Our Band Could be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground 1981-1991 [Hardcover]

 

 

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A fantastic look at the bands that sowed the seeds for Nirvana's rise to prominence in the early 1990s, although there is nothing on The Pixies as they were signed to a major label i the US.
The title, taken from a Minutemen song, is a mantra running through the career of each of the 13 bands detailed.
Not all of them may have changed the face of music - although several could claim to - but each are admirable in their bloody mindedness and desire to operate outside the ruling major label system.
Azerrad lets band members tell their own stories and, like all music books should do, this sends you scurrying back to the old vinyl you hadn't played in years - and makes the music sound more vital than ever.

This book is fantastic. It's hefty 501 pages are split into sections, each one covering one of 13 important bands that had a noticeable impact on the 80's American punk/indie underground.

They are:
- Black Flag
- The Minutemen
- Mission Of Burma
- Minor Threat
- Husker Du
- The Replacements
- Sonic Youth
- Butthole Surfers
- Big Black
- Dinosaur Jr
- Fugazi
- Mudhoney
- Beat Happening

Azerrad admits at the off-set that the stories of each band trail off or stop completely if they reach a point at which the band signed to a major lable. This can be frustrating, but is understandable as the book was written with the intention of covering independant music only. Because of this, it is primarilly concerned with how bands start up and develop a following, so don't expect a full life story.

Azerrad does a fantastic job of holding your attention and making what could be quite a dull topic into a real "page turner". The book goes into great detail throughout, not just in terms of the bands, but when covering the independant record lables they were on and what was happening in their cities and the culture surrounding them at the time. Azerrad manages to keep this interesting, without ever seeming tedious or unnecessary.

It is also refreshingly honest, which leads to quite a few of the profiles being far from flattering to the artists they cover. (It seems you can't be in a good band unless at least one of your members is staggeringly selfish with an "artistic temperament".)

I can reccomend downloading an album by each artist and listening to it while reading their chapter. It gave each story a better sense of context, as well as reminding me of music I had forgotten and introducing me to some that I had never heard before. It also made it possible to track the influence of each band on the one that followed.

The book is astonishingly well researched and was obviously written by somebody who loved the topic he was covering. However, this is the source of it's only real flaw; the author's tendancy to over-exaggurate and, on occasion, use the music journalist's habit of over-stating the importance and impact of the bands in question. It definately goes a bit "fan boy" in places and describes certain standard guitar chords by using unnecesarry hyperbole such as "transendental". (Although, I'm sure those people who's lives these bands were would find this justified.)

There is definately a very punk rock "do it yourself" sensability to this book (as well as a slight indie elitism). At times, it can feel like Azerrad is looking a bit too hard for reasons to make each band fit this mould, but it is often justified and works to tie the whole book together under a common theme. In fact, it works so well that, halfway through reading it, I joined a band! (Fact.)

If you have any interest in indie music or just what goes on "behind the scenes" then you will love this book. It covers the lives of interesting bands with interesting stories who helped to break the mould of tradition rock and pave the way for Nirvana and the alternative explosion. For me, there wasn't a single dull moment.

Michael Azerrad's mighty tome is quite simply the definitive statement on this important era in modern music. Admittedly, it might not seem like the most important time in music, but this book rightly elevates it to the position it deserves.

Covering an era when music seemed to really MEAN something, Azerrad allows us to see the wider picture by telling the story through the eyes of the people who were there. Each chapter is devoted to a particular band, focussing on their indie years and tailing off if a major label becomes involved. All the major names contribute to this tale, and one of the key aspects of the story is the way Azerrad allows these voices to reappear in other chapters, linking the narratives and providing a sense of continuity and, more importantly, community. This was a time when the 'scene' was so loosely defined that all the key players in this story knew each other (if only by reputaion more than anything else), and everyone seems to contribute to each other's story. there is almost a sense of 'family', as one individual will pick up the themes established by another.

Much has been said about the omissions in the book, and they do deserve a closer look. Azerrad clearly defines in his introduction the criteria for inclusion in the book. This has lead to compliants of various movers and shakers being left out of the story. Firstly, in a realistic way, it would be almost impossible to comprehensively cover every single band that made some kind of contribution to the American underground scene of the 1980s (for a general over-view, readers would be encouraged to check out Simon Reynold's "Rip it up and Start Again"). And secondly, some of the bigger names are not covered because they do not fit themeatically in the book. R.E.M., for example, are not featured because they were signed to a major label. however, their presence haunts the book, as they establish themselves in a way that the featured bands could only ever dream of, moving from strength to strength, and bringing the mainstream to their doorstep on their terms. The Pixies are not mentioned because they were on a major label. But, more importantly, their impact in America was considerably less than it was in the UK. As the focus of the book is to document how the featured acts changed America, the Pixies don't really warrant a mention (ok, they inspiried Kurt Cobain, but who didn't?).

The only omission that is slightly baffling is the Meat Puppets. Like R.E.M., they seem to haunt the book, popping up in every chapter. Their contibution to the American indie scene is immense, and they really should have been covered. I can't think of one good reason to explain their absence.

Other than that, the book is faultless. Giving a biography of each band works perfectly, and the various themes of the book become immediately apparent. The links between seemingly different bands like Black Flag and Beat Happening are genuinely startling. Each band has their own feel, and the narrative develops to suit the music. The Mission of Burma chapter is intelligent, witty and well crafted, much like the music the band made, whilst the Replacements' story is told in a humorous, drunken, debauched way, but with an undercurrent of emotion that perfecly captures the essence of the band.

Another strength of the book is Azerrad's ability to pin-point what makes a band so good. A band like Mudhoney were certainly not of much interest to me before I read the book, but Azerrad's affinty for the subject caused me to seek out the music, and listen with fresh ears. Azerrad's own narrative is also compelling, with his description of Husjer Du's version of "Eight Miles High" deserving particular mention.

Without a doubt, the stories that make up this tale are enought to inspire and educate a whole new generation. One can only hope that they do not fall on deaf ears.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Top Class Alternative Rock Journalism
This book is simply superb. Azzerad has put together potted biographies of all the most interesting American bands of the late 70s-80s alt rock scene and created a motivational,... Read more

Published 5 months ago by Pabford

5.0 out of 5 stars An important time in music
Although large in size, the breakdown to 13 bands makes it a great 'easy' read you can pick up and put down. Read more

Published 20 months ago by R. O'NEILL

5.0 out of 5 stars Kill Rock Stars!
Do you remember when people formed bands because they had something to say or they simply enjoyed playing music? Read more

Published on 20 Sep 2009 by D. M. Palmer

4.0 out of 5 stars A piece of very real history
This book offers a snapshot of life for a struggling band in the US in the 80's. (The unwashed playing to the indifferent in the unknown)

I personally came to this... Read more

Published on 31 Mar 2008 by Mr. Mark Wilkinson

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent
Without doubt, the best book I have yet found on the American Independent music scene of the 1980s. A time when records labels weren't run by accountants, but by people who... Read more

Published on 4 Dec 2006 by SteveB

4.0 out of 5 stars Interesting reading
I wouldn't say that I like all the bands within this book but the importance that they have within the independent scene in America cannot be denied. Read more

Published on 30 Aug 2002 by R. Shaikh

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