New York - Hardcore, the hard-edged second generation of punk rock, whose peak period ranged from 1980 to 1986, has never before been captured in the way Steven Blush’s authoritative, extensively illustrated oral history revisits its dynamic and sordid ways.

All the major hardcore scenes, particularly in Southern California, San Francisco, Washington D.C., Boston, New York City and Texas are given provocative voice through its major players, from drugged-out suburban Metal misfits to shit-kicking skinheads to vegan anti-drug pacifists. American Hardcore: A Tribal History not only recapitulates an important and influential scene, its provocative sociological snapshots reveal the apocalyptic desperation of a singular time in American history.

Author Steven Blush was a prime mover in the scene he writes about, in the 80s, he promoted many hardcore tours and shows, DJed an influential college radio show, and ran a record label. Later Blush published Seconds magazine, and wrote for Paper, Spin, Interview, Village Voice, Details and High Times magazines. The primary photographers included in this volume are Edward Colver and Karen O’Sullivan. Flyers, set lists, logos, and record covers have been provided by many collectors, and the book includes an extensive discography of Hardcore rock releases from 1980 to 1986.

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American Hardcore: A Tribal History 7 x 10, 336 pages, $19.95, ISBN: 0-922915-71-7. A Trade Paperback Original, Pub Date: December 20, 2001

For more information or to interview Steven Blush please contact Faustine Haarman at Feral House 213-689-4502 or Susan Mainzer at Green Galactic, 323-466-5141 or email susan@greengalactic.com.