Book of Doom: Vinyl Underground #1

I tell you what – I didn’t know a blasted thing about Vinyl Underground when I picked it for this week’s Book of Doom. I like to try new things when I’m making my choice, and considering that the other two books with obvious jumping-on points were Metamorpho: Year One and Howard the Duck, Vinyl Underground kind of picked itself.

I think it’s the first Vertigo book we’ve had as our Book of Doom, and probably our first “mature” selection. Hopefully that pays off with lots of profanity and nudity. Reading the promotional material, though, actually makes it sound like it might accidentally be a good choice.

So as always, we encourage you to play along by picking up this book and joining us Saturday for our roundtable review.

Written by Si Spencer; Art by Simon Gane and Cameron Stewart; Cover by Sean Phillips

Noted British television writer Si Spencer (Eastenders, Torchwood, Bad Girls) presents a sharp, unforgettable cadence in THE VINYL UNDERGROUND, a 21st century cross between THE INVISIBLES and CSI that brings rich social and political context to the dark, glittering cesspool that is London. Spencer is joined by indie creator/penciller Simon Gane (Paris, Punk Strips) and Eisner-nominated artist Cameron Stewart (the Other Side, SeaGuy) with bold, captivating covers by by Sean Phillips (The Invisibles, Criminal).

In this fast-paced, ultra-cool ongoing crime-noir series, an unlikely quartet of occult detectives secretly solve crimes — from DJ crack bars in Camden to the elegant, high-society ballrooms that make up modern London. 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?