We Got the Neutron Bomb : The Untold Story of L.A. Punk by Marc Spitz, Brendan Mullen Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of We Got the Neutron Bomb : The Untold Story of L.A. Punk
Book Review: Interesting....
Summary: 3 Stars
I had mixed feelings about this book. On one hand it was interesting and I learned something about the LA Punk scene in the 1970's on the other hand I wanted more. It seemed to just skim the surface and some of the subjects in the book really were/are interesting enough to devote an entire book to. I wish it was more in depth. Book Review: Give Me A Little Pain
Summary: 4 Stars
A wonderful companion piece to "Please Kill Me" (which documents the NYC punk scene)! This book uses interviews and anecdotes in the same way as "Please Kill Me" to give an oral history of LA punk by the people who were actually there. This book focuses as much on big names like X, the Germs and the Weirdos as it does on lesser known acts like Black Randy and the Metro Squad and the Screamers. Admittedly, a lot of stuff got left out or wasn't mentioned at all but a truly comprehensive overview of the LA punk rock scene would be a book about 12 times as big as this one. Or it could just be Brendan Mullen's (he owned the Masque) biased viewpoint. Still, I was just as interested in the Kim Fowley stories as I was with all the Gun Club stuff. Still, when a book relies on the oral recollections of other people you can sort've expect some half-truths and outright lies. Regardless, I highly recommend this for fans of the genre or for folks who are just getting interested in punk and would like to know more.Book Review: The Darby Crash Story
Summary: 3 Stars
This book tries very very hard to be as comprehensive as Legs McNeill's outstanding "Please Kill Me". It even features an endorsement from Legs on it's cover. Unfortunately for all concerned, despite the title being ripped off of a Wierdo's song, the book is really nothing more than the Germs story or "Darby Crash died for your sins".There are so many bands and so many varying types of music that were considered "punk" in the period from 77-82 that Brendan Mullen's focus on just the bands that today would be considered hard core is difficult to understand. Mullen BOOKED most of those bands at clubs ranging from Madame Wong's to Cathay De Grande, yet not a single mention is made of the various different groups & venues. To someone who wasn't there in LA during this period, "We Got the Neutron Bomb" makes it seem like the entire music scene consisted of the Masque & the clubs on the Strip, & the only bands that played were X, the Germs, & the GoGo's. This isn't true.
LA's music scene from the late 70's thru the mid 80's was one of the most exciting; certainly it gave other vaunted scenes in London & NY a run for their money. You'd never know it from reading this book. Rockabilly & it's harder edged brother psychobilly (Jimmy & the Mustangs/ Levi Dexter)? Hardly a mention. The more 60's influenced bands such as the Plimsouls & the Twisters? Never existed according to "We Got the Neutron Bomb". An extremely avante gard club space run by a dedicated artist that gave gigs to bands such as the violin/cello punk trio the Hesitations? Nope, never was such a place, implies "We Got the Neutron Bomb".
If you just haven't heard enough Darby Crash stories, if the fact that no one EVER liked Belinda Carlisle is fascinating to you, buy this book. If you'd like an actual, factual, overview to the LA scene that spawned some incredible music, unfortunately that book is yet to be written.
Book Review: Great History of the late 70's/early 80's L.A. Punk Scene
Summary: 5 Stars
Fantastic read, lots of interesting memories from various players within and on the margins of the L.A. punk scene. I found it particularly interesting, since I'm from the same generation as many of the people interviewed for this book, although, growing up in New England I was oblivious of most of the up and coming L.A. punk or new wave bands at the time, save for The Runaways, X and the Go-Go's. Some, who were more familiar with the L.A. music at that time, may quibble over the amount of focus on different punk-related genres, but for someone like myself, who's not familiar with the scene, this book is a great overview. I had a hard time putting it down.Book Review: The Stars! The Bars! And those Oh So Loud Guitars!
Summary: 5 Stars
I anticipated this Book greatly before it's Release, I was Not disappointed at all. Such a Great scene, The Masque, Disgraceland, The Canterbury. Plungers Pit... So much Great music, The Germs, X The Screamers... Great Stars Excene, Darby, Tomata, Black Randy... Great People working from the ground up to build a world for themselves. Needed after the seemingly rejection by the rest of american society. The thought, today, of being able to create, not only a longlasting musical legacy, but an actually original lifestyle is simply amazing. One that was on the edge. One that was not without it's casualties. It's all here, the story, of a Pre-MTV Musical World!