David Keenan

Volcanic Tongue: A Time-Travelling Evangelist’s Guide to Late- Twentieth-Century Underground Music. Book - Hardback - Signed limited edition with CD and Fanzine
Volcanic Tongue: A Time-Travelling Evangelist’s Guide to Late- Twentieth-Century Underground Music. Book - Hardback - Signed limited edition with CD and Fanzine

Artist: David Keenan
Merch: Volcanic Tongue: A Time-Travelling Evangelist’s Guide to Late- Twentieth-Century Underground Music
Label: White Rabbit
Release Date: March 28, 2025

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Volcanic Tongue Book + 2×LP Bundle
Volcanic Tongue Limited Signed Book + 2×LP Bundle

Volcanic Tongue Book + 2×LP Bundle:

Pre-order $70.99
- Various Artists Volcanic Tongue Vinyl, 2×LP Black vinyl
- Volcanic Tongue: A Time-Travelling Evangelist’s Guide to Late- Twentieth-Century Underground Music Book Hardback
- + WAV / FLAC
Available: March 28, 2025
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Volcanic Tongue Limited Signed Book + 2×LP Bundle:

Pre-order $87.99
- Various Artists Volcanic Tongue Vinyl, 2×LP Black vinyl
- Volcanic Tongue: A Time-Travelling Evangelist’s Guide to Late- Twentieth-Century Underground Music Book Hardback - Signed limited edition with CD and Fanzine
- + WAV / FLAC
Available: March 28, 2025
Create Gift Voucher Add to Cart

Hardback - Signed limited edition with CD and Fanzine

Pre-order $55.99

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9781399630832
- Signed by David and cover designer Julian House
- Bonus compilation CD mounted in the book curated by David and Matthew Jones of Warp Records
- 12,000 word fanzine of additional content from the author
- Limited to 1000
Estimated release date: March 28, 2025
Hardback

Pre-order $36.99

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9781399624947
- 544 pages
Estimated release date: March 28, 2025

Pre-order Information

Please note that pre-order release dates are estimates based on the latest information we have from our suppliers. Changes or delays are possible.

Press Release

Volcanic Tongue presents the first ever collection of multi-award-winning author David Keenan's music writings. Keenan has been writing about music since publishing his first fanzine, inspired by The Pastels and by Glasgow (and Airdrie's) DIY music scene, in 1988. Since then, he has written about music for Melody Maker, NME, Uncut, Mojo, The New York Times, Ugly Things, The Literary Review, The Social and, most consistently, The Wire. Volcanic Tongue was also the name of the record shop and mail order that Keenan ran with his partner Heather Leigh in Glasgow from 2005-2015. Volcanic Tongue features the best of his reviews, interviews and think pieces, with exclusive in-depth conversations between Keenan and Nick C ave, members of legendary industrial bands C oil and Throbbing Gristle, krautrock legends like Faust, Shirley C ollins, the first lady of English folk, Kevin Shields of My Bloody Valentine, German autodestructives Einstürzende Neubauten, as well as discographical analysis of the back catalogues of groups like Sonic Youth and musicians like John Fahey, extensive writings on free jazz and obsessive in-depth digs into favourites like Pere Ubu, Metal Box-era Public Image Ltd, Lou Reed, Bob Dylan, guitarist and vocalist John Martyn and many more. It is an essential addition to any music fan's bookshelf.

Author Biography:
David Keenan is the author of six critically-acclaimed novels; the cult classic This is Memorial Device, which won the London Magazine Prize; For the Good Times, which won the Gordon Burn Prize and was shortlisted for the Encore Award; The Towers The Fields The Transmitters, Xstabeth, which was shortlisted for the Dublin Literary Award, Monument Maker, which was a Rough Trade Book of the Year and Industry of Magic & Light. He is also the author of England's Hidden Reverse, a history of the UK's post-punk and Industrial music scenes. He has been writing about music since he was seventeen years old, most consistently for The Wire, and between the years 2005-2015 he co-ran the cult Glasgow record shop Volcanic Tongue. This first collection of his legendary criticism functions as an extended love letter to the revolutionary music of the 20th century and the incredible culture that sustained it.

Book also available as a bundle with the Volcanic Tongue 2×LP compilation on Disciples which features the same tracklisting as the CD included with the limited edition of the book, an eclectic selection celebrating twenty ‘tips of the tongue’ from David Keenan's legendary mailing list emails from his Volcanic Tongue record shop and mail order that he ran with his partner Heather Leigh in Glasgow from 2005-2015.