Black Postcards: A Memoir

Reads like a novel. How can I begin to describe this painfully insightful take on one brilliant artist's experiences in the record business which has declined significantly in both sales and artistic merit in recent years... Luna will always be the best band nobody's ever heard of... and incidentally mr rupert, there are many factors that determine why RUBBISH like Britney Spears sells units, while works of art like Luna's entire discography draw the interest of a select but enlightened few of the human race. Dean Wareham gives a very moving account of his experiences on the road, in the studio, at home in his personal life through a period when the music world became further and further swallowed and shallowed by corporate interests. The memoir of an artist who has truly lived for his art and has received high critical acclaim and made a living playing music, which is one of the most commendable successes ANYONE can claim. This book is a must read not only Luna fans, but for anyone who was involved in the music business through these years and therefore knows the score. Dean's story is gripping and drew both chuckles and tears from this reader. Wonderful.

I couldn't put this book down. Dean is a great writer, and told his story prolifically of an indie band(s) trying to make it despite difficult circumstances. The encounters with other bands and artists and Dean's snarky comments were especially enjoyable, as well as the encounters with the fans around the world. You don't need to be a fan of Luna or Galaxie 500 (I was somewhat of one but not that familiar with all of the music) to love this book. Any fan of music will appreciate the references and the well written memoir of a struggling artist who wants to make music for the sake of music, and not just to to be a rock star.

Andy Warhol said that in the future everyone will be famous for 15 minutes. If one is lucky enough to land a recording contract with a name record company, write brilliantly crafted rock songs, and tour endlessly, then one might get to be 'almost famous' for 15 years. Such is the story that Dean Wareham, who was the lead singer songwriter of the alternative/indie rock bands Galaxie 500 and Luna, tells in his hilariously satirical, meticulously detailed and occasionally disturbing semi-autobiographical tome, "Black Postcards: A Rock Roll Romance" (The Penguin Press, New York, 2008). This is an essential read for anyone who loves rock music, as it is one of the most well written and insightful accounts from the trenches of the often seamy and occasionally glorious scene that was the alternative rock music business. Drawing his reminiscences from a diary that his father, a successful management consultant suggested he keep, Wareham chronicles his middle class childhood in New Zealand and later in New York City. It was in New York where Dean came of age in the late 1970's during the halcyon days of punk and new wave. Like a sponge, Wareham absorbed the music, the style and the ethos of punk and new wave rock. Ever opinionated, Wareham quickly draws sharp lines of demarcation between "good" and "bad" music. The Clash, Joy Division, Talking Heads, and The Feelies fell into Dean's category of "good" music. U2, Metallica, The Cure and other big name bands who received extensive radio airplay, were not especially 'cool'. That the dizzying list of bands Wareham cites as influences, recorded abrasively uncommercial rock music and achieved only cult status is exactly the point, as it was that do it yourself for the sake of the music ethos that shaped Wareham's later choices of the people he befriended, the guitars he played, the bands he formed and the music that he created. Galaxie 500 and Luna were "not the Beatles" nor Nirvana as Dean wryly observes, but Wareham and band mates achieved the more modest aim of making rock music that was quieter than grunge but which was every bit as gripping. Wareham and Galaxie 500 members Damon Krukowski and Naomi Yang distilled the urban folk-rock of The Velvet Underground as well as 60's garage rock to create jangly and trace-like guitar based rock. After Galaxie 500's demise Wareham, along with Luna band mates, Justin Harwood, Stanley Demeski, and Sean Eden (and later Britta Phillips) developed a more rhythmic and angular sounding rock described as "dream pop". When each band was at the top of their game, several critically acclaimed alternative rock records emerged, namely "Today" by Galaxie 500 and "Penthouse" and "Pup Tent" by Luna. Wareham could have subtitled his book, "a Rock & Roll Alternative", because, Wareham is forever faced with choices. The choice making process that Wareham describes, gives "Black Postcards" its' dramatic tension. Dozens of choices must be made in a rock & roll life from the munda

I was pleasantly surprised at how well-written and entertaining this book was. "Black Postcards" is a genuinely funny and touching book. Dean Wareham adroitly navigates his past, revelling the reader with nuggets from his youth ("My toes were smiling at me!") before documenting the fall of Galaxie 500 and the salad days of Luna. Throughout it all, Dean is refreshingly frank. No punches are pulled, he (rightly) takes credit for the rise of Galaxie 500 while openly admitting his own douchebaggery when necessary. Indie fans will also delight at the numerous cameos throughout the book by musicians such as Calvin Johnson, Yo La Tengo, and Stereolab. But the humor! Goodness gracious me, it's been a long time since I've laughed so much while reading a book. Dean's accounts of life in a band are hilarious, from working in a studio ("We should have hired a cook...") to endlessly touring Europe in a van. The most amusing tales, however, are his casual dismissal of other bands. "We hated the Pixies." "I thought Eddie Vedder sang like Cher." "Metalllica are not the brightest bunch of guys you'll ever meet." "The Ramones were too punk to enjoy the beauty of the Rhine Valley." My favorite anecdote is a brief encounter with Anthony Kiedis in a hotel exercise room. I would recommend reading this book even if you're not a fan of Galaxie 500 or Luna. Just being a music fan is reason enough to read this book because it will shed voluminous light on the day-to-day workings of being in a band.

...drumming out their one sided fantasy of abandonment.. As a two decade fan of Dean's music, this is everything I was hoping for. It's a wonder that he was even able to put up with those two for as long as he did. Witty and smart, Dean pulls no punches, not even on himself. "Black Postcards" is filled with hilarious and sometimes heartbreaking stories of the people and situations he encountered over the last twenty years, many of which shaped his music. I loved the way he strings the narrative across the globe using the cities and backwaters he's re-visited countless times with three different bands. It's a great device for showing his personal and musical growth over time. What a real triumph for him! I can't wait twenty more years for the sequel.