Decibel Magazine

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Why Decibel Rules

Indisputable Proof That Decibel Rules That’s right: Indisputable. We could be more modest, but metal fans are the most devoted music fans in the world, and we’re psyched to put out a great metal magazine every month. Here’s why:

We don’t have readers—we have believers. It’s not as catchy as “Other bands play… Manowar kills!,” but it’s true. Our readers have seen countless magazines serve up bland, contrived content while treating them like they’ll buy anything with a spiky logo. Decibel readers know that we take metal seriously, that if we rave about an album then it’s good, and that when we’re not so serious, it comes from a sincere love for the music, not from too-smart-for-metal irony—because that would be the polar opposite of ruling. And sponsoring metal’s best tours and events means that wherever discerning metal fans are found, Decibel banners and giveaways are there too.

Decibel covers the entire spectrum of extreme metal, from platinum acts to genre pioneers to the best of the underground. Our monthly Hall of Fame articles tell the authoritative stories behind the genre’s most classic albums. Beyond the album reviews and band profiles, we’re not afraid to put a serious critical eye to the music we love and challenge our readers; Decibel features have explored issues like homophobia in the genre, told through the experiences of gay metal musicians and fans, and the rise of National Socialism in black metal.

We know what we’re talking about. Editor-in-Chief Albert Mudrian literally wrote the book: Choosing Death, A History Of Death Metal and Grindcore that Terrorizer and Maximumrocknroll both called “definitive.” Since then, he’s guided Decibel through its first three years and has been NPR’s and The New York Times’ go-to metal expert. Our contributors aren’t just metal fans—they’re informed, passionate music fans and great writers who love metal. Some of them come from the ranks of bands like Napalm Death, Carcass, the Red Chord, Genghis Tron, Cretin, and the Mountain Goats.

We’re good-looking too. Decibel’s smart, modern design shatters the stereotypes of what a metal magazine looks like. Online, the award-winning and SXSW-nominated decibelmagazine.com offers up news, exclusive content, magazine archives, a dynamic forum, and more with award-winning programming design.

We’re poised for world domination. Decibel is in position to get even bigger and better in 2010. We’ve memorized all of the lyrics to Reign in Blood. We’ve eaten raw eggs and scaled the steps of the Philadelphia Art Museum. We know guys named King Buzzo and King Ov Hell. In short: Decibel rules.