‘No Air Guitar Allowed’ book is ‘bullseye accurate’ portrayal of concertgoers
Reviewed by Alison Murphy
Steve Weinberger with Sarah Torribio/No Air Guitar Allowed
Looking for a serious, in-depth analysis of rock concerts and the people who often attend them? No Air Guitar Allowed isn’t what you’re looking for. Authors Steve Weinberger and Sarah Torribio aren’t pushing for a scholarly tome with million-dollar words and academic data. It’s better: No Air Guitar Allowed is a knee-slappingly hilarious and bullseye accurate portrait of the family as concertgoer. Having attended over 100 different shows myself, I can vouch for the authenticity of Weinberger and Torribio’s descriptions. In fact, I’d like to see a sequel with concert characters who became extinct once their particular trendy genre of choice faded out of existence.
No Air Guitar Allowed pretty much collects them all, brilliantly picking out – and then picking on – the various misfits, dirty old men, aging metalheads, etc., who you will encounter numerous times in your concertgoing experience. One of the funniest chapters is devoted to classic rock, as Weinberger and Torribio cleverly compare the replacing of lead singers in older bands to the sudden switch between actors on Bewitched. It’s that kind of stinging pop-culture commentary that makes No Air Guitar Allowed so essential.
