Rock Critic Law: 101 Unbreakable Rules for Writing Badly About Music – An Irreverent and Illustrated Takedown of Music Writing's Lazy Tropes - Couverture rigide

Azerrad, Michael

Couverture rigide

ISBN 10 : 0062656503 ISBN 13 : 9780062656506

Editeur : Dey Street Books, 2018

Synopsis

Straight out of his beloved Twitter feed @RockCriticLaw, acclaimed rock journalist and author of the classic books Come As You Are: The Story of Nirvana and Our Band Could Be Your Life, Michael Azerrad turns his trenchant eye to the art of rock writing itself, hilariously skewering 101 of the genre’s seemingly endless litany of hackneyed phrases and tropes.

One of the finest music writers today, Michael Azerrad has catalogued the shortcuts, lazy metaphors and uninspired prose that so many of his beloved colleagues all too regularly rely on to fill column inches. In 2014, he began his wickedly droll Twitter feed @RockCriticLaw to expose and make fun of this word-hash. Now, he consolidates these "Laws" into one witty, comprehensive and fully illustrated volume.

Rock Critic Law includes timeless gems such as:

• If a band pioneered something, you must say they are "seminal." That is the Seminal Law of Rock Criticism.
• If a recording features densely layered guitars, then you MUST use the phrase "sonic cathedrals."
• Even when it’s easy to find out with research, by all means ask a band how they got their name.
• Please feel free to deny an artist’s individuality and say they are "the new [x]."
• If two guitars play a melodic line in harmony, you MUST say they are "twin lead guitars."

All 101 Rock Critic Laws are accompanied by original illustrations from Ed Fotheringham, beloved Seattle scenester and highly regarded artist who has created album covers for everyone from, well, seminal grunge band Mudhoney to iconic jazz label Verve Records, as well as illustrations for The Atlantic, Vanity Fair, The New Yorker and more, making this book a must-have for music lovers everywhere. A unique appreciation of music writing from one of its own, Rock Critic Law irreverently captures all the passion and furor of fandom.

A propos du livre

À propos de l'auteur

Michael Azerrad is a rock journalist, author and drummer. His writing has appeared in the New York Times, Rolling Stone, Mojo, Spin and the New Yorker. He frequently appears on television as a commentator on rock music and was most recently the editor-in-chief of the Talkhouse. He is the author of the books Come as You Are: The Story of Nirvana and Our Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground 1981–1991.

À propos de la quatrième de couverture

WRITING ABOUT MUSIC IS HARD—AND THIS BOOK PROVES IT 101 TIMES OVER

It’s happened to all of us who read about rock music: you come across a piece about a hot music scene and the writer thinks they’re being clever by exclaiming, “There must be something in the water!” Or maybe a couple of musicians have started a new project that’s “risen from the ashes” of their previous band. There’s a million of those dumb things that rock critics say. Well, OK, maybe just a hundred and one. And they’re all duly immortalized in legendary rock journalist Michael Azerrad’s Rock Critic Law: 101 Unbreakable Rules for Writing Badly About Music.

Fed up, in a bemused sort of way, with all these well-worn tropes of the trade, Azerrad began tweeting them with the hashtag #RockCriticLaw, and the author’s righteous tirade struck a chord with both readers and writers of rock criticism, who greeted each new dispatch with gales of derisive laughter or self-flagellating mea culpas. Written as a set of inviolable rules to be followed only by the very worst writers, Rock Critic Law is a wickedly droll exposé of the hackneyed metaphors, knee-jerk clichés and lazy thinking that have long dogged music journalism. In Rock Critic Law, Azerrad has collected the worst offenders.

Merciless, snarky, and loving underneath it all, Rock Critic Law is redeemed by artwork from OG-Seattle-scenester-turned-renowned-illustrator Edwin Fotheringham. The rock & roll love child of Elements of Style and The Devil’s Dictionary, Rock Critic Law is a unique appreciation of music writing from one of its own.

Détails de l'édition

• Éditeur: Dey Street Books
• Date d'édition: 2018
• Langue: anglais
• ISBN 10: 0062656503
• ISBN 13: 9780062656506
• Reliure: Relié
• Nombre de pages: 224
• Coordonnées du fabricant: Product Safety Manager; enquiries@harpercollins.ie; ; HarperCollins, Macken House, 39/40 Mayor Street Upper; Dublin 1; D01 C9W8; Irlande