Twilight of the Gods

April 23, 2018
Music critic Hyden (Your Favorite Band Is Killing Me) explores the evolution of classic rock in this sharp collection of essays. Hyden looks back at bands such as Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd, whose mythical status drew him in as a teenager, and traces their legacy to contemporary acts such as Japandroids, a Canadian guitar-and-drums stadium rock duo. Classic rock began, Hyden maintains, with the Beatles’ 1967 release of Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, “where the Beatles officially stopped being lovable mop-topped pop stars and became serious rock intellectuals.” Hyden’s critiques are consistently on target and humorous: according to Hyden, the Eagles were not popular because they were particularly good as a band, but because they were “craven capitalists” who “were cool like the captain of the high school baseball team was cool.” Hyden is also acutely aware of the overwhelming straight white maleness of the classic rock canon, dissecting his own teenage listening experience through a socially aware lens (“On the classic-rock station—with the exception of Jimi Hendrix and Phil Lynott of Thin Lizzy—there were no black artists”). Hyden has created a hilariously opinionated personal history of classic rock that should resonate with his fellow genre enthusiasts.

May 1, 2018

In 2016, rock stars were dying at an alarming rate. David Bowie, Prince, Glenn Frey, George Michael--it seemed like half of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame was being buried. While each death seemed to bring an ever greater sense of shock, the simple facts are: rock is old, and the people who play it are old. Facing this reality, how will the music be consumed and interpreted in the future? Will these legends live on, or will their music die with them? These and other questions are at the heart of this title. Music critic Hyden (Your Favorite Band Is Killing Me) draws most of his musical taste formation from the classic rock stations of his youth. Understanding that coming generations won't view bands such as Pink Floyd or The Who the way he does, he explores how their music will live on (or won't). VERDICT Even though the book sprawls into areas such as Phish fandom, it mostly maintains its focus with tight chapters and a clever LP track organization scheme. Fans of the website Pitchfork will find lots to love. [See Prepub Alert, 11/27/17; "Editors' Spring Picks," LJ 2/1/18.]--Brett Rohlwing, Milwaukee P.L.

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