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9781636140803

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Critical Praise for Ian F. Svenonius's previous work: Like its author, Supernatural Strategies is part tongue-in-cheek, part deadly serious--a satire of rock's consumerist origins but also a thoughtful treatise on what it means to devote yourself to a collective . . . Drawing from the wisdom of rock 'n' roll's most famous ghosts, Svenonius's advice ranges from hilarious to cryptic to surprisingly useful. --Pitchfork on Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group Svenonius hasn't written a basic 'How to Make It in the Music Business' book. Rather, the writer, online talk show host and, most important, singer in a series of breathtaking rock 'n' roll bands (Nation of Ulysses, the Make-Up, Chain & the Gang), is drawing a line in the sand and doing so with what he hopes will finally define the undefinable. --Los Angeles Times on Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group While putting a copy of this book on your nightstand would be a sign of good taste, who cares about good taste? Are you willing to be seen reading a book titled Censorship Now!! in public? If so, your skin might burn with funny glances from squares, scolds, and looky-loos. But on the inside, you'll feel your brain throbbing as it swells to accommodate some hilarious, absurd, and radical new strategies on how to live in our ridiculous world. --Washington Post on Censorship Now!! In a sense the book is Mr. Svenonius's love letter to the good old days of do-it-yourself punk concerts, though it's cleverly disguised as a series of Marxian essays. --New York Times on The Psychic Soviet

What makes Ian Svenonius funny is a little different. He's funny in his use of language in music, in the ridiculous extended conceits of so many of his songs; he's funny in his prose style, a supercharged Marxist-Leninist jargon placed at the service of deliberate absurdity; he's funny in his presentation as a self-made character, a preaching, yelping, evangelical amalgam of James Brown and the protagonists of Godard's La Chinoise . . . Ian Svenonius' career in comedy has involved various vehicles, but the silly-serious approach is consistent throughout. --Tribune (UK) Wielding the satiric tone of a Gen-X Jonathan Swift or leftist Andy Kaufman . . . Svenonius is an engaging companion . . . and he lands some scathing blows, as when he links internet porn to contemporary Christianity by noting that both are 'anti-intellectual, patriarchal, have an elitist or outsider self-image, and are aesthetically garish.' --Publishers Weekly Critical Praise for Ian F. Svenonius's previous work: Like its author, Supernatural Strategies is part tongue-in-cheek, part deadly serious--a satire of rock's consumerist origins but also a thoughtful treatise on what it means to devote yourself to a collective . . . Drawing from the wisdom of rock 'n' roll's most famous ghosts, Svenonius's advice ranges from hilarious to cryptic to surprisingly useful. --Pitchfork on Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group Svenonius hasn't written a basic 'How to Make It in the Music Business' book. Rather, the writer, online talk show host and, most important, singer in a series of breathtaking rock 'n' roll bands (Nation of Ulysses, the Make-Up, Chain & the Gang), is drawing a line in the sand and doing so with what he hopes will finally define the undefinable. --Los Angeles Times on Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group While putting a copy of this book on your nightstand would be a sign of good taste, who cares about good taste? Are you willing to be seen reading a book titled Censorship Now!! in public? If so, your skin might burn with funny glances from squares, scolds, and looky-loos. But on the inside, you'll feel your brain throbbing as it swells to accommodate some hilarious, absurd, and radical new strategies on how to live in our ridiculous world. --Washington Post on Censorship Now!! In a sense the book is Mr. Svenonius's love letter to the good old days of do-it-yourself punk concerts, though it's cleverly disguised as a series of Marxian essays. --New York Times on The Psychic Soviet

Author Information

Ian F. Svenonius is the author of the underground best sellers Supernatural Strategies for Making a Rock 'n' Roll Group, The Psychic Soviet, and Censorship Now!! He was also the host of VBS.tv's Soft Focus, where he interviewed Mark E. Smith, Genesis P. Orridge, Chan Marshall, Ian MacKaye, and others. As a musician he has created more than twenty albums and countless singles in various rock and roll combos (Escape-ism, Chain & the Gang, The Make-Up, The Nation of Ulysses, etc.). He lives in Los Angeles, CA.

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