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HomeShop at BookSurgeBiography & AutobiographyEntertainment & Performing ArtsKill the Music: The chronicle of a college radio idealist's rock and roll rebellion in an era of intrusive morality and censorship |
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Great read for music lovers! Sep 24, 2009
Great read. Loved it! A must have for anyone who grew up during these years and had a love for alternative/hardcore music. The author is wide open, came across a little arrogant at first, but then you warm up to him and it is hilarious! Awesome insight to his years in college radio and beyond as a club owner. For me, as one who grew up banging my head in the hardcore music scene of Florida, it serves as a reminder to be thankful for all of club owners/music lovers who went and continue to go through adversity to make sure the show goes on, even in the Bible Belt.
Fun read.
Michael - The Man, The Legend Sep 13, 2009
Michael wrote this book as a reflection down memory lane of a prior life he once lived. When I read "Kill The Music", I too looked back down that same memory lane with him. The book is brilliantly written from Michael's actual life experiences with absolutely nothing held back - of people, places and things. Michael recounts his experiences as a college radio station DJ and promoter at USC. He then describes the unbelievable experiences after college of being a young alternative music nightclub owner in the very conservative city of Charlotte back in the '80's and early '90's, along with the immense controvesy it generated. I've known Michael most of my life, and I lived many of those crazy experiences with him, his family and friends in real time as they were happening in Charlotte and in Columbia. I was an active participant in the alternative music scene in Charlotte during that time. "Kill The Music" is an incredibly accurate depiction and portrayal of the alternative music and nightclub scene in Charlotte then, and the insanity that surrounded it. Truth is definitely stranger than fiction, and these are actual accountings of what transpired, right down to the seedy, scandalous, and sometimes sad details. Because of Michael's intense passion for staying hardcore and true to his vision, he helped lead the charge to change the history of the music scene as we know it in the South. I was there and loved every minute of it. This book is a great read. You won't want to put it down until you are finished. I highly recommend this book to anyone who lived and loved the alternative music scene during that time, and those who can certainly appreciate it.
 Morsels for thought amongst good trashy fun Aug 17, 2009
I've read better books, but rarely enjoyed one more. If you know the guy, you know that there's no artifice in his authorial persona, reading this is like hanging out with him. You might roll your eyes at a few things he says, but you gotta love him, he's just so ... wide open.
Those were strange times. My record store got a writ from the County giving me warning against stocking 2 Live Crew. The conservatives in power gave the more moralistic among local governments the courage to bully independent thinkers, artists, businesses and venues. Society almost always discovers the hypocrisy underneath those who point fingers before any real damage is done. Amazing to think how much more of a police state we are living in, AND how much more filthy the entertainments have become. Goes to show ya.
Thanks for the memories Mike!
Kill the Music Jul 01, 2009
I went to school with Michael he was a Renaissance Man amongst the backdrop of surfers and kids thinking they should be in College at UNCW but were more fitted for sophomore year of high school. He always had a hidden drive and keen ear for music and when he talked, he did`t so much talk to you as through you. A real Shakespearian Actor, he would have been awesome in that respect. I think he could have been a big time actor Gary Oldman style. He like myself followed what our father`s did for a living, and in a way looked for that approval that would have been lost in a quest in Hollywood. The book is his conscience, a voice into a what music was; like when word of mouth and radio were the only channels for promotion. If you know who the Chamelons-Chamelons UK , Husker Du,Bad Brains are then you lived in that time. It wasn`t all punk but it was music by osmosis at college and the book describes the wild side of that pursuit. Mike make it a movie and ride your skateboard into the producer`s office and do your lines from Bladerunner.
Awesome,
DJ Bernhardt
Plumides is the Indie Rock James Bond Jun 18, 2009
This book chronicles an interesting family legacy in the South, a great era for music, and the important issue of censorship and the First Amendment. A touch of Cameron Crowe's 'Almost Famous' and a touch of 'Empire Records'. I'd like to see this book be a movie! :)
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