Description

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A gritty, revealing heavy metal memoir by Lamb of God’s guitarist and lyricist, which explores both his life in music and his tumultuous path through addiction and into recovery
 

For a band as extreme as Lamb of God, mainstream success and touring the world to massive audiences was an almost surreal achievement. But for guitarist and lyricist Mark Morton, the triumph was dulled by the pain of addiction and loss.
 
In DESOLATION: A Heavy Metal Memoir, Morton traces the highs and the lows of his career and personal life, revealing how the pressures of success and personal battles eventually came into conflict with his dedication to the creative process. Morton writes about the greatest personal tragedy of his life: the death of his newborn daughter, which plunged Morton further into hopelessness. Surrounded by bandmates living their wildest dreams, Morton wanted nothing more than to disappear, ingesting potentially lethal cocktails of drugs and alcohol on a daily basis. 
 
And yet intertwined with self-destruction and harrowing heartbreak, there were moments of joy, self-acceptance, and incredible connection. Morton developed close relationships with his bandmates and crew members, sharing experiences that have made for some strange and hilarious tales. He also gained a greater sense of purpose through interactions with his fans, who remind him that his work reaches people on a deeply personal level.
 
DESOLATION is, at its core, about Morton's journey as a musician navigating self-doubt, anxiety, and the progressive disease of addiction, and ultimately finding relative serenity and gratitude.
 

About the Author

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Mark Morton is best known as the guitarist and lyricist of the Grammy-nominated heavy metal band, Lamb of God. He lives with his family near Richmond, Virginia.

Ben Opipari is the founder of Persuasive Matters, delivering writing programs to law firms and Fortune 500 companies worldwide. He also runs the podcast Songwriters on Process, where he takes a deep dive into the writing process. Ben lives with his family in North Bethesda, Maryland.

Praise For…

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“I’ve spent over half of my life crossing the globe with Mark Morton, and during that time he has been many things to me—bandmate, fellow roofer, drinking and drugging partner-in-crime, and even occasional drunken brawling opponent. Most importantly, he’s been my dear friend. But for almost a decade, I was thoroughly convinced I would find him dead in his tour bus bunk. This book tells those stories, but it is also the story of how I got my friend back. I don’t worry about him dying anymore, so read this and know that there is still hope, even when everything falls to pieces.”—D. Randall Blythe, author of Dark Days and singer of lamb of god