By Greg Prato
ECW Press
If you still can’t believe that The Fastbacks and Green River haven’t made it into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, then Greg Prato’s Grunge is Dead will be a literary wet dream of biblical proportions. However, if you don’t fall into that category, the book can be a bit tedious. Prato’s “history of Seattle rock music” is extensive to say the least, covering the scene nearly week-by-week. At 478 pages the book includes excerpts from interviews conducted with band members, producers, photographers, DJs, assistants, journalists, publicists, record store owners, flyer artists, girlfriends, and concert-goers. Unfortunately, the insights offered by people like Mark Arm, Calvin Johnson, and Ken Stringfellow can seem to be buried by the droning of the less significant (to put it mildly) scenesters. The depth and precision of Prato’s documentation could convince people that Seattle’s rock scene was as significant as London in ’77, Max’s Kansas City, or the No Wave movement, which it’s not, although the wealth of (at times useless) knowledge of the scene that can be gained by reading the book cover-to-cover could surely make you the champion of any indie record store debate, should the subject of Seattle arise. – Izzy Cihak