The Smashing Pumpkins erupted out of the obscurity of the Chicago music scene with a raw and dissonant sound that encapsulated the dissatisfaction and disillusionment of late '80s youth. They were associated with the Seattle scene that produced Nirvana, Pearl Jam et al but their music transcended the grunge sound. After legitimising heavy metal with the acclaimed Siamese Dream album, the band's ever-metamorphosing vision and Billy Corgan's individual journey as writer and musician found an apogee in the massively ambitious US number one double Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness. Book jacket.

In a time when rock might have taken itself a bit too seriously, a teenaged fan took up her pen and tore down the walls. With gentle, biting humor and an enormous quantity of love Kate Fuller brought her favorite band to life - flaws and all. Collected here for the first time in print, her comic remains an incisive commentary on the absurdity of fame and a bittersweet glimpse into a shared past. For anyone who enjoyed the Pumpkins at their height, Billy the Egomaniac is a must-read.

Taking its title with suitable slacker irony from a song on Nirvana's In Utero, Milk It! is an anthology of pieces written in the heat of the moment-an urgent and diverse overview that mirrors the chaotic rush of the postmodern sounds it covers. Headnotes and connective material-the "stories behind the stories"-provide running commentary on the music business, rock criticism, a troubled generation, and an attempt to put the fast-moving alternative-rock era in perspective from the safe distance of the comparatively bland new millennium. Compiled by a critic who shared the Generation X outlook, attitude, and biting sense of humor with the musicians that he covered-Nirvana, Pearl Jam, Smashing Pumpkins, Hole, and many others-Milk It! is the first serious attempt to chart the alternative music scene. Compelling, amusing, and provocative, Milk It! captures the excitement of an era, and reckons with its enduring influence.

Scott Pilgrim has two girls on the go. When he's with Knives Chau, he feels like he can erase his past and start over. When he's with Ramona Flowers, he's ready to accept all that, grow up and moves on."--Back cover.

When Tim Smith died in July of 2020, he left behind a legion of adoring fans and an honorary doctorate in music. Not bad for someone who never had a top ten hit and who's music was so infamous during its heyday, that some magazines not only refused to review his work, but edited out praise from fellow musicians. But who was Tim Smith? He was the composer, guitarist, singer, and lyricist for cult band Cardiacs. Working in the 70s up to 2008, Smith and his rotating band of musicians created some of the most intricate and original music of all time. They combined punk energy, prog complexity, ska rhythms, heavy metal drama, and much more with an absurd and satirical lyrical stance, while creating a confrontational on-stage image that inspired as many as it appalled. Eric Benac examines each Cardiac album (including the never-repressed, cassette-only albums) and side projects, like the sublime prog-folk of Sea Nymphs, the warped psychedelics of Spartley's Japs, and the twisted Brit Pop of Tim's solo album. Each song is discussed both musically and lyrically, with a photo section containing original shots from Cardiacs fans.

The fifth installment in the multi-volume, internationally celebrated My Struggle series from Karl Ove Knausgaard. The fifth book of Karl Ove Knausgaard’s powerful My Struggle series is written with tremendous force and sincerity. As a nineteen-year-old, Karl Ove moves to Bergen and invests all of himself in his writing. But his efforts get the opposite effect—he wants it so much that he gets writer’s block. At the same time, he sees his friends, one by one, publish their debuts. He suspects that he will never get anything published. My Struggle: Book 5 is also a book about strong new friendships and a shattering love affair. Then one day Karl Ove reaches two crucial points in his life: his father dies and, shortly thereafter, he completes his first novel.