'HARDCORE & PUNK IN THE EIGHTIES' - This isn't merely a collection of articles, reviews and photographs from one of America's best-known hc fanzines. It's a chronicle of punk's evolution in the '80s. The story of 'xXx' picks up while the first wave of hc was in full swing. Major players including Minor Threat had already released landmark records and bands were loading up station wagons to play now infamous venues like The Channel, A7 or D.C. Space. While based in Boston, 'xXx's main writer and editor, Mike Gitter, not only concentrated on his own city's burgeoning scene, spearheaded by bands like SS Decontrol and D.Y.S., but looked to other states and countries for 'xXx's reportage. This 288-page book documents a time when hc and punk were not mutually exclusive and bands and cities had a chance to develop their own diverse and strident sounds.