A film by: Don Argott
Documentary – 90 Minutes – Color – English/USA 2013
In 1995, five guys from Virginia with a love of heavy metal began jamming
together. They played in basements and dingy clubs, recorded demos, worked
hard, built a rabid underground fan base, and eventually called themselves
Lamb of God.
Now, more than fifteen years later, Lamb of God has achieved the kind of
success that kids with garage bands dream about—they have sold over two
million albums, made two platinum-selling DVDs, been nominated for four
Grammy Awards, and have continued growing their cult of heavy metal loyalists
into a worldwide community.
As the Palaces Burn is a feature-length documentary that originally sought to
follow the band and their fans throughout the world, to demonstrate how music
ties us together when we can’t find any other common bond. However, during
the filming process in 2012, the story abruptly took a dramatic turn, bringing the
band into a Kafkaesque nightmare, when lead singer Randy Blythe was arrested
on charges of manslaughter, blamed for the death of one of their young fans in
the Czech Republic. What followed was a heart-wrenching courtroom drama
that left fans, friends, and curious onlookers around the world on the edge of
their seats.
