cover image Sympathy for the Devil: Art and Rock and Roll Since 1967

Sympathy for the Devil: Art and Rock and Roll Since 1967

Dominic Molon. Yale University Press, $50 (287pp) ISBN 978-0-300-13426-1

Published in conjunction with the exhibit at the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, this elegant, impressive book charts key moments of convergence between avant-garde art and music (a distinction that apparently rules out much poster art, including the work of Frank Kozik, Derek Hess and Robert Williams). That said, those with an academic bent, an eye for the out-there and an ear for indie rock will find a veritable feast. Roughly divided into regions (New York, the U.K., Europe, LA/West Coast and everywhere else), various authors analyze everything from influential clubs like CBGBs and the culture of L.A.'s Sunset Strip to a treatise on punk as propaganda and an entertaining list of 35 observations on AC/DC ( ""33: it is difficult to bungle a good riff""). The academic approach favored by most of these essays can detract from the immediacy of many pieces; exhibit patrons will likely get the most out of this volume, but the crisp reproduction of compositions by Thaddeus Strode, Jim Lambie and Mark Flores prove breathtaking regardless. Closing with a timeline and long list of discographies, bibliographies and exhibitions, this volume is a handsome (though narrow) look at the art-rock intersection.