Rock N Pod 2025: Brian Slagel Interview with Sonic Legacy!

We sat down with Brian Slagel, the godfather of independent metal, at RockNPod — the man who turned cassette tapes and passion into a thriving empire for heavy music.

With unmatched foresight and unwavering commitment, Brian Slagel launched Metal Blade Records in 1982 at just 20 years old, after spearheading the legendary Metal Massacre compilations and running the fanzine The New Heavy Metal Revue. His label gave the world its first recorded Metallica, Slayer, and countless other genre-definers—creating a legacy that still fuels metal’s heartbeat today.

As CEO, he’s remained fiercely independent, navigating the label through distribution shifts, underground movements, and even major label pressure—always refusing to compromise creative integrity.

Lately, Brian has taken storytelling into new dimensions. His books—For the Sake of Heaviness and the recent Swing of the Blade—offer insider tales from four decades of metal history. The first feature a foreword by Lars Ulrich, while the latter dives deeper with personal anecdotes and cultural reflections.

But he didn’t stop at print. His new podcast, 100 Songs That Define Heavy Metal, dissects the genre's evolution using a tripartite format: historical insights, deep production dives, and voices from artists or fans. It's streamed globally and even tied to an upcoming Hulu docuseries, Into the Void.

In short, Brian Slagel is not just a label executive—he’s a curator, historian, and champion of metal’s past, present, and future.

👇 Smash that like button, subscribe for more legendary interviews, and drop a comment with your favorite Metal Massacre discovery or band Brian helped lift.

#BrianSlagel #MetalBladeRecords #MetalMassacre #HeavyMetalHistory #RockNPod2025 #ForTheSakeOfHeaviness #SwingOfTheBlade #100SongsThatDefineHeavyMetal #IndependentMetal #MetalLegacy #MetalPodcast #MetalArchitect #MetalInterview

👇 Dive into Brian Slagel’s world of metal passion:

🎙 Books & Writing

• For the Sake of Heaviness – history of Metal Blade with foreword by Lars Ulrich

• Swing of the Blade – more metal stories straight from the founder

🎧 Podcast & Media

• 100 Songs That Define Heavy Metal – Brian curates, historians contextualize, artists reflect

• Into the Void – upcoming Hulu series exploring metal legends (Brian featured)

🌐 Online & Social

• Metal Blade Records – https://www.metalblade.com

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/brianslagel

Social Links for Sonic Legacy:

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@tummytwins

TikTok:https://www.tiktok.com/@tummytwinsmedia

Facebook:https://www.facebook.com/groups/soniclegacy