RUDOLPHER: THE 2022 HOLIDAY CARD

The 2022 holiday card from Lou and Darla has been unveiled! Entitled Rudolpher it’s a mashup of the Revolver album cover from The Beatles and the Rankin/Bass classic Christmas specials. Card art was again done by the legendary Alan MacBain based on the original cover art by Klaus Voormann. Each card has been hand/paw/hoof signed by Lou, Santa, Darla, and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

There are a limited amount of cards available. To get one, you must give one! Send a card to Lou & Darla – PO Box 361 – Arnold MD 21012. You do NOT need to include self-addressed stamped envelope, just send a holiday card with your return address clearly visible.

UPDATE: There has been an overwhelming response to the card this year. The initial run of cards is now gone BUT there has been a second printing ordered. If you’ve sent a card already, we should have you covered. However, you may not see your return card until just before or just after Christmas itself.

@LOUBRUTUS ON TIKTOK

Wanna see some of the coolest and rarest music memorabilia in the history of Western Civilization? Check out @LouBrutus on TIKTOK! He’s primarily using his account to post pieces from his fabled collection of concert and music industry souvenirs. Hit the links to see a mask from Paul Gray of Slipknot, a guitar signed by all four original members of Motley Crue, an autographed makeup kit from Mudvayne, a hand-decorated tambourine from Stevie Nicks, an original 1976 “Destroyerposter autographed by all of KISS, a backstage sign from the Molson Polar Ice Beach Party tagged by both Metallica and Veruca Salt, as well as a Jim Root stage guitar from the first Slipknot tour that’s been signed by all nine members. There are tons of other vids and Lou is adding several new ones each week. Follow his account here.

Brutus will be taking time over the holiday season to further organize this collection of ticket stubs, backstage passes, laminates, set lists, posters, guitar picks, and the other music memorabilia. He estimates there are more than ten thousand individual pieces all told. The plan is to present a proposal in January 2023 to publishers for a coffee table book of the pieces entitled One Man – Three Thousand Concerts: The Greatest Collection of Rock N Roll Shit in History. Interested publishers can reach out directly to Lou’s agent in the literary world Bob Diforio of the D4EO Literary Agency here.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS 2021

Tis the season to unveil this year’s holiday card art from LB and Darla the Wonder Dog!

This Christmas the card was inspired by the Star Wars universe with Lou appearing as Han Solo and Darla as a Chewbacca the wookie, complete with a bandolier made of bones! As in previous years, the art for the card was done by Lou’s longtime partner in artistic crime Alan MacBain.

To get a card, you must send a card! The address is Lou & Darla – PO Box 361 – Arnold MD 21012. Cards are on a first come, first served basis while supplies last. Each card is hand-signed by Lou and Darla. We’ll also include Lou’s “Sonic Warrior” guitar pick, Darla’s Metallica-themed “Master of Puppies” guitar pick, and a metallic rainbow “Fear and Loathing at the North Pole” sticker.

UPDATE: The “Fear and Loathing at the North Pole” stickers are now gone! However, we’ll include another sticker in its place for the remaining cards.

UPDATE: We are sorry to say we are now out of this year’s Star Wars-themed cards BUT we will send a card from a previous year year in its place. All cards are signed by Lou and Darla. Plus, you’ll still get the guitar picks and a sticker, too!

Thank you and Happy Holidays, Merry Christmas, and Happy New Year!

CHEAP TRICK “IN ANOTHER WORLD”

Congratulations to Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductees Cheap Trick on the release their 20th studio album In Another World. It is the band’s first Number One album having topped the Billboard charts for Classic Rock Radio including Top Rock Albums and Independent Record Label Current Albums.

The record also includes photography by Lou Brutus with three live shots of the band from him on the jacket. For the fans who have asked, the gigs he shot these particular images at include Washington DC 2019, Silver Spring MD 2015, and Fairfax VA 2014.

Some of Lou’s other Cheap Trick photography is also showing up in other places. The band’s Rick Nielsen recently gave an interview to Illinois Entertainer magazine. A full band shot by LB is featured on the cover of the mag with another of his stage shots used in the article. You can read the (excellent) interview and see Lou’s pics here.

Many thanks to his old friends in the band with extra thanks for the liner note credit!

“SONIC WARRIOR” ON SALE NOW!!!

SONIC WARRIOR: My Life As A Rock and Roll Reprobate (Tales of Sex, Drugs and Vomiting at Inopportune Moments) is on sale now! Published by Rare Bird Lit of Los Angeles, it has already topped several of the new book charts at Amazon! The book is a collection of insane-but-true stories from his decades in the music biz. A full list of chapter titles is below. The Foreword was written by his friend Corey Taylor of Slipknot and Stone Sour. Plus, there’s an original illustration for each chapter by Lou’s longtime partner-in-artistic-crime Alan MacBain.

BUY: Order from Rare Bird Lit here. Order from Amazon here. Order from Barnes & Noble here. Order from BookShop.org hereOrder from IndieBound.org here. Get the Kindle edition here.

AUDIOBOOK: You can also hear SONIC WARRIOR as an audiobook! It clocks in at over seven-hours with LB as your humble narrator. Check out a sample here. Here’s another sample.  But it on Audible here. Buy via Google Play here. You can also buy it on iTunes.

PRESS ENQUIRIES: Members of the press interested in speaking with Lou about the book can reach out to Alexandra Watts of Rare Bird Lit here.

RIGHTS ENQUIRIES: If you are interested in speaking about film, television, or other rights clearances please contact Robert Diforio at D4EO Literary Agency here.

REVOLVER: To read an *insane* excerpt from the book, check out the article from Revolver Magazine here. However, if you’re easily offended, you might want to avoid! LOL. It involves Corey Taylor pulling the greatest opening band prank in history on Shadows Fall. NSFW!

VENTS MAGAZINE: Writer Ryan Vandergriff of Vents Magazine raves about the book here. He says it’s “Nothing less than a beautiful miracle of a rock love letter.” An interview with Lou follows here.

DIGITAL JOURNAL: Reviewer Markos Papadatos gives an “A” rating to the book here. He says, “Overall, Lou Brutus soars on his Sonic Warrior book, which is a breath of fresh air. It is the ideal book to read during this Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, in an effort to provide an escape from life’s daily stresses.”

BOOKTRIB: The lit magazine BookTrib has published an excerpt from the chapter “The Time Hunter S. Thompson Menaced Me with Depraved Violence and A Bottle of Chivas Regal” here. This piece is also published by the Chicago Tribune here. Update: This article has now been picked up nationally and has been appearing in newspapers around the country.

I’M MUSIC MAGAZINE: In this interview, Lou gets rather lengthy and philosophical with Don Manuszewski of I’m Music Magazine. Check it out here.

IN CONVERSATION: This is the an episode of the “In Conversation” podcast from Lou’s publisher Rare Bird Lit. It features J.J. Anselmi the author of Doomed to Fail: The Incredibly Loud History of Doom, Sludge, and Post-metal and I speaking for an hour about our respective books and music in general. A super-interesting talk here.

REVIEWS & INTERVIEWS: The Hype Magazine has named SONIC WARRIOR one of “15 Books Worth Adding to Your Early 2020 Reading List.” Library Journal calls Lou’s writing “wonderful” and recommends it hereJewish Journal includes LB on their “20 Books Worth Adding to Your ‘Early 2020’ Reading List.” Other early press mentions for the book include Inside Radio, GetRocked.net, RevenantMedia.com, and numerous blogs. Neal Middleton of Royal Bliss gushes about the book here. Andy Hall of Lazer 103 in Des Moines, Iowa has LB as guest here. Lou speaks with Chelsea of Metal Contraband here. Old friend Wes Styles has LB read a chapter from the book during an interview here. Elwood of Q-Rock 100.7 in Chicago has Lou do a chapter reading on-the-air here. The gang at V100 Topeka interview Lou here. The Afternoon Program on 102.9 The Hog in Milwaukee WI features LB here. Brutus speaks with Sparky from 104.1 The Blaze in Lincoln NB here. Check out the excellent reviews for the book on Goodreads here. Lou chats again with V100 in Topeka here. Check out an awesome interview with Giles Brown of Talk Radio Europe here. The Hard Times names SW to their list “20 Books About Music to Read Until We Can All Go to Shows Again” here. There is a lengthy interview with LB from Metal Insider here. Catch Lou on Happy Hour Live here. Check out a great conversation between Ned of Rock 108 in Iowa on Coffee & Quarantine here. In their review, Rock Titan TV raves, “Just when you think Lou couldn’t possibly have more eye popping experiences. You’d be wrong.” Read it here.

VIDEO: Check out Lou unboxing the first copies of the book as well as give you your initial look at the illustrations here. See LB and Darla the Wonder Dog signing copies here. Watch a reading by LB via Facebook Live on the first of Lou’s Virtual Book Tour stops here. Watch the second virtual tour stop here. There’s another book talk here. There’s a book read followed by a listener Q&A here. Lou walks you though who is in the book’s dedications and why here. LB thanks the team of people behind the book here. Watch as LB does a takeover of the hardDrive Radio Facebook page here. There’s another reading with audience Q&A here.

PODCASTS: Brutus has recently spoken at length about the book on a number of podcasts. Listen here for him on the Welcome to Cooperville podcast. Catch Lou guesting on The Rock Fest Podcast here. He also spoke to The Stylecast with Wes Styles here. LB joined Brando on Appetite for Distortion here. You can hear him speak about the KISS-related topics in the book with Three Sides of the Coin here. Nerdy music talk with The Revelator Show is here. And hear Lou on The Midwest Metal Show here. The Spirit of Radio Podcast features Lou here. LB guests on Honest Brutality here. Lou’s guest slot on Talk Toomey is here. His appearance on the WFOD show is here. The Night Nerd with LB as guest here. Watch Lou on an excellent Rock Titan TV broadcast here. There’s a guest spot on the You can hear Lou on Beyond the Playlist here. Check out LB with the folks from the Metal Injection Livecast here. Brutus takes over the 101.5 Bob Rocks page for a reading here. There’s a guest spot on Thunder Underground here. The Front Row Report presents LB here.

Here’s a complete list of the chapter titles.

“The Time I Attended My First Concert & Threw Up On Carlos Sanchez”
“The Time I Went to the Arctic and Got in A Mosh Pit with A Bunch of Kids in Polar Bear Fur While Metallica Sang About Sodomizing A Goat”
“The Time Snoop Dogg Got Me So High I Drooled in My Own Lap”
“The Time I Escaped the Wisconsin State Police and Their Fake Phallus Felony Enforcement”
“The Time Dr. Hunter S. Thompson Menaced Me with Depraved Violence and I Bottle of Chivas Regal”
“The Time Motley Crue’s Roadies Showed Me the Grossest Thing in the History of Western Civilization”
“The Time Keith Richards Drained the Life Energy Out of My Body Through the Palm of My Hand”
“The Time Our Tour Bus Ran Over A Guy on the NJ Turnpike”
“The Time Stevie Nicks Locked Herself in the Bathroom with My Girlfriend, Which Led Me to Fear I’d Get Whacked by the Mob”
“The Time Gene Simmons of KISS Proved to Be the Hottest Bowler in the Land”
“The Time Frank Zappa Made My Hawaiian Shirt Famous”
“The Time A Pair of Dave Matthews Band Tickets Helped Me to Learn Sensitive Military Information Inside the Situation Room of the White House”
“The Time I Was Peed On by A Famous Rock ‘N’ Roll Dog”
“The Time A Band of Musical Superheroes Dressed Me Up As A Lobster Then Beat Me Up in Front of A Thousand People”
“The Time Dave Grohl Proved Himself the Most Down-to-Earth Rock Star On the Planet”
“The Time I Learned the Horrible Truth About Heavy Metal Feet”
“The Time I Accidentally Became A Rock Star As Well As the Most Hated Man in the State of Michigan”
“The Time Robert Plant Charmed the Shit Out of My Date Because He’s A Rotten, Limey Bastard”
“The Time I Thought My Wife Was Gonna Kill Me Over A Five Finger Death Punch Ring”
“The Time I Was Backstage and It Was Exactly Like What People Think Backstage is Like but Usually Never Is”
“The Time I Rained Vomit Down Upon the Biggest Concert in History”