An exhaustive chronicle of the labels that drove independent music for 30 years, Richard King's prodigiously researched book includes everything one could wish to know about the mayhem, rebellion and anti-corporate idealism of indie culture. While there are colourful anecdotes about artists of variable talent – the Smiths, New Order, Sonic Youth, the Jazz Defektors – it's the eccentrics, misfits and sociopaths operating behind the scenes who take centre stage. The Rough Trade empire alone is revealed to be mind-bogglingly complex as King unpicks the strands of label, shop and distribution network and the schisms between its bosses. The result is one of the more reliable accounts of the era, if not always the most glitzy or thrilling. It certainly shatters the "us versus them" illusion of the indie scene as one big happy family, as grievances fester, drug-assisted mistakes pile up and disillusionment takes its toll. The spotlight falls on the unshakeable self-belief of Creation's Alan McGee, the musical discernment of 4AD's Ivo Watts-Russell, and the high-minded DIY ethics of Rough Trade's Geoff Travis. Both an inspiration and a cautionary tale.