"TEARING DOWN THE ORANGE CURTAIN" BY NATE JACKSON AND DANIEL KOHN
Respected journalists Jackson and Kohn dig deep into the Orange County punk rock and ska-punk scene, barely leaving a stone unturned. The likes of No Doubt, The Vandals, The Offspring, TSOL, and Social Distortion star, with SD’s Mike Ness providing a foreword. Chaos reigns and the 400-page exhaustive tome offers anecdotes a-plenty. The book “explores the trajectory of punk and ska from their humble beginnings to their peak popularity years, where their cultural impact could be felt in music around the world.” The OC might be known for being politically conservative, but the punk didn’t let anyone down.
"FRANK ZAPPA’S AMERICA" BY BRADLEY MORGAN
They really don’t make ‘em like Frank Zappa anymore. Visionary, poet, activist, virtuoso... Zappa was all of those things and so much more. Plenty has been written about the great man in the past, but Morgan has found fresh ground to plough here. He “casts the artist as an often-misunderstood figure who critiqued the actions of religious and political groups promoting a predominantly white, Christian vision of the Unted States,” as written in the jacket’s blurb. Morgan digs deep into Zappa’s messaging and examines the occasionally ignored intentions. It’s a rare book that makes us love the subject more than we did going in.
"ETERNALLY ELECTRIC: THE MESSAGE IN MY MUSIC" BY DEBBIE GIBSON
Obviously named in tribute to one of her biggest hits “Electric Youth” (which, unbelievably, is 36 years old now), pop star Debbie Gibson’s Eternally Electric is a far better read than we were perhaps expecting. On one hand, you think “How good can the memoir of a pop princess who peaked in the ‘80s be?” But then the human side kicks in, plus the fact that Gibson can pen a sentence, and it all becomes very engaging. We learn of the challenges of child stardom, her highs and the lows, and her recent comeback. Before it really gets going, we’re 100 percent rooting for her.
"THE CARS: LET THE STORIES BE TOLD" BY BILL JANOVITZ
Author Janovitz has followed up his biography of Leon Russell (a New York Times bestseller) with the definitive story of new wave icons The Cars. So often the poster children for the softening and sanitization of punk rock, The Cars’ story is obviously far more nuanced, interesting, and honestly impressive than that. “Janovitz explores the musical, cultural, and commercial impact of the band with articulate and knowing insights,” reads the blurb. “He draws on his own exclusive new reporting along with the enthusiastic participation of the surviving members of the band, as well as nearly everyone who surrounded them over the years.”
"THE ROYAL WE: A MEMOIR" BY RODDY BOTTUM
Faith No More founding member, queer icon, and all-round good guy Roddy Bottum has released a memoir that is in turn touching, funny, devastating, and ultimately beautiful. The keyboardist, also known for his indie pop group Imperial Teen, takes us by the hand and leads us through his journey from Los Angeles (“growing up gay with no role models”) to San Francisco. It was there that he formed FNM, survived heroin addiction and the AIDS plight, and came out on top. Bottum is a gifted musician—a true creative—and as it turns out, he’s a talented storyteller too.
