''Exotica: Fabricated Soundscapes in a Real World'' is a 1999 non-fiction book by David Toop. The work was first published on 15 June 1999 through Serpent's Tail and focuses on the musical genre exotica.

Synopsis

In the book Toop discusses the musical genre of exotica as well as the general listener reaction. He also discusses his personal history with music, as personal tragedies left him feeling that music was trivial in comparison to his own grief. Toop details several recordings and includes interviews with musicians such as

Burt Bacharach Burt Freeman Bacharach ( ; born May 12, 1928) is an American composer, songwriter, record producer and pianist who composed hundreds of pop songs from the late 1950s through the 1980s, many in collaboration with lyricist Hal David. A six-time Gra ...

, Bill Laswell, and the

Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. Boo-Yaa T.R.I.B.E. is an American hip hop band from Carson, California, consisting of the American Samoa Devoux brothers Paul (died 2020), Ted (died 2018), Donald, Roscoe, Danny (died 2022), David and Vincent. It is noted for its use of a live ...

Reception

Critical reception has been predominantly positive. ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' reviewed ''Exotica'' in 2002 and wrote that "The book is not always successful and sometimes close to incoherent, but it's a daring, unique effort." The ''

Chicago Reader The ''Chicago Reader'', or ''Reader'' (stylized as ЯEADER), is an American alternative weekly newspaper in Chicago, Illinois, noted for its literary style of journalism and coverage of the arts, particularly film and theater. It was founded by a ...

'' and ''

New Statesman The ''New Statesman'' is a British political and cultural magazine published in London. Founded as a weekly review of politics and literature on 12 April 1913, it was at first connected with Sidney and Beatrice Webb and other leading members ...

'' also reviewed the work, and the ''Chicago Reader'' commented that "''Exotica'' is less an extension of Toop's worldview than a reiteration of it" but that "Even repeating himself, Toop's a more interesting read than almost anyone else writing about music today."

References

1999 non-fiction books Music books Exotica Serpent's Tail books {{music-book-stub