Into the Void With Ace Frehley by Wendy Moore (Pitbull Publishing).
This trashy Kiss-and-tell-all has been out for a year, but it just showed up in
my mailbox last week, and was devoured within two hours. Packed with incredibly
embarrassing gossip about Kiss’ spaceman axman and his unique sexual and chemical
tastes, the book goes down easy but leaves one feeling sick at heart, slightly
tainted. Reads like a raunchier, more twisted granddaughter to Pamela Des Barres’
I’m With the Band— which has just been reprinted, by the
way. Most outrageous allegation: Frehley’s never heard of T. Rex. (Kate Sullivan)…
Big Star: The Short Life, Painful Death and Unexpected Resurrection of the
Kings of Power Pop by Rob Jovanovic (Chicago Review Press). Significant
insights into the ’70s band that banged out some of the spookiest pop ever: Chris
Bell was a gay Christian; Alex Chilton liked to party. Okay? And no exclusive
interview with Chilton. So how good can this book be? Well, since the subject’s
this interesting, not good but not wretched… The Rough Guide to Heavy
Metal by Essi Berelian. A rather stylishly written minipedia if you want
a soft-edged, Brit-slanted skim of the major acts (no Mastodon, Hammerfall, Coroner,
Cattle Decapitation), and you think Foreigner, the Ramones and the Chili Peppers
are metal… Dream a Little Dream of Me: The Life of Cass Elliot by
Eddi Fiegel (Chicago Review Press). She didn’t choke on a ham sandwich. Did I
ruin it for ya? Clumsy writing — this supremely talented Mama deserved better.

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