About the Book
Pitched somewhere between Almost Famous and Withnail & I, Apathy for the Devil is a unique document of this most fascinating and troubling of decades - a story of inspiration, success and serious burn out.
As a 20-something college dropout Nick Kent's first five interviews as a young writer were with the MC5, Captain Beefheart, The Grateful Dead, Iggy Pop and Lou Reed. Along with Charles Shaar Murray and Ian MacDonald he would go on to define and establish the NME as the home of serious music writing. And as apprentice to Lester Bangs, boyfriend of Chrissie Hynde, confidant of Iggy Pop, trusted scribe for Led Zeppelin and the Rolling Stones, and early member of the Sex Pistols, he was witness to both the beautiful and the damned of this turbulent decade.
About the Author :
In 2002 Nick Kent was presented with the NME 'God Like Genius' award for his 30-year career as a rock writer. He is a contributor to the Guardian, The Times, Liberation, Mojo and GQ .
Review :
If Faber's contribution last year to the canon of rock journalism was Jon Savage's The England's Dreaming Tapes, then they have surpassed themselves this year with Apathy for the Devil. -- Dylan Jones The Independent As an eyewitness account of the dangerous excesses of the 1970s rock scene, Apathy for the Devil is in a compulsively readable class of its own. ... The big point that emerges from his book, with chilling clarity, is that the 1970s - the 'me decade' - had little time for the concept of kindred spirits. Apathy for the Devil's other salient characteristic is the remarkable memory of its author, which was apparently undamaged by his descent into full-blown drug addiction by the decade's end. Almost every page contains an anecdotal gem. ... It's a miracle, frankly, that Kent survived to tell this tale, but as anybody who romps through Apathy for the Devil will agree, we're all lucky that he did. -- Robert Sandall Sunday Times The rock writer's rock writer, Kent lived out a decade anyone would envy. A vivid, unsentimental account sees the author befriend Iggy Pop, date Chrissie Hynde, become a short-lived Sex Pistol ... and develop a taste for excess that rivals his subjects. An extraordinary tale. GQ Even if you have an ounce of rock 'n; roll in your body, you'll appreciate these you-couldn't-make-it-up tales of success, excess and burnout -- John Longbottom Rock Sound Nick Kent's wonderfully entertaining Seventies memoir Apathy for the Devil. -- DJ Taylor The Independent While it adds some backstory to his classic interviews, it's also a "my-drug-hell" tale dispensed with a bleak wit and brutal candour. Sometimes the anecdotes seem too good to be true. ... Full of fabulous rock tittle-tattle but also some uncomfortable home truths, this is a book for anyone that's ever read a music magazine from cover to cover but still wanted to know more. -- Mark Blake Q Kent tackles his autobiography, as he does his music writing, throwing himself headlong into it and re-experiencing every minute. ... The magnetic open-heartedness that drew his subjects close lies at the centre of this work, drawing the reader closer too. -- Lois Wilson Mojo A tome filled with (Kent's) untold stories, thousands of them, every one of which a mortal man could dine out on for the rest of his days. But Kent just keeps going, often donating only a single sentence to life-shattering events. It makes his book not just a biography but a thriller; a high-octane chase through a decade's musical history. -- Sam Wolfson NME The book is a blast for every boy and girl who dreamed of being part of the great bacchanalia. -- Aidan Smith Scotland on Sunday His memory bank of stories is a mile deep. ... The book is worth getting just for the sections about Lou Reed ... Kent's storytelling gifts are considerable and enviable ... and if Apathy for the Devil falls short as a literary summation of music in the 1970s, it works tremendously well on most other levels. -- Jonathan O'Brien Sunday Business Post This is a terrific read imbued with chaos and nihilism, brilliant insights into the lives of Iggy, Bowie, Keith Richards and Lester Bangs, and a lesser-heard take on the cynical, bully-boy tactics of punk - something Kent suffered at the hands of. And if his hazy memory bends the truth at any stage, it only enhances the dark, dangerous picture he paints. -- Chris Parkin Time Out As with Hunter S Thompson, Nik Cohn and Lester Bangs before him, there exists around Kent an almost mythic glow. Degenerate poseur, celebrity drug addict and genius wordsmith, he is a man who has lived rock'n'roll to the full. ... Now, finally, Kent has written a memoir, Apathy for the Devil, an extraordinary recollection of his own Seventies. ... Fifteen years ago Kent published The Dark Stuff, a collection of his finest music journalism, a book to rank alongside Greil Marcus' Mystery Train, Nik Cohn's Awopbopaloobop Alopbamboom and Jon Savage's England's Dreaming; Apathy for the Devil might even be better than that. -- Dylan Jones GQ Relentlessly entertaining. -- Roisin Dwyer Hot Press It's a pure delight to read (Kent's) just-released and rollicking autobiography. -- Mark Ellen Word Magazine 'It is a testament to Kent's continuing ability as a writer as much as anything else that he has managed to pull off such a delicate balancing act to tell a story of outrageous hubris and bleak nemesis with rare humour, intelligence and style.' -- David Sinclair The Guardian This excellent biography, which focuses on the years 1970 to 1979 has many revealing encounters with some of the so-called legends of pop, not least the retrospectively sancitified Bob Marley. For anyone who loves the music of the Seventies this book is a must, and just as highly recommended is Kent's collection of journalism The Dark Stuff. -- Simon Evans Choice Magazine Apathy for the Devil finds Kent floating into a series of rooms that you would have wanted to be in yourself. Watching Iggy and the Stooges play the Kings Cross Scala, snorting cocaine at three in the morning in Led Zeppelin's hotel suite, acting as Keith Richards' wingman as he tears through Chelsea in his Ferrari Dino ... The only way that you're giong to get access to these pivotal events is through Kent's memoirs. ... A rollicking read and an essential purchase for any serious student of the 1970s. -- Ian Fortnam Classic Rock
