A review by serenaac
Shapeshifter : The Demo Tapes -- Year 1 by Susan Helene Gottfried

4.0

Shapeshifter: The Demo Tapes, Year 1 will be unlike any other books on the market because it is a short volume of material from author Susan Helene Gottfried's blog.

These snippets and scenes take readers behind the scenes of a band in the beginning and on the road, providing 100 pages of sheer entertainment, laugh-out-loud moments, and pure joy. Whether readers are fans of 80s hair bands and heavy metal or not, the plight of these boys on the road will have them shaking their heads or laughing right out of their chairs.

In one section of the book, Gottfried uses vivid, snappy descriptions to bring Mitchell's green hair to life on the page after than band spends three days in Phoenix at the pool.

"'How'd you make it worse?'

Mitchell jerked up so fast, he cracked his head on the faucet. He let out a wordless yowl and jumped up and down, a hand clapped to the spot, until the first jolt of pain faded." (Page 80)


In a variety of demos, Trevor, Mitchell, Eric, and Daniel are introduced, complete with their outrageous behavior and the tensions often prevalent in a band of young men. Shapeshifter: The Demo Tapes, Year 1 will whet readers' appetites and have them salivating for more, like so many record companies waiting for the next biggest band.