Inspired by the legendary works of Henry Miller, Jack Kerouac and Hunter S. Thompson, Detroit writer Ryan Bartek traveled the USA to create his own heavy metal / punk rock road saga of extreme journalism. 1 year, 35 States, 600+ hours on Greyhounds & 1000 cities later, "The Big Shiny Prison" was released - a unique travel book featuring hundreds of face-to-face interviews with legends in the metal/punk undergrounds, as well as other alternative & fringe cultures in America.
"FORTRESS EUROPE" (The Big Shiny Prison Vol. II)' chronicles Ryan Bartek traveling Europe and exploring its fringe and alternative culture. This genre-defying work features interviews with legends in extreme metal, punk rock, industrial, experimental, rock, electronic, and many other alternative cultures in Europe today.
Less a music book and more a tribute to the Beat Generation, "Fortress Europe" combines the classic autobiographical road novel with the current reality of European Counterculture. The result is an odyssey of monumental scope that has amassed a cult following since its release as a Free PDF in February 2012.
"Fortress Europe (The Big Shiny Prison Vol. II)" features appearances/interviews with members of Brutal Truth, Rotting Christ, LAIBACH, Wolfbrigade, Agathocles, Killing Joke, Master, Funeral Winds, NAHEMAH, Enochian Crescent, Moonsorrow, Defeated Sanity, First Blood, Hello Bastards, Abortion, Panthiest, Arkangel, HATE, Repulsione, Dehuman, General Surgery, Corpus Christii, Fides Inversa, Excavated, Primordial, Splitter, Pyramido, Black Breath, Ingurgitating Oblivion, El Schlong, Spacemen 3 & legendary Detroit writer Mr. John Sinclair + more.
Author Biography:
Ryan Bartek is a writer and musician from The United States. He is the author of three books: "The Big Shiny Prison (Volume One)," "Fortress Europe (The Big Shiny Prison Vol. II)" and "The Silent Burning." He is also the guitarist/vocalist of the Portland, Oregon extreme metal band Vulture Locust, classic heavy metal group SKULLMASTER and experimental punk act Lurking Strangers. Known for his journalism in the metal/punk undergrounds due to his books and prior work for mass-market magazines and webzines, Bartek is also a spoken word artist and performs acoustic under the alias "The REAL Man In Black." Bartek was born and raised in the Detroit suburb of Dearborn, Michigan on April 4th, 1981. From 2001-2005, Bartek wrote for a host of major publications including Metal Maniacs, PIT Magazine, AMP Magazine, Hails & Horns, and respected zines. On January 5th, 2005 his first book "The Silent Burning" was released by Elitist Publications. An anthology, the book fused a number of writing styles. Bartek remained on the road throughout 2007, turning his experiences into a metal/punk themed travel book entitled "The Big Shiny Prison (Volume One)," released as a Free PDF on November 15th, 2009. In the intervening years Bartek accomplished national tours as a spoken word artist, and continued to record music and produce a number of manuscripts and film screenplays. Summer 2011, Bartek set out to accomplish the second volume of "The Big Shiny Prison" in Europe. "Fortress Europe (BSP Vol. II)" was released on February 29th 2012, again as a Free PDFe. The release was followed by yet another European tour Summer 2012. Bartek again backpacked Europe in 2013 to gather material for a 4 part journalism mini-series "Return To Fortress Europe," featuring new tales of his travels. Vulture Locust released their debut album "Command Presence" on 3/3/2015. This 15 track magnum opus of savage, nasty deathgrind has since amassed solid reviews & press from around the globe. On April Fools 2015 Bartek released the 50 Page Preview of his upcoming book "Anticlimax Leviathan" which will see print May 2016. All albums & books have been released under Anomie INC / Anomie Press, Mr. Bartek's production company as FREE digital downloads.
