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27
It's 1999, the end of the millennium and Jim Vale, aka Jimmy Tyrant, singer of one hit wonders The Tyrants, has lost everything he once loved. Like Kurt Cobain, Jimi Hendrix, Jim Morrison and many rockers before him, Jim tries to end it all by committing suicide at the age of twenty seven. Trouble is... he survives. To clear his debts the band's manager suggests Jim fake his own death - just for a while - so they can raise The Tyrants' profile and sell some records. But as the press and the fans wonder more and more about the disappearance of the mysterious Jimmy Tyrant, Jim gets drawn deeper into Birmingham's gangland and further away from his ex-girlfriend, his troubled family and music. Karaoke-singing gangsters, reclusive teenage internet millionaires, sex, drugs and rock and roll all collide as Jim tries to understand the person he has become, to come to terms with his tumultuous past and somehow make it beyond the age of twenty seven. "27" is a book about one man's search for love, music and his true self. 'One of the greatest rock and roll novels ever written, by an exciting new voice.'Ian Marchant, author of The Longest Crawl and Something of The Night
207 pages, Paperback
First published December 7, 2012
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January 3, 2013
I have read an earlier version of this as Ryan is in my writer's group, but looking forward to the finished thing.
The title refers to the 27 club – the age when many rock greats die, including Hendrix, Joplin, Morrison in the 60s and more recently Cobain and Winehouse. The main character, Jim Vale, lead singer with ‘The Tyrants’ wants to join the club and tries to commit suicide, but fails. However his manager thinks his ‘death’ will increase sales so asks him to lie low (at one point he wears a blue double breasted blazer that made him look like ‘Charlie Manson if he’d stolen Peter Cook’s wardrobe’). To pay off debts Vale gets embroiled in drug dealing while the group’s re-released single heads up the charts.
It’s a vivid, funny, fast plot-driven read featuring many great characters, including a skinny Finnish record producer Bix Pillar and a teenage millionaire *(Jacob Little) who made his money from inventing a game character called MaX Fist. Vale – drug dispensing - visits his mansion and asks about the mural on the ceiling.
‘It’s a re-creation of the Sistine Chapel, but instead of angels and cherubs and all that shit, it’s depicting the story lines from the games I created. See that section above the stairs?’
He pointed to the ceiling over the double-sided marble staircase – a muscular Jacob, long, flowing hair, a bolt of blue lightening between his hand and the hand of an even more muscle-bound man with a crew cut, dressed in combat gear, his teeth bared, mouth twisted, distorting the scar down his face.
‘That’s me giving life to MaX Fist…’
It’s set around the millennium, mostly in Birmingham and surrounds and there are some fabulous set pieces including scenes in a lap dancing club, karaoke and the New Year’s party at the teenage millionaire’s place where bowls of brassy flames held up by silver poles lined the road through the wood leading to the house.
One or two caveats, eg would Bix Pillar be so misogynistic if he’d worked with Bjork – surely she would have knocked it out of him? But all in all very enjoyable. Would make a good film I think.
* made me think of that line in the Bowie song: 'As ugly as a teenage millionaire pretending it's a whizz-kid world'.
The title refers to the 27 club – the age when many rock greats die, including Hendrix, Joplin, Morrison in the 60s and more recently Cobain and Winehouse. The main character, Jim Vale, lead singer with ‘The Tyrants’ wants to join the club and tries to commit suicide, but fails. However his manager thinks his ‘death’ will increase sales so asks him to lie low (at one point he wears a blue double breasted blazer that made him look like ‘Charlie Manson if he’d stolen Peter Cook’s wardrobe’). To pay off debts Vale gets embroiled in drug dealing while the group’s re-released single heads up the charts.
It’s a vivid, funny, fast plot-driven read featuring many great characters, including a skinny Finnish record producer Bix Pillar and a teenage millionaire *(Jacob Little) who made his money from inventing a game character called MaX Fist. Vale – drug dispensing - visits his mansion and asks about the mural on the ceiling.
‘It’s a re-creation of the Sistine Chapel, but instead of angels and cherubs and all that shit, it’s depicting the story lines from the games I created. See that section above the stairs?’
He pointed to the ceiling over the double-sided marble staircase – a muscular Jacob, long, flowing hair, a bolt of blue lightening between his hand and the hand of an even more muscle-bound man with a crew cut, dressed in combat gear, his teeth bared, mouth twisted, distorting the scar down his face.
‘That’s me giving life to MaX Fist…’
It’s set around the millennium, mostly in Birmingham and surrounds and there are some fabulous set pieces including scenes in a lap dancing club, karaoke and the New Year’s party at the teenage millionaire’s place where bowls of brassy flames held up by silver poles lined the road through the wood leading to the house.
One or two caveats, eg would Bix Pillar be so misogynistic if he’d worked with Bjork – surely she would have knocked it out of him? But all in all very enjoyable. Would make a good film I think.
* made me think of that line in the Bowie song: 'As ugly as a teenage millionaire pretending it's a whizz-kid world'.
December 29, 2012
First off I should tell you that Ryan is in the writers group that I attend so I'm biased. Another thing that you won't know, unless you buy the book, is that Ryan is a bloody good writer. I really enjoyed 27 not because I know Ryan or because I live in the city its set in (Birmingham UK) but because its a well written tale of ambition, despair and friendship. The story centres around Jim Vale ( or Jimmy Tyrant as he's also known ) a failing rock star who's light burnt brightly but briefly. Jim's band, The Tyrants, are struggling, their initial success has long faded and no one seems interested in their latest release. Jim copes with this by loosing himself in drink and drugs until finally he decides to take his own life. Luckily for Jim he's as adept at killing himself as he is at conquering the music business. His manager convinces him to play dead, hoping that it will boost record sales and thus begins Jim's decent into the deadly underworld of Birmingham's drug dealers and strip club owners. I really enjoyed this and found myself very quickly lost in this dark tale of redemption. The story moves along at a good pace with chapters that keep you hooked whilst you look for answers, not all of which are answered. I for one was intrigued by Jim's skin condition, did it ever clear up? I recognised many of the locations used in the book but that's not essential, in fact it is probably more of a hindrance than a help. I don't want to dwell on the plot too much as that would spoil the book but there are some neat twists along the way. If you want something dark, pacey and humorous then this is well worth a shot, after all its set where I live, involves gangster rappers, karaoke thugs, street gangs, revenge fuelled strippers and an egotistical Scandinavian producer. What more could you want?
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