Complete title: Disco Bloodbath: A Fabulous But True Tale of Murder in Clubland a.k.a. Party Monster
Read: 2013
The only murder story to ever tickle you.
Written by one of the party queens of the disco era, Disco Bloodbath is a memoir of celebutante James St. James which follows the murder of a drug dealer named Angel by his toppity-top-party-promoter and friend Michael Alig.
Honestly, what makes this book worth the read is the oddity and the surreal reality of disco heaven, a dying 80's subculture in the Big Apple during the 90's. "The party was over. The ride was through. It was the end of an era, MY era, and, damnit, that meant I was about to become 'dated.'"
As St. James would have said, it wasn't all "sequins and cocktails". The side stories of drugs, homosexuality and sex will keep you turning pages out of curiosity. The followers of the disco subcult tried to party forever even if it was already over. Partying, a theme in the light of happiness and all things wonderful and to smile about, becomes a paradoxical thing when the elements of drugs, homosexuality, sex and murder come in the picture.
There is nothing much so special about the murdering of a drug dealer, nor is it thrilling as a crime story, but the book's leading quality is its style. It's a true story that makes you ought of fiction because it is catty and funny. Whilst reading, one may forget that this story was true. With all of these stated, Disco Bloodbath is not a true crime story that you will take as Capote-eqsue, but a memoir written in the most creative way an author can do so. St. James, disco guru, loved to be quotable without losing context. If being cool and witty is the turf, this book has a lot of lines worth remembering. By the end you will remember this book as a moral story with a swaggering wordplay.
