ARTCORE BOOKS: NEFARIOUS ARTISTS OR DIRECTIONS TO THE OUTSKIRTS OF TOWN
NEFARIOUS ARTISTS: THE EVOLUTION AND ART OF THE PUNK ROCK, POST-PUNK, NEW WAVE, HARDCORE PUNK AND ALTERNATIVE ROCK COMPILATION RECORD 1976 - 1989
BY WELLY ARTCORE - EARTH ISLAND BOOKS $30
Long before online streaming and even TV music videos, that were beyond the reach of many new bands outside of a lucky spin on the radio, the compilation became the most effective way to access, and be accessed by, the eager new ears and inquisitive minds of the then new punk generation. ‘Nefarious Artists’ is a field study of over 500 punk rock, post-punk, new wave, hardcore punk, and alternative rock compilations from their beginnings in 1976 as major label samplers and live showcases of the ‘new wave’ through their rapid evolution into a documentary art form of D.I.Y. punk rock creativity and expression.
‘Nefarious Artists’ by Welly of Artcore Fanzine (est. 1986) charts the genesis, evolution and art of the punk rock, post-punk, new wave, hardcore punk, and alternative rock compilation vinyl record from 1976 to 1989. Each compilation is discussed and reviewed with accompanying high resolution full colour scans of all the cover art and much more to provide both context and as a journey through the international punk rock music and developing scene of the late 1970s and ‘80s. The compilation record played a pivotal role in the spread of the idea and conversation of the independent punk underground and now remain as audio and visual time capsules that capture the zeitgeist of the music, scene and era.
Featuring background information on the compilations, as well in depth descriptions of the style of the musical content of each one, read as the early major label sampler and live showcase of punk rock and new wave slowly evolved into a burgeoning independent post-punk scene that gradually changed the compilation into an underground labour of love for a developing international underground hardcore punk network. Compilation records for specific cities, countries and causes from labels that went onto global notoriety or merely managed one obscure release are discussed over its 400 plus pages.
DIRECTIONS TO THE OUTSKIRTS OF TOWN: PUNK ROCK TOUR DIARIES FROM NINETIES NORTH AMERICA
BY WELLY ARTCORE - EARTH ISLAND BOOKS $18
In 1994 punk rock fanzine writer Welly Artcore jumped in the van with legendary British punk band CHAOS U.K. for a two month tour around the U.S. Four years later he did it all again with his own band, FOUR LETTER WORD, this time also travelling across Canada.
From the impossible drives, to scrapes with the authorities, and the bands they shared stages and floors with along the way, often with nothing more than the name of a club on a scrap of paper that turned out to be a disused unit in an industrial estate, they somehow made most of the gigs.
All the while, he did something so many others don’t, he wrote it all down.
'Directions to the outskirts of town' is a candid and humorous account of life on the road packed into a 6” x 9” paperback with over 300 pages, over 250 unpublished colour photos, flyers and illustrations, and a foreword by Kaos of CHAOS U.K.
BOTH BOOKS $45
BOOK ORDERS COME WITH POSTERS AND BOOKMARKS WHILE AVAILABLE