from lead singer to tour manager), his Book of Vestments (denim and leather, of course) and his Book of Temptations (and there are many, as you can imagine), among others. Throughout it all he is frank, honest and hilarious as he describes life as one of the pioneers of heavy metal. It’s very different in structure and scope from his previous “Confess”, but just as engaging.

[SouthWestZippy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Two things I need to say, I am not a huge Judas Priest fan but like some of their songs and this is my first Rob Halford book to read. Ok now that I said that I did enjoy getting to know Rob in this tell like he sees it book. Rob walks you through some of his experiences while on and off the stage. He also gives you some of his observations and memories of dealings in the music industry.
I learned a lot and I will be reading his other books so I can maybe fill in some holes left in this book.

[Brad Faulkner · Rating 5 out of 5]

A sequal to his autobiography "Confess", this book mainly went deep into life on the road, in a band, and how much things have truly changed these days compared to the 60s, 70s, & 80s. I particularly enjoy reading whatever Rob writes, mainly because he comes across as humble and not full of himself, being both a Metal God and one of the greatest voices in Rock & Metal in the world. Thanks for the great read Rob & lifting my mood. ❤️

[Annie Goldman · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's fun getting to read about the behind-the-scenes of our favorite bands/singers. Halford takes it a step further and breaks down the life of a musician into different facets. While not "religious", he brings metal into a religion we enjoy. He's funny, truthful (as far as I know) and doesn't leave much to the imagination.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I picked this up thinking it was an autobiography, but it reads more like a memoir, with Rob using biblical imagery as parallels for life as a heavy metal band. Fantastic read. Love Rob's honesty and sense of humor.

[Jill Hunt · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Rob Halford and would rate anything he writes as the best thing ever. YUP - I am bias. I own that. However, I don't particularly like reading rock biographies (spoiler - neither does he) - which is why I love his writing with winks, nods, and honesty.

[Mitchell · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent scriptures on the life and environment of a successful artist in the music business. Covers everything from touring to labels to management. This rundown is great story telling from The Metal God himself.

[Todd Tieuli · Rating 4 out of 5]

Rob is so much fun to listen to. You often forget he’s in his 70s because he’s so youthful sounding. Then he talks about making sure the whole band is having regular bowel movements and you’re like “oh right”. Haha he’s the best. I loved this.

[Sherry · Rating 5 out of 5]

Bloody brilliant! Rob has such a great voice, both on stage and in writing! A definite must read!

[Dawn W · Rating 5 out of 5]

Entertaining and funny look at life as The God of Metal.

[Dr. Satan · Rating 4 out of 5]

The only bible you need.

[Chuck Knight · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such pearls of rock and roll wisdom.

[Cyndi Brewer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Wonderful!!!!

The Metal God! Living up to his name! A must read for any metal fan. Halford is exactly who he's supposed to be a willing ambassador for the heavy metal faith!!