Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel

Download Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Omnibus Press
ISBN 13 : 1787590828
Total Pages : 372 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (875 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel by : Daryl Easlea

Download or read book Without Frontiers: The Life & Music of Peter Gabriel written by Daryl Easlea and published by Omnibus Press. This book was released on 2018-03-23 with total page 372 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: He became famous with Genesis but simply to call Peter Gabriel a pop star would be to sell him very short indeed. Peter Gabriel has pursued several overlapping careers; neither becoming a parody of his past self nor self-consciously seeking new images, he instead took his creativeness and perfectionism into fresh fields. In 1975 he diversified into film soundtracks and audio-visual ventures, while engaging in tireless charity work and supporting major peace initiatives. He has also become world music’s most illustrious champion since launching WOMAD festival. These, and several other careers, make writing Peter Gabriel’s biography an unusually challenging task, but Daryl Easlea has undertaken countless hours of interviews with key friends, musicians, aides and confidants. Updated and revised for 2018, Without Frontiers gets to the heart of the psychological threads common to so many of Gabriel’s disparate endeavours and in the end a picture emerges: an extraordinary picture of an extraordinary man. Extra features include integrated Spotify playlists, charting the best of Genesis’ output with Peter Gabriel, as well as an interactive digital timeline of his life, filled with pictures and videos of lives performances, interviews and more. ‘The peculiar, white-lipped dynamic between Gabriel and his erstwhile Charterhouse chums in Genesis is vividly evoked’ – Record Collector ‘A truly wonderful biography of one of the most amazing artists of our time. Highly recommended.’ – Douglas Harr, author of ‘Rockin’ the City of Angels’

My Book of Genesis

Download My Book of Genesis PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781908724939
Total Pages : 238 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (249 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis My Book of Genesis by : Richard Macphail

Download or read book My Book of Genesis written by Richard Macphail and published by . This book was released on 2018-02-09 with total page 238 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:

Experiencing Peter Gabriel

Download Experiencing Peter Gabriel PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Rowman & Littlefield
ISBN 13 : 1442252006
Total Pages : 247 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (422 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Experiencing Peter Gabriel by : Durrell Bowman

Download or read book Experiencing Peter Gabriel written by Durrell Bowman and published by Rowman & Littlefield. This book was released on 2016-09-02 with total page 247 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In Experiencing Peter Gabriel, author Durrell Bowman delves into the sounds and stories of the innovative, versatile, English pop icon. As not only a singer-songwriter and musician, but also a music technologist, world-music champion, and humanitarian, Gabriel has consistently maintained an unabashed individualism and dedication to his artistry. From 1969 to 1975, Gabriel served as the lead singer, flute player, occasional percussionist, and frequent songwriter and lyricist of the progressive rock band Genesis. With the band, Gabriel made six studio albums, a live album, and numerous performances and concert tours. The early version of Genesis made some of the most self-consciously complex pop music ever released. However, on the cusp of Genesis becoming a major act internationally, Gabriel did the unthinkable and left the group. Gabriel’s solo career has encompassed nine studio albums, plus five film/media scores, additional songs, videos, major tours, and other projects. As a solo artist and collaborator, he has worked with first-rate musicians and produced unrivaled tracks such as the U.S. No. 1 hit “Sledgehammer.” Gabriel won six Grammy Awards in the 1990s and 2000s, as well as numerous additional awards and honors for his music and his videos, as well as for his humanitarian work. From his early work with Genesis to his substantial contributions as a solo artist, Gabriel’s music ranges from chart-topping pop songs to experimental explorations often filled with disarmingly personal emotions. Experiencing Peter Gabriel investigates the career of this magnetic performer and uncovers how Gabriel developed a sound so full of raw authenticity that it continues to attract new fans from across the world.

More Fun in the New World

Download More Fun in the New World PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Da Capo Press
ISBN 13 : 0306922118
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (69 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis More Fun in the New World by : John Doe

Download or read book More Fun in the New World written by John Doe and published by Da Capo Press. This book was released on 2019-06-04 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This sequel to Grammy-nominated bestseller Under the Big Black Sun continues the up-close and personal account of the L.A. punk scene—and includes fifty rare photos. Picking up where Under the Big Black Sun left off, More Fun in the New World explores the years 1982 to 1987, covering the dizzying pinnacle of L.A.'s punk rock movement as its stars took to the national—and often international—stage. Detailing the eventual splintering of punk into various sub-genres, the second volume of John Doe and Tom DeSavia's west coast punk history portrays the rich cultural diversity of the movement and its characters, the legacy of the scene, how it affected other art forms, and ultimately influenced mainstream pop culture. The book also pays tribute to many of the fallen soldiers of punk rock, the pioneers who left the world much too early but whose influence hasn't faded. As with Under the Big Black Sun, the book features stories of triumph, failure, stardom, addiction, recovery, and loss as told by the people who were influential in the scene, with a cohesive narrative from authors Doe and DeSavia. Along with many returning voices, More Fun in the New World weaves in the perspectives of musicians Henry Rollins, Fishbone, Billy Zoom, Mike Ness, Jane Weidlin, Keith Morris, Dave Alvin, Louis Pérez, Charlotte Caffey, Peter Case, Chip Kinman, Maria McKee, and Jack Grisham, among others. And renowned artist/illustrator Shepard Fairey, filmmaker Allison Anders, actor Tim Robbins, and pro-skater Tony Hawk each contribute chapters on punk's indelible influence on the artistic spirit. In addition to stories of success, the book also offers a cautionary tale of an art movement that directly inspired commercially diverse acts such as Green Day, Rancid, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Wilco, and Neko Case. Readers will find themselves rooting for the purists of punk juxtaposed with the MTV-dominating rock superstars of the time who flaunted a "born to do this, it couldn't be easier" attitude that continued to fuel the flames of new music. More Fun in the New World follows the progression of the first decade of L.A. punk, its conclusion, and its cultural rebirth.

Partnering

Download Partnering PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Penguin
ISBN 13 : 059318954X
Total Pages : 321 pages
Book Rating : 4.5/5 (931 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Partnering by : Jean Oelwang

Download or read book Partnering written by Jean Oelwang and published by Penguin. This book was released on 2022-03-08 with total page 321 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An inspirational call to build deep business and personal relationships as the foundation of a meaningful life and purposeful collaborations, drawing from the wisdom of legendary partnerships including Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter, Ben and Jerry, Desmond and Leah Tutu, and the collective who saved humanity by closing the ozone hole. Our individualistic society has created an environment of fear, division, and domination, which has crushed our ability to relate meaningfully to each other and diminished our capacity to innovate and collaborate. Jean Oelwang, president and founding CEO of Virgin Unite, has been on a decade-long exploration to find out how to nurture relationships with depth and purpose. Deep connections shape who we are and have a profound ripple effect on everything we do, supporting us to achieve more, withstand anything, and amplify impact. Those enduring partnerships are the foundation of a meaningful life as well as the backbone of any successful organization and collaboration. From hundreds of interviews with sixty great partnerships, ranging from business partners, to friends, to life partners, who have made a profound difference, Oelwang offers new insight into how to build relationships that matter. She identifies six core principles including the all-important virtues that connect great partners, the daily rituals that they use to stay in sync, and the skills that allow them to disagree respectfully and productively. Packed with wisdom to nourish the relationships that give us strength and meaning, Partnering is a profound call-to-action to forge partnerships in service of a greater purpose.

The Living Years

Download The Living Years PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Macmillan
ISBN 13 : 1466866179
Total Pages : 256 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (668 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis The Living Years by : Mike Rutherford

Download or read book The Living Years written by Mike Rutherford and published by Macmillan. This book was released on 2015-02-10 with total page 256 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The story of Genesis is the rock legend of how a humble schoolboy band grew into a group of global superstars. At its center stood Mike Rutherford, driving the music from pioneering prog rock to chart-topping hits. Now for the first time, he tells the remarkable inside story of Genesis and his own band, Mike + The Mechanics. Against the rhythm of drink, drugs, and lineup changes, Mike's father, a World War II naval officer, always stood in the background. He would watch Genesis grow, supporting them from the very beginning when they toured Britain in the back of a bread van. Through extreme highs and lows, loyal Captain Rutherford was always there, earplugs at the ready. But when his father suddenly died, Mike was forced to reexamine their relationship and only then began to understand how much their lives had overlapped. The Living Years is a revealing memoir of the relationship between father and son and the story of how music, families, and friendship combine.

Solsbury Hill

Download Solsbury Hill PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher :
ISBN 13 : 9781300486848
Total Pages : 138 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (868 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Solsbury Hill by : Fernando Rodríguez-Santander

Download or read book Solsbury Hill written by Fernando Rodríguez-Santander and published by . This book was released on 2021-06-29 with total page 138 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Regarding his song "Solsbury Hill" (1977), Peter Gabriel has written: "It's about being prepared to lose what you have for what you might get, or what you are for what you might be. It's about letting go. By letting go, you create the space for something new to happen. It's a personal struggle to learn to jump off the diving board." The fundamental meaning of Gabriel's words is to be willing to accept change within oneself; to let go of long-held beliefs, opinions, or perspectives in order to grow beyond them. This is very difficult for most adults to do without a personal revelation of some kind. So, if we take into consideration that the song was a direct result of a moment of meditation of Gabriel on Solsbury Hill, we can infer that the change within the English musician was sudden and not as a result of a gradual transition. Isn't it reasonable to assume then that something significant happened in Peter Gabriel's life while meditating on Solsbury Hill?

Michael Jackson: Rewind

Download Michael Jackson: Rewind PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Quarto Publishing Group USA
ISBN 13 : 1631063677
Total Pages : 245 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (31 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Michael Jackson: Rewind by : Daryl Easlea

Download or read book Michael Jackson: Rewind written by Daryl Easlea and published by Quarto Publishing Group USA. This book was released on 2016-10-15 with total page 245 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Relive the incredible history of the King of Pop in reverse. Michael Jackson: Rewind charts the life to Michael from his tragic, unexpected passing to his childhood. By the time Michael Jackson passed away in 2009, he had sold an estimated 750 million records worldwide over his career. He had won 26 American Music Awards and 13 Grammy Awards as well as the Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, and was ranked number three, after The Beatles and Elvis Presley, of best-selling music artists. Five years after his death, the net worth of his estate is more than 600 million dollars. He is, without a doubt, one of the most popular - and controversial - artists of all time. Now, for the first time ever, author Daryl Easlea will explore the life and history of Michael Jackson... in reverse. Starting with his tragic death and rewinding to his early hits with the Jackson 5 and life in Gary, Indiana, this is a complete illustrated history of the King of Pop: his genius, his life, and his demons. Loaded with over 300 images, a timeline of his life, a complete discography, and more, this is the must-have book for any Michael Jackson fan.

Everybody Dance

Download Everybody Dance PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Helter Skelter Publishing
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : 336 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 ( download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Everybody Dance by : Daryl Easlea

Download or read book Everybody Dance written by Daryl Easlea and published by Helter Skelter Publishing. This book was released on 2004 with total page 336 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The life and times of the quintessential disco band.

Peter Gabriel

Download Peter Gabriel PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Reaktion Books
ISBN 13 : 1789140234
Total Pages : 248 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (891 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Peter Gabriel by : Paul Hegarty

Download or read book Peter Gabriel written by Paul Hegarty and published by Reaktion Books. This book was released on 2018-08-15 with total page 248 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Peter Gabriel is one of contemporary music’s great experimenters. From his work in the progressive group Genesis, through his pioneering solo albums, to his enthusiastic embrace of world music and new technologies, Gabriel has remained steadfast in his commitment to redefining music’s boundaries and influence—geographical, virtual, and thematic. Peter Gabriel offers nuanced and trenchant insight into this enigmatic, questing musician and his works, into an artist whose constant traveling—through identities, influences, and media—defines him as one of modern culture’s truly global citizens. At the heart of Paul Hegarty’s analysis is the idea of locatedness: what it means to be in a specific place at a given time, and to reflect on that time and the changes which inevitably occur. Gabriel’s work, Hegarty argues, can be understood as a series of reflections on the “where” of being—a facet of existence that spans everything from politics to psychology, philosophy, psychogeography, and inward reflection.

Four Futures

Download Four Futures PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Verso Books
ISBN 13 : 1781688141
Total Pages : 134 pages
Book Rating : 4.7/5 (816 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Four Futures by : Peter Frase

Download or read book Four Futures written by Peter Frase and published by Verso Books. This book was released on 2016-11-01 with total page 134 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: An exploration of the utopias and dystopias that could develop from present society Peter Frase argues that increasing automation and a growing scarcity of resources, thanks to climate change, will bring it all tumbling down. In Four Futures, Frase imagines how this post-capitalist world might look, deploying the tools of both social science and speculative fiction to explore what communism, rentism and extermininsm might actually entail. Could the current rise of the real-life robocops usher in a world that resembles Ender's Game? And sure, communism will bring an end to material scarcities and inequalities of wealth—but there's no guarantee that social hierarchies, governed by an economy of "likes," wouldn't rise to take their place. A whirlwind tour through science fiction, social theory and the new technologies are already shaping our lives, Four Futures is a balance sheet of the socialisms we may reach if a resurgent Left is successful, and the barbarisms we may be consigned to if those movements fail.

The Songs of Genesis

Download The Songs of Genesis PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : McFarland
ISBN 13 : 1476681384
Total Pages : 348 pages
Book Rating : 4.4/5 (766 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis The Songs of Genesis by : Steve Aldous

Download or read book The Songs of Genesis written by Steve Aldous and published by McFarland. This book was released on 2020-04-14 with total page 348 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Quintessentially British, Genesis spearheaded progressive rock in the 1970s, evolving into a chart-topping success through the end of the millennium. Influencing rock groups such as Radiohead, Phish, Rush, Marillion and Elbow, the experimental format of Genesis' songs inspired new avenues for music to explore. From the 23-minute masterpiece "Supper's Ready," via the sublime beauty of "Ripples" and the bold experimentation of "Mama", to hits such as "Invisible Touch" and "I Can't Dance," their material was inventive and unique. This book is the chronological history of the band's music, with critical analysis and key details of each of the 204 songs Genesis recorded and released.

Reckless Daughter

Download Reckless Daughter PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Sarah Crichton Books
ISBN 13 : 0374715602
Total Pages : 448 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (747 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Reckless Daughter by : David Yaffe

Download or read book Reckless Daughter written by David Yaffe and published by Sarah Crichton Books. This book was released on 2017-10-17 with total page 448 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: "She was like a storm." —Leonard Cohen Joni Mitchell may be the most influential female recording artist and composer of the late twentieth century. In Reckless Daughter, the music critic David Yaffe tells the remarkable, heart-wrenching story of how the blond girl with the guitar became a superstar of folk music in the 1960s, a key figure in the Laurel Canyon music scene of the 1970s, and the songwriter who spoke resonantly to, and for, audiences across the country. A Canadian prairie girl, a free-spirited artist, Mitchell never wanted to be a pop star. She was nothing more than “a painter derailed by circumstances,” she would explain. And yet, she went on to become a talented self-taught musician and a brilliant bandleader, releasing album after album, each distinctly experimental, challenging, and revealing. Her lyrics captivated listeners with their perceptive language and naked emotion, born out of Mitchell’s life, loves, complaints, and prophecies. As an artist whose work deftly balances narrative and musical complexity, she has been admired by such legendary lyricists as Bob Dylan and Leonard Cohen and beloved by such groundbreaking jazz musicians as Jaco Pastorius, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancock. Her hits—from “Big Yellow Taxi” to “Both Sides, Now” to “A Case of You”—endure as timeless favorites, and her influence on the generations of singer-songwriters who would follow her, from her devoted fan Prince to Björk, is undeniable. In this intimate biography, drawing on dozens of unprecedented in-person interviews with Mitchell, her childhood friends, and a cast of famous characters, Yaffe reveals the backstory behind the famous songs—from Mitchell’s youth in Canada, her bout with polio at age nine, and her early marriage and the child she gave up for adoption, through the love affairs that inspired masterpieces, and up to the present—and shows us why Mitchell has so enthralled her listeners, her lovers, and her friends. Reckless Daughter is the story of an artist and an era that have left an indelible mark on American music.

Lunch With The Wild Frontiers

Download Lunch With The Wild Frontiers PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Jawbone Press
ISBN 13 : 9781911036494
Total Pages : 0 pages
Book Rating : 4.0/5 (364 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Lunch With The Wild Frontiers by : Phill Savidge

Download or read book Lunch With The Wild Frontiers written by Phill Savidge and published by Jawbone Press. This book was released on 2019-05-28 with total page 0 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Phill Savidge is widely credited as being the main instigator of the Britpop music movement that swept the UK in the mid-1990s. Savidge was co-founder and head of legendary public relations company Savage & Best, the company that represented most of the artists associated with the scene, including Suede, Pulp, The Verve, Elastica, Kula Shaker, Spiritualized, Menswear, The Auteurs, and Black Box Recorder. Savidge suggests that Britpop came about "by accident" because he refused to represent any American bands. He subsequently ended up with an extremely accessible, media-friendly roster that "lived ’round the corner" and included the most exciting press-worthy acts of the era. His unique experience at the epicentre of Britpop led to many intimate, not entirely self-congratulatory encounters with a who’s who of popular culture — including Brett Anderson, Damon Albarn, Roy Orbison, David Bowie, Joe Strummer, Lou Reed, Michael Barrymore, Richard Ashcroft, Andrew Lloyd Webber, Mick Jagger, George Lucas, Damien Hirst, and Dave Stewart, among others. But did he really Sellotape a cassette of Suede’s Animal Nitrate single to a purple velvet cushion — with a note that said "another great disappointment" — and then bike it to the NME? And could he and Jarvis Cocker really have fallen out simply because a journalist thought he was more glamorous than the Pulp front man? If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to represent Hirst, Cocker, and The Verve in the same decade, and then wake up in bed with Keith Allen in the Ritz in Paris — courtesy of Mohammed Al Fayed — then you should read this book. Imagine David Sedaris with a hangover and an expense account and you’re halfway to appreciating the delinquent delights of Lunch With The Wild Frontiers.

Abolish Silicon Valley

Download Abolish Silicon Valley PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Watkins Media Limited
ISBN 13 : 1912248719
Total Pages : 235 pages
Book Rating : 4.9/5 (122 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis Abolish Silicon Valley by : Wendy Liu

Download or read book Abolish Silicon Valley written by Wendy Liu and published by Watkins Media Limited. This book was released on 2020-04-14 with total page 235 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Former insider turned critic Wendy Liu busts the myths of the tech industry, and offers a galvanising argument for why and how we must reclaim technology's potential for the public good. Former insider turned critic Wendy Liu busts the myths of the tech industry, and offers a galvanising argument for why and how we must reclaim technology's potential for the public good. "Lucid, probing and urgent. Wendy Liu manages to be both optimistic about the emancipatory potential of tech and scathing about the industry that has harnessed it for bleak and self-serving ends." -- Naomi Klein, author of On Fire: The Burning Case for a Green New Deal "An inspiring memoir manifesto...Technologists all over the world are realizing that no amount of code can substitute for political engagement. Liu's memoir is a road map for that journey of realization." -- Cory Doctorow, author of Radicalized and Little Brother Innovation. Meritocracy. The possibility of overnight success. What's not to love about Silicon Valley? These days, it's hard to be unambiguously optimistic about the growth-at-all-costs ethos of the tech industry. Public opinion is souring in the wake of revelations about Cambridge Analytica, Theranos, and the workplace conditions of Amazon workers or Uber drivers. It's becoming clear that the tech industry's promised "innovation" is neither sustainable nor always desirable. Abolish Silicon Valley is both a heartfelt personal story about the wasteful inequality of Silicon Valley, and a rallying call to engage in the radical politics needed to upend the status quo. Going beyond the idiosyncrasies of the individual founders and companies that characterise the industry today, Wendy Liu delves into the structural factors of the economy that gave rise to Silicon Valley as we know it. Ultimately, she proposes a more radical way of developing technology, where innovation is conducted for the benefit of society at large, and not just to enrich a select few.

A Little History of the World

Download A Little History of the World PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Yale University Press
ISBN 13 : 0300213972
Total Pages : 461 pages
Book Rating : 4.3/5 (2 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis A Little History of the World by : E. H. Gombrich

Download or read book A Little History of the World written by E. H. Gombrich and published by Yale University Press. This book was released on 2014-10-01 with total page 461 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: E. H. Gombrich's Little History of the World, though written in 1935, has become one of the treasures of historical writing since its first publication in English in 2005. The Yale edition alone has now sold over half a million copies, and the book is available worldwide in almost thirty languages. Gombrich was of course the best-known art historian of his time, and his text suggests illustrations on every page. This illustrated edition of the Little History brings together the pellucid humanity of his narrative with the images that may well have been in his mind's eye as he wrote the book. The two hundred illustrations—most of them in full color—are not simple embellishments, though they are beautiful. They emerge from the text, enrich the author's intention, and deepen the pleasure of reading this remarkable work. For this edition the text is reset in a spacious format, flowing around illustrations that range from paintings to line drawings, emblems, motifs, and symbols. The book incorporates freshly drawn maps, a revised preface, and a new index. Blending high-grade design, fine paper, and classic binding, this is both a sumptuous gift book and an enhanced edition of a timeless account of human history.

The Arena Concert

Download The Arena Concert PDF Online Free

Author :
Publisher : Bloomsbury Publishing USA
ISBN 13 : 1628925574
Total Pages : 349 pages
Book Rating : 4.6/5 (289 download)

DOWNLOAD NOW!


Book Synopsis The Arena Concert by : Benjamin Halligan

Download or read book The Arena Concert written by Benjamin Halligan and published by Bloomsbury Publishing USA. This book was released on 2015-11-19 with total page 349 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The Arena Concert: Music, Media and Mass Entertainment is the first sustained engagement with what might said to be - in its melding of concert and gathering, in its evolving relationship with digital and social media, in its delivery of event, experience, technology and star - the art form of the 21st century. This volume offers interviews with key designers, discussions of the practicalities of mounting arena concerts, mixing and performing live to a mass audience, recollections of the giants of late twentieth century music in performance, and critiques of latter-day pretenders to the throne. The authors track the evolution of the arena concert, consider design and architecture, celebrity and fashion, and turn to feminism, ethnographic research, and ideas of humour, liveness and authenticity, in order to explore and frame the arena concert. The arena concert becomes the “real time” centre of a global digital network, and the gig-goer pays not only for an immersion in (and, indeed, role in) its spectacular nature, but also for a close encounter with the performers, in this contained and exalted space. The spectacular nature of the arena concert raises challenges that have yet to be fully technologically overcome, and has given rise to a reinvention of what live music actually means. Love it or loathe it, the arena concert is a major presence in the cultural landscape of the 21st century. This volume finds out why.