Sellout: The Major-Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore (1994-2007)

by Dan Ozzi

Overview

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"Ozzi's reporting is strong, balanced and well told...a worthy successor to its obvious inspiration, Michael Azerrad's 2001 examination of the '80s indie underground, 'Our Band Could Be Your Life.'"--New York Times Book Review

A raucous history of punk, emo, and hardcore’s growing pains during the commercial boom of the early 90s and mid-aughts, following eleven bands as they “sell out” and find mainstream fame, or break beneath the weight of it all

Punk rock found itself at a crossroads in the mid-90’s. After indie favorite Nirvana catapulted into the mainstream with its unexpected phenomenon, Nevermind, rebellion was suddenly en vogue. Looking to replicate the band’s success, major record labels set their sights on the underground, and began courting punk’s rising stars. But the DIY punk scene, which had long prided itself on its trademark authenticity and anti-establishment ethos, wasn’t quite ready to let their homegrown acts go without a fight. The result was a schism: those who accepted the cash flow of the majors, and those who defiantly clung to their indie cred.

In Sellout, seasoned music writer Dan Ozzi chronicles this embattled era in punk. Focusing on eleven prominent bands who made the jump from indie to major, Sellout charts the twists and turns of the last “gold rush” of the music industry, where some groups “sold out” and rose to surprise super stardom, while others buckled under mounting pressures. Sellout is both a gripping history of the music industry’s evolution, and a punk rock lover’s guide to the chaotic darlings of the post-grunge era, featuring original interviews and personal stories from members of modern punk’s most (in)famous bands:

• Green Day
• Jawbreaker
• Jimmy Eat World
• Blink-182
• At the Drive-In
• The Donnas
• Thursday
• The Distillers
• My Chemical Romance
• Rise Against
• Against Me!

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780358244301
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	10/26/2021
Pages:	416
Sales rank:	415,515
Product dimensions:	6.30(w) x 8.70(h) x 1.40(d)

About the Author

Dan Ozzi is a New York-raised, Los Angeles-based writer. Along with Against Me!’s Laura Jane Grace, he co-authored 2016’s TRANNY, which was listed in Billboard’s “100 Greatest Music Books of All Time.” He has contributed to The Guardian, SPIN, Billboard, The Fader, and others. For more than five years, he was a staff writer at VICE's music website, Noisey.

Table of Contents

Introduction xi

1 Green Day: Dookie Reprise Records (1994) 1

2 Jawbreaker: Dear You DGC (1995) 35

3 Jimmy Eat World: Static Prevails Capitol Records (1996) 69

4 Blink-182: Dude Ranch MCA Records (1997) 101

5 At the Drive-In: Relationship of Command Grand Royal (2000) 131

6 The Donnas: Spend the Night Atlantic Records (2002) 167

7 Thursday: War All the Time Island Records (2003) 199

8 The Distillers: Coral Fang Sire Records (1003) 231

9 My Chemical Romance: Three Cheers for Sweet Revenge Reprise Records (2004) 263

10 Rise Against: Siren Song of the Counter Culture Geffen Records (2004) 301

11 Against Me!: New Wave Sire Records (2007) 333

Epilogue 367

Afterword 371

Acknowledgments 418

Works Cited 421

Index 426

Editorial Reviews

08/30/2021

Music writer Ozzi spins a fast-paced story of a music industry in search of the next big thing and the “indie rock signing blitz” that set off “punk’s second brush with mainstream interest.” Drawing on interviews and personal stories, Ozzi vividly profiles 11 bands—from Green Day and Jimmy Eat World to the Donnas and My Chemical Romance—exploring their controversial decisions to sign with major labels at the risk of “being banished, ostracized, or forever branded as sellouts.” When Green Day, for instance, signed with Reprise Records, their album Dookie climbed Billboard charts, launching their career. But when word got out about their signing, they were banned from the local venue where they got their start. The reaction to Green Day was so volatile that Jawbreaker vigorously denied rumors of going with a major label. After they signed with DGC Records their 1995 album Dear You tanked and, soon after, the band broke up, “a notorious, cautionary tale about what happens when a band breaks its promise never to sell out.” At the same time, other bands like Blink-182 successfully reached larger audiences after their moves to larger labels. Throughout, Ozzi’s crisp prose and vibrant storytelling colorfully capture a flamboyant chapter in music history. This accomplishes what the best music books do: drive readers back to listening. Agent: David Patterson, Stuart Krichevsky Literary. (Oct.)

Publishers Weekly

Engrossing…a rigorously researched look at how labels targeted bands and fought to sign them.” — Jim Ruland, Los Angeles Times

“[Ozzi] looked at the major label debuts of different bands in this genre, tracing a music industry in flux, fans betrayed by their idols, and bands trying to navigate the machine.” — NPR’s All Things Considered 

“A forensic and uniquely sympathetic dive into one of the most uncouth actions for an artist—selling out, baby.” — Jeff Rosenstock

“Fascinating… When it comes to the topic of punk, or more specifically, the iteration of the genre that existed during the last era of the traditional music industry, Dan Ozzi’s Sellout is poised to serve as a definitive text.” — San Francisco Chronicle

“Based on a trove of original interviews and personal stories from band members and other crucial players, Ozzi examines how 11 groups grappled with the tension between punk’s core tenets and major label possibilities, and parses what success and failure looked like in this fraught realm.” — Rolling Stone

From the Publisher

[Ozzi] looked at the major label debuts of different bands in this genre, tracing a music industry in flux, fans betrayed by their idols, and bands trying to navigate the machine.

NPR’s All Things Considered 

A forensic and uniquely sympathetic dive into one of the most uncouth actions for an artist—selling out, baby.

Jeff Rosenstock

Fascinating… When it comes to the topic of punk, or more specifically, the iteration of the genre that existed during the last era of the traditional music industry, Dan Ozzi’s Sellout is poised to serve as a definitive text.

San Francisco Chronicle

Engrossing…a rigorously researched look at how labels targeted bands and fought to sign them.

Jim Ruland

Based on a trove of original interviews and personal stories from band members and other crucial players, Ozzi examines how 11 groups grappled with the tension between punk’s core tenets and major label possibilities, and parses what success and failure looked like in this fraught realm.

Rolling Stone

Fascinating… When it comes to the topic of punk, or more specifically, the iteration of the genre that existed during the last era of the traditional music industry, Dan Ozzi’s Sellout is poised to serve as a definitive text.

San Francisco Chronicle