Welcome to the world of the sharp-suited ‘faces’. The Italianistas. The scooter-riding, all-night-dancing instigators of what became, from its myriad sources, a very British phenomenon. Mod began life as the quintessential working-class movement of a newly affluent nation – a uniquely British amalgam of American music and European fashions that mixed modern jazz with modernist design in an attempt to escape the drab conformity, snobbery and prudery of life in 1950s Britain. But what started as a popular cult became a mainstream culture, and a style became a revolution. In “Mod”, Richard Weight tells the story of Britain’s biggest and most influential youth cult. He charts the origins of Mod in the Soho jazz scene of the 1950s, set to the cool sounds of Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. He explores Mod’s heyday in Swinging London in the mid-60s – to a new soundtrack courtesy of the Small Faces, the Who and the Kinks. He takes us to the Mod-Rocker riots at Margate and Brighton, and into the world of fashion and design dominated by Twiggy, Mary Quant and Terence Conran. But Mod did not end in the 1960s.Richard Weight not only brings us up to the cult’s revival in the late 70s – played out against its own soundtrack of Quadrophenia and the Jam – but reveals Mod to be the DNA of British youth culture, leaving its mark on glam and Northern Soul, punk and Two Tone, Britpop and rave. This is the story of Britain’s biggest and brassiest youth movement – and of its legacy. Music, film, fashion, art, architecture and design – nothing was untouched by the eclectic, frenetic, irresistible energy of “Mod”.

Price : £ 17.5

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Welcome to the world of the sharp-suited ‘faces’. The Italianistas. The scooter-riding, all-night-dancing instigators of what became, from its myriad sources, a very British phenomenon. Mod began life as the quintessential working-class movement of a newly affluent nation – a uniquely British amalgam of American music and European fashions that mixed modern jazz with modernist design in an attempt to escape the drab conformity, snobbery and prudery of life in 1950s Britain. But what started as a popular cult became a mainstream culture, and a style became a revolution. In “Mod”, Richard Weight tells the story of Britain’s biggest and most influential youth cult. He charts the origins of Mod in the Soho jazz scene of the 1950s, set to the cool sounds of Charlie Parker and Miles Davis. He explores Mod’s heyday in Swinging London in the mid-60s – to a new soundtrack courtesy of the Small Faces, the Who and the Kinks. He takes us to the Mod-Rocker riots at Margate and Brighton, and into the world of fashion and design dominated by Twiggy, Mary Quant and Terence Conran. But Mod did not end in the 1960s.Richard Weight not only brings us up to the cult’s revival in the late 70s – played out against its own soundtrack of Quadrophenia and the Jam – but reveals Mod to be the DNA of British youth culture, leaving its mark on glam and Northern Soul, punk and Two Tone, Britpop and rave. This is the story of Britain’s biggest and brassiest youth movement – and of its legacy. Music, film, fashion, art, architecture and design – nothing was untouched by the eclectic, frenetic, irresistible energy of “Mod”.

Price : £ 17.5

Read more…

Over the past fifteen years, Steampunk – a mash-up of Victorian and sci-fi aesthetics with a splash of punk rock attitude – has gone from being a literary movement to a part of pop culture and a way of life. This subculture celebrates the inventor as an artist and hero, re-envisioning and crafting retro technologies including antiquated airships and steam-powered robots. The Steampunk aesthetic now permeates movies, comics, fashion, art and more, and has given a distinct flavor to iconic events such as Maker Faire and the Burning Man festival. The Steampunk Bible is the first book of its kind, a fully illustrated compendium tracing the roots and history of this subculture, from the work of its godfathers Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, to the key figures who coined the word that would spawn a literary genre, to the vast community of craftsmen and artists who translated that spark into a lifestyle with clothing and accessories such as goggles, corsets, pocket watches, and with an attitude to match.This ultimate resource, filled with scores of illustrations and photographs, will appeal to aficionados and novices alike as author Jeff VanderMeer takes the reader on a wild ride through the clockwork corridors of Steampunk past, present and future.

Price : £ 12.75

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Over the past fifteen years, Steampunk – a mash-up of Victorian and sci-fi aesthetics with a splash of punk rock attitude – has gone from being a literary movement to a part of pop culture and a way of life. This subculture celebrates the inventor as an artist and hero, re-envisioning and crafting retro technologies including antiquated airships and steam-powered robots. The Steampunk aesthetic now permeates movies, comics, fashion, art and more, and has given a distinct flavor to iconic events such as Maker Faire and the Burning Man festival. The Steampunk Bible is the first book of its kind, a fully illustrated compendium tracing the roots and history of this subculture, from the work of its godfathers Jules Verne and H.G. Wells, to the key figures who coined the word that would spawn a literary genre, to the vast community of craftsmen and artists who translated that spark into a lifestyle with clothing and accessories such as goggles, corsets, pocket watches, and with an attitude to match.This ultimate resource, filled with scores of illustrations and photographs, will appeal to aficionados and novices alike as author Jeff VanderMeer takes the reader on a wild ride through the clockwork corridors of Steampunk past, present and future.

Price : £ 11.38

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