Why AC/DC Matters, Matters

In bestselling author Anthony Bozza’s new book, Why AC/DC Matters we get the kind of impassioned art criticism that is normally relegated to websites, fanzines, and independent publishers.

Now, in the sake of full disclosure, Bozza is a friend and business colleague of mine. So take these comments with a grain of salt if you are so inclined. And if you’re the FTC goons, then yeah, I got a free book in the process.

But in Why AC/DC Matters, Bozza makes the argument that the Aussie band has been unfairly ignored and misunderstood by the critics for decades. This isn’t a straight biography of the band, although Bozza provides enough background into the musicians to catch you up if you’re not that familiar with the lives of the Young brothers and gang. And the book isn’t a straight critical interpretation either, full of labyrthine discussions worthy of a college hallway full of grad students. Instead, it’s simply a fun look at what makes this band important, ranging from their place in cultural history to their musical techniques to their steadfast refusal to chase trends.

The wonderful 33 1/3 series has been producing this kind of book for some time now. But it’s nice to see that Bozza managed to get a major publisher to release a similar examination… and of a hard rock band no less! I have more horror stories of publishers claiming, “Metal fans don’t read” than I can stomach.

So kudos to Bozza for managing to get a fun, quirky, entertaining passion project out on the bookstore shelves. Here’s hoping that his success will open the doors for other similar projects from other writers.