The Anarchist and the Devil Do Cabaret

When the internationally acclaimed rock'n'roll cabaret band Rhythm Activism toured in order to promote their newest CD, it was through a Europe in transition that they traveled -- a Europe marked by political and racial tension. Being equally at home in hard-core clubs, poetry festivals, soup kitchens, the netherworld of squats, or urine-drenched dives and youthfully, defiant haunts where cultural resistance rules, they drew immediate followers. The Anarchist and the Devil Do Cabaret is an amazing portrayal of that tour, told with a sense of humor, a down-to-earth perception, and in the tradition of Jack Kerouac's On the Road or Henry Rollins' Get in the Van.Inspired by encounters with Europe's new multi-racial underclass -- the working poor, street people, immigrants, refugees, marginalized youth, the aged -- this book is not merely an insider's look into the state of rock'n'roll; it is, as well, a commentary on the state of Europe in the late 20th century.In a wonderful reversal of tradition, every so often Nawrocki slips from his chronicles of life into short fiction pieces. These stories, real and exaggerated, are filled with a cast of friends, lovers, and fellow travelers -- panhandlers and anarchists, the unemployed and under-employed dreaming of better times, neo-Nazis and skinheads trapped in hateful lives, prostitutes risking everything, gypsy ghetto boys fighting racism, and even the sometimes riotous band members themselves.