Rhina E. Jones, Daniel Lukes, Larissa Wodtke (Repeater Books)
There’s something very satisfactory about seeing my fellow former teenage Manics fans grow up and do some really cool things. All that angst basically transformed into brilliant creativity, and this book is proof of that. Triptych is a cool and creative book, full of insight and intelligence, extolling and expounding all the reasons we always knew the Manic’s The Holy Bible was an exemplary album but – in my case at least – were too tongue-tied to properly express. We were devoted; some are devotees still.
The mix of memoir and analysis in this tome works well, engaging the reader on levels both personal and profound. Each writer brings a new angle to the work: Rhian E. Jones turns her analytical eye to the album’s political context; Daniel Lukes examines its literary and artistic sources; and Larissa Wodtke analyses the way the album links with philosophical ideas of memory and the archive.
As a Welsh writer who grew up in the 90s, it’s difficult to say which writer I connected with more. Jones’ views of the albums are placed within Wales during that decade, and her experiences seem akin to my own: “The album was […] something fast, unstable and unstoppable…. There was a thrill in hanging on for that ride, when so much of my teenage years had been spent chafing at the bit.” However, all three writers have much to offer, and this is a well-written, fascinating book.
Price: £8.99. Info: www.repeaterbooks.com
words MAB JONES