Books published by Bloomsbury Academic

This book celebrates Madvillainy as a representation of two genius musical minds melding to form one revered supervillain. A product of circumstance, the album came together soon after MF DOOM's resurgence and Madlib's reluctant return from avant-garde jazz to hip-hop. Written from the alternating perspectives of three fake music journalist superheroes-featuring interviews with Wildchild, M.E.D., Walasia, Daedelus, Stones Throw execs, and many other real individuals involved with the album's creation-this book blends fiction and non-fiction to celebrate Madvillainy not just as an album, but as a folkloric artifact. It is one specific retelling of a story which, like Madvillain's music, continues to spawn infinite legends.

Featuring exclusive interviews with key figures, from Napalm Death vocalist Barney Greenway to guitarist Bill Steer of Gentlemans Pistols, Carcass, and Napalm Death, this is your guide through the history of death metal.Guitars playing abrasive, discordant riffs, the thunderous double-kick of the drums acting like an accelerated heartbeat, and porcine, guttural vocals pummeling twisted lyrics. Courting controversy from inception to its modern day iteration, death metal presents a number of contradictions: Driven and adventurous musicians compete to make uncomfortable noises; it is crude and far beyond parody and yet consistently popular; and the music is pig-headedly uncommercial despite making a few labels, albeit briefly, wealthy. This book explores the history and methodology of the genre, charting its aims and intentions, its crossovers to the mainstream, successes and failures, and tracks how it developed from the bedrooms of Birmingham and Florida to the near-mainstream, to the murky cult status it enjoys today.

'[A] lively journey through the evolution of footwear' - The i'Handsomely illustrated and meticulously assembled' - Shahidha Bari, author of Dressed: The Secret Life of Clothes'An exuberant romp through footwear evolution ... a cornucopia of footwear delights' - Flora McLean, Royal College of Art, UK'A memorable walk through a story of innovation, fashion, invention and eroticism' - Giorgio Riello, European University Institute, Italy'An elegantly updated and illustrated edition of an invaluable reference book' - Alicia Kerfoot, The College at Brockport, SUNY, USAFrom chopines to stilettos, Louis XIV to Louboutin, Shoes: An Illustrated History is the definitive guide to footwear. This revised, updated edition expands the classic work to include new content on environmental and sustainability issues, and increased coverage of more diverse, inclusive and contemporary designers - such as Rupert Sanderson, Sophia Webster, Nicolas Kirkwood, Charlotte Olympia, Amina Muaddi, Noritaka Tatehana.Shoes have always been more than just a practical necessity. They reveal the culture of the times in which they were worn - the sexual morals, the social power play, as well as the endless shifting of fashion. Rebecca Shawcross takes the reader on a fascinating journey - packed with social and historical detail - of making and wearing, of the spectacular and the everyday, of conforming and rebelling.Lavishly illustrated with a dazzling array of shoes from all over the world and now including a new closing chapter covering the latest developments in design and technology, the influence of social media and celebrity endorsement, this revision consolidates the book's position as the leading reference work and overview of this ultimate object of desire, from antiquity to the present.

Often hailed as the 'best' James Bond film, From Russia With Love (1963) is celebrated for its direction by Terence Young, memorable performances from Sean Connery in his second outing as 007, Pedro Armendáriz as Kerim, Lotte Lenya as the lesbian villain Colonel Rosa Klebb, and Robert Shaw as Red Grant, the sexually ambiguous SPECTRE assassin. And regardless of its place within the longest-running continuous film series in cinema history, it is also an outstanding example of the British spy thriller in its own right.Llewella Chapman's study of the iconic film pinpoints its place within the James Bond film franchise, and its significant cultural value to critics and fans as well as this film's important place within British cinema history more widely. Drawing on a broad range of archival sources, Chapman traces the film's development and production history, including its adaptation from Ian Fleming's source novel, as well as its reception and lasting impact. Chapman also considers the film's portrayal of gender politics, with its queer villains counterpoised with the heterosexual couple Bond and his Russian counterpart Tatiana Romanova, the context of Cold War politics, and the influence of Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest (1959).

A moving investigation that exposes the impact of international intervention, both joyful and tragic, on the lives of African sexual minorities and their loved ones

A provocative expose of the position of women in China and of the state-perpetuated myths about 'leftover' women.