Vampires from Outer Space

Kim Fowley is one of the living masters of that artform known as The Hustle. To some, the Hustle is a disco dance, but to those in the music industry it is a subtle formula of grooming an act, spreading the word throught adroit manipulation of the media and the egos of certain influential persons, and finally connecting with the one A&R man or company president with the right combination of interest, credulity and a surplus budget to make The Deal whereby the act is afforded that rare shot at the top. Some may consider it crass to reduce the exalted purity of artistic inspiration to such a sleazy formula, but to Kim Fowley, it's merely the reality that underlies every success story-at least in Hollywood. And crass or not, Fowley is enough of an expert that hundreds of artists each year seek him out, eager to sign long-term exclusive contracts on the chance that He can do The Hustle for them.