Amber Hatch

Alex Ogg

Coloring for Contemplation

Winston Smith

Ruby Ray

Despite releasing records only on independent labels and receiving virtually no radio play, Dead Kennedys routinely top both critic and fan polls as the greatest punk band of the late 1970s and early 1980s. Their sound was inventive and tetchy, and front man Jello Biafra’s lyrics were incisive and often scathing. This chronicle—the first in-depth book written about Dead Kennedys—uses dozens of firsthand interviews, photos, and original artwork to offer a new perspective on a group that was mired in controversy almost from its inception. It examines and applauds the band’s key role in transforming punk rhetoric, both polemical and musical, into something genuinely threatening and enormously funny. Author Alex Ogg puts the local and global trajectory of punk into context and, while not flinching from the wildly differing takes the individual band members have on the evolution of the band, attempts to be celebratory—if not uncritical.

Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables: The Early Years

Dead Kennedys

Dead Kennedys routinely top both critic and fan polls as the greatest punk band of their generation. Their debut full-length, Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, in particular, is regularly voted among the top albums in the genre. Fresh Fruit offered a perfect hybrid of humor and polemic strapped to a musical chassis that was as tetchy and inventive as Jello Biafra’s withering broadsides. Those lyrics, cruel in their precision, were revelatory. But it wouldn’t have worked if the underlying sonics were not such an uproarious rush, the paraffin to Biafra’s naked flame. Dead Kennedys’ continuing influence is an extraordinary achievement for a band that had practically zero radio play and only released records on independent labels. They not only existed outside of the mainstream but were, as V. Vale of Search and Destroy noted, the first band of their stature to turn on and attack the music industry itself. The DKs set so much in motion. They were integral to the formulation of an alternative network that allowed bands on the first rung of the ladder to tour outside of their own backyard. They were instrumental in supporting the concept of all-ages shows and spurned the advances of corporate rock promoters and industry lapdogs. They legitimized the notion of an American punk band touring internationally while disseminating the true horror of their native country’s foreign policies, effectively serving as anti-ambassadors on their travels. The book uses dozens of first-hand interviews, photos, and original artwork to offer a new perspective on a group who would become mired in controversy almost from the get-go. It applauds the band’s key role in transforming punk rhetoric, both polemical and musical, into something genuinely threatening—and enormously funny. The author offers context in terms of both the global and local trajectory of punk and, while not flinching from the wildly differing takes individual band members have on the evolution of the band, attempts to be celebratory—if not uncritical.

Fresh Fruit for Rotting Vegetables, The Early Years

An introduction to the history of British hip-hop as it finally escapes its reputation as the poor cousin of the American variant with a succession of hugely successful releases by the new stars of 'grime'. Alex Ogg, a notable author in this field having previously written The Hip Hop Years (and been a consultant on the accompanying BAFTA nominated documentary strand), The Men Behind Def Jam and Rap Lyrics: From The Sugarhill Gang to Eminem, is a long-term commentator on the global breakout of hip-hop. His latest book explores the unique factors at play in the development of this subculture, tracing it right back to the first key releases in the early 80s, to the false dawn of the early 90s, and finally the spectacular success of grime in the last two years. Key landmarks are addressed along that timeline, and important recordings and incidents appraised, including many first-hand quotes. The ill-defined and much misunderstood ‘grime' genre is placed in a specific historical context, as well as sections on trip-hop and other contributory/parallel British musics. As well as offering a comprehensive foundation for those who wish to investigate this phenomenon, Ogg provides a recommended listening list as well as snapshots of the new heroes of grime, from Dizzee Rascal and Tinchy Snyder to Tinie Tempah.

An Introduction to Brit-Hop, Grime and UK Rap

Paid In Full?

Dead Kennedys réunissait parfaitement les critiques de la presse et les votes des fans le consacrant plus grand groupe punk de sa génération. Leur premier album, Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables, est régulièrement cité parmi les disques essentiels du genre. Fresh Fruit proposait un mélange parfait d'humour et de polémiques attachés à un châssis musical aussi irritant et inventif que les diatribes cinglantes de Biafra. Ces paroles, cruelles dans leur précision, étaient une révélation. Mais ça n'aurait pas marché si la sonorité sous-jacente n'avait pas été d'une telle confusion, atténuant la flamme corrosive de Biafra. Leur inaltérable influence représente une réussite extraordinaire pour un groupe qui ne passait pratiquement pas en radio et ne sortit de disques que chez des labels indépendants. Non seulement existèrent-ils en dehors du courant dominant, mais ils furent également le premier groupe de cette ampleur à s'en prendre à l'industrie du disque et à l'attaquer. DKs fut à l'origine de tant de choses. Ils firent partie intégrante du réseau américain alternatif mettant aux groupes le pied à l'étrier, leur permettant de se produire ailleurs que dans leur petit jardin. Ils jouèrent un rôle en soutenant le concept de concerts intergénérationnels et en rejetant les avances des promoteurs de rock corporatiste et des toutous de l'industrie du disque. Ils légitimèrent la notion de groupe punk américain travaillant avec succès à l'étranger tout en racontant les horreurs de la politique étrangère de leur pays natal - servant de fait, dans leurs tournées, d'anti-ambassadeurs. Cet ouvrage regroupe des dizaines d'interviews à la source, dont certaines avec les cinq membres fondateurs, des photos et des oeuvres originales, proposant un nouveau regard sur une formation au coeur de la controverse dès ses débuts. Le groupe joua un rôle prépondérant dans la rhétorique punk, la transformant, tant sur le plan polémique que musical, en un univers profondément menaçant - et extrêmement drôle. L'auteur se propose de décrire les débuts de Dead Kennedys au sein de la trajectoire locale et globale du punk ; s'appliquant à retranscrire les points de vue différents des membres de DKs sur leur évolution, il se montre un fan passionné - ne rechignant pas à une certaine subjectivité.

California über alles Dead Kennedys, The Early Years

Camion Blanc

Follows black entrepreneur Simmons and one-time punk Rubin through their launching of the music label Def Jam, which has carried rappers including LL Cool J, Public Enemy, the Beastie Boys, Foxy Brown, and Ja Rule.

The Radical Rise of Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin

The Men Behind Def Jam

The Def Jam label gave America hip hop. But who gave America Def Jam? Russell Simmons and Rick Rubin did. The Men Behind Def Jam examines the most unlikely history of the legendary label that started life in a student dorm and went on to introduce the world to LL Cool J, the Beastie Boys, Public Enemy, DMX and Jay-Z. Hustler-incarnate Russell Simmons and ex-punk Rick Rubin, the odd couple, fought and triumphed against all predictions to change the course of popular music forever. Here is an honest appraisal of these rival personalities, the quarrels, the successes and the failures of the spectacular Def Jam adventure. With Rubin and Simmons now pursuing other interests, the label continues with others at the helm, but the story of Def Jam’s birth and coming of age makes for one of pop music’s most feisty and fascinating legends.

The Men Behind Def Jam: The Radical Rise Of Russell Simmons And Rick Rubin

An introduction to the history of British hip-hop as it finally escapes its reputation as the poor cousin of the American variant with a succession of hugely successful releases by the new stars of 'grime'. Alex Ogg, a notable author in this field having previously written The Hip Hop Years (and been a consultant on the accompanying BAFTA nominated documentary strand), The Men Behind Def Jam and Rap Lyrics: From The Sugarhill Gang to Eminem, is a long-term commentator on the global breakout of hip-hop. His latest book explores the unique factors at play in the development of this subculture, tracing it right back to the first key releases in the early 80s, to the false dawn of the early 90s, and finally the spectacular success of grime in the last two years. Key landmarks are addressed along that timeline, and important recordings and incidents appraised, including many first-hand quotes. The ill-defined and much misunderstood ‘grime’ genre is placed in a specific historical context, as well as sections on trip-hop and other contributory/parallel British musics. As well as offering a comprehensive foundation for those who wish to investigate this phenomenon, Ogg provides a recommended listening list as well as snapshots of the new heroes of grime, from Dizzee Rascal and Tinchy Snyder to Tinie Tempah.

Russell Bestley

This lavishly illustrated book celebrates a wide range of punk design in posters, flyers, album cover art, fanzines and fashion ephemera from T-shirts to badges.It is almost impossible to believe that the posters, flyers and other punk ephemera were once used and discarded. But despite such humble origins, this groundbreaking artwork continues to have an impact on music, fashion and media today. All the classic bands, like the Ramones, the Sex Pistols, the Damned and the Clash are covered as are numerous rare and wonderful items from around the world.Includes 225 illustrations from anonymous and uncredited artworks to pieces by UK artists including Jamie Reid, Malcolm Garrett, Linder Sterling, Peter Saville, Barney Bubbles and US artists including Lindsey Kuhn, Raymond Pettibon, Winston Smith, John Seabury, Art Chantry, Paul Imagine and many more.

The Art of Punk

In 1976 music changed forever with the arrival of a self-empowering alternative to the bloated, sterile rock music of the day. Bands promoted their own gigs, designed their own artwork and organised their own pressing and distribution. Punk had landed. Alex Ogg conducted over 200 interviews with the participants - an endeavour that has resulted in a chronicle of the icons of the movement and a celebration of some of the lost bands of the era - not to mention the cash-ins and artistic failures. Includes detailed accounts of the career paths of the major players.

A Complete History of UK Punk from 1976 to 1980

No More Heroes

David Upshal

From the turntable acrobatics of Grandmaster Flash to the electro-funk blend of Afrika Bambaataa's Zulu nation, and from the rebellion of Public Emeny o te chart-topping albums of Eminen, an exploration into the world of rap and hip hop is captured through the firsthand accounts of those who played a pivotal role.

Alex Ogg

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