The Vinyl Underground, Volume 1: Watching the Detectives

The Vinyl Underground #1

by Si Spencer (Writer), Simon Gane (Illustrator), Cameron Stewart (Illustrator)

A fast-paced, ultra-cool ongoing crime-noir series, The Vinyl Underground is led by Morrison Shepherd, a D-list celebrity darling, soul DJ, and son of an ex-footballer. Fresh out of prison and off a nasty coke habit, Morrison is joined by a fellow ex-con named Perv, whose seizures give him clues to crimes long before the cops, and Leah, a gorgeous morgue assistant who leads a double life online and represents the brawn of the team.

Morrison's ex-flame Abi is reluctantly forced to join the team when her father is implicated for murder. A young boy's head (with diamonds in the eye sockets) washes up on the edge of the Thames and seems to be connected to a series of ritual killings, a drug called Khat, and Muti magic. Can they get to the bottom of it?

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Fantasy, Mystery, Crime, Graphic Novels Comics, Fiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published June 24, 2008

About the author

British Writer and editor for both comics and television. Best known in the US for his work at DC/Vertigo.

Reviews

[Denise · Rating 2 out of 5]

The premise was more interesting then the actual read. Seemed like the writers really didn't know where they wanted this story to go.

[Brendan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting premise that isn’t quite as fleshed out in the character development department as I’d like it to be. Perhaps the second volume improves upon this.

[Jonathan Briggs · Rating 1 out of 5]

Fresh off ruining the Timothy Hunter books (and if you can't write a decent comic while Neil Gaiman's holding yer hand, you're working with a serious talent deficit), Si Spencer launches the latest failure under DC's Vertigo imprint. I started hating this series on Page 3 where Spencer describes his hero, Morrison Shepherd, thus: "Serial shagger of Page Three Girls. Cocaine addict and pretty boy ex-con. ... All Stax-style and Motown mojo." Plus, people call him Mozz. Asshole. But no, actually I started hating this series while reading the drooly introduction by David Lapham, who writes the outrageously overrated "Stray Bullets" and another crappy Vertigo series (assuming it hasn't been canceled already. Whup, just wiki'd. It has.) When super-hip DJ Mozz isn't raiding Nick Hornby's record collection to bring classic soul to ignorant white kids, he heads a team of occult detectives: Perv, an autistic psychic, and Juicy Lou, a mortuary attendant and virgin porn star who does "everything but ..." Along with Mozz's ex-girlfriend, they investigate a child's beheading, which may have ties to African ritual magic. It's all terribly "ultra-cool" (Vertigo's words) and edgy. Well, except that it's not. It's just another in a string of DC "adult" comix I've read recently that are aimed directly at horny eighth-graders. It'd be nice if Vertigo took a shot at stimulating the mind as well.

[Shelley Anderson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I liked the premise and the art work is good, but too violent (and sexist) for me.

[Paul · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like The Invisibles, then The Vinyl Underground can whet your Hipster Brittanic Magick Fixation.

[Ian Carpenter · Rating 3 out of 5]

Liked this much more than Vol 2, which I read first. This felt much more assured and relaxed about it's edginess (maybe because it didn't go nearly as far). A less complicated story but a good and fun one.

[Tony · Rating 4 out of 5]

I like the crime genre, and I like graphic storytelling, so this series about a unlikely trio of amateur detectives working out of a closed Tube station in central London seemed right up my alley. Their leader is "Moz", a sharp-dressing D-list celebrity whose claim to fame is being the son of a beloved footballer and then having his wild sex and drugs antics fully documented in the tabloids (although he prefers rare Northern Soul to rock and roll). Supporting him are Callum, a semi-autistic bloke who's also a psychic, and a dishy sexpot who splits her time between being a morgue attendant and an online porn star.

I didn't realize that they specialized in occult crimes, but whatever, crime is still crime, right? Here, the story involves the apparent ritual killing of an African immigrant child, for which a respected elder in the African immigrant community is arrested. In an example of relying on really bad coincidences, it just so happens that the elder's daughter is an ex-girlfriend of Moz, compelling him to look into the matter. As he trades jibes with the police detective assigned to the case, the team goes undercover to try and suss out what really happened. Unfortunately, it turns out that the plot ties into Moz's personal life in other ways as well. That's really the main weakness in the book -- too many connections to Moz's life and too many coincidences.

Otherwise, there's plenty of flash to enjoy -- from club scenes to alleyway fights with neo-Nazis to backroom poker with London gangsters to supernatural spirits, with plenty of insider music and comics winks for them that care to look for them. (For example, in one scene, a girl sitting in a pub has a shopping bag sitting by her side with the name "Blake & Mortimer" on it, referencing the classic long-running Belgian spy comics series). The artwork and coloring is realistic and vivid, never straying into cartoonishness. If you're a fan of crime comics and don't mind the supernatural element, this is probably worth checking out, especially if you are interested in the London style of it all (which, as others have pointed out, has antecedents in series like Phonogram, The Originals, etc.)

Note: This is definitely not for little kids (under 12 or so), there are naked ladies, plenty of references to sex acts, drugs, etc.

[Matti Karjalainen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Si Spencerin käsikirjoittaman "The Vinyl Undergroundin" (Vertigo, 2008) suurimmat ansiot lienevät siinä, että se on tiettävästi ensimmäinen sarjakuva, jossa puhutaan "facebookkaamisesta".

Sarjakuvassa on potentiaalia, mutta äärimmäisen kiinnostavista aineksista (afrikkalainen voodoo, uusnatsismi, Thamesista löytyvä pää, sex & drugs & northern soul) ei saada koottua mitään sen ihmeellisempää kuin melko mitäänsanomaton mukaelma Hellblazerista. Lisäksi okkultistisia rikoksia ratkovissa päähenkilöissä ei ole kovasta yrityksestä huolimatta sitä kaivattua särmää, jota esimerkiksi John Constantinesta tai Garth Ennisin "Preacherin" nyrjähtäneessä henkilögalleriasta löytyy.

[Josh · Rating 3 out of 5]

pretty accurately described on the cover as "mod hellblazer" or something like that. This a series about a B-list UK celeb/mod DJ who privately starts an occult detective agency. he leaves Otis Redding 45's at every crime scene he solves. I have a problem with this.

Overly overt pop culture references are a bad thing. But the writing's not bad, and the art is appropriately not-ultra-modern. It looks like some late-80's stuff, and it suits the book well. 3 stars. review stop!

[Rachael Kauffung · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Sex drugs music magic and murder" with a tagline like that, how could I not buy it? And that was definitely no exaggeration. The comic was all that, and more. It takes those seedy elements and paints a picture of the human experience, even if it is on a completely unbelievable London backdrop. Perhaps its the unbelievable story line that reveals the humanness of the characters so well.

Suffice it to say I will definitely be buying more of these.

[Victor Drax · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es bueno, aunque un poco disperso. Tiene como que la necesidad de ser extravagante por el hecho de serlo; un héroe ex-cocainómano, una heroína que también es modelo porno, un experto en informática con un pasado de agresor sexual... son elementos que no terminan de encajar bien entre sí.

Dicho eso, es entretenido, lo suficiente como para seguir leyendo en el misterio de quién mató al pequeño imigrante y sustituyó sus ojos por diamantes.

[Todd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Meh. Not anything amazing but worth picking up for a casual read if you can borrow it from a library or friend. Si is so obsessed with style over substance that he misses plenty of opportunities to write something with actual weight. Perv is introduced as autistic but nothing about his manner ever seems actually autistic. Juicy Lou seems like an interesting character who should be in another book.

The art is solid.

[Sophie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Eh. That one didn't grab me at all. The characters all felt like the writer was trying too hard to be - funny, edgy? I don't know, I didn't connect to them at all (and even though this is the first issue, there should be some level of connection? I don't know). So I don't think I'll be reading more of that.

[eHawk · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very much in the line of other fun Vertigo titles, though I find magic and crime fighting pretty interesting. I like the backstory built into this, and that the thug in the group is not who you expect. It's a nice twist. This isn't the most earth shattering comic I've ever read, but it's highly enjoyable and sexy, which is something I can definitely look forward to.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyed this and plan on getting the next one. Picked it up on a whim at the comic shop and like the mix of characters and what was happening. This ended on a bit of a cliffhanger, setting it up for the next one whilst also completing the case which was the basis of this book.

[William Thomas · Rating 2 out of 5]

I wanted so much more from this book. Remedial art I can look past if the writing is strong. However the writing was bare and sparse when it should have been as dense and tight as a Vachss novel. Disappointing.

[Gregory Gay · Rating 3 out of 5]

Somewhat interesting mix of music, magic, and crime in modern London. Definitely not a bad book, but it isn't overwhelmingly great either. Art is also a mixed bag.

Didn't hate it, but I don't know if I feel any particular reason to go on to volume 2.

[Bill Hsu · Rating 3 out of 5]

Re-read. Highly enjoyable, with its ragtag post-millenial London cast, hairpin turns, and overlay of London arcana. Of course it's not Neil Gaiman or Hellblazer (though Si Spencer had his own Hellblazer run). But Gang of Four wasn't the Rolling Stones either.

[Lucy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I picked this up by accident and wasn't expecting a comic - but i thought i would give it a go.

It was like reading a gangster film and didn' take to long to get through

[Devin Bruce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Previously read January 28, 2009.

[Brian Stillman · Rating 3 out of 5]

TBTL.

[Frank Taranto · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun easy read with artwork that's easy on the eyes.
A group of out of the ordinary young people get involved with solving crimes with occult trappings.

[Marc · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listen to my review on V for Vertigo, Episode 105 at http://vforvertigo.blogspot.com or on iTunes.

[Anthony · Rating 3 out of 5]

Oh, Vertigo. You try so hard to be sexy, scary and counter-cultural. This was a fun read, but it's no Hellblazer.

[Damon · Rating 4 out of 5]

Detective

[El Neo · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a fun read. I thoroughly enjoyed it. I'll keep-up with upcoming volumes.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very cool Britannia.