Marco Philopat - We Must Bleed: A Novel About Italian Punk 1977-1984' Book
Marco Philopat - We Must Bleed: A Novel About Italian Punk 1977-1984' Book
In stock
The first English-language edition of Marco Philopat's cult novel charting the evolution of Italian punk and hardcore!
Barely Human launches a DIY publishing imprint with the first English-language release of Marco Philopat's cult Italian punk novel, 'We Must Bleed' (Costretti a sanguinare, originally published in Italy by ShaKe Edizioni in 1997, with successive editions by Einaudi in 2006, and a revised version in 2017 through Agenzia X). Translated from the first edition by zine writer "Mucky" Papo (Pierpaolo Russo) in the early 2000s, a lost digital file delayed release of the translation until a visit by Barely Human to the offices of Philopat's Milan publishing house Agenzia X in mid-2026. On that trip, a paper copy was uncovered, painstakingly digitised and is now available in print!
In 'We Must Bleed', author Marco Philopat charts his personal history as one of Milan's first punks in a blistering, auto-fictive stream-of-consciousness. Set from 1977-1984, Philopat tells a story of youthful rebellion and political commitment, charting the evolution of Italy's relationship to punk: from a spectacular phenomenon stoked by the UK music industry, to the focal point of one of the most militant punk subcultures in the world. Featuring a unique style developed over his time as a zine writer (without pauses and with hyphens in place of standard punctuation), Philopat gives unique insight into the heartbeat of Milan's punk movement. Its members leaflet and storm gigs by The Clash, Bauhaus and Black Flag for their association with music promoters; lead hitchhiking excursions to London to meet the anarchopunk group Crass; join an occupation of the US military base in Comiso; and in a squatted warehouse on via Corregio, they open Virus: one of the most infamous punk squats in Europe, and home to hardcore bands like Wretched. As both historical document and propulsive narrative, Philopat's 'We Must Bleed' is not just an overlooked example of underground writing from 1990s Italy, but a must read for anyone with the most marginal of curiosities in punk as a form of music and subculture.
Written by Marco Philopat
Translated by "Mucky" Papo (Pierpaolo Russo)
Illustration by Prof. Bad Trip (Gianluca Lerici)
Design and Typesetting by Max Easton
