The Wire Primers: A Guide to Modern Music [Paperback]

Rob Young (Editor), Mike Barnes (Contributor), Nick Cain (Contributor), Louise Gray (Contributor), David Keenan (Contributor), Art Lange (Contributor), Stewart Lee (Contributor), Alan Licht (Contributor), Edwin Pouncey (Contributor), Ben Ratliff (Contributor), Simon Reynolds (Contributor), Peter Shapiro (Contributor), John Szwed (Contributor), Derek Walmsley (Contributor), Barry Witherden (Contributor)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 3, 2009

An essential handbook to the most advanced modern music from the Bible of experimental sounds.

Since it was founded in 1982, The Wire magazine has covered a vast range of alternative, experimental, underground and non-mainstream music. Now some of that knowledge has been distilled into The Wire Primers: a comprehensive guide to the core recordings of some of the most visionary and inspiring, subversive and radical musicians on the planet, past and present. Each chapter surveys the musical universe of a particular artist, group or genre by way of a contextualizing introduction and a thumbnail guide to the most essential recordings. A massive and eclectic range of music is celebrated and demystified, from rock mavericks such as Captain Beefheart and The Fall; the funk of James Brown and Fela Kuti; the future jazz of Sun Ra and Ornette Coleman; and the experimental compositions of John Cage and Morton Feldman. Genres surveyed and explained include P-funk, musique concrète, turntablism, Brazilian Tropicália, avant metal and dubstep. The Wire Primers is a vital guide to contemporary sounds, providing an accessible entry point for any reader wanting to dig below the surface of mainstream music.

Editorial Reviews

Review

The most essential music magazine of the contemporary era. (Forced Exposure )

For 25 years The Wire magazine has been celebrating the sound of cussed eccentricity … A true English eccentric … it is the curator of a self-sufficient and non-aligned musical world. (Daily Telegraph )

Product Details

• Paperback: 200 pages
• Publisher: Verso; Original edition (November 3, 2009)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1844674274
• ISBN-13: 978-1844674275
• Product Dimensions: 7.4 x 7.4 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (1 customer review)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #375,512 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Must have for fans of the most interesting music magazine ever, February 11, 2010

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This review is from: The Wire Primers: A Guide to Modern Music (Paperback)

I've been reading the Wire for two decades. Back when I worked in a music store in the mid 90s and thought I knew everything about music, the Wire was consistently the one magazine that would always reveal music I'd never heard of or considered. For those who haven't been reading this great magazine for as long, this is a great way to catch up on some essential acts/genres of underground and outer limits music. Even as a long-time reader, I saw a few pieces I had previously missed or had forgotten about. The Primers and Invisible Jukebox are the greatest part of the mag, and it's great to see one captured here.