The story of a legendary New York nite spot – served up in a really wonderful way! The Pyramid was a gritty bar in the East Village in the 80s – a small spot, but one that served as a real crossroads for music, performance, and gender identity – a place that was experienced by few, but shared as a legend by many – with an influence that's recounted here by those who experienced the Pyramid during its glory days! The book is a mix of oral histories, but structured well by the authors – who were all involved in the club itself at the time – interspersed with all sorts of great visual documents, including photographs of key performances – one of which even includes a young Steve Buscemi! The club mixed theater, music, performance art, and other modes – and the book really gets at the unique spirit that fanned the flames during its important mid-80s run. The book also includes a very cool set of materials from vintage press releases, and lots more surprises too – and the softcover edition has a great sense of presentation, on many different-colored pages. Book

A Japanese disc guide, but one with a really great focus – a look at the revival of indie labels in the world of hip hop in the 90s – after surprising domination of the style by the bigger record companies by the end of the previous decade! The book traces records through the 90s to the present – looking at key releases from smaller labels in important scenes around the country, and sometimes around the globe – really genre-shifting records that changed the vibe of hip hop strongly, and which now stand as modern classics in the field. As with other Japanese disc guides, the book has multiple listings per page – with artist, title, label, and date in English, and a short review in Japanese, along with a full color replica of the album cover. And if you can't read Japanese, Google Translate has gotten very good on your phone – so you can read the Japanese text via your camera with that program. The book has hundreds of listings, is over 200 pages, and is full color throughout. Book