Slice of life Comics/Manga about rock bands.

December 6, 2020 2:41 PM

Please recommend comics or manga to read about struggling musicians / bands.

Last summer I binge-read all of Mongolian Chop Squad / Beck. I loved it, especially the slow climb to stardom (not so much the gangster subplot which I felt was a bit besides the point). Want other things in the same general area. Looking for things to read, not watch.

posted by signal to Media & Arts (11 answers total)

Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
posted by sol at 3:01 PM on December 6, 2020 [1 favorite]

Nana
Detroit Metal City

Depending how you feel about BL manga, there's also Given, which features a band as it's getting started, with the members being a mix of high school, college, and graduate students.
posted by needled at 3:03 PM on December 6, 2020 [1 favorite]

Coco Moodysson's Never Goodnight is about 3 Swedish girls in the '80s who like punk and decide to form a band (even though only one can play an instrument). They don't really rise to fame (by any means) but it's a delight.

I'll second Nana because it's amazing, but there is certainly a lot of other drama that's unrelated to being in a band so it may not quite be for you.
posted by edencosmic at 4:01 PM on December 6, 2020

Disclaimer: I have seen part of the anime (Kaikan Phrase) that was based on this manga (Sensual Phrase), so that's how I know it exists and that it's about a band, but I have not actually read the manga itself. All I can tell you about it is that it's a Shojo manga, it's a bit explicit, and it has a heavy focus on the relationship between the lead singer and the girl who becomes the band's lyricist. (The anime is not explicit and is more band focused, as near as I can tell. I really liked the episodes I saw, for anyone who likes anime.)

Sensual Phrase - Wikipedia page
posted by rakaidan at 4:03 PM on December 6, 2020

Response by poster: These are all geat, thanks! I've already started reading Nana, and it's fun, but still haven't gotten to the rock part. Scott Pilgrim is right on, but I've already read it like 3 times :)
posted by signal at 4:14 PM on December 6, 2020

Tricked by Alex Robinson is a graphic novel about a ‘reclusive rock legend’ but may be up your alley.
posted by dianeF at 4:33 PM on December 6, 2020

Leslie Stein has been doing a serial on her Instagram about a touring rock band. She’s in a band herself and also has been in the NYC music scene as a performer and a fan, so a lot of it is very true to life.
posted by quince at 4:34 PM on December 6, 2020

"slice of life" + "band" has got to be K-ON!, although the anime is much better than the manga.

K-ON! Shuffle is a new title from the same mangaka, featuring different girls at a different school who get inspired to form a band after seeing HTT (the band from the original K-ON! series) perform.
posted by ralan at 7:37 PM on December 6, 2020

Solanin is the best one I've ever read. Complete in one volume and very realist in style - doesn't have those shonen/4-koma structural tropes. It's just a start-to-finish story of the friends and girlfriend of a struggling musician.
posted by Lorc at 1:36 AM on December 7, 2020

White Dopes on Punk is genius. Alternate-reality/true-story with art-school vibe.
posted by ovvl at 8:32 AM on December 7, 2020 [1 favorite]

The Chairs' Hiatus by Matthew Bogart. About the aftermath of being in a band.
posted by JonJacky at 9:25 AM on December 7, 2020