Michael Azerrad is an American
authorAn author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
,
journalistA journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and
musicianA musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
. He grew up in the
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
area and received his
BAA Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
degree from
Columbia CollegeColumbia College is the oldest undergraduate college at Columbia University, situated on the university's main campus in Morningside Heights in the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It was founded in 1754 by the Church of England as King's College, receiving a Royal Charter from King George II...
in 1983. During his college years, he was both a roommate and a bandmate of keyboard virtuoso Marc Capelle (who later went on to become a member of
American Music ClubAmerican Music Club is a San Francisco-based alternative rock band led by singer-songwriter Mark Eitzel.-History:Although born in California, Eitzel spent his formative years in Okinawa, Taiwan, Great Britain and Ohio before returning to the Bay Area in 1981...
.)
After college, Azerrad played
drumsA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
in various small bands while pursuing a career in
music journalismMusic journalism is criticism and reportage about music. It began in the eighteenth century as comment on what is now thought of as 'classical music'. This aspect of music journalism, today often referred to as music criticism , comprises the study, discussion, evaluation, and interpretation of...
. Besides writing features for
Spin,
Musician and
Details, and a stint at MTV News from 1987 through 1992, Azerrad wrote several hundred pieces for
Rolling StoneRolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine from 1987 through 1993, including cover stories on
the B-52'sThe B-52's are an American rock band, formed in Athens, Georgia in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider , Kate Pierson , Cindy Wilson , Ricky Wilson , and Keith Strickland . Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar...
and
NirvanaNirvana was an American rock band that was formed by singer/guitarist Kurt Cobain and bassist Krist Novoselic in Aberdeen, Washington in 1987...
, and was eventually named contributing editor. He has since written major features for
The New YorkerThe New Yorker is an American magazine of reportage, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons and poetry published by Condé Nast...
,
MojoMOJO is a popular music magazine published initially by Emap, and since January 2008 by Bauer, monthly in the United Kingdom. Following the success of the magazine Q, publishers Emap were looking for a title which would cater for the burgeoning interest in classic rock music...
, Italian
GQ and the
New York Times, as well as cover stories for
SpinSpin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
and
RevolverRevolver is a bi-monthly rock and heavy metal magazine published by Future US. Before covering heavy metal, rock & hard rock solely, it was a more mainstream oriented magazine. The magazine is structured in a manner similar to publications such as Spin while covering many avenues within the heavy...
.
In 1993, Doubleday Books published Azerrad's definitive, best-selling biography of Nirvana, entitled
Come as You Are: The Story of NirvanaCome as You Are: The Story of Nirvana is a 1993 book by Michael Azerrad, covering the career of Nirvana from its inception. For the book, Azerrad met with the members of the band and conducted extensive interviews about the band and its members' histories.The book was completed in June 1993, and...
, which appeared six months before bandleader
Kurt CobainKurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana...
died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Azerrad spent many months interviewing the band members and their friends, relatives and associates, and Cobain and the other members of the band shared a wide variety of archival materials with him, many of which are reproduced in the book.
His subsequent book,
Our Band Could Be Your LifeOur Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981-1991 is a book by Michael Azerrad. It chronicles the careers of several underground rock bands who, while finding little or no mainstream success, were hugely influential in establishing American alternative and indie...
(
Little, Brown and CompanyLittle, Brown and Company is a publishing house established by Charles Coffin Little and his partner, James Brown. Since 2006 it has been a constituent unit of Hachette Book Group USA.-19th century:...
, 2001) was a collection of profiles of thirteen prominent
indie rockIndie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
bands of the 1980s and early 1990s, including
Sonic YouthSonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
,
Black FlagBlack Flag was an American punk rock band formed in 1976 in Hermosa Beach, California. The band was established by Greg Ginn, the guitarist, primary songwriter and sole continuous member through multiple personnel changes in the band...
,
MinutemenMinutemen were an American hardcore punk band formed in San Pedro, California in 1980. Composed of guitarist D. Boon, bassist Mike Watt and drummer George Hurley, Minutemen recorded four albums and eight EPs before Boon's death in an automobile accident in December 1985...
and The Replacements. In 2000,
Q magazine named
Come as You Are one of the 50 greatest rock books ever written, and in 2006
The GuardianThe Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
rated
Our Band Could Be Your LifeOur Band Could Be Your Life: Scenes from the American Indie Underground, 1981-1991 is a book by Michael Azerrad. It chronicles the careers of several underground rock bands who, while finding little or no mainstream success, were hugely influential in establishing American alternative and indie...
as one of the 50 best music books ever written. In 2009,
Paste magazinePaste is a monthly music and entertainment digital magazine published in the United States by Wolfgang's Vault. Its tagline is "Signs of Life in Music, Film and Culture."-History:...
named the book one of the 12 best music books of the decade; the Los Angeles Times listed it as one of "46 Essential Rock Reads" and in 2011 Pitchfork listed the book in "Words and Music: Our 60 Favorite Music Books."
Azerrad has written liner notes for various albums and DVDs by artists including:
Paul McCartneySir James Paul McCartney, MBE, Hon RAM, FRCM is an English musician, singer-songwriter and composer. Formerly of The Beatles and Wings , McCartney is listed in Guinness World Records as the "most successful musician and composer in popular music history", with 60 gold discs and sales of 100...
,
Gang of FourGang of Four are an English post-punk group from Leeds. Original personnel were singer Jon King, guitarist Andy Gill, bass guitarist Dave Allen and drummer Hugo Burnham. They were fully active from 1977 to 1984, and then re-emerged twice in the 1990s with King and Gill...
,
Violent FemmesViolent Femmes were an American alternative rock band from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, initially active between 1980 and 1987 and again from 1988 to 2009...
,
Screaming TreesScreaming Trees was an American rock band formed in Ellensburg, Washington in 1985 by vocalist Mark Lanegan, guitarist Gary Lee Conner, bass player Van Conner and drummer Mark Pickerel. Pickerel had been replaced by Barrett Martin by the time the band reached its most successful period...
,
Guided by VoicesGuided by Voices is an American indie rock band originating from Dayton, Ohio. Beginning with the band's formation in 1983, it made frequent personnel changes but always maintained the presence of principal songwriter Robert Pollard...
,
Meat PuppetsThe Meat Puppets are an American rock band formed in January 1980, in Phoenix, Arizona. The group's original lineup was Curt Kirkwood , his brother Cris Kirkwood , and Derrick Bostrom . The Kirkwood brothers met Bostrom while attending Brophy Prep High School in Phoenix...
,
the Jesus LizardThe Jesus Lizard was an American alternative rock and noise rock band formed in 1987 in Austin, Texas. They were "a leading noise rock band in the American independent underground…[who] turned out a series of independent records filled with scathing, disembowelling, guitar-driven pseudo-industrial...
,
the B-52'sThe B-52's are an American rock band, formed in Athens, Georgia in 1976. The original line-up consisted of Fred Schneider , Kate Pierson , Cindy Wilson , Ricky Wilson , and Keith Strickland . Following Ricky Wilson's death in 1985 Strickland switched to guitar...
, the live comedy series Invite Them Up and the 1991 cult TV series
Fishing with JohnFishing with John is a 1991 television series conceived, directed by and starring actor and musician John Lurie, which earned a cult following. On the surface, the series resembles a standard travel or fishing show: in each episode, Lurie takes a famous guest on a fishing expedition...
. He has spoken at various music festivals and conventions, including SXSW, CMJ, Insound, by:Larm, and the Reeperbahn Festival.
Since 2002 Azerrad has himself been a member of now defunct indie band the King of France, whose acclaimed self-titled debut album was released in 2004, and in 2005 became an original member of Reprise Records recording artists
the LeeVeesThe LeeVees is a rock band from New York City featuring Adam Gardner of Guster and Dave Schneider of the Zambonis. The band was formed when the two bands went on tour together. The latter band only writes songs about hockey...
. In summer 2009, he became a founding member of children's music band the Macaroons, whose debut album
Let's Go Coconuts was released by
JDub RecordsJDub Records is a non-profit record and event production company striving to build community through new and innovative Jewish music and cross cultural musical dialogue.-History:...
in spring 2010.
In 2006, Azerrad co-produced an award-winning documentary about
Kurt CobainKurt Donald Cobain was an American singer-songwriter, musician and artist, best known as the lead singer and guitarist of the grunge band Nirvana...
,
Kurt Cobain: About a Son. He is the editor of
See a Little Light, the autobiography of former Husker Du and Sugar leader
Bob MouldRobert Arthur "Bob" Mould is an American musician, principally known for his work as guitarist, vocalist and songwriter for alternative rock bands Hüsker Dü in the 1980s and Sugar in the 1990s.-Early life:...
, published by Little, Brown in June 2011.
During 2008/2009 Kingston, UK band
TubelordTubelord is an Alternative Rock band from Kingston upon Thames, England, formed in 2006. The band consists of Lead Singer and Guitarist Joseph Prendergast, Backing vocalist and Drummer David Catmur, Bassist Tom Coulson-Smith and Keyboardist and Sampler James Elliot Field.In 2009, the band signed a...
used Azerrad's name in their single "I Am Azerrad," which includes the line "I kill today, I'll kill you Azerrad," prompting Azerrad to write a humorous essay about the experience for Spin magazine.
External links
- http://rockcriticsarchives.com/interviews/michaelazerrad/michaelazerrad_fury.html
- http://rockcriticsarchives.com/interviews/michaelazerrad/michaelazerrad_woods.html