Distillation of Sound traces the beginnings of dub music in Jamaica and how the culture is distilled throughout the world. It focuses on the analysis of some of the most famous full-length albums of dub music and how the engineers, producers, and musicians created a new sound that changed the way that people heard music. 15 b/w illus.   In Conversation with Eric Abbey

Popularly known as Bollywood, Bombay cinema conjures up song, dance and starry-eyed romance. Where do those conventions come from? Many derive from the historical influence of Muslim cultures interacting with other traditions in the Indian subcontinent. Contributions by major scholars of South Asian cultural history and Indian Cinema 105 b&w illus.

The first comparative historical study of the six Disneyland theme parks around the world in five distinct cultures: the USA, Tokyo, Paris, Hong Kong and Shanghai. Sets the parks in the historic contexts at their opening, discusses cross- and trans-cultural understandings of the parks and the part that class plays.   A PDF version of this book is available for free in Open Access: A Cultural History of the Disneyland Theme Parks. It has been made available under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International Public License and is part of Knowledge Unlatched.   New Books Network (New Books in Critical Theory) interview with Sabrina Mittermeier   Book Launch

Programmatically outlines a paradigmatic shift towards an expanded fashion discourse at the intersection of doing and thinking. Designers, artists, curators and theorists investigate the multifaceted debates on the rise of practice-based research in fashion and thus make a significant step to advance fashion studies. 24 col and 34 b/w illus.

The name 'Disney' is synonymous with its expansive franchises, from princesses to theme parks. The power of the Disney brand is its role as a cultural influencer across multiple generations across the globe. This collection of essays takes a look at Disney beyond its behemoth corporate presence and into the threads of the Disney experience. 3 b/w illus.

The most complete study of women in French-language comics to date - and the first published in English. Taking a two-pronged approach of historical and case-study analysis, and with a chronological span of over a century, it is the fullest examination thus far of female depiction in Francophone sequential art. 16 plates, 7 col. 9 b/w.

Discusses meanings of shininess in art and in culture generally. Shininess is physically and metaphorically present in the construction of concepts such as utopia, the sublime, and camp; and the way its affects, rooted in excess produce irony, anxiety, pleasure and kitsch. A compelling subject that instantly attracts and fascinates. 54 b/w illus.

Discusses the use of music in a well-loved and culturally significant game – Ocarina of Time. Examining music in different contexts, it identifies music’s role and function within the game and in gameplay overall, and uses this to investigate wider issues in music and media studies and fan cultures. New in paperback. 119 b/w illus.

Insightful and provocative, and new in paperback. Examines the social, cultural, political and commercial implications of RuPaul’s Drag Race, from its groundbreaking, subversive entry into the reality television arena, to a now mainstream, increasingly non-LGBTQ+, audience reach and relationship with fans. International contributors. 40 b/w illus.   New Books Network (New Books in Popular Culture) interview with Cameron Crookston

Franck Boulègue's latest book about David Lynch and Mark Frost's famous television series focuses on the eighteen new episodes directed by Lynch for season 3, screened in 2017. Analyses the season with special importance given to readings from an intertextual, ontological and spiritual perspectives. Now in paperback and with 81 colour illus.

As never before, women are rightfully in positions of political power, and into the maelstrom of mass media challenges to their fashions and their right to govern. An examination of the fraught narratives surrounding the clothing of women in leadership in Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, the United States, Hong Kong, Taiwan, India and Indonesia. 7 b/w, 24 colour illus. 

This is the first book-length study of the music of Nobuo Uematsu, and focuses on his Final Fantasy soundtracks, exploring the dynamic relationship between the music and the stories behind the beloved video game series. Contributors are music and game scholars, based in the USA and UK. Foreword by William Gibbons. 95 b/w illus.

This collection of essays addresses the fascinating intersection between nostalgia and videogame music. From Nintendo to PlayStation, Zelda to Bioshock, and cult to classic games – this anthology takes readers on a musical journey into personal, historical and virtual pasts. 15 b/w illus.

Synthesizing detailed film criticism with thorough political and historical analysis, examines the Oliver Stone films JFK, Nixon and W. that transmute these presidencies into works of historical fiction. Wide-ranging, accessible and highly original, this book will fascinate everyone interested in the intersection of American politics and cinema.

An analysis of the hit television series Columbo specifically looking at the famous detective’s investigative method of rhetorical enquiry. Through a barrage of questions about tiny details and by feigning ignorance, Columbo employs Socratic method of questioning based on temperance and restraint to discover truths from guest star murderers.

Highly original and fascinating cultural and political history told through Belfast’s popular music scene in the 1960s in the context of Northern Ireland’s sociopolitical milieu. With particular emphasis on Van Morrison, Them, and Ottilie Patterson; also features the Peter Whitehead film of The Rolling Stones. 15 b/w illus.