**UPDATED**
There are many things that Bobby Axelrod and I have in common: New York born and bred; working class backgrounds; very non-traditional road to Wall Street; our love of gambling lead us to our career paths. However, the one thing that has always been my favorite commonality is our love for heavy metal bands and their music. Heavy Metal is not the most well known genre of music, so let’s explore Bobby Axelrod and his music, and what it says about him.
In each season of Billions, at least one episode has featured a song and a t-shirt of a metal band that must be Axe’s favorites. The writers of Billions don’t do anything just to do it, so we know that these choices are there to tell a story, shine light on who the character is, and to set a tone.
Metal is very misunderstood: devil worship, drugs, biting the heads of bats, or just screeching guitars may come to mind if you say the words “heavy metal”. But, it is so much more than that! Last season, I used Black Sabbath lyrics to open (and in some cases close) my “From the Trader’s Desk” recaps. In most cases, if I hadn’t referenced it to Sabbath, you’d have wondered what philosopher or poet I was quoting. Metal lyrics are some of the best I have ever heard; they tell stories of pain, loss, confusion, success, etc. – lyrics that would certainly resonate with a young man from Yonkers whose Dad has up and left, and whose home life is full of conflict.
S1: Episode 2 “Naming Rights” & Episode 4 “Short Squeeze”
Master of puppets I’m pulling your strings
Twisting your mind and smashing your dreams
Blinded by me, you can’t see a thing
Just call my name, ‘cause I’ll hear you scream
“Mater of Puppets” – Metallica
We get our first glimpse of Axe the metal-head in “Naming Rights” when he shows up to buy out the Eads family for the rights to put his name on a building with a Metallica “Master of Puppets” t-shirt on. Not only is this Axe being his most unconventional, but it’s also a way of showing that he is still that kid from Yonkers who has made it big, and fuck you to whomever doesn’t like it! It’s also a revenge thing, as the patriarch of the Eads family fired a 16 year-old Axe as a caddy at a golf club, (I’m sure that kid cranked up Metallica nice and loud after that!) and he’s here to remind them of what happens when you screw Axe!
In “Short Squeeze” we see Axe and his love for Metallica in action when he and his childhood friends take his private jet to Canada to see the band live.
I can just imagine a 16 year old Axe: Ginger mullet, black motorcycle jacket, very faded Metallica t-shirt, jeans ripped at the knees, and black high top Chuck Taylor All-Stars sneakers, hanging out with his buds in a friend’s Yonkers basement, playing cards and listening to metal music on cassette tapes. How can I get that detailed? Well, that was me and my friends (except we were in a basement in Brooklyn, playing darts). We were all metal-heads (still are). And I know how exciting it is to see your favorite band 30 years later with your best mates. Our old group got together in the spring of 2014 and we all went to see Black Sabbath at the Barclay’s Center in Brooklyn. (Alas, we didn’t fly private – most of us got there by subway!) It’s a chance you just don’t miss.
The song Metallica is singing during the concert is “Master of Puppets” (hello again!) which is a song about addiction (and a damn fine song if you ask me). If you read the lyrics, it is about something controlling you and making your life miserable. This song would totally resonate with Axe: all the pressure, and the deals, always having to come out on top of every trade – has the desire, the rush, the need to always win become his master? Yes, he has a private jet, beautiful homes, billions of dollars, but at what cost? It’s a very powerful song (http://www.lyricsfreak.com/m/metallica/master+of+puppets_20092140.html) and the lyrics are fitting for this episode and for the path Axe has taken in general.
S2: Episode 4 “The Oath”
What do you mean, “I hurt your feelings”?
I didn’t know you had any feelings.
What do you mean, “I ain’t kind”?
I’m just not your kind.
“Peace Sells” – Megadeth
In this episode, Axe wants to buy an NFL team, but needs to spruce up his image in order to be accepted by the powers that be that will be making the decision to grant him that privilege. In order to do that, he agrees to sign “The Giving Oath” to look more philanthropic. All the while, Axe is battling Chuck (who would have guessed?) in a class action suit. Chuck and Axe will meet for a deposition at Axe Capital and face off.
As Axe readies for battle, Megadeth’s “Peace Sells” plays in the background. I remember my best friend Brenda and I listening to this album (yes, we listened to it on a turntable) in my room in 1986. So, when the song plays, I’m 16 again. But back to Axe: it is interesting that when picking his “battle armor” this is the shirt he chooses. As much as the message is “I’d like peace, but really…” it also brings him back to his roots. He’s that Yonkers kid again and here is someone trying to challenge him. I notice that every time Axe is challenged in one way or another, he becomes that tough boy again. He literally transforms. The way he talks, the way he moves. Here is where the brilliance of Damian Lewis shines. Just those little differences and he is not Axe the hedge fund king, he is Axe, the kid who worked for everything he has ever gotten, and will fight tooth and nail to keep it!
S3: Episode 5 “All the Wilburys”
There’s no need to have a reason
There’s no need to wonder why
It’s a part of me that tells you
Oh, don’t you ever, don’t ever say die
Never, never, never say die again
“Never Say Die” – Black Sabbath
Axe showing his metal side in this episode was very personal for me, since it has been something I had been dreaming of that finally came to fruition!
Back in March 2017, earlier this year in our “What we are looking forward to (and not so much) in Billions Season 3”, and in various tweets, I wished for Bobby Axelrod to show some love to my favorite band of all time, Black Sabbath. I even photo shopped Axe in the shirt I’d like to see him in (it’s one of the many I own).
When I found out (thank you GingerSnap!) that Axe was going to finally be in a Sabbath shirt, I was beyond excited! And to have the creator of the show, Brian Koppelman say he was waiting for me to see it, well, I just about cried!!
The cherry on top of my Black Sabbath sundae? A chance to talk to (and thank) Brian Koppelman about our mutual love of Sabbath (he likes Sabbath with Ronnie James Dio, me not as much!!), at the Super Fan screening of the S3 finale (while poor Damianista looked on having no clue as to what we were talking about!). I told him how listening to Sabbath during my chemo sessions really helped get me through the hours of sitting there while all these chemicals were being pumped through my body, and that seeing that Sabbath shirt on Axe was really emotional for me. He totally got it! It was so great to express my gratitude to him. Thank you again, Mr. Koppelman!
A triumphant Axe parades into Axe Cap to the tune of “Never Say Die” by Black Sabbath! What else would a victorious kid from Yonkers wear but a Black Sabbath “Master of Reality” t-shirt to confirm his bad-ass self is back! Of course Axe is a Sabbath fan; it’s the natural progression from his love for Metallica and his appreciation for Megadeth. He’s now going old-school, as Sabbath is considered by many the fathers of heavy metal (don’t come at me with the Led Zeppelin or Deep Purple argument!) Axe has lived to fight another day, because the boy from Yonkers is always a fighter, and will never give an inch – he’ll never say die! It’s nothing but high-fives and cheers for the returning King.
Once again, we see how Axe chooses to be viewed while triumphantly returning to his domain – something from his childhood. No matter what age Axe is, no matter how successful, he will always be the rebel who has a chip on his shoulder when he looks in the mirror.
S4: Episode 1 “Chucky Rhoades Greatest Game”
If you like to gamble, I tell you I’m your man,
You win some, lose some, all the same to me,
The pleasure is to play, makes no difference what you say,
I don’t share your greed, the only card I need is The Ace of SpadesAce of Spades – Motörhead
Season 4 for Axe opens with Motörhead’s “Ace of Spades” blaring in the background. With its thrash metal tempo, we know it’s “Battle Axe” time!
Knowing what we know about Axe, it makes sense he would be a Motorhead fan. There lyrics typically cover such topics as war, good versus evil, abuse of power, promiscuous sex, substance abuse, and, most famously, gambling; the latter theme being the focus of “Ace of Spades“.
I have always said that trading is legalized gambling (and even said so on my appearance this summer on Deal or No Deal) . What Axe does is gambling on an extremely high level. Season 4 saw him gamble with money of course, but he gambled the possibility of happiness with Rebecca away as well.
The thing about gambling is that you can win some of the time, but in the end, the house always wins. Let’s see if Axe can get his mojo back in Season 5!
What metal shirt will Axe reveal in Season 5? I’d love to see (and Gingersnap is with me on this!) an Iron Maiden classic (The Trooper, or Piece of Mind), or Judas Priest. But now we know Axe likes the classic metal bands as well, so it could Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple, Rush or even Rainbow.
I also wouldn’t be surprised if we see a repeat of a Megadeth shirt. Lead singer Dave Mustaine announced earlier this year he was battling throat cancer, and since Brian Koppelman is a friend, a shout out would not be out of the question.
Axe could show more of his thrash metal side with Anthrax, Slayer, or Mercyful Fate . I doubt we’ll ever see a Motley Crue, Kiss, RATT or a W.A.S.P. shirt, as I just don’t see young Bobby as a hair-band kind of guy. But, the one thing we can count on in Billions is surprises, so you just never know.
Until we meet again in the spring, Rock on, Axe!
Fun read LT! and this from someone as clueless as Damianista on your music. So great to see you bond with BK! I love anything that gave you joy during your treatment. (I hear Zeppelin as more bluesy than metal music, yes?)
Thank you Notlinda! Just like with the Fin-speak, I’m here to educate on heavy metal! 🙂
Yes, Led Zep is a bit more bluesy, but they are considered the forefathers of metal, as they were “heavier” than the bands at the time (Stones, Beatles). Early Sabbath is very bluesy as well. My favorite Sabbath song, The Wizard, has an amazing harmonica solo that is very blues influenced.
Thanks for reading!!
You don’t know how much I LOVE this post! I adore it! It is partly Bobby, and it is partly you, and the music both of you love, and I am sure the way you imagine what Bobby was doing with his friends in mid-1980s is certainly spot on! But I have to say, yes, while you have so much common with the man, it is all about his good sides, and you are FAR SUPERIOR to him in many ways he is not that good!!!!
Billions is the smartest show on TV at the moment. The writing is beyond brilliant in my opinion, and as you also suggest, they never do a scene just to do it. So exactly like there is always a purpose behind every word, there is a purpose behind every t-shirt! The meticulousness with which the show creators make these decisions – the particular band, the particular song, the particular scene – never cease to amaze me! And, Axe, as a character, chooses to wear these t-shirts at some particular times! Mostly at times he says “fuck you” to someone, to Eads Family, or to Chuck, or to the government. I remember in Season 2 Episode 4 when he was about to meet Chuck and Ira at Axe Capital, we first saw Axe wearing a shirt but then he all of a sudden changed his mind, took off the shirt to put on the Megadeth t-shirt, and smiled! 🙂 Because yes this was his war uniform for the battle against Chuck. It was all about adrenaline! And you nail it about the moments Bobby transforms into young Bobby, the rebel that will always stay in Bobby and Damian definitely shines and delivers seamlessly.
As I told you and Koppelman at the event, I loved the conversation between you two about Sabbath, and not despite but especially because I did not understand a word of it!!!! It was a moment you two shared and I loved it. He is such a down-to-earth and normal person. His tweet to you about Sabbath was fantastic! Hmm… so… what was i doing in 1986? I believe I was listening to Duran Duran all the time with my room covered with Duran Duran posters — even the ceiling!!!!!
Hello fellow Gingerites!
I’ve enjoyed your music entries but to be honest, I have absolutely nothing to add to this particular thread. I’ve read we tend to prefer, for the rest of our lives, the music we grew up with. That is true, at least in my case. I’m from the very late 1940’s, all of the 50’s and only a couple of the first years of the 60’s. I was an Elvis fan when he first arrived on the scene, hated the Beatles and there is very little that came after that I like. So nobody will be surprised when I say I know nothing about any of the artists or their music that has been mentioned. Would you believe I am quite capable of simply tuning out music I don’t care for? Ok, enough of the negative stuff….sorry. Here is my question, actually two of them. Have any of you purchased the 3rd. season of Billions on DVD? Mine arrived from Amazon yesterday. Back when LIFE came out on DVDs there were fans (of the Bunny variety) that commented the music on the DVDs did not match that which was played when the episodes aired on network TV. So, 2nd question, is that the case with Billions? If so, does it detract from the enjoyment of it all for you who are so well versed in the music used? I haven’t watched these latest DVDs yet. My plan is to wait until the days are short and evenings long with winter setting in and then I will binge all 3 seasons. Of course all that is available to me on Showtime On Demand, but I do take special pleasure in owning my own copies of anything Damian has made!
Is this the first time I’m seeing the picture of you and BK? I think so?!?! LOVE IT! I totally agree with you that when Axe is challenged, he becomes that tough boy again – literally transforms. I’ve mentioned many times there is “Bobby” and there is “Axe.” When writing for the blog, I often refer to him as Bobby, have you noticed?
Since season 2 ended I’ve been wanting to see Iron Maiden next. Last year our friends had a bet that season 3 would be the season of Maiden. I bet Maiden and lost so I’m hoping I win Maiden in season 4 because I’m running that horse in the race again. I would pee my pants if Ed Force One landed at Axe’s hanger. Come on BK, make it happen!
And you’re quite welcome about the Sabbath sneak peek 😉 I didn’t want to spoil anything for you, so I made sure to ask you ahead of time if you wanted to know LOL
IMO there is so much of BK, the man, peppered throughout this show and within the characters themselves, from music, food, sports, and history to pop culture, his city/state, books/authors/writers, and cocktail preferences. I learn more about him every episode. Heck, he still has the backstage pass ID lanyard from touring with Metallica back in the day.
I feel like I’m a hybrid of you and Damianista, as I know metal and Duranies 🙂 My first tape was AC/DC (hey, they could be season 4 too!) and I loved Dokken. Then Madonna came along and had me singing into the end of my hairbrush, and before I knew it all the John Hughes movies had me into British invasion bands (and Scottish), punk, prog rock, psychedelic rock, new wave/new romantic like Psychedelic Furs, Simple Minds, The Church, The Alarm, Depeche Mode and The Cure.
Loved your post. I could talk music all day.
Hi Lady Trader Brooklyn Girl! Stockholm (Royal Capital of Sweden) here. Great article loved it! Big fan of the tv-series Billions. For every new Billions season I look forward to see what metal shirts Bobby Axelrod is going to wear and what metal songs is going to be featured in the episodes.
As you may know the nordic areas rule in terms of the highest proportion of heavy metal bands to residents. Finland leads the list of countries by far with 53.2 heavy metal bands per 100,000 residents. Sweden is the second most dense country with 37.14 metal bands per 100,000 residents.
So it goes with out saying that Billions show goes down very well here and a lot of it is thanks to the metal shirts Bobby Axelrod wears on the show and the metal songs that played during the episodes.
If you want to know more about metal music and festivals here in the north klick on the link to my blog (it´s written in english.)
Thank you so much for reading! I love to see where our readers come from so now I can check Sweden off the list!
I have heard that there is a great metal scene in Scandinavia, and I hope one day to travel there and check it out!
Rock on!!