Avant Rock

Bill Martin

Narrated by John Guccion

Available from Audible

Book published by Open Court

Critiquing avant-garde rock bands from the 1960s to 2000, Bill Martin examines how social upheaval gave rise to this new form of musical expression. He covers early experimentation by artists such as James Brown; initiation into the mainstream and the resulting adaptations by the Beatles and the Who; and continues into the next era looking at how groups like Stereolab, Sonic Youth, Jim O’Rourke, and others continued to innovate.

REVIEWS:

“Vital and balanced, intellectual but engrossing, this is rock criticism in which to sink one's teeth while shaking one's hips.”

—Booklist

“Invigorating...A trenchant and witty exploration...”

—Kirkus Reviews