From the Velvets to the Voidoids: A Pre-Punk History for a Post-Punk World

Halle-fuckin-lujah. I finished this damn thing. Why would it take me nearly three months to complete a single book? Glad you asked. I was getting the itch to read a music history book--something I did regularly as a teen in the '90s, but an activity that fell largely by the wayside when the internet really became A Thing and also aided by the fact I spent my late-teens to 20s working in rekkid stos and got a lot of it just from hangin' out with friends. But I wanted to do it right. I wanted to experience as much of the music as possible, to get a sense of the progression, and listen to every album mentioned as I went along. This was SUPER rewarding, but extended read-time like a bitch. There was the relatively swift rise and fall of the show more proto-punk bands, so I could knock those out pretty quickly, but then there was the incubation period, then a mad flurry of releases, then a few detours into other off-topics, then Heydin would just blithely name-check an entire catalog--all this meaning I would have to stop reading for a week at a time so I could listen to every damn thing listed before moving on. Also, I had other shit to read. And a life.

But, as I said, the experience was a rewarding one and a process I'll be sure to repeat in the future. It was a pure joy to go back and listen to a crapload of albums languishing on my shelves (and fill in the holes thanks to my BFF's inclusion of me on her Google Play account--besos, Kate!). There were so many old favorites, but it also gave me an opportunity to experience bands that somehow slipped my radar or I didn't give a chance when I was younger or ones that I didn't care for then but found I adore now (also ones I realized I just can't--so sorry, Blondie, I really tried). The context Heydin provided along with some of his opinions (usually stated as fact) also allowed me to think a little more concretely of why I like or don't like this or that album/band/style, etc.

While I enjoyed the experience, I can't say I was always thrilled with the actual book. Heydin's prose is frequently campy--at first it was cute, but it began to wear. As stated before, there were points where his opinion were equated as fact, points where he was just kind of whiny, and points where he just wanted to brag about what he's been doing (hello, "Postlude"). But you also can't expect a punk history to not be rife with bias, and these observations did prompt me to get in my own headspace about the topic at hand, so it wasn't a total loss. Another curious notion I got from this book was that Heydin REALLY wanted to write a history of the Cleveland punk scene, but didn't have enough for a whole book. I mean, it was cool to learn more about our Ohioans' contributions, but damn...when he details every last thing about what was happening in that scene (Jesus, did I need to spend that much time with Peter Laughner?), then glosses over a prominent NY band or sub-movement, then gets super sloppy with the ending, I was about ready to poke my eyes out. Reading the book in 2017, too, came with a different perspective in the over-a-decade since the publication of this revised edition, with more heavy-hitters biting the dust (I still weep for you, Lou Reed and Scott Asheton) and considering the advent of the monumental [b:Just Kids|341879|Just Kids|Patti Smith|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1259762407s/341879.jpg|332242], among other events.

In the end, this book clearly got me to think on some shit and gave me some really fun listening parties. I am stoked to re-re-read Just Kids and finally hunker down with M Train before a return trip to NY, probably do that John Doe history of LA Punk at some point, and continue on this slow read path of music histories. show less

Good chronicle of the early years of the American Punk scene.