R.E.M. The Early Years

So Young! Michael Stipe Begin the Begin: R.E.M.'s Early Years Coming via Verse Chorus Press on May 14    Excerpt HERE courtesy of Dangerous Minds Ever wonder about R.E.M.'s early years? Well wonder no more!!!

Begin the Begin is the first biography of R.E.M. wholly researched and written since they disbanded in 2011. It offers by far the most detailed account of the group's formative years--their early lives, their first encounters with one another, their legendary debut show, early tours in the back of a van, initial recordings, their shrewdly paced rise to fame.  The people and places of the American South are crucial to the R.E.M. story in ways much more complex and interesting than have previously been presented, claims Robert Dean Lurie; he explores the myriad ways in which the band's adopted hometown of Athens, Georgia--and the South in general--shaped its members and the character of their art. The South is much more than the background here; it plays a major role: the creative ferment that erupted in Athens and gripped many of its young inhabitants in the late 1970s and early '80s drew on regional traditions of outsider art and general cultural out-thereness, and gave rise to a free-spirited music scene that produced the B-52's and Pylon, as well as laying the ground for R.E.M.'s subsequent breakout success.  Lurie has tracked down and interviewed numerous figures in the band's history who were underrepresented in, or absent from, earlier biographies--they contribute previously undocumented stories and cast a fresh light on the familiar narrative.Advance Praise for Begin the Begin:  "Meticulously researched and always elegantly written, Begin the Begin is a critical but glorious tribute to its subject." --Christopher Sandford, author of Bowie: Loving the Alien "Hope, yearning, and fear are visceral here, and the portrait painted is of something joyous, mad, and brilliant all at once."  --David Guterson, author of Snow Falling on Cedars "This beautiful, joyful book is more than a biography--it's a deep exploration of art and its bloody relationship with business, a meditation on the South, on youth and love, on family and fame, and an intelligent return to the soundtrack of the 1980s."  --Rebecca Lee, author of Bobcat and Other Stories    Pre-order the book HERE Learn more at www.robertdeanlurie.com and www.versechorus.com

I Wanna Be Your Dog

What's wrong with the world going to the dogs??? Dogs Of Democracy coming to DVD on June 12th via EPF Media A film about the stray dogs of Athens and the people who take care of them... A universal story about love and loyalty. "A powerful film narrative, the stray dogs of central Athens are transformed from mere symbols of a peculiar freedom to witnesses of a heart-wrenching human crisis."  - Yanis Varoufakis, Greek economist, academic and politician

Dogs of Democracy is a documentary about the stray dogs of Athens and the people who take care of them. Filmmaker Mary Zournazi explores life on the streets through the eyes of the dogs and peoples' experience. Shot on location in Athens, the birthplace of democracy, the documentary is about how Greece has become the 'stray dogs of Europe', and how the dogs have become a symbol of hope for the people and for the anti-austerity movement. A universal story about love and loyalty and what we might learn from animals. AWARDS Best Documentary - 2017 Imagine This Women's International Film Festival, Brooklyn NY Spirit of Activism Award, Nevada Women's Film Festival Impact Documentary Award Spotlight Documentary Award Shortlisted Telling Tales International Film and Audio Festival ABOUT THE FILMMAKER Mary Zournazi is an Australian author, philosopher, and filmmaker. She wrote, directed and filmed Dogs of Democracy (2016), which is an essay style documentary about the stray dogs of Athens and the people who take care of them. She is the author of several books including Hope - New Philosophies for Change and Inventing Peace with the German filmmaker Wim Wenders. She teaches in the sociology program at the University of New South Wales, Australia. For press images, study guides, etc, go HERE Pre-order at the MVD Shop