Alarm 37: Rules Were Made to Be Broken, Featuring Converge, Vic Chesnutt, Tortoise, a Place to Bury Strangers [Paperback] Force, Chris and Ludwig, Jamie

ALARM is the proverbial moth to the flame—irresistibly and undeniably attracted to the provocative, the dangerous, the mind-blowing. The artists and musicians documented in the pages of ALARM 37 are such a fireball, fueled by an ever-growing need to explore and conquer new frontiers.

Beyond the medium for which they may best be known, they are filmmakers, animators, painters, writers, and illustrators; inventors, business owners, doctors, scientists, designers, and record producers. Creativity doesn’t stop with one discipline; it knows no bounds.

Rising and accomplished musicians learn from one another and touch upon new textures in unthinkable and exciting collaborations. A Brooklyn-bred son reinvents his father’s traditional Italian tunes in South Africa, while in San Francisco, California, a multi-linguistic songwriter blends seemingly dissimilar tongues into perfect harmony.

Let the dissenters and cynics say what they want; we know that the future shines bright for new music and art. A band upon its 20th anniversary delivers a defining record of its career, though with members barely in their 30s, it’s a sure bet that they’ve yet to reach their peak. At the same time, a host of fresh-faced new bands make stunning debuts and dream of touring in faraway lands.

Publisher, editor, and visual artist Chris Force began ALARM as a small, DIY publication in 1995. After studying Chinese ink painting and ceramics at the Massachusetts College of Art and Tsinghua University in Beijing, he attained an MFA at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and moved the publication to Illinois. Today, ALARM is a Chicago-based national music and art periodical with roots and heart in independent culture.