The Steel Breakfast Era: The Decadent Return of the Hi-Fi Queen and Her Embryonic Reptile Infection (Eraserhead Double #3) [Paperback]

Carlton Mellick III (Author), Simon Logan (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 11, 2003

THE STEEL BREAKFAST ERA by Carlton Mellick III (w/ tattoos by Pooch)

A nightmarishly absurd story that is like Re-Animator meets Naked Lunch during the zombie apocalypse.

The living dead conquered the Earth almost a century ago, leaving only small isolated communities of survivors spread across the shattered-earwig landscape. One such community has been locked away in a New York City high-rise. Breeding like cockroaches for many generations, their civilization has almost completely deteriorated into a mess of insane ones and those infested with parasites that mutate flesh into steel-string sculptures. There is nothing to live for, no chance for hope. Except for one man, not yet effected by the parasites, who finds hope after he creates a wife out of the human body parts that litter the hallways and gets rescued by a group of zombie-shredding warriors from Japan (where the citizens have evolved into anime-like mechazoid characters). This tattoo-illustrated avant-garde novel is cult author Carlton Mellick III at his darkest and most horrific.

THE DECADENT RETURN OF THE HI-FI QUEEN AND HER EMBRYONIC REPTILE INFECTION by Simon Logan

The Hi-Fi Queen is resurrected after almost being killed in an ambush by another gang and rises once more to claim back the territory that was once hers. Set in a world of constant gang warfare and corporate subterfuge, she must first re-brand herself then assemble a new crew to help her in her fight. Pirate radio broadcasters, graffiti artists, black-marketing men and skaters alike are all caught up in her quest for revenge, for not only must the gang be strong ... but it must have a proper marketing campaign to match.

In HI-FI QUEEN, Logan takes us deeper into his world of industrial-style fiction, expanding upon the grounding set forth in his highly successful underground hit I-O and bringing it to another level with threads of dark, bleak humour.

Editorial Reviews

From the Inside Flap

"This flip book is a double-barrel shotgun blast of futuristic insanity. Both novellas are a delight, and suck you entirely into their respective unsettling universes. Mellick's is the more surreal, a cross between the mechanized horror of the Japanese film Tetsuo: The Iron Man and the apocalyptic zombie-fest Dawn of the Dead. He makes it work, and his main characters - however weird - are moving and oddly innocent. Simon Logan, the author of the stunning short story collection I-O, delivers a blackly humorous, campy-fun tale that still takes some very biting swipes at corporate mentality. In his future world, even street gangs need PR agents and fashion consultants, and the ultimate aspiration is to make it into television - in a weirdly literal fashion. One (or two?) of the most enjoyable books I've read in some time! Raw, exciting imagination run wild." - JEFFREY THOMAS, author of Punktown and Deadstock

About the Author

Carlton Mellick III is one of the leading names in the new BIZARRO genre uprising. In only a few short years, his surreal counterculture novels have drawn an international cult following despite the fact that they have been shunned by most libraries and corporate bookstores. Though frequently compared to David Lynch, Kurt Vonnegut, and even Lloyd Kaufman, Carlton Mellick III is unlike anyone you’ve experienced before. He sings for the band "Popes That Are Porn Stars" in Portland, OR.

Product Details

• Paperback: 172 pages
• Publisher: Eraserhead Press (December 11, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0972959874
• ISBN-13: 978-0972959872
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.5 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,423,850 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Tetsuo meets Dawn of the Dead..., August 29, 2007

By 

J. Krall "Horror/Bizarro/Noir Author" (Noir Jersey, USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: The Steel Breakfast Era: The Decadent Return of the Hi-Fi Queen and Her Embryonic Reptile Infection (Eraserhead Double #3) (Paperback)

First, I'd like to address the complaints about this book (Carlton Mellick III's Steel Breakfast Era) not having a point. The people who say this probably don't read much. Not all books have a point or at least have a point that's clear. It seems like some people feel threatened when they don't understand something.

The bizarro (or surrealist/absurdist ect) genre is a strange one. It's for people who like weird things. If you don't.. then no, you have no business reading the book and then complaining that it's too weird or that it lacks a point. I don't read romance novels and then complain that there was too much emotion and not enough action.

Okay, so on with CM3's novella. As one reviewer complained.. the syntax is different. Different from traditional writing and also from the author's later work. But don't worry, it's not at all distracting like some of Kenji Siratori's work (but that's a WHOLE different animal).

Think Dawn of the Dead meets Return of the Living Dead Part 3 directed by the guy who did Tetsuo the Iron Man. I even got a little Cronenberg vibe, too. Now, I know it may seem like I'm just name dropping. That may turn people off but let me explain. For people who are not familiar with the bizarro genre or Mellick's work, the easiest thing to do is to compare it to things that those readers may be familiar with. Fans of Tetsuo may have never heard of this book or author but may very well enjoy it.

As one reviewer complained, there is a detached feeling that doesn't bode well for people looking for an emotional attachment to the characters. I say, so what? There are plenty of books (classics and otherwise) I have read that lacked characters I cared about. Look at Cormac McCarthy. He gets raved about but his books lack any real connection to the characters. I'm not saying that they are bad books.. but just that some great books lack certain aspects that we may be used to.

Oh, and there is plenty of awesome gore and very interesting characters. Honestly, the imagery is a strong point "The Steel Breakfast Era" and is probably one of the main strengths of the author whose work I happen to enjoy a lot.

One negative thing (if you can call it that) is that I felt like it could have been longer. That's the problem I have with a lot of CM3's work.. because I enjoy each story so much, I want MORE of it. Maybe a sequel would be nice. Or a film. I can see this being turned into a film, for sure. But I think it'd have to be directed by a cutting edge Japanese director.. as they seem to have a crazier grasp on things.

Anyway, "The Steel Breakfast Era" is a gore punk sci-fi biological horror story complete with sex, zombies, and some humor, too.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars 2 great stories=one great double, August 21, 2005

By 

R. Duffy "literature junkie" (Columbus, OH) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Steel Breakfast Era: The Decadent Return of the Hi-Fi Queen and Her Embryonic Reptile Infection (Eraserhead Double #3) (Paperback)

Ah, finally, a double printing where the stories on both sides are good! I picked this up for the Carlton Mellick story, "The Steel Breakfast Era", but was pleasantly suprised by the flipside book by Simon Logan. Mellick is in fine form here, delivering a story set in a twisted and surrealishly nightmare reality where humans are in the minority and band together to save themselves from swarms of ravenous zombies. While that might not sound like a particularly unique idea for a story, Mellick infuses it with enough of his brilliant humor, incredibly strange nuances, and distincly descriptive style to create a world unlike any other. Simon Logan also delivers an interesting story set in another vision of a postapocalyptic world. His and Mellick's stories complement each other nicely, and together they make for a thoroughly enjoyable reading experience. More than worth checking out for anyone who enjoys good writing in all its forms.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Conjoined Twins of Terror, April 11, 2004

By 

Jeffrey Thomas (Massachusetts) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Steel Breakfast Era: The Decadent Return of the Hi-Fi Queen and Her Embryonic Reptile Infection (Eraserhead Double #3) (Paperback)

This flip book, containing THE STEEL BREAKFAST era by Carlton Mellick III on one side and THE DECADENT RETURN OF THE HI-FI QUEEN AND HER EMBRYONIC REPTILE INFECTION (whew!) by Simon Logan on the other, is a double-barrel shotgun blast of futuristic insanity. Both novellas are a delight, and suck you entirely into their respective unsettling universes. Mellick's is the more surreal, a cross between the mechanized horror of the Japanese film TETSUO (IRONMAN) and the apocalyptic zombie-fest DAWN OF THE DEAD. He makes it work, and his main characters - however weird - are moving and oddly innocent. Simon Logan, the author of the stunning short-story collection I-O, delivers a blackly humorous, campy-fun tale that still takes some very biting swipes at corporate mentality. In his future world, even street gangs need PR agents and fashion consultants, and the ultimate aspiration is to make it into television - in a weirdly literal fashion. One (or two?) of the most enjoyable books I've read in some time! Raw, exciting imagination run wild.