Book of the Month
The Bloody Reign Of Slayer
Joel McIver, Omnibus Press, £19.99

As someone generally moved by guitars that jingle and jangle, as opposed to those that slash and slay, and also as someone who couldn’t previously name a Slayer song if it carved me in two and fed me to Satan himself, it’s fair to say that Joel McIver’s ‘The Bloody Reign Of Slayer’ is something of a shock. A shock in the best possible way, that is. An unofficial biography of perhaps the most extreme thrash metal band ever - the first English language book of its kind for Slayer - ‘The Bloody Reign...’ is a fascinating, absorbing, 246 page read. Littered with quotes from colleagues, contemporaries, friends and enemies, plus the band themselves, McIver has a sharp way with his pen, displaying a passion and knowledge for his subject which almost literally leaps off the page. Best of all, he has a focused, unblinkered eye, unafraid to criticise when necessary, but never losing sight of Slayer’s durable influence on this most brutally direct of music genres. It’s so engaging, in fact, that it almost makes me want to trade in some light Johnny Marr licks for heavy lashings of Kerry King. Well, almost. And as such, recommendations rarely come this heavy, or this loud. IF

Brutalism One: Nowhere Fast
Various Authors, Captains Of Industry Press, £5

Blackburn, Durham and Tadcaster are the three hometowns under the microscope in this heartfelt, emotional ode to experiences, people, and life from each author’s memories of where they were born and bred. For Tony O’Neill and his Blackburn heritage, he painfully recalls how the deprived regressive place he once called home was a bitterly unhappy time for him. Leading him on the tragic road of drug abuse, simply to escape and forget where he was, though his spiralling heroin addiction led to his life derailing after his Blackburn exit. His despair and utter contempt for the dead-end life he managed to escape is likened to a prison service, where the only way out is to drink and to seek solace through further damaging means. Ben Myers on Durham intimates for all its beauty; there ain’t much to do around Durham but get drunk, talk to weirdos and try not to get in a fight. For Adelle Stripe, she provides some much needed humour and light-heartedness in this small but emotionally charged collection, and decides Tadcaster isn’t all that bad; just don’t live there – visit occasionally. JP

Contraband
Thomas J Behe, Slave Labor Graphics, £8.50

There aren’t too many graphic novels around that successfully engage with modern anxieties but Contraband is one such work. It’s set in Europe in the near future and concerns a TV show (which is broadcast across mobile phones) named Contraband which exists to thrill its viewers with shocking and outrageous clips (imagine YouTube without the talking cats and blokes demonstrating the history of dance in four and a half minutes). No; sex and violence is their stock in trade and they’ll do anything to get hold of suitable clips. The back-story concerns Toby, an internet café worker, who is blackmailed by two soldiers turned cell phone video-content providers, to track down another ex-vet, Charlotte. The real focus however is the foreground white noise of a society raised on cheap thrills. A mention too for Phil Elliott’s understated artwork which brings a real European sensibility to the tale. Think Hergés does punk sci-fi and you’ll be on the right road. The cover however, is quite awful. Don’t let it put you off. GM

Bob Dylan: The Drawn Black Series
Ingrid Mossinger & Kerstin Drechsel, Prestel, £35

Taken from his first exhibition, selected sketches were digitally transferred from Dylan’s paintings for this book. The motifs, mainly in pencil and charcoal, were etched by the artist from 1989 to 1992 during tours round the continent. For this exhibition he painted his sketches in bold vigorous colours, expressing familiar subjects of interiors, landscapes, nudes, cityscapes and more personal portraits of men and women. Some sketches show several versions in various colours, creating a totally alternative picture. It’s striking seeing the simplest of sketches, “representing wordless moments” spent by Dylan; they emanate such beautiful detail and warmth. A quote from Diana Widmaier Picasso says: “Art in the form of music or song resonates with each listener in a different way. A drawing also possesses in itself this liberating quality”. His work creates primarily a personal interpretation, having you imagine the destination of a sketch or the personality of some figure in a portrait, such as ‘View from Two Windows’ and ‘Man on a Bridge’: both have the viewer filling in the details. This book is an extraordinary collection of art, documenting a man’s journey and everything he has encountered along the way. HF

The Last Musketeer
Jason, Fantagraphic Books, £9.99

After making a name for himself on the graphic novel scene with his existential thriller, Why Are You Doing This? and his more recent time travel expos, I Killed Adolf Hitler, John Arne Saeteroy, aka Jason has bolstered his already impressive back catalogue with his brilliant new swashbuckling sci-fi romance, The Last Musketeer.Set in the in modern day France, The Last Musketeer is an almost satirical mergence of present and past, which begins with main character, Athos, who’s technically close to notching up 400yrs of service, suavely dressed, but down on his luck.Boozed up on a park bench, Athos cannot believe his eyes: France is being attacked by Martians from out of space. Naturally, Athos springs into life, to come to the aid of his beloved France and launches a solo campaign on the oxygen feigning Mars. Athos finds himself imprisoned, escaping, charming the Martian Princess, disabling the laser cannon and duelling with an old adversary. All of course told with Jason’s graphic implicature and wry wit. Well worth a spy. JC

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