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Every month, Cosmik Debris brings you a ton of CD and record reviews, but the writers manage to find a little time for other pursuits, like reading, going to movies and watching videos. That's where Everything Else In Review comes in. BOOK: VITTORIO THE VAMPIRE AUTHOR: Anne Rice PUBLISHER: Knopf ($19.95 - hardback) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Anne Rice's 21st book is about a vampire that -- get this -- doesn't "live" in New Orleans. Vittorio is a 15th century Italian lad living a life of privilege until vampires wipe out his entire family. His plans for revenge take a back seat when he falls in love with Ursula, a rather enchanting vampire who brings Vitorrio into the world of darkness. It plays like a love story, but as with most of Rice's characters, Vittorio spends the centuries struggling with inner conflicts. His love for Ursula is quite consuming, but he mourns the loss of that intoxicating spark of life he surrendered so many years before. The book is written with romanticism taking precedent over horror, even more so than in most of Rice's work, but the one problem is in the wording. The character Vittorio explains early on that words are his joy, that he loves to use them like paint on a canvas, and that he does. Some will find this appealing. Personally, I often found myself wishing dear Vitorrio would just get to the point. That aside, Vittorio The Vampire stirs plenty of images into your imagination and will make a pretty sweet read this Halloween. (C) 1999 - DJ Johnson BOOK: ELECTRO SHOCK - Groundbreakers Of Synth Music AUTHOR: Greg Rule PUBLISHER: Miller-Freeman ($17.95 - Large paperback) Reviewed by DJ Johnson "My idea of a drum is a button on a drum machine," says the Nine Inch Nail himself, Trent Rezner. "When someone hits a kick drum, it doesn't sound to me like what I think a kick drum is." Therein lies the problem, but it's music to the ears of millions of tech heads around the world, most of whom will get a lot of mileage out of Electro Shock - Groundbreakers Of Synth Music. The book is extremely well put together, featuring top notch, technically oriented interviews with artists like Erasure's Vince Clark, Madonna synth wizard William Orbit, Kraftwerk, The Aphex Twins, The Chemical Brothers, Depeche Mode and the aforementioned Rezner. Author Greg Rule, a mix-master and an associate editor at the highly respected Keyboard Magazine, asks the musicians all the right questions, getting them to reveal tricks, rate gear and expound on philosophy. Just as interesting are the product profiles of such items as keyboards and drum machines that separate interviews. For many of us there's nothing like two guitars, a bass and drums, but for those that find their groove in the sparking circuits of an Oberheim or a Moog, and especially those that want to make some of those sounds themselves, Electro Shock should be riveting stuff. (C) 1999 - DJ Johnson BOOK: MASTERS OF JAZZ GUITAR AUTHOR: Charles Alexander PUBLISHER: Miller-Freeman ($39.95 - Large hardback) Reviewed by DJ Johnson Jazz enthusiasts, the line forms here. This is easily the sweetest book to cross this desk in years. Masters Of Jazz Guitar is a collection of scholarly essays on players and styles, written by 16 jazz experts ranging from journalists to musicians. The writing is factual and romantic, informative and reverent, and never dull. Along with these wonderful essays there are hundreds of beautiful photographs, both black & white and color, with no leaning on the old, tired, seen-em-before pictures that accompany too many books on the subject. After absorbing essays on Django Rheinhardt, Charlie Christian, Wes Montgomery and others, we're treated to one of the most complete and interesting recommended listening lists I've ever encountered. There are literally hundreds of suggestions, with only a few that met with my raised eyebrow and many I'd never heard of but now intend to seek out. Masters Of Jazz Guitar, read sequentially, is a fine education on the development of the instrument and the people who gave it so many unique voices. The size, paper and photo quality, and overall classiness make it a perfect coffee table book for any fan of the instrument and genre. (C) 1999 - DJ Johnson