Hardcore music emerged just after the first wave of punk rock in the late 1970s. American punk kids who loved the speed and attitude of punk took hold of its spirit, got rid of the “live fast, die young” mind-set and made a brilliant revision: hardcore. The dividing line between punk and hardcore music was in the delivery: less pretense, less melody, and more aggression. This urgency seeped its way from the music into the look of hardcore. There wasn’t time to mold your liberty spikes or shine your Docs, it was jeans and T-shirts, Chuck Taylors and Vans. The skull and safety-pin punk costume was replaced by hi-tops and hooded sweatshirts. Jamie Reid’s ransom note record cover aesthetic gave way to black-and-white photographs of packed shows accompanied by bold and simple typography declaring things like: The Kids Will Have Their Say, and You’re Only Young Once.Radio Silence documents the ignored space between the Ramones and Nirvana through the words and images of the pre-Internet era where this community built on do-it-yourself ethics thrived. Authors Nathan Nedorostek and Anthony Pappalardo have cataloged private collections of unseen images, personal letters, original artwork, and various ephemera from the hardcore scene circa 1978-1993. Unseen photos lay next to hand-made t-shirts and original artwork brought to life by the words of their creators and fans. Radio Silence includes over 500 images of unseen photographs, illustrations, rare records, t-shirts, and fanzines presented in a manner that abandons the aesthetic clichés normally employed to depict the genre and lets the subject matter speak for itself. Contributions by Jeff Nelson, Dave Smalley, Walter Schreifels, Cynthia Connolly, Pat Dubar, Gus Peña, Rusty Moore, and Gavin Ogelsby with an essay by Mark Owens.
About the Authors
Nathan Nedorostek is an art director living in Brooklyn, New York. Having previously worked for a number of large design studios, Nathan is most comfortable straddling the line between art and commerce. Nathan’s previous books include: All I Can Give You Is Everything, and Eulogy for Marissa Cooper.
Anthony Pappalardo wrote for Slap magazine from 1997 to 2002. He has been published in Alternative Press, Mass Appeal and Magnet since then. Anthony’s previous music projects include Ten Yard Fight, In My Eyes and Get Down. He currently records as the Italian Horn.
More information at their website: http://www.radiosilencebook.com
1 comment:
The ultimate yearbook of the 1978-1993 hardcore eras
I should confess right off the bat that the main thing that made me decide to shell out $20 to purchase this book sight unseen was the sheer number of contributors to it from my beloved Orange County, California hardcore scene. Over the years, I've read quite a few books on hardcore but none of them did a very good job of covering the O.C. hardcore scene to my satisfaction. When I stumbled upon the Radio Silence website via an email from a friend, I was elated to FINALLY see a book about hardcore on the market that employed so many O.C. scenesters, many of whom are just as relevant to me and my life now as they were back in my early 20s (I'm 38 now). Needless to say, after giving it a day's worth of thought (hey, $20 ain't chump change after 8 years of George W. Bush), I made the order on Amazon.
Best $20 I ever spent.
As someone who got heavily into punk and hardcore music in the mid '80s and was actively involved in the early '90s O.C. hardcore scene, Radio Silence is nothing less than the ultimate yearbook of that bygone era. Jam packed with over 500 mostly previously unseen color and black & white photographs of all things hardcore (literally ALL things hardcore, folks) from 1978-1993 and anecdotes from over 100 participants of every hardcore scene that existed during that period of time, the book serves as both an extremely satisfying trip down memory lane for the people who were there and a very thorough sort of introductory time capsule for current hardcore fans who are interested in finding out more about the deep history of this genre of music. Add to that the fact that the pages of this coffee table book (again, I mean that literally) were printed on thick and sturdy paper stock and you've got yourself a timeless document that you will no doubt refer to many, many times throughout your life.
http://www.amazon.com/review/R3R0NMEJ3NXS4E/ref=cm_cr_rdp_perm
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