Earth Island Books

08/09/2025

CHARLIE HARPER EVERYWHERE!
https://www.earthislandbooks.com/post/charlie-harper-everywhere
Charlie Harper's brilliant autobiography 'An Anarchy if Demons' is OFFICIALLY PUBLISHED by Earth Island Books now.
This means that since 5th September 2025 the book is available to order in any book or record store WORLDWIDE!
That includes big resellers like amazon, locally in each country to save on shipping, and you’ll also start to see it stocked on the shelves in various bookstores.
(Any stores or distros reading this, if you don’t have Charlie’s book yet, please get in touch!)

'An Anarchy of Demons' is 478 full-colour pages providing a unique insight into what made Charlie the punk icon he is today.
Illustrated throughout with many unseen photos from his own collection, this is without doubt, the most talked about punk rock book of the year.
The book also boasts a wonderful Foreword written by Rancid’s Lars Frederiksen.

You can still order the book direct from the publishers to receive lots of extra goodies too for free!

UK Subs legend Charlie Harper will be signing his books between 12.30 and 2.30pm at the Book Fair at the on Saturday 13 September.
He's one of the many writers and performers joining Earth Island Books at this year's event. For full details of who is on when, please go to hastingsbookfest.org

UK Subs are now booked in to play the thirty year anniversary of Rebellion Punk Music Festival
And they will also be at North West Calling 2026 alongside The Exploited, UK SUBS, Peter And The Test Tube Babies, Subhumans, The Bar Stool Preachers, The Meffs, Gimp Fist, DIRT BOX DISCO, Red London, Riskee and the Ridicule and Crapsons!
The Subs will also be playing next year’s Scarborough Punk Festival, taking place on 28th and 29th March.
Check out www.scarboroughpunkfestival.co.uk or the ticket link at: https://spf2026.bigcartel.com/

There’s another great new book review of ‘An Anarchy Of Demons’ By Charlie Harper at Punktuation Magazine

Punk legend Charlie Harper recounts many escapades and amusing moments from throughout his long life!

If you don’t know who Charlie Harper is, then you’re not a real punk! He is THE legend. THE KING OF PUNK! The UK Subs frontman since 1977, he still is today. He has lived on this earth for a very long time, and has had so many interesting experiences, which he discusses in his book. He is a genuinely lovely individual, who I had the pleasure of meeting through my dad years ago, and who I have seen and spoken to since at many gigs. He is very humble, down to earth, and easy to talk to.
His autobiography ‘An Anarchy Of Demons’, which I feel so lucky to be reviewing, reflects that perfectly! It was an absolutely absorbing read. So many pages, 478 (in full colour!) to be exact. 136 chapters, some of them only 1 page long. The book also contains many unseen photos from his own collection, from throughout Charlie’s life, to illustrate his stories.

The foreword of ‘An Anarchy Of Demons’ was written by none other than Lars Frederiksen of punk bandRancid, about how he met Charlie, sharing how Charlie inspired Lars to make music himself. There was even a story told of Lars, Charlie, and Steve Whale of The Business at a gig seeing Motörhead in 2005, where they ended up backstage with Lemmy.
One thing that was said to Charlie by Lemmy that night was “Cos if it wasn’t for YOU, I’d be the oldest c**t doing this”. I loved this! It’s not only true, but it is the reason why Charlie is a legend, because a lot of people retire from their bands when they hit their 60s or occasionally 70s. Charlie is currently 81 and is still going strong! Lars also mentions the time he joined the Subs to play guitar with them.
Throughout this book, there are so many interesting and fun stories told. Charlie also recalls the number of members who have been in UK Subs – that’s quite a few!

Born on 25th May 1944, during World War 2, Charlie tells the story via his mother of his early life, and what conditions were like back then for them all. Some of it is pretty shocking!
Charlie talks about his childhood, his time at boarding schools for misfit boys, his adventurous youth, the various bands he joined as a bassist, then forming UK Subs and how they got their name. The gigs and tours he’s played over the years, the experiences he’s had in his life, both music-related and in his turbulent personal life; an astonishing variety of fascinating, startling, and crazy exploits!

Charlie is a great storyteller in his unique way, keeping me hooked throughout the whole book with all the different stories told. I couldn’t read it all in one sitting as it is very long, which would take many hours, but reading a few chapters at a time was the best way to do it.

I don’t want to spoil the book too much, so I won’t say any more, but I highly recommend checking it out for yourself. It will appeal to everyone with an interest in punk, history and great autobiographies!
Published on 5th September 2025 via Earth Island Books, copies are available in hardback, paperback and ebook, from HERE and all good book sellers!
https://www.punktuationmag.com/book-review-an-anarchy-of-demons-by-charlie-harper/
UK SUBS Earth Island Books Rebellion Punk Music Festival Scarborough Punk Festival

Charlie Harper's brilliant autobiography 'An Anarchy of Demons' is OFFICIALLY PUBLISHED by Earth Island Books now.This means that since 5th September 2025 the book is available to order in any book or record store WORLDWIDE!That includes big resellers like amazon, locally in each country to save on....

08/09/2025

A testimony to love and durability.
https://www.earthislandbooks.com/post/a-testimony-to-love-and-durability
Bill Sassenberger’s recent roadtrip to promote his excellent ‘Toxic Shock Records: Assassin of Mediocrity’ book, alongside his long-term friend and fellow author, Sluggo Cawley, who was talking about and signing copies of his superb ‘Guitargonaut’ book, went very well. Plenty of their books found new owners, especially at the events with Ra**ch and Wax Trax, so thanks to everyone who came out to meet them.

Bill’s return home has coincided with a great new review of his book by Thoughts Words Action, who say that:

Bill Sassenberger’s Toxic Shock Records, Assassin of Mediocrity is more than just a memoir of a record shop, a record label, or a business venture, but a chronicle of a lifelong defiance, a testimony to love and durability, and a map of a world where music was more than entertainment: it was survival, was resistance, and the pulse of community. From the first page, you know Sassenberger is not interested in mythologizing himself. He tells it straight, eloquent without ornament, wise without pretension. This is the story of Toxic Shock Records, a record store, label, mail-order operation, and most importantly, a sanctuary for the dispossessed. Founded in Pomona, carried to New Orleans, and finally rooted in Tucson for decades, Toxic Shock was a living organism, feeding those hungry for punk rock and all its outsider offshoots. It was a cultural weapon, an “assassin of mediocrity,” wielded against the bland, the corporate, the soulless machinery of the mainstream. The beauty of this book lies in how Bill merges personal and cultural history. He writes about punk not as an abstract movement but as a daily struggle, ordering records, stocking shelves, paying rent, arguing with distributors, nurturing bands, stapling flyers, watching scenes bloom and collapse. In his prose, punk is lived experience, fragile and fierce, and always necessary.

And there is Julianna, his life companion. Every page is haunted and illuminated by her presence. Bill does not romanticise tragedy, but he does honor love. Their partnership, forged in passion and endurance, runs parallel to the story of Toxic Shock itself. When Julianna suffered a devastating stroke in 2011, it was more than a personal catastrophe; it marked the beginning of the end of the store. Yet in Sassenberger’s telling, even this painful chapter shines with dignity, as he shows gratitude for the ride, the wild years, the community built, the records spun, the countless lives touched. The book also succeeds because it is simultaneously a memory and a document. Sassenberger includes photographs, flyers, gig posters, and fragments of ephemera that remind us how punk was always as much about paper as it was about vinyl: Xeroxed fanzines, hand-drawn art, mailing lists scrawled by hand. The visuals give the narrative texture, anchoring the reader in a time when DIY was not a brand but a necessity. Toxic Shock never pretended to be neutral, it was built on a deliberate refusal to sell major-label product, a conscious rejection of compromise. It was a survival strategy for the underground. In choosing the road less traveled, Bill and Julianna carved out a culture where bands like Ill Repute, Doggy Style, House of Wheels, and countless others could exist, breathe, and matter. Reading this book, you feel the sweat and stubbornness that made those records possible.

At the same time, the writing carries a warmth that undercuts any sense of cynicism. Sassenberger praises as much as he critiques, and he never loses sight of the joy that sustained those years. There are triumphs in packed shows, successful releases, moments when the register rang steady and the music never stopped. There are also heartbreaks in failed ventures, financial struggles, the cruel realities of illness and loss. But through it all, there is an unflinching clarity, because punk rock gave meaning to their lives. It’s worth emphasising the significance of this book within the broader literature of punk history. Too many accounts focus on the bands, the icons, the aesthetics. Few dive into the infrastructure, the record stores, the labels, the stubborn little enterprises that kept the culture alive when no one else would. Toxic Shock was one of those crucial nodes. Without shops like it, countless punk rock fans would never have discovered the records that shaped them. Without labels like Toxic Shock, entire bands would have vanished into obscurity. This book ensures their survival, even in memory. Sassenberger also understands that punk is always fragile, always vulnerable to commodification, yet always capable of regenerating. The book is not nostalgic in the cheap sense. It does not pretend that the past was perfect. Instead, it captures the messy truth: punk was difficult, exhausting, and sometimes heartbreaking, but it mattered because it was real.

Perhaps the most powerful quality of Assassin of Mediocrity is its refusal to compromise, even in its storytelling. He simply tells the story with honesty, intelligence, and respect for the reader. In doing so, he mirrors the very ethic that made Toxic Shock what it was. By the final page, you realize this is not just a book about a record shop. It is about choosing a life outside the conveyor belt of mediocrity, about building something stubbornly human in a world that prefers the disposable. It is about two people who dared to live by punk values, not as a teenage phase, but as a lifelong commitment. Toxic Shock Records, Assassin of Mediocrity is required reading for anyone who believes in the underground, independence, love forged through music, and struggle. It’s a love letter to a store, a city, a community, and above all, to Julianna. Punk has always been about more than music. This book proves it.
Head to Earth Island Books for more information about ordering.
https://thoughtswordsaction.com/2025/09/05/toxic-shock-records-assassin-of-mediocrity-by-bill-sassenberger/
Thoughts Words Action Bill Sassenberger

Bill Sassenberger’s recent roadtrip to promote his excellent ‘Toxic Shock Records: Assassin of Mediocrity’ book, alongside his long-term friend and fellow author, Sluggo Cawley, who was talking about and signing copies of his superb ‘Guitargonaut’ book, went very well. Plenty of their book...

08/09/2025

Ruby Dee Philippa at book fairs in New jersey and Pennsylvania.
https://www.earthislandbooks.com/post/ruby-dee-philippa-at-book-fairs-in-new-jersey-and-pennsylvania
Tis the season to attend book fairs and readings so on Saturday 4th October 4th, Ruby Dee Philippa will be hanging out at the Earth Island Books tent in Collingswood, NJ, signing books and chatting with whoever stops by at the Collingswood Book Festival from 10am-4pm. Then again, on Sunday 19th October, you can come and find her at the Earth Island Books stall at the Easton Book Fest from 12 noon to 4pm in Easton, PA. Ruby will tell you all about what’s going on with her brilliant punk-rock trilogy of books and sign them for any readers.

Ruby Dee Philippa's first book, 'Bag of Tricks' highlighted the lives of punk-rockers in San Francisco. Her second book, 'Tricky Business' continued their interesting tales, and very soon now, the third and final book in the trilogy, 'Old Tricks, New Treats' will complete the story.
Check out Ruby Dee’s new website at : https://www.rubydeephilippa.com

Tis the season to attend book fairs and readings so on Saturday 4th October 4th, Ruby Dee Philippa will be hanging out at the Earth Island Books tent in Collingswood, NJ, signing books and chatting with whoever stops by at the Collingswood Book Festival from 10am-4pm. Then again, on Sunday 19th Octo...

08/09/2025

Insurrection at Housmans.
https://www.earthislandbooks.com/post/insurrection-at-housmans
David Insurrection will be back in London speaking about his 'Anarcho-Punk: Music and Resistance in London, 1977 - 1988' at Housmans book store on Saturday 13th September, at a free event from 7pm until 8.30pm. Tony Drayton, the foreword author in the book, will be there too, and you’ll be able to ask any questions and pick up signed copies on the evening.
More info at tickets at: https://housmans.com/events/

David is currently working on more chapters for his excellent book, constantly finding more squats and anarcho-punk venues around London, and adding to this important piece of punk-rock social history. He is hoping anyone with interesting details or stories could get in touch for inclusion.

David Insurrection will be back in London speaking about his 'Anarcho-Punk: Music and Resistance in London, 1977 - 1988' at Housmans book store on Saturday 13th September, at a free event from 7pm until 8.30pm. Tony Drayton, the foreword author in the book, will be there too, and you’ll be able to...

08/09/2025

Bill Sassenberger’s Toxic Shock Records, Assassin of Mediocrity is more than just a memoir of a record shop, a record label, or a business venture, but a chronicle of a lifelong defiance, a testimo…

08/09/2025

In which the honey-obsessed half of the middle-aged crew hangs out and chats to Kit from Hive Mind Mead about honey, the oldest alcoholic beverage in the world, bringing mead into the twenty-first …

08/09/2025

08/09/2025

A cropped version of this photo appears in my book “My Punk Rock Life.” This is the uncropped version features The Misfits Glenn Danzig singing along with some crowd members. This photo was taken at Bob’s Place in South Central Los Angeles. By club standards this place was really small. The stage was tiny, so tiny in fact that Robo’s drum kit only left about a foot of space for Danzig to negotiate. It was only about 8” tall so needless to say the crowd was a big part of the show. If you recognize any of these fine people, please tag them or DM me.

08/09/2025

UK Subs legend Charlie Harper will be signing books between 1230 and 230pm at the Book Fair at the on Saturday 13 September. He's one of the many writers and performers joining us at this year's event. For full details of who is on when, please go to hastingsbookfest.org

02/09/2025

This brilliant double CD compilation is going out with all 'Unscripted Moments: Conversations with Propagandhi' books right now!

V/A – How To Take A Couple O’ Victory Laps CD (Engineer Records)

Link in the first comment.

Engineer Records