Greg Graffin Books

A historical memoir by Greg Graffin, lead vocalist and songwriter of the influential punk band Bad Religion, chronicles his life within the punk genre that transformed music and culture. Since its formation in Los Angeles in 1980, Bad Religion has produced a significant body of work, becoming a touring powerhouse and leaving a lasting legacy as one of punk rock's most important bands. Graffin's narrative is framed within a cultural history of punk's evolution, reflecting on his journey from his Midwestern upbringing to his pivotal move to Southern California in the mid-'70s, coinciding with the rise of punk and societal shifts. Immersed in the vibrant and often tumultuous punk scene of '80s Los Angeles, Graffin and his friends established Bad Religion, diligently building a fanbase and becoming a touring institution. Balancing his music career with academia, Graffin pursued advanced degrees, embodying a unique duality as a punk rock icon and university lecturer in evolution. His scientific perspective enriches the memoir, making it a distinctive exploration of punk's paradoxes—its pop influences, aspirations for societal improvement, and unifying power—elements that contribute to punk's enduring nature. This insightful memoir offers a behind-the-scenes look at the punk scene while providing astute commentary on its resilience and evolution.

“Take one man who rejects authority and religion, and leads a punk band. Take another man who wonders whether vertebrates arose in rivers or in the ocean, is fascinated by evolution, creativity, and Ice Age animals. Put them together, what do you get? Greg Graffin, and this uniquely fascinating book.” —Jared Diamond, author of Guns, Germs, and SteelAnarchy Evolution is a provocative look at the collision between religion and science, by an author with unique authority: UCLA lecturer in Paleontology, and founding member of Bad Religion, Greg Graffin. Alongside science writer Steve Olson (whose Mapping Human History was a National Book Award finalist), Graffin delivers a powerful discussion sure to strike a chord with readers of Richard Dawkins’ The God Delusion or Christopher Hitchens God Is Not Great. In this passionate polemic, Graffin argues that art and science have a deep connection. He describes his own coming-of-age as an artist and the formation of his naturalist worldview over the past three decades. Anarchy Evolution sheds new light on the long-standing debate on religion and the human condition. It is a book for anyone who has ever wondered if God really exists.

A thrilling narrative of scientific triumph, decades of secrecy and the unimaginable destruction wrought by the creation of the atomic bomb

Greg Olson, author of David Lynch: Beautiful Dark, the essential book on Lynch's life and art, has resided in the Twin Peaks region of the Northwest for decades, and David Lynch spent youthful years in the Northwest; both of their fathers were woodsmen. Lynch believes that the world hums with spirituality, and over a thirty-year span Lynch and Mark Frost created forty-eight hours of Twin Peaks TV and film, hypnotic cinematic music immersed in the depths and divine heights of human nature, an artistic song of the forest, America, the world, the cosmos. David Lynch is an international icon of visionary artistic innovation, humanistic thought and philanthropy, and spiritual exploration, and Twin Peaks: The Return is his magnum opus, a mytho-poetic summation of his deepest beliefs and concerns. Author Olson, in his characteristically intimate and personal way, traces the Twin Peaks currents of Lynch's emotional-visceral storytelling, themes, imagery and sound: the way the artist and viewer share an electrified circuit of mystery and understanding.

Greg Graffin, der legendäre Leadsänger und Songwriter von Bad Religion, präsentiert seine Memoiren, die auch als kulturkritische Analyse des Punkrock fungieren. Seit der Gründung von Bad Religion in Los Angeles 1980 hat die Band 18 Studioalben veröffentlicht und sich als eine der einflussreichsten Punkrockgruppen etabliert. Graffin erzählt von seiner Lebensgeschichte und der explosiven Entwicklung des Punkgenres, beginnend mit seinen Wurzeln im Mittleren Westen und seinem Umzug nach Südkalifornien in den 1970er Jahren. Inmitten der pulsierenden Punkszene gründeten Graffin und seine Freunde Bad Religion, gewannen eine treue Fangemeinde und wurden zu einer tourenden Institution. Parallel zu seiner Musikkarriere strebte Graffin nach intellektueller Erleuchtung und gelang es, seine Identität als Punkrock-Ikone mit einer akademischen Laufbahn in Evolutionsbiologie zu vereinen. Seine Erfahrungen reflektieren die paradoxen Elemente des Punk – den Pop-Einfluss, das Streben nach gesellschaftlicher Veränderung und die verbindende Kraft der Musik. Graffin hinterfragt Konventionen und entkräftet Mythen, während er intime Einblicke in die Punkszene gewährt und einen scharfsinnigen Kommentar zur Langlebigkeit und Evolution des Genres bietet. Diese Autobiografie regt zum Nachdenken an und widerspricht der traditionellen Wahrnehmung von Punk.