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MUSIC TO DIE FOR by MICK MERCER Cherry Red Books £17.99

My fifth book concerning Goth has now arrived and is out now.

MUSIC TO DIE FOR is 624 pages long, containing individual entries on 3,581 different bands, from 70 countries, with 183 photos. It covers bands from the beginning of these scenes to the present day and, wherever possible, contains full line-up details and discographies as well as unusual facts revealed by many of the bands. This is the biggest guide ever printed about the underground scenes in which Goth, Post-Punk and all things noir co-exist with equal splendour.

You can find this on Amazon, Barnes & Noble (etc) but if possible please use the link below to buy direct from the publisher, thereby supporting them for their trust in taking on such a project. They accept Paypal and for such a chunky book they’re doing a very cheap deal on postage. They are actually an independent record label and have released a fantastic series of Goth re-releases, so as they support the scene it would be nice if people acknowledged that by buying directly from them.

With this book I am delighted to have discovered details on many countries I had never been able to infiltrate before, and the world unfolds as follows:

Argentina - 31, Australia - 75, Austria - 22, Belarus - 3, Belgium - 28, Bolivia – 7, Brazil – 53, Bulgaria – 11, Canada – 77, Chile – 24, Colombia – 28, Costa Rica – 2, Croatia – 6, Cuba – 2, Czech Republic - 13, Denmark – 12, Ecuador – 4, Egypt – 3, Estonia – 2, Falkland Islands – 2, Finland – 47, France – 174, Germany – 346, Greece – 35, Greenland – 1, Hungary – 7, Indonesia – 1, Ireland – 13, Israel – 2, Italy – 172, Japan – 25, Kazakhstan – 2, Latvia – 3, Lebanon – 2, Liechtenstein – 4, Lithuania – 11, Luxembourg - 1, Macedonia – 5, Malta – 1, Mexico – 60, Monaco – 1, Netherlands – 49, New Zealand – 14, Norway – 28, Pakistan – 1, Paraguay – 3, Peru – 6, Philippines – 8, Poland – 36, Portugal – 55, Puerto Rico – 9, Romania – 20, Russia – 70, Serbia – 1, Singapore – 2, Slovak Republic – 6, Slovenia – 3, South Africa – 4, Spain – 84, Sweden – 93, Switzerland – 31, Thailand – 5, Turkey – 6, UK – 579, Ukraine - 11, United Arab Emirates – 1, Uruguay - 5, USA – 1092, Venezuela – 6 and Yugoslavia – 5.

Musically we have representatives from these distinct and Goth-related genres:

‘Alt’ (covering a multitude of sins) – 336, Ambient – 71, Classical/Ethereal – 33, Comedy – 1, Deathrock – 12, Electro – 99, Electronic(a) – 79, Folk/Country – 67, Glam – 11, Gothic – 1042, Gothic/Metal – 449, Historical – 4, Horror – 25, Indie – 99, Industrial – 117, Other/Exp/Minimalist – 135, Post-Punk – 356, Psychobilly – 93, Punk/New Wave – 234, Rock – 238, Shoegaze/Psychedelic – 36 and Surf/Garage – 44.

Please spread the word now that it’s out! I hope you find it worthwhile and useful, and I obviously want as many people as possible to do likewise. Your help in circulating the news is much appreciated.

BIOG-wise I can tell you I have been writing about music since Punk, having started with Panache fanzine in 1976, which ran right through into the 90’s. Along the way I spent well over a decade freelancing or the music papers Record Mirror, NME and Melody Maker, as well as editing the magazines ZigZag and Siren and have continued writing regularly online on livejournal and here for many years.

I have written more about Goth than anyone else in the world, I should imagine, and my previous four books were Gothic Rock Black Book, Gothic Rock, Hex Files and 21st Century Goth. (All of these will be self-published as Author’s Editions later this year, which means a great many more pages will be added.)

I do a free online pdf magazine each month called THE MICK, stuffed full of new interviews, reviews and photos:

I hope you enjoy the book and can maybe Add To and feature this page in your Top Friends? The more people learn about the book the more attention the bands get.