Gunning for Hits #5: Music Thriller

Hammer of the Gods. The Dirt. Scar Tissue. Chronicles volume one. Some of the best music biographies ever written are the ones that don’t spare the reader any detail. Ensuring that every high and low is experienced as close to the action as possible.

Not only should a reader be exposed to the environment they’re being granted the most VIP of access to, but it needs to be completely immersed in the world around it.

In the case of Gunning for Hits that immersion is just about as complete as it gets. Mixing notorious stories of creative geniuses suffering for their art, A and R maneuvering, damaged relationships, wheeling and dealing, and stars and people with status doing everything they can to cling to the life they know. It all makes for an infatuating read.

Look past the fact that Moritats art isn’t detailed and is simpler and more cartoony than anything he’s previously done. Again, it’s his storytelling, his reactions, that carry forward the momentum of what is essentially suits and musicians talking.

It’s again the effort he puts into the figures performance that engages the reader to the words and makes it feel as this is a thrilling, action-packed jam. Think of the way Eduardo Risso made it seem as though something was happening in every panel of 100 bullets when Azzarello had page after page of conversations. Moritat achieves a similar thing here.

It’s comical were it needs to be and grave in other places. The cartoony style does nothing to lessen the impact of scenes that tackle abuse, both domestic and chemical kinds.

The authenticity is right out of a Rolling Stone feature article. It gets wise. It gets deep, and then somewhere near the end, things get dark.