Enter Shikari -- Dear Future Historians: Lyrics & Essays

by Enter Shikari

British rock/electronic/post-hardcore band Enter Shikari have created a wealth of heavily politicised music over the course of ten years and four albums. They have become one of the most influential British rock bands of their generation, sharing with their fans a belief that music can inspire change. Dear Future Historians features front-man Rou Reynolds own song interpretations and social commentary alongside all of their lyrics to date.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction

192 pages, Paperback

Published May 1, 2017

Reviews

[Steph LaPlante · Rating 5 out of 5]

I obviously have to give this a 5 star rating because it's Enter Shikari and I might be a bit biased. It's really hard to not love a novel that goes into more depth about the songs you love. There are a few spelling mistakes which actually made me love it that much more, it felt as though I was reading an unedited version of Rou's thoughts.
I decided to reread this after Rou Reynold's announced he was releasing a second novel. I wrote a bigger review that you can find here if you're interested.

[Rachel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Synopsis (Goodreads synopsis N/A)

Rou Reynolds' is the frontman of British rock band Enter Shikari who have been going strong for around 12 years now. What makes this band different from the slue of other rock bands is their ability to openly discuss about the important current issues of the day in their lyrics; from poverty to greed, to climate change to technological advancement among many others. Reynolds' certainly has an interesting mind and this shows in his new book. This book contains all of Enter Shikari's songs and lyrics along with essays that Reynolds' has produced about the lyrics. It's an interesting and intriguing insight to how Reynolds' becomes inspired to write about such topics in his songs and how the current political, social and economical climate influence him in his writing.

Star Rating

4.5/5 Stars

For a fan of the band this book is one that is kept for sentimental value more than anything. I have been a fan of them for near on 10 years now so when their was an announcement that there was a book coming out of course I had to grab it; even if it was a little overpriced for my taste. I am glad I have it in my possession but I remember thinking that Reynolds had written this book a little too quickly. However, most of it is just lyrics which can be easily sort out; it's not as if Reynolds is trying to write an epic fictional novel. However, even though I let that slide a little I couldn't help noticing some problems. First, two songs had been missed out. 'The Feast' which was an early recording that can be found on 'The Zone EP, I personally recommend checking it out, and 'Today Won't Go Down in History' which is on the 'Take to The Skies' album. I wouldn't have been too fussed about this normally but this book was in celebration of 'Take to The Skies' becoming 10 years old. Seems like an odd mistake to make. Reynolds did apologise for the mistake when I pointed it out on Twitter; at least there was no covering it up.

The other mistakes that I spotted were more on the grammatical side of things. I'm not sure if Reynolds' had an editor since it would have been their job to pick up on it but some grammar mistakes were pretty obvious. Also, words in lyrics were changed.

I don't want this review to come off as a ranty review. It's not that at all. The essays that were in there, even if there few and far between, were ones that made me inspired. I was able to get angry about the topics and Reynolds' was discussing and it was interesting to learn about different topics that influenced him.

If you are a fan of the band I would highly recommend this book. Even with it's faults it's an interesting and inspiring read and allows you to feel as if you can change anything if you put your mind to it. I do hope the band decide to release something similar since I find it hard to believe that they won't have enough source material to do so in the next few years.

[Peran Reynolds · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this when it came out and I was a fan of the concept of a lyric book with lots of detailed lore and explanations behind most songs. Some of the stand-alone singles, of which my favourite is ‘Quelle Surprise’ is featured here. Although that song wasn’t directly referenced and dissected personally by Rou in this book, the fundamentals of it were definitely covered in his essays, of which were a joy to read and an inspiration.

I’ve followed the band since the release of ‘Take to the Skies’, the song ‘Sorry, You’re not a Winner’ was one of my favourite songs of that particular period of my life. It’s been great to listen to the albums whilst tearing through this, and realising that everything they have written and still write holds true to this day. Albeit rather scary. I couldn’t have deciphered everything that is sung, screamed, howled etc.... reading it here has made me sit up and take notice.

I highly recommend this book, and the band themselves, to the passionate free-thinkers and just passionate high energy music fans in general. Enter Shikari have a lot of stories to tell, and people can learn a thing or two here.

[Plyy · Rating 5 out of 5]

En sano että jokasen pitäis lukee tää todellakaan mut oon ollu pitkään fani ja jo alussa kerrottiin mitä tää on: just mun kaltasille faneille kirja.

Deep dive lyriikoihin yhtyeen laulajalta. Jokaselta yhtyeeltä tällästä ei tulis luettua vaikka oliskin se paras omasta mielestä mut täs puhutaan shikarista jolla on aika tarkat ajatukset takana etenkin eteenpäin mennessä.

Oli monia hetkiä missä näki että kyseessä on Roun ensimmäinen kirja ja tuntuu että lukee enemmän jotain tweettiä tms kuin kirjaa mut asia oli siellä mitä halusin lukea ja nautin kokemuksesta. Mulla on noi loputkin hyllyssä ollu odottamassa jo jonkun aikaa niin lukasen nekin nyt kronologisesti.

Suosittelen lukemaan kirjasta etenkin ekojen albumien osuuden. Se oli ehkä se viihdyttävin ja informatiivisin osuus ainakin itelle.

En voi antaa muuta kun täydet koska on täähän nyt siisti kirja olla muuntamaan kokemusta lempiyhtyeen musiikista. Aloitin taas kuuntelemaan vanhoja albumeita ja niistä irtos vähän sitä ensikuuntelun huumaa vielä tänäkin päivänä.

[James Benham · Rating 5 out of 5]

An incredible read for any diehard Enter Shikari fan. This book, written by frontman Rou Reynolds, explores the meanings and inspirations behind the lyrics of their songs. The book also explores the roots and background of the band, their inspirations and values they try to convey. Their heavy political influences are highlighted throughout and research is offered for the 'dear reader' to explore further. Advocates of disbanding borders and nations, and passionate on their views of climate change and corporate greed, Rou showcases the band's desire to be a catalyst for change and reflection. I found this truly inspirational, not just as a fan of the music, but as a member of the 'Earth nation'. As a trainee teacher, I also aspire to be a force for change; promoting unity, empathy, and to see all peoples as one. Aside from the political views, the imagery behind the lyrics and depth of them is amazing.

[Ewelina Heiligers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm biased 🤷‍♀️

[meri]

I took my time with Dear Future Historians since I wanted to listen to the songs or at least hum them in my head before I read them. It’s more of a coffee table read than a text book. I don’t know if someone who’s not a fan of Shikari would read DFH but as I am a big fan of both the band’s music and especially the mind of Rou this was a very interesting read. The essays tackle issues we all should be thinking about (also a reason non-Shikari fans might want to read it as well) and tries to shed light on issues too often left unspoken about.

Not really a book that feels natural to rate with stars so actually I’m going to take the star rating off. A very intetesting book to read for any Shikari fan or any fan of well written essays on topics like climate change, capitalism and ever-expanding universe. Thann you Rou.

[Julia McColl · Rating 5 out of 5]

As an Enter Shikari fan, it's hard not to give this 5 stars. That's my personal bias which I'm unable to entirely avoid. I could gripe about the spelling errors, or about how every single song doesn't have corresponding commentary, but I think that would be a disservice to Reynolds (who clearly spent a fair amount of time collecting all these thoughts). It's a very consistent journaling and I appreciated how certain themes come across throughout a nearly 20 year old body of work. Rou has a talent for blending very serious (sometimes catastrophic) problems with a sense of humour, and more importantly an overarching sense of urgency for the human race to be more compassionate. I would definitely recommend this read for anyone interested in poetry, lyricism, politics, or Enter Shikari!

[Kramer Thompson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting explanations of the meaning (and some of the history) behind many of Enter Shikari's songs. Not all songs have explanatory essays attached to them, including many of the Take to the Skies songs (which, unfortunately for me, are some of the songs I'm most interested in). Still, Rou's explanations for the rest of the songs were easily understandable and written well.

[Jonny · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great read for anyone that is a fan of the band or has an interest in learning some of the deeper meaning behind their music. I really enjoyed the commentary in the latter half of the book. Holding back on giving 5 stars as I would have liked more commentary around their earlier work, but I understand why Rou is more invested in things that have been written more recently.

[Chris Kendall · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've needed this book in my life for years and am so glad it's finally out.

Incredible insight to the meaning of some of my favourite songs.

Highly recommended!

[Jordan Ringrose · Rating 5 out of 5]

The perfect book for any Enter Shikari fan. Beautifully written by Rou and best read whilst listening to the songs.

[Georgia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this insight into Rou's mind! I haven't been an ES fan for long at all but regardless of that, their lyric books are incredibly fascinating.

[Hannah · Rating 5 out of 5]

I want to live in this man’s brain for a day

[Duncan Bradshaw · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always good to get some more information on one of your favourite band's songs, even if the meanings are quite overt anyway. Typically, some of the songs I would've liked to have read a bit more on, were missing, but they were from the TTTS era, so the passage of time has probably diminished a lot of the recall on them. Definitely worth a read if you're a Shikari fan, Rou backs up his views with sources, so it will help if you fancy checking out some of the influences.

[Valerie Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Brilliant book from a brilliant man with a brilliant mind.

[Victor Garcia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Reading the inner workings of one of the smartest guys in the underground music scene. Four stars because not every song has explanations.