May 17, 2006
Story by: Amanda Farah

College students can now take an academic look at the life of sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll with the July release of the textbook Empire of Dirt by Dr. Wendy Fonarow. After 13 years of buddying up to musicians (she is responsible for Mojave 3's name), fans and industry types, and earning a Ph.D. in Cultural Anthropology from UCLA, Dr. Fonarow is now ready to share her in-depth study of the culture of British independent music. With cultural examinations of concerts as representations of contemporary attitudes toward youth and an exploration of the true role of groupies, Empire of Dirt looks less like what is assigned in Sociology 101 and more like the recent slew of books about trends in music (think John Harris' The Last Party and Simon Reynolds' Rip It Out And Start Again).

Empire of Dirt: The Aesthetics and Rituals of British Indie Music will be available for general and academic consumption in July from Wesleyan University Press.

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Well, it was no Goodburger.

That sounds really cool... I want to know what the "true role of groupies" is. One day I will teach university and that will be recommended reading, or maybe even required.

personal "research" = extra credit?

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Well, it was no Goodburger.