Since 1995, No Depression has been the ex-officio magazine of alternative country music, the slippery genre that began in the late 1960s and remains solidly outside the Nashville mainstream, fusing elements of traditional country music with modern influences, notably punk. No Depression's subtitle, "The Magazine of Alternative Country Music, Whatever That Is," calls attention to the fluidity of this genre. David Goodman's Modern Twang: An Alternative Country Music Guide and Directory not only brings some order to the creative chaos that is alt.country but also serves as a valuable guide for both the fan and the academic. It is a highly significant achievement in alt.country's evolution.
Goodman, a self-described "two-time loser (repeat offender) in graduate school," began working on Modern Twang in 1994, which quickly grew from a ragtag pile of 3x5 cards to a compendium of information on alt.country. His self-published first edition attracted the attention of Dowling, which published an expanded version and is encouraging Goodman to begin work on a third edition. He has described Modern Twang as a "work in progress"-and alt.country fans should be thankful.
There is much to praise in Modern Twang. It opens with an outstanding essay describing the history and tendencies of alt.country before moving on to definitions of terms--everything from "Alternative Country" to "Cowpunk," "Gothic Country" to "White Trash Parody." To my knowledge, no one has ever attempted such a comprehensive treatment of alt.country, and Goodman understands that artists' music resists strict categorization, hence his willingness to place artists in multiple categories. Goodman is also to be commended for including Gay Country, a subgenre of alt.country that seldom receives attention, even though it represents an important alt.country voice.
The bulk of Modern Twang is comprised of highly informative entries describing and analyzing individual artists. Entries begin by placing an artist in a category, giving relevant dates, and then describing the artist's career along with a brief analysis of relevant recordings before closing with a comprehensive discography. That in itself is helpful-and fairly standard in reference books--though Goodman has gone further by including addresses of record labels and artists (when available) as well as website (both official and unofficial) and mailing list information. This is a reference tool that passes as much information as possible along to readers, giving them access to the infrastructure of alt.country. (The inclusion of cyber-material is particularly apt considering the impact the internet has had on alt.country's evolution.)
Moreover, Goodman's text is readable, smart but never dull with enough humor to capture the creativity of alt.country. Take, for example, his description of Phil Alvin: "As for Phil, he finished his M.A. [in Mathematics], put out another recording in 1995 entitled Country Fair 2000, and then earned a PhD in set theory mathematics in 1996. Farther out than a Boolean equation, he can pontificate for hours on the furniture company record sales conspiracy, music touring 'quadrants' and many other interesting theories."
Goodman has also included a gold mine of information in the book's coda: lists of everything from record industry information, to print and on-line publications, to websites and other cyber-resources, to lists of clubs/venues, festivals, and radio and television resources, all organized by state and country.
The problems with Modern Twang are few and more the result of organizational problems. For example, a bibliography and list of further readings placed in the book's opening would work better in the back with other reference material, and Modern Twang would be more user-friendly with headings at the top of pages, much like those in reference books. And, of course, there are always arguments about who's included and who's not, and Goodman's criteria for an artist being considered "alt.country" is not as clearly defined as it could be. For example, I wondered why Willie Nelson had made the cut and Waylon Jennings hadn't, but those issues are always debated and, indeed, inherent to any genre. Plus, they're the reason for new editions. (In fact, Dowling is exploring the possibility of releasing a cd-rom version of the book. Such a format would allow for the inclusion of additional artists as well as graphics and, perhaps, music.)
Alt.country fans have an almost religious devotion to their music; with Modern Twang, David Goodman has written their Bible.