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RE/SEARCH #4/5: William S. Burroughs, Brion Gysin, Throbbing Gristle

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William Burroughs, Brion Gysin and Throbbing Gristle talk about advanced ideas invloving the social control process, creativity, and the future.

104 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1982

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1201 people want to read

About the author

V. Vale

47 books112 followers
Japanese-American writer and publisher. He also played keyboards for the later famous power trio Blue Cheer.

In 1977 he started to publish the punk fanzine "Search and destroy" In 1980, he began publication of RE/Search, a tabloid format zine focusing on various counterculture and underground topics.

RE/Search later became always a format for books, of which Vale is a regular contributor.

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5 stars
667 (48%)
4 stars
451 (32%)
3 stars
211 (15%)
2 stars
31 (2%)
1 star
14 (1%)
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
Profile Image for Rachelandthecity.
46 reviews16 followers
November 5, 2007
I used to spend hours in Tower Books in Nashville reading Re/search. I think this is the only one I ever purchased. I ended up seeing Genisis of Throbbing Gristle when he played with Psychic Television in Chicago in 1993. Was really glad I had read this book cause I got to meet him and wasn't totally without any context to have a decent conversation.

*I think he was out of his mind on X at the time.
Profile Image for CC.
31 reviews2 followers
January 16, 2008
Neat. If you've been through Burroughs and Gysin before there is not much new here. The value is in the collection: the Burroughs interviews and excerpts, the Gysin work, and the interviews galore with their inadvertent progeny, Throbbing Gristle.
(Nice artwork, too)
Profile Image for Chris.
138 reviews17 followers
January 25, 2008
Some of the most progressive writers, musicians and artists of our time.
15 reviews
September 22, 2021
Interesting interview with Burroughs as well as extracts from The Boy Scouts Manual. Long out of print, you'll be lucky to find a copy at a reasonable price. It isn't worth the extortionist amounts it's being sold for on Abebooks.
1 review
Read
January 5, 2022
i got this while working at an indie record store in the early 90's. still have it. exposed me to some many things. (unfinished)
Profile Image for Brendan.
1,586 reviews26 followers
April 27, 2025
Another fantastic download of crucial information.
Profile Image for Tosh.
Author 14 books777 followers
February 17, 2008
I am a huge fan of Vale and his press Re/Search. And this edition is a great introduction to William S. Burroughs and his work with the artist/writer Brion Gysin. They were sort of the Marcel Duchamp/Man Ray of the 60s, when Burroughs really got into experimental writing i.e. cut-ups, dream machine, etc.

Also a good intro to the world of Throbbing Gristle as well. Use this book to explore the culture around Burroughs and his world circ. 60's to the 70's.
Profile Image for kit.
386 reviews13 followers
April 12, 2009
the issue on William S Burroughs, Brion Gysin and Throbbing Gristle. inspiring and well illustrated. complete with plenty suggestions for further reading. this is a great book/magazine to stretch out over a longish period of time, savoring.
68 reviews1 follower
April 29, 2012
Its been a long time since I read this, but used much of the material on William S. Burroughs to write an essay on said William S. Burroughs. There is also a great discussion on the cut up method used in some of Burroughs' novels.

29 reviews
August 28, 2012
An incredibly cool collection of interviews and photos of some true iconoclasts.
Profile Image for Ed Young.
3 reviews5 followers
April 23, 2013
The book which introduced a generation of high school students/punks to Burroughs.
Profile Image for Dave.
27 reviews4 followers
January 27, 2014
Old but still good, it's a shame there's nothing like RE/Search (or there probably is, but it's lost in the detritus of the internet).
Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews

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