Metamatic Forums Socialising The Green Room What are you reading these days

Just finished reading Stephen Colbert's 'I Am America (And So Can You)'. Any fan of the show should pick this one up.


Note of interest: Thomas Dolby gets name-dropped in a chapter heading.

A mixture of complete trash (‘Air Babylon’) and some classics (‘The Hitchhikers Guide to The Galaxy’ trilogy in five parts) this month for me.

I read the Tony Hadley book that has been mentioned here last year. I found it a refreshingly honest account of his life and was quite surprised to find I enjoyed it more than I expected to, possibly because it was obviously written with a good mixture of humour and bitter experience. The Duran book that was also mentioned I found much tougher going – and for too many reasons to detail here.

I also read recently the other Steve Malins book Depeche Mode: Black Celebration. This is a fine effort by Steve and got me going chapter after chapter. Nearly read it all in one day. It's his best along with the Gary Numan one Praying with the Aliens. The book is itself an expanded version on the Q edition of Depeche Mode: The Story of Electro-pop. At the end of the book you do say to yourself Depeche Mode are one of the most amazing and best bands ever. It's also an honest account of the highs and lows of a band. One thing I disagree is that both Martin and Fletch are better musicians than depicted here. It shows how modest both Martin and Fletch really are.

Next came a book, well a booklet in reality, by Peter Nash on The Human League.It covers the period up to the release of Don't you want me. It's a very old book and lacks the flow a writer like Steve Malins would have given to it. Anyhow, there are a number of anecdotes that kept me happy. Perhaps, The Human League now deserves a proper biography.

Finally, Messages a book on OMDwritten by Johnny Waller and Paul's brother Mike Humphreys. This is a nice account of a band as pioneering as The Human League. Both Paul and Andy were fine engineers and are better musicians than one might think. The book covers the period before the release of The Best of OMD and the Dreaming single. The most interesting parts are their very first tours and the setting up of The Gramphone Suite. It all brought back a lot of memories and is very relevant now as OMD are back on tour and with Dazzle Ships being re-released in its expanded form.

Next in line is Bowie's new one, Bowie in Berlin: A New Career in a New Town by Thomas Jerome Seabrook ....

Chris

Just finished Don DeLillo's Americana

'The Damned Utd' by David Peace

A fictionalised account of the very real 44 days in 1974 that Brian Clough spent as manager of 'Dirty' Leeds United – exacting revenge on previous manager Don Revie by trying to turn the team inside out. The book is written from the point of view of Clough – and reads like a dark, humorous work of Shakespeare – only very 70s, with very bleak northern landscapes replacing dithering danes and castles.

Top bloke was Cloughie !

Currently reading American Prometheus, an autobiography of J.R. Oppenheimer

It is providing great insight on a misunderstood man and a difficult and disturbing time in world politics

You got that right Chris! I was also very impressed with this book, having purchased it just a few weeks ago. I have to disagree with Steve's brief comment on Client though - the music for me is every bit as memorable as the image.

Just finished 'Darkly Dreaming Dexter' by Jeff Lindsay, which was an excellent read.

That's the book that the Dexter TV series is based on I think.Watched Dexter on FX a while back.Its excellent.