Publishers Weekly
08/30/2021
Music writer Ozzi spins a fast-paced story of a music industry in search of the next big thing and the “indie rock signing blitz” that set off “punk’s second brush with mainstream interest.” Drawing on interviews and personal stories, Ozzi vividly profiles 11 bands—from Green Day and Jimmy Eat World to the Donnas and My Chemical Romance—exploring their controversial decisions to sign with major labels at the risk of “being banished, ostracized, or forever branded as sellouts.” When Green Day, for instance, signed with Reprise Records, their album Dookie climbed Billboard charts, launching their career. But when word got out about their signing, they were banned from the local venue where they got their start. The reaction to Green Day was so volatile that Jawbreaker vigorously denied rumors of going with a major label. After they signed with DGC Records their 1995 album Dear You tanked and, soon after, the band broke up, “a notorious, cautionary tale about what happens when a band breaks its promise never to sell out.” At the same time, other bands like Blink-182 successfully reached larger audiences after their moves to larger labels. Throughout, Ozzi’s crisp prose and vibrant storytelling colorfully capture a flamboyant chapter in music history. This accomplishes what the best music books do: drive readers back to listening. Agent: David Patterson, Stuart Krichevsky Literary. (Oct.)
From the Publisher
Engrossing…a rigorously researched look at how labels targeted bands and fought to sign them.” — Jim Ruland, Los Angeles Times
“[Ozzi] looked at the major label debuts of different bands in this genre, tracing a music industry in flux, fans betrayed by their idols, and bands trying to navigate the machine.” — NPR’s All Things Considered
“A forensic and uniquely sympathetic dive into one of the most uncouth actions for an artist—selling out, baby.” — Jeff Rosenstock
“Fascinating… When it comes to the topic of punk, or more specifically, the iteration of the genre that existed during the last era of the traditional music industry, Dan Ozzi’s Sellout is poised to serve as a definitive text.” — San Francisco Chronicle
“Based on a trove of original interviews and personal stories from band members and other crucial players, Ozzi examines how 11 groups grappled with the tension between punk’s core tenets and major label possibilities, and parses what success and failure looked like in this fraught realm.” — Rolling Stone
NPR’s All Things Considered
[Ozzi] looked at the major label debuts of different bands in this genre, tracing a music industry in flux, fans betrayed by their idols, and bands trying to navigate the machine.
Jeff Rosenstock
A forensic and uniquely sympathetic dive into one of the most uncouth actions for an artist—selling out, baby.
San Francisco Chronicle
Fascinating… When it comes to the topic of punk, or more specifically, the iteration of the genre that existed during the last era of the traditional music industry, Dan Ozzi’s Sellout is poised to serve as a definitive text.
Jim Ruland
Engrossing…a rigorously researched look at how labels targeted bands and fought to sign them.
Rolling Stone
Based on a trove of original interviews and personal stories from band members and other crucial players, Ozzi examines how 11 groups grappled with the tension between punk’s core tenets and major label possibilities, and parses what success and failure looked like in this fraught realm.
San Francisco Chronicle
Fascinating… When it comes to the topic of punk, or more specifically, the iteration of the genre that existed during the last era of the traditional music industry, Dan Ozzi’s Sellout is poised to serve as a definitive text.
