ANTiSEEN: Destructo Maximus
Steel Cage 2003
When a band has been around for 20 years, they've built an awful lot of historical ground for folks to cover. Most books on bands give you the feeling they've only scratched the surface of the story. Not so, with Destructo Maximus. Over the course of its close to 270 pages, this book gives you the sense that ANTiSEEN's story, to date, couldn't be laid out for you any more perfectly.
While the foreward states Destructo Maximus isn't an entirely comprehensive look at ANTiSEEN's history, it does come extremely close. This book is exhaustive in offering interviews, reviews, tour diaries, pictures, and virtually everything else you'd want in order to learn about every period of the band's existence. Considering the band's disdain for "scene," some of the press clippings are hilariously ridiculous--especially one particular newspaper clipping outlining what kind of outfit a person should wear to an ANTiSEEN show. The inclusion of even the littlest clips, such as this one, does make Destructo Maximus feel painstakingly complete. Rounding off the book with lyrics to every ANTiSEEN song, as well as a full discography, furthers this cause even more.
In terms of form, one of the things that makes Destructo Maximus so appealing is its high school yearbook from hell quality. Instead of retyping out every little blurb in an orderly fashion, the editors create a readable collage from the originally published documents, on each page. This also adds to the time capsule feel of the whole. Throw in a mock leather cover to house it all and Destructo Maximus becomes a must-own based on the superb layout and packaging alone.
In true ANTiSEEN form, Destructo Maximus doesn't just contain the band's positive press, but the negative, as well. It's in consuming all the barbs and backhanded compliments that you're able to see why this band has sustained for so many years--even when people have tried to put ANTiSEEN down, no one has ever been able to do it without also making the band sound like the most exciting show on earth. People have had 20 years to try and discredit ANTiSEEN into oblivion and failed. You get the feeling these guys will still be grinding it out 20 more years from now, continuing to turn the tables on those same people. Make no mistake, there are many more chapters of the ANTiSEEN story yet to be made and written about. Until they are, Destructo Maximus will catch you up to speed. An informative, interesting, entertaining, and essential document for every level of this band's fandom.
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