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It’s finally come to fruition. Chicago photographer & graphic designer Brian Shanley may best known for his work with Wax Trax! Records during the 1980s, but for the first time anywhere, Hozac Books has collected his seminal band photographs that he shot during his time before settling in at the record label’s art department. Most of these incredible shots are previously unpublished, and not even seen by many of the bands themselves. From 1976 to 1984, Brian Shanley fixated himself at the epicenter of whichever show was happening around Chicago (and a few from NYC and London as well) and locked in on the talent. Setting his craft apart from most of his photographer brethren, Shanley focused on portrait-style shots of bands that rarely ever sat still, and along with his trusty camera, was welcomed into a world where most people aren’t allowed to tread.

You won’t find a better snapshot of the fledgling 70s Chicago punk scene than in Dodged & Burned, which collects rare images of bands such as Epicycle, The Imports, Sundog Summit, Special Affect, and more, that escaped attention and fame at the time, yet still are firmly rooted in the city’s rich music history. But that still can’t overshadow Shanley’s incredible shots of the new and exciting touring bands that criss-crossed the US passing thru Chicago on many of their maiden voyages, most of which have never been seen before anywhere.

Featuring a Foreword by Sub Pop Records’ founder BRUCE PAVITT, he fondly recalls meeting Shanley in the early 1980s when his Chicago-based fanzine Subterranean Pop ran their first ads that Shanley designed for Wax Trax, as well as an introduction by David Kendrick (DEVO, Sparks, Gleaming Spires) and commentary by Kevin Haskins (Bauhaus, Love & Rockets, Tones on Tail).

HZB-010
123 pages
FIRST EDITION of 400 copies, paperback (1st 50 copies SIGNED by the artist as well!)
ISBN: 978-0-9963319-8-2

FREE PROMO POSTERS ship with the FIRST 100 orders (while supplies last)

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Sonny Vincent, known as the founding member of NYC punk heroes, TESTORS has unearthed a collection of never-before heard recordings from his proto-punk days with this new LP collection. Compiling unreleased tracks from DISTANCE (1969-71), FURY (1972), and LIQUID DIAMONDS (1973-75), as well as one of the earliest TESTORS demos from 1976, this LP collection shines a light on one of New York City’s darkest corners of punk history.

Shipping NOW, First 100 orders come with FREE PROMO POSTER from the DISTANCE, DOGS & SUICIDE show from 1973 (below, only a few left!),

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ORDER HERE:
ORDER HERE:

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WE WERE LIVING IN CINCINNATI is the culmination of a long-idealized project from Peter Aaron of the Chrome Cranks, who amassed a large collection of Cincinnati-area records and demo tapes from the 70s & 80s, lots of which have never been comped before, and four of which are presented here on vinyl for the first time anywhere. We all love the incredible music from Ohio’s other more well-known punk spawning grounds, and Ohio is THE Mesopotamia of Punk after all, so it’s our great pleasure to release another lesser-known corner of the state’s rich underground music history for you, and man is it gonna change your mind about Cincinnati!

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check out the previously unreleased track “Sleeping Around” from THE DENTS (1979):

PREVIEW video teaser here:

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Hozac Books is proud to present our third art book, I’m Just The Drummer the Bob Bert artist compendium of photography and interviews, establishing his irreplaceable link between the 1970s No Wave movement and contemporary noise rock. Although Bert’s immediate work is best known drumming in his wide array of musical projects he’s been involved with (such as SONIC YOUTH, PUSSY GALORE, CHROME CRANKS, LYDIA LUNCH, and many more) since the early 1980s, the focus of his book isn’t drum-centric as it is an encapsulation of the artistic world he’s developed within. It’s not a drumming instructional guide, or a critical assessment of how the drummers in bands are treated, but a 200+ page guide through Bob’s musically adventurous life, and what a ride! Starting out with his teenage love of photography and his process of capturing the underground downtown figureheads as well as the emerging unknown No Wave bands, Bob was just as much of an enthusiastic fan of music as he was a fixture in some of the most crucial music of the 1980s, 90s, and beyond. And that’s what’s really important in the long run, as his excitement for music bursts from each page, providing the springboard to his long-running life in bands on the fringe of the mainstream.

HZB-008
200+ pages, paperback
SECOND EDITION of 400 copies
ISBN: 978-0-9963319-7-5

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ORDER SECOND EDITION HERE, SHIPPING NOW

ORDER SECOND EDITION HERE, SHIPPING NOW

ORDER LATE SUMMER 2019 3-Pack HERE!!

NEW LPs from TRAMPOLINE TEAM and VELVETEEN RABBIT and the debut 7″ EP from DISCO JUNK!

ORDER LATE SUMMER 2019 3-Pack HERE!!

SHIT-HOT second LP coming THIS SUMMER, and don’t miss ’em on tour in Europe in August:

Sun 8/11 Aarhus Denmark
Mon 8/12 Copenhagen @ Mayhem
Tue 8/13 Gothenburg
Wed 8/14 Stockholm @ Vielle Montagne
Thu 8/15 Malmo @ Massingshornet
Fri 8/16 Berlin @ Bei Ruth
Sat 8/17 Leipzig Germany
Sun 8/18 Prague Czech Republic
Mon 8/19 Vienna Austria
Tue 8/20 Zagreb Croatia @ Klub Mocvara
Wed 8/21 Venice Italy
Thu 8/22 Bergamo Italy
Fri 8/23 Bologna Italy @ Freak Show
Sat 8/24 Teramo Italy
Sun 8/25 Naples Italy
Mon 8/26 Mantova Italy
Tue 8/27 Kreuzlingen Switzerland @ Horst
Wed 8/28 Heidelberg Germany @ Schmitthelm
Thu 8/29 Hamburg Germany @ Hafenklang
Fri 8/30 Hamburg Germany
Sat 8/31 Hamburg Germany

JULIAN LEAL

Archival debut Remastered/Expanded LP – 1985 private press Power Pop masterpiece.

NUN

The Dome LP – Melbourne darkwave synth punk

MATT GIMMICK

Detroit Renaissance ’79 Archival 7″ – 1979 DETROIT STOOGES-soaked KBD PUNK

THE ANEMIC BOYFRIENDS

Fake I.D. Archival 7″ – 1980-81 ALASKAN TEEN PUNK SUPREME

ORDER Spring 2019 4-Pack HERE

After FIVE solid years of painstaking research and hard work, Rich Tupica’s epic tome on the deep end of the BIG STAR story is ready.

1st edition now SOLD OUT!
2nd edition shipping NOW!

ORDER HERE, SHIPPING NOW
ORDER HERE, SHIPPING NOW
ORDER HERE, SHIPPING NOW

THERE WAS A LIGHT is an oral history containing new and archival interviews with those closest to Chris Bell and the Big Star circle: their friends, family, former bandmates—even some fans, exes, classmates and co-workers.

The varied cast of voices, many from the band’s hometown of Memphis, comprises all the members of Big Star, including: Chris Bell, the iconic Alex Chilton, Andy Hummel and Jody Stephens. In the following decades after its 1975 breakup, the obscure group somehow reached and inspired some of rock’s most important bands, including R.E.M., the Replacements, Yo La Tengo, Teenage Fanclub, Beck, and Wilco.

With Chris Bell at the center of the Big Star universe, this book carefully reveals the production of Big Star’s masterful 1972 debut LP, #1 Record, for Ardent/Stax Records. Despite stellar reviews in music magazines, the record saw abysmal sales. Soon after, toxic personality conflicts and turmoil tore Big Star apart while Bell battled drug abuse and clinical depression.

There Was A Light then delves into Big Star’s second and third albums, while recounting Bell’s second act as a struggling solo musician and devout born-again Christian. During several trips to Europe, he ambitiously recorded songs and pitched to record labels—even crossing paths with Paul McCartney. From this productive era arose Bell’s lone solo album, the posthumously released I Am the Cosmos LP—his swan song and masterpiece.

There Was A Light details the pop culture phenomenon that made Big Star legends and divulges how its staunch fanbase saved the band from obscurity.

CHEAP NASTIES

LP – 1977 Perth, Australia (pre-SCIENTISTS/MANIKINS)

BABY GRANDE

LP – 1975-77 Canberra, Australia (pre-THE CHURCH)

VECTOR COMMAND

System 3 LP – 1983-84 SF, CA (post-CRIME)

ORDER Archival 3-Pack HERE
ORDER Archival 3-Pack HERE
ORDER Archival 3-Pack HERE

The Sueves are coming to EUROPE with their new R.I.P. Clearance Event LP to make mincemeat out of you, and to carry their torch of bludgeoning rock’n roll right into your brains. See them at Get Lost Fest in Germany, Denmark, Italy, Switzerland, FREAKENDER in England, Scotland, France, and Belgium, DO NOT MISS this crucial Midwest punk band!