‘A brilliant book by one of the best culture writers in the UK’ MIRANDA SAWYER
‘A thrilling, immersive journey’ ★★★★ RECORD COLLECTOR
Spanning seven decades and with over 150 new interviews, including Richard Hawley, Arctic Monkeys, Self Esteem, ABC, Pulp, Def Leppard, The Human League, Toddla T, Cabaret Voltaire, Warp Records, Clock DVA, Heaven 17 and many more
From dazzling electronic futurism to pioneering post-punk, via pop, metal, bassline, bleep techno and generation-defining indie rock, Sheffield has long been a crucible for world-leading music.
Some artists have excelled on the fringes, others have achieved global success, but all remain connected through a fervently independent ethos. In Sheffield, creativity flourished in the face of isolation, economic decline and bleak political circumstances, resulting in some of Britain’s most groundbreaking and singular music. But the region’s ingrained humility and dogged stoicism means it has never been documented or celebrated to the level of more hubristic cities.
In Groovy, Laidback and Nasty, acclaimed Sheffield journalist Daniel Dylan Wray sets out to remedy this, telling the story of the city’s DIY spirit and the musical visionaries and innovators who helped build its inimitable legacy.
Both a compelling cultural study and an unapologetic love letter to the city, this – finally – is the definitive musical history Sheffield so richly deserves.
‘A thrilling, immersive journey’ ★★★★ RECORD COLLECTOR
Spanning seven decades and with over 150 new interviews, including Richard Hawley, Arctic Monkeys, Self Esteem, ABC, Pulp, Def Leppard, The Human League, Toddla T, Cabaret Voltaire, Warp Records, Clock DVA, Heaven 17 and many more
From dazzling electronic futurism to pioneering post-punk, via pop, metal, bassline, bleep techno and generation-defining indie rock, Sheffield has long been a crucible for world-leading music.
Some artists have excelled on the fringes, others have achieved global success, but all remain connected through a fervently independent ethos. In Sheffield, creativity flourished in the face of isolation, economic decline and bleak political circumstances, resulting in some of Britain’s most groundbreaking and singular music. But the region’s ingrained humility and dogged stoicism means it has never been documented or celebrated to the level of more hubristic cities.
In Groovy, Laidback and Nasty, acclaimed Sheffield journalist Daniel Dylan Wray sets out to remedy this, telling the story of the city’s DIY spirit and the musical visionaries and innovators who helped build its inimitable legacy.
Both a compelling cultural study and an unapologetic love letter to the city, this – finally – is the definitive musical history Sheffield so richly deserves.
Reviews
Alternative Sheffield gets the history it deserves ... a thrilling, immersive journey, in which the sounds are exciting and the characters are unique, but the city is the star
From '70s postpunk through '80s synthpop to '90s bleep techno and beyond, Sheffield has long been the U.K.'s unacknowledged capital for futurist pop. Finally the city finds the champion it deserves in Daniel Dylan Wray. A rich blend of urban history and music chronicle, Groovy, Laidback & Nasty tells in vivid detail the story of a place, a people, and a succession of innovative sounds that would change pop again and again
On many levels this is a great read . . . Wray has done loads of foot work and research here to flesh out and bulk up the established post-punk and indie-rock Sheffield story
A passionate, painstakingly researched and richly detailed account of Sheffield's dreamers, eccentrics and visionaries - and the weird and wonderful sounds they created
Which of our cities can lay claim to being the epicentre of British musical life? Music writer Daniel Dylan Wray has restarted the debate with his new book Groovy, Laidback and Nasty, which makes the case for Sheffield - the hometown of Pulp, the Human League and Arctic Monkeys
Plots the musical history of Sheffield, characterising it as a city - and musical culture - struggling to overcome its modesty
There's an acknowledgement that Sheffield's music history is not, by any means, a straightforward story of success. It's a spontaneous saga of hidden rooms, marginal spaces and temporary freedoms
A brilliant book by one of the best culture writers in the UK, that takes us through the joy and hilarity of Sheffield's always-lively independent music scene, and in doing so reminds us that this city has long been home to some of the UK's most excellent, experimental and eccentric musical giants
A brilliant book by one of the best culture writers in the UK. Takes us through the joy and hilarity of Sheffield's always-lively independent music scene, and in doing so reminds us that this city has long been home to some of the UK's most excellent, experimental and eccentric musical giants
Sheffield has long been the UK's unacknowledged capital for futurist pop. Finally the city finds the champion it deserves in Daniel Dylan Wray. A rich blend of urban history and music chronicle, Groovy, Laidback and Nasty tells in vivid detail the story of a place, a people, and a succession of innovative sounds that would change pop again and again
Makes the case for Sheffield futurism . . . [An] excellent work of social history
A fantastically detailed account of Sheffield's musical history. Wray leaves no stone unturned and couples extensive research with gloriously entertaining tales and writing that paints a really vivid picture of the city's artists, impresarios, hustlers, venues and landmark musical happenings
This compelling chronicle of Sheffield's underground music scene is an essential read for any serious collector of northern musical history. From bleep and bass back to the roots of R&B, and onwards to the 21st century, the heart and soul of this impossibly cool city is explored through the people and places that defined its rich culture
Tells the story of seven decades of Sheffield independent music - a journey from the soulful tunes of Joe Cocker to the bombastic pop of Self Esteem, via electronic pioneers Cabaret Voltaire, the surge of bassline and the indie troubadours Arctic Monkeys . . . Not just a story about the established bands and big names . . . More than anything, provides portraits of different music scenes that grew organically . . . This book should be in every Sheffield school library
A passionate, painstakingly researched and richly detailed account of Sheffield's dreamers, eccentrics and visionaries - and the weird and wonderful sounds they created
Delves into many of Sheffield's cultural roots from Peter Stringfellow's club promoter days in the 1960s to Toddla T's teenage breakthrough in the late 2000s, as well as seminal nightclubs, worldwide pop stardom and more underground and leftfield music
Wray's smart, page-turner of a book is spry, funny and doesn't shirk the darker corners of the story
The first in-depth account of the city's enduring DIY spirit, its musical visionaries, and its creativity in the face of a bleak economic and political landscape
Features more than 150 new interviews . . . In Sheffield, creativity flourished in the face of isolation, economic decline and political circumstances, the book suggests
Wray's smart, page-turner of a book is spry, funny and doesn't shirk the darker corners of the story
Sheffield's strongly forged modesty means it has never had its dues as a music city, but it has now found the perfect champion in Daniel Dylan Wray. Deeply researched, passionate and quietly humorous