Suede were arguably the most important British band of the early 90s.
They laid the groundwork for the Britpop scene to which they nonetheless never really belonged, celebrating a distinctly English sensibility in contrast to the American rock ethic then prevailing.
Given their significance, combined with the amount of sex, drugs and paranoia behind the scenes, telling their story was always going to present something of a minefield. But it's one that David Barnett navigates marvellously.
Many authorised biographies buy their access with tact: not this one. The seaminess is rendered in detail which ranges from hilarious to chilling and, perhaps more impressive, the artistic mistakes of the band's later career are also admitted. The story of why their last two albums were such a mess, for instance, is far more interesting than either record.
Barnett writes compellingly of the early records' power - and convincingly about their impact on those who heard them and on the wider music scene.
Suede: Love & Poison - Authorised Biography by David Barnett. Published in hardback by Andre Deutsch. Price £17.99.
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