Over the years I’ve amassed a small library of books on punk and hardcore music including Please Kill Me, No Future, and American Hardcore and am always eager to add another selection to the shelf. There’s nothing quite like reading first hand accounts of the scene and getting better insight of the culture back when it was happening; it’s like having another section of the picture of punk history become clearer. Fortunately for me and many others like myself, a new book is available to add to the collection, and one that you would be foolish to miss out on.
Enter RÅPUNK: The Birth Of Swedish Hardcore 1981-1989, a beautiful coffee table book covering Swedish punk and hardcore’s glory years in the 80’s. Thoughtfully written and put together by David Andersson of Swedish punk band IDENTITY, the book features a treasure trove of interviews, never before seen photos, set lists, album artwork, and multiple history lessons on the scene’s origins, politics, and lasting influence on modern punk culture.
The book does a great job of balancing attention between bigger names from the era like ANTI-CIMEX, MOB 47, and TOTALITÄR and lesser known bands (at least to me) like DOM DÄR, CHARTA 77 and ASTA KASK. The amount of playlists and bands to checkout I’ve gotten from this thing is absurd, and I’ve only spent about 48 hours with it.
If you want a fully comprehensive dive into the Swedish scene that’s inspired so many of today’s heavy hitters like DELETÄR, GOLPE, and PARANOID this is THE place to start. Don’t sleep on it, the book is already on it’s second run and is sure to sell out again. Skol!
Purchase A Copy Through NO GOOD
