Sellout: The Major-Label Feeding Frenzy That Swept Punk, Emo, and Hardcore (1994–2007)
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- Create Date：2021-11-06 08:51:29
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Dan Ozzi
- ISBN：0358244307
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Summary
“A forensic and uniquely sympathetic dive into one of the most uncouth actions for an artist—selling out， baby。”—Jeff Rosenstock
A raucous history of punk， emo， and hardcore’s growing pains during the commercial boom of the early 90s and mid-aughts， following eleven bands as they “sell out” and find mainstream fame， or break beneath the weight of it all
Punk rock found itself at a crossroads in the mid-90’s。 After indie favorite Nirvana catapulted into the mainstream with its unexpected phenomenon， Nevermind， rebellion was suddenly en vogue。 Looking to replicate the band’s success， major record labels set their sights on the underground， and began courting punk’s rising stars。 But the DIY punk scene， which had long prided itself on its trademark authenticity and anti-establishment ethos， wasn’t quite ready to let their homegrown acts go without a fight。 The result was a schism: those who accepted the cash flow of the majors， and those who defiantly clung to their indie cred。
In Sellout， seasoned music writer Dan Ozzi chronicles this embattled era in punk。 Focusing on eleven prominent bands who made the jump from indie to major， Sellout charts the twists and turns of the last “gold rush” of the music industry， where some groups “sold out” and rose to surprise super stardom， while others buckled under mounting pressures。 Sellout is both a gripping history of the music industry’s evolution， and a punk rock lover’s guide to the chaotic darlings of the post-grunge era， featuring original interviews and personal stories from members of modern punk’s most （in）famous bands:
Green Day
Jawbreaker
Jimmy Eat World
Blink-182
At the Drive-In
The Donnas
Thursday
The Distillers
My Chemical Romance
Rise Against
Against Me！
A raucous history of punk， emo， and hardcore’s growing pains during the commercial boom of the early 90s and mid-aughts， following eleven bands as they “sell out” and find mainstream fame， or break beneath the weight of it all
Punk rock found itself at a crossroads in the mid-90’s。 After indie favorite Nirvana catapulted into the mainstream with its unexpected phenomenon， Nevermind， rebellion was suddenly en vogue。 Looking to replicate the band’s success， major record labels set their sights on the underground， and began courting punk’s rising stars。 But the DIY punk scene， which had long prided itself on its trademark authenticity and anti-establishment ethos， wasn’t quite ready to let their homegrown acts go without a fight。 The result was a schism: those who accepted the cash flow of the majors， and those who defiantly clung to their indie cred。
In Sellout， seasoned music writer Dan Ozzi chronicles this embattled era in punk。 Focusing on eleven prominent bands who made the jump from indie to major， Sellout charts the twists and turns of the last “gold rush” of the music industry， where some groups “sold out” and rose to surprise super stardom， while others buckled under mounting pressures。 Sellout is both a gripping history of the music industry’s evolution， and a punk rock lover’s guide to the chaotic darlings of the post-grunge era， featuring original interviews and personal stories from members of modern punk’s most （in）famous bands:
Green Day
Jawbreaker
Jimmy Eat World
Blink-182
At the Drive-In
The Donnas
Thursday
The Distillers
My Chemical Romance
Rise Against
Against Me！
Reviews
Kate Anthony
，
4。25/5**Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review** Dan Ozzi doesn't exactly reinvent the wheel when it comes to his descriptions of music， but what he may lack in originality he more than makes up for with cohesion and wit。 For what is essentially an essay collection， the book manages to weave a compelling and fluid narrative throughout。 Some of the artists covered here have had their credibility discussed at length for decades （Jawbreaker being the pri 4。25/5**Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced reader copy in exchange for an honest review** Dan Ozzi doesn't exactly reinvent the wheel when it comes to his descriptions of music， but what he may lack in originality he more than makes up for with cohesion and wit。 For what is essentially an essay collection， the book manages to weave a compelling and fluid narrative throughout。 Some of the artists covered here have had their credibility discussed at length for decades （Jawbreaker being the prime example） but Ozzi manages to offer new and worthy insights while showing us how the goalposts of what constitutes authenticity in punk rock continue to move。 。。。more
Alex Maraczi
，
“As the 1990s ended and Jimmy Eat World treaded into the new millennium， they found themselves at a turning point—too ambitious to go back through the indie-label route but too worn down by the major-label system to try again。 What they decided was that they were going to forge ahead by funding their next album themselves， with money they earned touring Europe and working odd jobs back home。 Maybe， they hoped， they could find success in the middle。”Bruh
Jesse Solis
，
For fans of the scene， this is a thorough read into not just punk's transformation from its inception to today， but a case study in how and why the music industry has changed so much over the past three decades。 The music industry looks like this giant ecosystem of mammoths to the average observer。 Ozzi shows just show small and connected it all actually is in these pages。 Great read， one that would make a perfect stocking stuffer for any music fan in your life this holiday season。 For fans of the scene， this is a thorough read into not just punk's transformation from its inception to today， but a case study in how and why the music industry has changed so much over the past three decades。 The music industry looks like this giant ecosystem of mammoths to the average observer。 Ozzi shows just show small and connected it all actually is in these pages。 Great read， one that would make a perfect stocking stuffer for any music fan in your life this holiday season。 。。。more
Jeremy
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Not a fan of a lot of these band， and a few of them I’ve never actually heard， but this was cool overview of the Major Label attempts to co-opt underground music while slowly lumbering， clay-footed， into oblivion
Sarah
，
Interview with the author: https://www。npr。org/2021/10/26/104945。。。 Interview with the author: https://www。npr。org/2021/10/26/104945。。。 。。。more
Paul Cochrun
，
Loud galloping guitars… thumping bass… chest-hammering drums… soaring vocals。 The pop punk surge blasted out of my college dorm window。 Dookie。 Enema of the State。 24 Hour Revenge Therapy。 These albums were part of the soundtrack of my young life… uh yeah， I still listen to them！Dan Ozzi’s book Sellout tells the story of these bands… from small-town formation to big-city tours and major-label signings。 I loved every minute of the basement rehearsals and especially the back and forth about: What Loud galloping guitars… thumping bass… chest-hammering drums… soaring vocals。 The pop punk surge blasted out of my college dorm window。 Dookie。 Enema of the State。 24 Hour Revenge Therapy。 These albums were part of the soundtrack of my young life… uh yeah， I still listen to them！Dan Ozzi’s book Sellout tells the story of these bands… from small-town formation to big-city tours and major-label signings。 I loved every minute of the basement rehearsals and especially the back and forth about: What exactly is Punk？ What is selling out？ What is this post-grunge rebel music going to sound like and who will produce and sell these songs？Reacting to the wild success of Nirvana， the major labels saw dollar signs on the faces of these young punk， but many didn’t see eye to eye with these stuffed shirts。 They thought that the signature on the dotted line meant that authenticity would be thrown out the window and over-production would ruin the raw sound… The answer: Some bands could have given a shit… and for some， signing ruined everything。 There was great pressure to put out the absolute best album for your major label debut。 These story lines set up a fascinating look at the music industry。 In many ways my angsty friend and I were only witness to the end result: the album and the rock show， but so much goes on behind the scenes and this is that story。 Interviews with all the major players: the musicians， the hit makers， the reporters， and the fans。 A complete piece of journalism that digs into all the whys and hows of the 90s and 00s music scene。Sellout is the story of 11 bands on the precipice of their indie career… Will they or won’t they “sellout？”I loved it。 If you ever entered the mosh pit， pumped your fist to “Am I just paranoid/ Or am I just stoned？，” or ran to Tower Records looking for the latest emo sound， Get this book！ 。。。more
Rachael Faith
，
As a product of the early 2000s New Jersey punk rock scene， this book was like candy to me。 Reading references to the Wayne Firehouse， TheNJScene， New Brunswick basement shows， and Vintage Vinyl （RIP） was like a trip back in time。 On the other hand， the format of the book focusing on a different band and pivotal album in each chapter allowed me to learn a lot more about parts of the scene I was less immersed in， and I completely enjoyed every little tidbit。 Even though parts of this book feel to As a product of the early 2000s New Jersey punk rock scene， this book was like candy to me。 Reading references to the Wayne Firehouse， TheNJScene， New Brunswick basement shows， and Vintage Vinyl （RIP） was like a trip back in time。 On the other hand， the format of the book focusing on a different band and pivotal album in each chapter allowed me to learn a lot more about parts of the scene I was less immersed in， and I completely enjoyed every little tidbit。 Even though parts of this book feel totally tailored to me （even though I don't know him， I'm utterly convinced Dan and I have been at some of the same shows）， I'm confident that any music enthusiast could find something to love here。 A great read。 。。。more
kyle
，
This book is so fucking good。
Jennifer
，
Band said they are not going to sign to a major label， band signs to major label， band fails to crossover to prolonged mainstream success- with the exception of Green Day。Also a lot of discussion of 'what' and 'who' was punk rock and how much。 Band said they are not going to sign to a major label， band signs to major label， band fails to crossover to prolonged mainstream success- with the exception of Green Day。Also a lot of discussion of 'what' and 'who' was punk rock and how much。 。。。more
Eric
，
I'm very biased， as my first book is cited in this book's bibliography， but Sellout is a worthwhile and enjoyable read。 If you enjoyed my book Post， Michael Azerrad's Our Band Could Be Your Life， and others like it， this is right up your alley。 Dan dissects the hows and whys of signing to a major label was seen as a controversial matter。 Whether it's told from the perspective of Green Day， Rise Against， Jawbreaker， or My Chemical Romance， there is a through-line in the entire book。 Definitely ch I'm very biased， as my first book is cited in this book's bibliography， but Sellout is a worthwhile and enjoyable read。 If you enjoyed my book Post， Michael Azerrad's Our Band Could Be Your Life， and others like it， this is right up your alley。 Dan dissects the hows and whys of signing to a major label was seen as a controversial matter。 Whether it's told from the perspective of Green Day， Rise Against， Jawbreaker， or My Chemical Romance， there is a through-line in the entire book。 Definitely check this one out if you like the stories behind the tunes and reasons why bands signed with majors。 。。。more
Chad Guarino
，
Dan Ozzi pens passionate stories of the bands spawned from the post-grunge punk/emo explosion and the major label feeding frenzy surrounding them。 At turns success story and cautionary tale， Ozzi chronicles well known luminaries such as Green Day， Jimmy Eat World， and Thursday as they “sell out” to a major label and the ramifications of that decision， as we see them either succeed or implode。Ozzi is clearly very enamored by his subject matter and it makes for an easygoing and sociable read， whet Dan Ozzi pens passionate stories of the bands spawned from the post-grunge punk/emo explosion and the major label feeding frenzy surrounding them。 At turns success story and cautionary tale， Ozzi chronicles well known luminaries such as Green Day， Jimmy Eat World， and Thursday as they “sell out” to a major label and the ramifications of that decision， as we see them either succeed or implode。Ozzi is clearly very enamored by his subject matter and it makes for an easygoing and sociable read， whether he’s talking about blink-182’s scatological humor or At the Drive-in’s use of increasing quantities of recreational drugs to alleviate the pressure of fame。 High school me would undoubtedly have loved this book a ton more but it was still an enjoyable history lesson from a chaotic time in music history。**I was given a copy of this book by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review。 My thanks to Netgalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt** 。。。more
R。L。 Bailey
，
This was a fascinating read。 Covering bands coming up from the punk scene to the majors， from Green Day to Against Me。 The stories contained within are great and read like mini-biographies。 I doubt a band like Jimmy Eat World ever gets a tell-all; so if you're a fan of them this is as close as it will get。 The best parts of these stories are the will they or won't they make it。 Sometimes the bands you consider successful really aren't。 Even the bands I wasn't a fan of had interesting stories her This was a fascinating read。 Covering bands coming up from the punk scene to the majors， from Green Day to Against Me。 The stories contained within are great and read like mini-biographies。 I doubt a band like Jimmy Eat World ever gets a tell-all; so if you're a fan of them this is as close as it will get。 The best parts of these stories are the will they or won't they make it。 Sometimes the bands you consider successful really aren't。 Even the bands I wasn't a fan of had interesting stories here。 Perfect for fans of rock music or the music industry in general。 。。。more
J Earl
，
Sellout by Dan Ozzi is one of the most enjoyable reads I have had in quite some time （within what I think of as "entertainment" reads， ones both about and for my entertainment） while also bringing to light the many conflicting aspects of the overused idea of selling out。As a concept， selling out has a long history。 Within music it easily predates punk and within other forms of entertainment， such as sports and writing， it goes back even further。 And it is always a questionable idea when applied Sellout by Dan Ozzi is one of the most enjoyable reads I have had in quite some time （within what I think of as "entertainment" reads， ones both about and for my entertainment） while also bringing to light the many conflicting aspects of the overused idea of selling out。As a concept， selling out has a long history。 Within music it easily predates punk and within other forms of entertainment， such as sports and writing， it goes back even further。 And it is always a questionable idea when applied from the outside， in other words， by fans or journalists catering to those fans。 Yet the vast majority of us have used it to discount what some celebrity， individual or collective like a team， has done that we felt went against what we expected。 And， as some of the stories in this book show， those artists use the concept to pose as some kind of special entity for their fans， right up until they don't。The thing that makes this book so much fun is that each example is interesting and will take many readers back to that time。 So there is that nostalgia fun。 There is also the fun that comes from being given the opportunity to think more deeply about an area we often only pretend to give serious thought to， art forms that serve to entertain。 Will a reader come away with a more sympathetic and understanding position about their old favorite band that "sold out？" Will the reader think just a bit longer about throwing this particular label on future celebrities that make a move or change that could be interpreted as selling out？ Hard to say， the accusation alone offers a form of consolation when we feel left behind by our favorites， so we may well still hurl it。 Maybe we will also know in our hearts that things are never quite that simple and clear cut。Reviewed from a copy made available by the publisher via NetGalley。 。。。more
Nick Spacek
，