No Wave: Post-Punk. Underground. New York 1976-1980

Art and music come together in this oral account of Manhattan's mid-1970s No Wave music scene. Moore, a founding member of the band Sonic Youth, and Coley, a music writer and editor, identify the likes of Teenage Jesus and the Jerks, DNA, Contortions and Mars as the ""core bands"" that built No Wave. Shedding light on the personal relationships of these close-knit bands, the surprisingly reserved volume-graced with exquisite black-and-white photos with occasional splashes of poster-art color-also looks at how the devastated state of the city influenced their sound and performances: ""As everything's collapsing... the music became the rebellion,"" says Teenage Jesus's Lydia Lunch in her scowling, astute foreword. Music sometimes described as ""a car crash"" gets heartfelt and intelligent commentary from the likes of DNA's Ikue Mori: ""it wasn't about technique; it was more about new ideas and inspiration."" The authors' personal interviews with the movement's other pioneers elicit raw, honest hindsight; along with revealing photographs, this volume takes readers straight into the heart of this zeitgeist.