No Wave: Post-Punk. Underground. New York 1976-1980.

No Wave is a new photo and oral history book documenting the highly-influential art-punk scene in New York City from 1976-1980. The book was put together by Sonic Youth guitarist Thurston Moore and indie rock journalist Byron Coley. NYC's KS Art gallery is holding an exhibition tied to the show of photos, paintings, sculptures, and ephemera from that seminal scene. The three photos above are by Laura Levine who kindly sent them to me as a sneak preview. Top right, DNA (1981); bottom left, Alan Vega (1983); bottom right, Glenn Branca (1981). Click for bigger images. The opening party is tomorrow, Friday, June 13, from 6 to 8pm. Teenage Jesus and the Jerks and Information will perform at the Knitting Factory across the street. The gallery show runs until July 10. From the book description:

This is the first book to visually chronicle the collision of art and punk in the New York underground of 1976 to 1980. This in-depth look at punk rock, new wave, experimental music, and the avant-garde art movement of the 70s and 80s focuses on the true architects No Wave from James Chance to Lydia Lunch to Glenn Branca, as well as the luminaries that intersected the scene, such as David Byrne, Debbie Harry, Brian Eno, Iggy Pop, and Richard Hell. This rarely documented scene was the creative stomping ground of young artists and filmmakers from Jean-Michel Basquiat to Jim Jarmusch, as well as the musical genesis for the post-punk explosions of Sonic Youth. Thurston Moore and Byron Coley have selected 150 unforgettable images, most of which have never been published previously, and compiled hundreds of hours of personal interviews to create an oral history of the movement, providing a never-before-seen exploration and celebration of No Wave.

Link to buy No Wave: Post-Punk. Underground. New York 1976-1980., Link to invite at KS Art