For the longest time, bands competed to be the loudest when it came to playing gigs. I remember reading that The Who held the record when a gig was measured at 120 decibels. Other claimants have included Deep Purple and KISS. But they played at lullaby level when compared to the British electro duo Leftfield.
They were so loud at Brixton Academy that they knocked plaster from the ceiling at Brixton Academy as the volume hit 137 decibels. Then there’s the American metal band Manowar who were clocked at 139 decibels during a soundcheck in Germany in 2008.
But no one has beat a Swedish band called Sleazy Joe who turned things up to 143.2 decibels in March 2008. That is louder than a typical military jet at takeoff.
By the way, the Guinness Book of World Records recognizes the insanity of all this and doesn’t recognize volume levels anymore.
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