The Stranglers exploded onto the music scene in 1977 with their iconic debut album Rattus Norvegicus. Lazily classed as a punk band because of their notorious behaviour and outrageous lyrics, the truth was somewhat different. Many books have been written about the behaviour of the band but this book focuses in-depth on the music and lyrics of every song during the years of the original line-up and destroys the myth of mindless musical provocateurs to reveal their brilliance and dark beauty by shining a forensic light on these musical visionaries.
For fans of the band, whether musically experienced or not, it is a must-read. And for fans in general of rock music in the 70s and 80s, it will highlight what makes their music stand out as special and result in them dusting down their vinyl copies of the band's records to re-acquaint themselves with their music in a new light.