Dan Ozzi - author of the national bestseller SELLOUT - The Major-Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore 1994-2007 - is our guest for episode #24. He also co-authored (with Laura Jane Grace) TRANNY - Confessions of Punk Rock's Most Infamous Anarchist Sellout. He joined us to talk about those books, how he got started as a music writer and his thoughts on Chicago. Plus he shares his love of soda.
Time stamps:
2:45: How did you get started in music writing?
6: Was music something you'd ever written about before?
8:30: How did the book with Laura Jane Grace come together?
11:20: When did you zoom out and realize this era was worth writing a book about?
12:20: Where do you jump in and follow the scene in real time?
20:38: When you were writing Sell Out were there any bands that you hadn't intended to write about that during research really stood out, and you had to write about?
21:52: Where do you start when you start writing a book?
27:41: Any surreal moments working on the book?
31:20: How does it feel to write about someone who did something that wasn't always the best thing to do?
33:45: Any revelatory moments from anyone interviewed in the book?
35: The idea of selling out seems like an outdated concept, do you think this is a good thing to not be held to the same standard as those bands from the past?
40:38: Was there a band you appreciated more after writing about them?
44:31: What has the response to the book been like?
48:30: What are you working on next?
49:20: When you think of Chicago music, what do you think about?
53: Think or thin crust pizza fan?
55:10: Favorite spot to see a show in Chicago?
56: What makes the Chicago music scene unique to you?
58:45: What have you been listening to lately?
61:49: What is your go to cheap drink?