Instrumental

by Dave Chisholm

In the small hours of the morning, on a headlong collision into history, ambition, and magic, a trumpeter wails in the apocalypse.
-You are making it happen. All the deaths. All the destruction.-
Tom is a solid, but not great, musician. While his bandmates are happy to play gigs for themselves at their own clubs, drinking free beer and shooting the breeze, Tom aches for the next level, whatever that is. And as musicians are wont to do in magical fables, he meets a mysterious stranger with a seemingly simple offer: take a battered old trumpet for free, and just enjoy it, no exchanges and no strings. Whenever Tom plays it, the extraordinary music blows away his growing throngs of fans, and deadly mishaps start to follow. Tom may not have sold his soul for the music of the heavens, but he seems to have bargained away something much more serious.
From the critically acclaimed jazz musician Dave Chisholm, Instrumental is a high-spirited, suspenseful, formally inventive, visually musical graphic novel, an epic yet intimate riff on our longing search for what's next.
Dave Chisholm is a trumpet player, songwriter, composer, bandleader, educator, and visual artist currently residing in Rochester, NY. The breadth of Chisholm's artistic output is exemplified in a long string of widely varied projects including the big-band jazz of his debut album Radioactive (2010), the post-rock-meets-jazz-improvisation soundscapes on Calligraphy (2011), his soulful indie-rock singer-songwriter project Talking Under Water, the blistering straight-ahead jazz performed by Utah group John Henry, and the upstart jazz big bands Salt Lake Alternative Jazz Orchestra and Colossus. As a trumpet player, Dave has garnered international acclaim. In 2012, he performed six nights at the Umbria Jazz Festival as part of Ryan Truesdell's -Gil Evans: Centennial- project. In 2009, he was one of two recipients of the Downbeat Student Music Award for outstanding collegiate soloist. He has also received numerous accolades and awards at both the Reno Jazz Festival and the University of Northern Colorado Jazz Festival. Dave wrote and illustrated his first graphic novel, LET'S GO TO UTAH!, in 2009, followed by short comics in MYSPACE DARK HORSE PRESENTS, and Locust Moon's Eisner Award-winning anthology, DREAM ANOTHER DREAM. He currently teaches at State University of New York at Brockport and at the Hochstein School of Music and Dance.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Music, Fantasy, Graphic Novels Comics, Graphic Novels Manga, Comics, Paranormal

224 pages, Paperback

First published September 26, 2017

About the author

Dave Chisholm is a graphic novelist and musician currently living in Rochester, NY where he received his doctorate in jazz trumpet from the Eastman School of Music in 2013. His expertise in music as well as his formal inventiveness within the comics medium has resulted in a string of critically-acclaimed music-centric graphic novels including Miles Davis & the Search for the Sound (2023, Z2 Comics), Enter the Blue (2022, Z2 Comics), and Chasin' the Bird: Charlie Parker in California (2020, Z2 Comics). His most recent releases SPECTRUM (Mad Cave Studios)--a trippy exploration of a funhouse-mirror version of 20th-century music history framed by an eternal battle in the realm of music and sound made in collaboration with writer Rick Quinn--and PLAGUE HOUSE (Oni Press)--an inventive rethinking of the haunted house genre made in collaboration with writer Michael W Conrad--demonstrate his breadth.

Hailed by ComicsBeat as "one of the most exciting comic auteurs working in comics today," Chisholm also has a passion for education and teaches comics and music at the Hochstein School and the Rochester Institute of Technology. 

In his free time, Dave enjoys spending time with his wife, son, and cats.

Reviews

[Nick · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am reviewing this from an ARC, received from the publisher.
This is Faust with a few twists, by jazz musician Dave Chisholm. Tom, a struggling trumpet player, is given a beat-up old trumpet that has a wonderful sound, and which is the perfect thing for him to create the music he could always hear in his head. His jazz band finally attracts an audience, and music starts being fun again.
Two unfortunate things, though. One is that some scary people seem to want it back. The other is that, just coincidentally, a trickle of people start dropping dead, all near the music.
Then it starts getting weird and trippy, as he may be having conversations with Mozart and Hildegard von Bingen. Maybe John Coltrane, too. Hard to tell with these things, all of them being dead, after all.
Music, magic, death and destruction follow, and pay attention to every detail, because they all matter.
I haven't listened to the soundtrack for this graphic novel, but there will be one, according to the publisher. The book itself is a strong beginning. Faust has been done many times, but never quite like this.

[Hanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

You guys probably know how much I like music by now. When I saw the cover art for Instrumental, I was immediately drawn to it because a) what a beautiful cover! and b) it's about music. I read about the author, Dave Chisholm who is also a musician himself. He also took the time to compose his own soundtrack for this graphic novel! It's like when artists release a concept album, and they decide to take fans into an experience and translate the music into something real, but for Dave, it's the other way around.

What I really like about Instrumental is the illustrations. I found myself constantly in awe with the way some of the scenes were illustrated. They are so rich in details.​ The plot is quite alright for me, Tom was given a strange old trumpet for free and all of a sudden everyone starts listening to him and people around him are dying whenever he plays. I mean come on, red flags EVERYWHERE right? Of course Tom here thought nothing of it because he's famous now.

I won't say anything more because if I do, they'd only be spoilers for you. I would definitely recommend this for music lovers, those who appreciate a good illustration work and those who are looking for a great quick read.

[Rj Veit · Rating 4 out of 5]

Tom plays the trumpet but he's really blowing it. A small time musician has dreams of grandeur that slowly start becoming possible when an old man decides to upgrade him with a mysterious old horn. Suddenly not only can he play better but weird things start happening. A book that likes to play with not only the comic medium but the music medium being written by an actual jazz musician with a special soundtrack created for the book. The art is amazing and is just as creative as music. Jam packed with philosophy and meta warping scenes this book brings down the house.

[Fraser Simons · Rating 4 out of 5]

After reading the incredible Into the Blue by Chisholm I managed to get ahold of this as well, and I’m glad I did! Another interesting, immersive dialogue musing on both the struggle of authenticity in creating music (and art, generally), and the dynamic between the artist and (the incompatible) society where the art is being created.

When a musician is given the “gift” of a trumpet that seems to unlock or tap into his talent, suddenly his life careens into danger. He can no longer sleep, as he’s being followed. People near him end up dead when he plays. But he can’t stop playing, as his dream of hitting the big time continue, so long as he keeps playing.

The subplot, which seems like it taps into a collective unconscious and a… cult? I guess? That makes the story more fantastical and escalates the stakes, was less interesting to me than the core of the story. Though, I do like the underbelly of it, allowing the notions around what it means to play music and how it is in dialogue with other musicians—the catastrophic stakes felt like it somewhat took away from those core ideas, rather than emphasized it. But… in comics, stories that do not have fantastical or scifi elements tend to do really poorly, so I can see why it’s there.

This work being a stepping stone to the aforementioned Into the Blue (an all time favourite of mine), makes a lot of sense, well worth reading, and is neat to situate in the Chisholm overall canon. Glad I found a library copy for sale online.

[Matt Graupman · Rating 5 out of 5]

There’s a small annual comics convention - the Canandaigua Comic Con - just outside my hometown of Rochester, New York that I try to check out most years. It’s predominantly collectors selling back issues and maybe a b-movie celebrity or two but there also tends to be a small contingent of creators selling their own work. At this year’s edition (the ninth!), I was fortunate to meet Dave Chisholm, a local jazz musician and cartoonist, and pick up his latest graphic novel, “Instrumental,” as well as its companion CD of the same name. The next night, while waiting for my son to finish his karate class, I popped my headphones in, started the album on my iPod, and began reading. Forty-five minutes later, I had finished reading one of the most inventive and entertaining graphic novels in recent memory.

“Instrumental” is about Tom, a struggling jazz musician, who feels stagnant and trapped in a cycle of sparsely attended gigs and uninspired practices. However, when an unusual heckler gifts him an antique trumpet, Tom suddenly finds his musical talent and enthusiasm rekindled spectacularly; but, in a Faustian twist, there’s a dark cost to his newfound success: every time he plays the trumpet, someone nearby dies. Pulling in elements of the metaphysical and spiritual, Chisholm does a brilliant job of connecting the small tale of Tom to the larger context of music and its universality. Art-wise, his panels are loose and poetic, reminding me a lot of the lyrical inks of Nate Powell (my favorite artist, so you know that’s high praise); in addition, his layouts are inventive and extremely dynamic. Speaking of loose and poetic, the soundtrack album does a superb job of complimenting and enhancing the comic, while also standing on its own as work of art (Chisholm today me they’re designed to work together and separately, which you can check out by downloading the album - FOR FREE - from Bandcamp). I can’t say enough good things about this amazing work of art.

Whether you’re a fan of mature, thought-provoking comics or inventive progressive jazz (which you should be - of both! - in my opinion), “Instrumental” is guaranteed to send shivers up your spine. I am tremendously grateful that I got to meet this incredibly talented and prolific artist (seriously, he has several rad jazz albums available to download from his site, as well as a wonderful indie rock band, Talking Under Water, with its own Bandcamp site) and I’m even prouder to say that he’s helping to bring attention to the city that I love.

[Jay Hall · Rating 5 out of 5]

A striking take on the classic "musician sells his soul for an instrument that brings talent but also doom" tale. Beautifully vivid artwork and a thought provoking story. Well done all around!

Also, author and jazz trumpeter Dave Chisholm composed an accompanying soundtrack that really adds another dimension to the already wonderful book. So be sure to check that out while you're reading.

[Daniel · Rating 4 out of 5]

This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 3.5 of 5

I've been on a personal quest for a number of years to find that perfect blend of music and literature. We often use the same language to discuss both (themes, beats, movements, rhythm, etc) and I'd love to find a musical composition in a written work as well as a complex story in a composition.

This graphic novel, Instrumental, by Dave Chisholm, does it quite well ... though it does have the advantage of adding a layer of art to the story-telling.

Not surprisingly, this is essentially a re-telling of a quite famous story ... Faust ... which has had its musical interpretations as well as literary re-imaginings. It makes for a great attempt to blend the sound and the story-telling.

Tom is a trumpet player. He plays in a band with fellow musicians of better than average skills. Most of the band-mates are satisfied with their regular gigs and the ability to play, drink free beer, and shoot the breeze. But Tom wants more. As a true artist, he strives to find meaning in his art and to bring that meaning to more and more people. He wants to be able to touch people with his art and he becomes more and more irritable in his daily life because he's not finding meaning.

And then someone hands him the magic trumpet. Of course he doesn't know that's what it is. In fact, it looks pretty beat-up. But the stranger insists he play it. And when he does, he is carried away - propelled into the art he's been seeking. And those who hear him are also transformed by his music and the band becomes more and more popular as fans come to be transported by Tom's horn.

But mishaps seem to follow Tom around and there are thugs looking to take the horn away and return it to someone else. Tom's life becomes dizzyingly out of control by his art and a horn possessed.

Author Dave Chisholm crafts the story well, letting it build, reach a fevered peak, and withdraw, just as a good musical composition would. In fact, Chisholm has provided a musical underscore (to this ARC reader, at least) that mirrors the story's flow and emotion.

The art is black and white, slightly stylized, and works well for the story at hand. It is a bit uneven, though. There were times ... a panel here and there ... where the art looked rushed or tired or as though Chisholm had a plan but not the skill to make it happen.

The story, as I mentioned at the top, is pretty straight-forward and a retelling of Faust. The moment the old trumpet makes an appearance we know what's going to happen to Tom and to those around him. There are no surprises here.

So why read this? For that blending of words and music that I mentioned at the top. Chisholm is going after something. Something that had him reach out in a genre and a format that he's not usually suited to. But like Tom, Chisholm seems to be chasing something bigger than his usual audience and to do so he's needing to compose, write, and draw. Kudos for taking all of this on.

Where Chisholm really shines, however, is in his music. Even before I had access to the special score he created for the graphic novel, I checked in to listen to some of his other music and it's a smooth jazz, very reminiscent of the Chuck Mangione sound of the late 1970's. It's a sound I absolutely love and Chisholm has a new fan/follower for his music because of this graphic novel.

As a score for the book, the music is unusual, but a nice underscoring. Underscoring. It's a subtle, mood-evoking sound, but it is not a second telling of the story. It is a nice blend of music, art, and story, but it still doesn't quite bring forth what I am searching for.

I liked the book as an intelligent graphic novel - it's a nice way to spend an hour reading. But it doesn't offer anything new and I'd prefer to listen to Chisholm's music work.

Looking for a good book? Instrumental is a graphic novel by musician Dave Chisholm that offers a nice blend of story and art (and music) but it's an old story only moderately updated.

I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Netgalley, in exchange for an honest review.

[Alex Andrasik · Rating 4 out of 5]

Let's get this straight first things first: the art in this book is mostly gorgeous, and when it's not gorgeous, it's too busy being experimental and surreal (in a good way) to be bothered. Chisholm finds a way to play with the comics medium that dovetails nicely with his mission of visually representing the auditory world and experience of music. His characters step out of panels, the sound waves of their playing reverberate across the page, and in a tour de force climax, the central character cycles up, out, and beyond the constraints of the graphic novel he was born into. It's never less than visually interesting.

I enjoyed the story, I did, though it reads a little too much like an eager young student of philosophy flexing his intellectual muscles. Not bad at all, just a little on-the-nose. Also--and I've noticed this around the literary world--musicians tend to think there's stuff about the universe and truth and beauty that only they *get,* maaaaan. It's, you know, whatever ;-)

But I like this book. It's really thought-provoking in its exploration of what's more important--*doing* or being *known* for doing; in another way, just being vs. being a *success.* It's well-worn territory, but approached in an entertaining and novel manner. The inclusion of a secret music-cult with access to mystical, legendary instruments is a fun bit of world-building. I didn't have a chance to listen to the music CD included to accompany the words and pictures, but I think it's a great touch than I'm sure enhances the experience. I hope this young artist, writer and musician gives us more.

[Lynn · Rating 4 out of 5]

A graphic novel by acclaimed trumpet player and composer , David Chisholm. A dark tale similar to The Red Shoes about a trumpet player named Tom who yearns for the big time. One night he meets a mysterious man who gives him a trumpet. The trumpet has the most beautiful sound and Tom becomes more and more famous. But when he plays, someone seems to drop dead. When he looks at his phone, he sees notifications about fires, earthquakes and floods all over the world. And he can’t sleep, no sleep for days. These strange men keep coming up to him trying to get him to give them the trumpet. An added bonus is a QR code on the inside flap of the book. You get to listen to lovely jazz music courteously offered by Dave Chisholm himself. So you read and listen to jazz music!

[Williwaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

I stopped by my local comic book shop today because Dave Chisolm was signing his new comic book, "Canopus," which appears to be a work of science fiction. While I was waiting to get a signature, I saw that he had several copies of the graphic novel, "Instrumental," on the table as well.

I had seen the book before, while on a trip to Wisconsin. In fact, it looked interesting and it was cheap because it was a library sale book. So I bought it for my brother and left it with him.

I never had a chance to read it, so I picked up a copy today and got it signed. Dr. Dave (he's got a Ph.D. in music) drew a great doodle over his signature for me!

The story and the graphics are both wonderful. It combines the Faustian "pact with the devil" theme (think Paganini or Robert Johnson) with gnosticism, Schopenhauer, and the musical mysticism of Alexander Skriabin (who actually appears as a hallucinatory character along with someone who looks a bit like Rasputin).

Toward the end, there are some stunning, hallucinatory, two-page layouts that depict the main character dying and coming back to life. Whatever may be lacking in draftsmanship is completely made up for in geometric imagination.

Highly recommended! This book fires on all cylinders and evokes some truly archetypal themes. Bravo, Dr. Dave!

P.S. There is a sound track available online that's meant to accompany the book.

[Mary Huyett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Inspiring, clever, with a twist of spooky.

[Heidi Tighe]

I have very little experience with graphic novels, but this made me want to read more. It was quite an interesting way to experience a story.

[RJ Boyle · Rating 5 out of 5]

The truth is.

[Sonya · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is such a great book! The artwork is a little... I don't know... edgy?, but beautiful. Loved the story and definitely you should go to the bandcamp site and listen to the soundtrack that goes with it.

[Thomas Jancis · Rating 4 out of 5]

(A NetGalley ARC)
A interesting and visually stimulating graphic novel concerning a trumpet player and his horn that might be an item of destruction.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story about a trumpeter that comes with an accompanying soundtrack.

[Derek Royal · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating combination of comics and music. I particularly appreciate Chisholm's self-reflexive awareness of the medium and linking that to the protagonist's "other dimension" experiences.

[Tony Grosz · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read it in one sitting. A wonderful work of art!

[Jack · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s Faust, but about music. The author/artist makes a pretty straightforward story weird and interesting with psychedelic panel/design choices, visions of cross-genre musical legends talking philosophy, and lots of cool, overlapping meta-stuff about words, pictures, sound, and stories. The pace increases every chapter as the main character’s obsession (and sleep deprivation) crescendo with his unreliable narration. I haven’t listened to the soundtrack (composed and performed by the author/artist) yet, but I love that it adds another layer to this story about music about stories. Plus I bought it from the artist at a local comics show and he was super nice!

[Sophie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a big, ambitious little book that churns and roils and doesn’t quite know what it’s doing. Mostly forgivable, as a loving and wild vessel for the excellent accompanying soundtrack. I wish the comic had a more clueful idea of its philosophy and purpose. It spits quite a bit at you without necessarily making a point, and I feel like there’s a big effort on the author’s part for readers to /get/ it. Earnestness and visceral feeling hides behind that text—I can feel him being much more comfortable in showing it to us. But that part comes from his music, and not from walls of prose.

This works best when the music washes over you and the author is breaking rules and slowly smashing his paneled world before your eyes. When the music and the visual surrealism match up, you really feel the rhythm of this whole project. But of course, that’s in the music of the thing, and not in what it tells you. Three stars for the writing, fourish for those visual moments and the soundtrack.

[Sarah · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fascinating allegory for the power for music to consume and damage even the brightest of minds (at least, that's what I took from it), Chisholm is uniquely positioned to write such a story. Beautifully evocative in the deepening confusion and despair, Instrumental follows one young, ambitious musician as he is gripped and worn down and damaged by fierce powers. There is a companion soundtrack to be enjoyed alongside or separate from the book, though I didn't have a chance to listen to it (circumstances prevented it), but I imagine is adds a incredible depth to the story, as music plays such a central role to the plot. Even without the soundtrack, Instrumental is a unique graphic novel.

[Chad · Rating 4 out of 5]

Dave Chisholm has created his own version of a rock opera, with a graphic novel and album meant to be consumed together. Tom is a struggling musician who's lost his passion. One night after a session an old man gives him an old beat up trumpet. When he plays, he transcends time and people are enthralled. However, people start dying. Will Tom keep playing even if it costs someone their life? A variation of Faust or Robert Johnson's Crossroads story but well told.

Received an advance copy from Z2 and Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.

[John Bernardo · Rating 5 out of 5]

I became a fan of Dave with Chasin the bird. After reading all his latest books I went back to his first.

My goodness I didn’t expect any thing of what happened here.

From a story perspective, it had me hooked.

From an art perspective - all the crazy concepts he used in his later books, I see in their early raw stages here. And that’s a compliment.

I’ve never seen pages as creative as this. If you’re not reading Dave’s books you’re reading comics wrong.

Read. This. Book.

[Stephanie Tournas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Tom finds himself in a faustian place, with a trumpet which makes him into the musician he wants to be. He stops sleeping, people are dying, and he is being hunted by two eccentric fellows. A great story, which includes an album to stream online. So cool!

[Paul · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good. Some moments a little too full of wordy light philosophy, but the graphics and music are great.

[Matt Raymond · Rating 3 out of 5]

(Hey, I read a book & it only took me a month!)

At one of the libraries I work at, the catalog will provide suggestions next to books you search for. I searched for my favorite music-meets-magic comic Phonogram and this was the first suggestion, so I ordered it. It’s not as fleshed out as Phonogram, and its focus is sloppy, which makes it less than engaging. But it did offer a few neat concepts about art. A man, tired of playing jazz music with no benefit, is gifted a magic trumpet which plays such beautiful music that some heads literally explode Scanners-style, and his jazz audience expands. But his need for accolades and success clouds his judgement, leading to a message about the purpose of artistic pursuits, and the fine line between success and happiness.

To enjoy any medium I’m consuming, it has to connect with me on some personal level. This book is halfway there, somewhat alienating me with its jazz band dynamic and musician life problems. I like jazz, but I don’t love it, and I can barely play an instrument so I couldn’t connect with most of that stuff. But there were some kernels of universal truth that would pop up and get my attention:

“I create because I Love the act of creation.” “Our lives are defined by longing--by our wants--and yet this longing can never be fulfilled.” Both quotes, more or less, are about the drive of artists. They aren’t trying to be great, they just like what they do. The people that chase accolades or some generic concept of success are the ones who suffer. When Oprah was still teaching me about life 5 days a week she referenced a Michael Jackson profile in Vanity Fair, which mainly focused on the production of Thriller, but also discussed how after its success Jackson was constantly trying to top it, and obviously he couldn’t because that’s an impossible task. This is the same trap the protagonist is falling into, and struggling to get out of. That story has stuck with me when doing anything. Did I decide on this career path because I wanted recognition or because I like it? Do I write because it makes me happy or am I competing for external recognition? These are important questions to ask, how we value ourselves as opposed to determining our value against impossible standards, and if the book focused on that more it may have won me over.

There are other stories about sanity and apocalypse vs. Armageddon and it just got so wrapped up in itself that my eyes started rolling from the sheer pretension. The art was black & white, making some of the more intricate panels difficult to appreciate. The kinds of things they were drawing needed color. It’s a quick read, and its ideas on self-worth make it worthwhile.

[Crittermom · Rating 3 out of 5]

Why do you create?  What is the purpose for art, for music?  What would you give to be noticed, remembered?  Tom is a man who is a good trumpet player, but not a great one.  He is dissatisfied with playing with his friends, angry and more than a little self-centered.  One day an old man gives him a black trumpet.  With it, Tom is able to play music that captivates and inspires, but it also kills.  In addition to the terrible price of playing, homeless cultists are pursuing Tom in order to retrieve the trumpet.  While dodging their attempts, Tom travels between worlds, encountering musicians from bygone eras who argue the purpose of creation.  The graphic novel is definitely strange.   Between the cultists who worship these otherworldly instruments and the surreal encounters with those who created great music,  it’s easy to understand why Tom becomes more and more paranoid.  Instrumental is not the easiest graphic novel to follow or even like.  The ending is particularly odd.   I did like the concept behind the novel, and the pairing with the jazz soundtrack, but that doesn’t redeem Chisholm’s work.  It is too incoherent to be meaningful, but I will grant that it is memorable

3 / 5

I received a copy of Instrumental from Diamond Books in exchange for an honest review.

—Crittermom

[Ryan Werner · Rating 3 out of 5]

(This is closer to four stars if read in parallel with the excellent soundtrack composed by the author.)

Trumpet dude is sick of performing to like twelve people a gig — playing jazz, in this economy? — and ends up changing everything when he’s gifted an old trumpet that makes people dig his tunes and also kills someone every time he performs with it.

Aside from our protagonist not thinking too much about the extreme passage of time, sudden death, and two dudes stalking him whenever he plays the old trumpet, we get some silliness added in the form of transcendental time travel to hang out with Coltrane and stuff. It’s weird. Same thing with the music cult that had all these old instruments from the gods or whatever.

I’m not sure it all works together, as cool as the art is and everything. There’s something here about figuring out why you do the thing you do, but it’s wrapped up in a Faustian science fiction narrative that doesn’t quite support it.

A fun enough read, but the real revelation here is the author’s own musical chops. I’ll be digging into some more of his tunes for sure!

[Ellen · Rating 3 out of 5]

I had fallen head over heels in love with this artist, after reading his Enter the Blue and Chasing The Bird graphic novels. so this one was a little bit of a letdown. I was less than in chanted with the graphics, and the story was a little thin. A protagonist is given an instrument, which essentially plays him, rather than which he plays. Morality till about how one cannot cheat to get better musically. And the graphics weren’t up to the standards of the two previously mentioned. There is one six section of the book that was great though, where he is moved to a realm with phenomenal musicians, who have passed on. That bit it was really well done.

[Nikki in Niagara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Kind of a mystical story with the theme of Armageddon. A trumpet player has one of several magical instruments which are protected by some sort of religious cult. Playing these instruments causes death, destruction, and the End. He starts playing this trumpet and people start dying and worldwide catastrophes increase. The only problem is that his music has never sounded so great! The art is black and white and heavily inked, I wasn't particularly attracted to it. Just ok.