Manic Pop Thrill

Ten years ago, a phenomenon labeled ''alternative music'' defined a broad genre of cutting-edge rock-and-roll that attracted a small cult following. Today, so-called alternative bands such as Pearl Jam and Jesus Jones sell millions of records around the world and claim an enormous fan-base. Manic Pop Thrill gives a thorough and satisfying account of the alternative music industry - its roots, its vast range of bands, and its considerable impact on fashion and culture. Questions of why and how key bands such as Nirvana and My Bloody Valentine have influenced their fans are addressed with the conversational ease and obvious experience that marks Rachel Felder's contributions to Rolling Stone and other state-of-the-art music publications. It is often the case that deep-seated social and political problems trigger radical artistic responses. Felder notes that, whereas top-40 culture tends to ignore and anesthetize problems with simplistic lyrics and glitzy production hype, the response of alternative musicians is immediate and raw and draws fans who are dissatisfied with status-quo musical expression: ''Alternative music makes congruent statements: pop music doesn't have to be safe and lightweight and disposable - it can roar and seethe with real emotions and problems; it can envelop diverse musical and social influences; it can writhe with addictive fervor.'' Felder broadly defines ''alternative'' as a twisting of musical conventions (and listener expectations) in a variety of ways. She explores this variety band by band, and categorizes them by recognizable sound patterns: Miasma bands, British and American Guitar bands, Grebo bands, Feedback bands, Art, Industrial, and Goth bands, and other associated sub-genres. She discusses regional differences under each category and the societal forces that affect the evolution of alternative sound trends. Discussions of punk bands from the 70s such as The Sex Pistols, The Clash, and The Smiths provide historical context for the alternative movement, as well as its original wave of angry and politically disenchanted young followers. But the ''scene'' does not end with the bands. Included are the details that surround and affect the music such as the independently-owned recording labels or ''indies'' and the grunge movement currently sweeping the United States with its ''grebo'' counterpart in England. Manic Pop Thrill also includes t-shirt and Doctor Marten protocol, moshing, stage-diving, fanzines, college radio stations, record stores, and alternative music clubs in North America and Great Britain as well as descriptions of parallel movements in art, film, theater, and literature. Using numerous examples, Felder vividly recreates this scene and provides an interesting and helpful collage that has as much to offer the novice as it does the initiate.