Hendrix is a God.
Just wanted to get that out of the way before I dive into this glorious book. I don't know a super ton about Hendrix's life so I can't exactly fact check how much of this is accurate vs storytelling. But it was spectacular. A walk through Jimi's life and tragic early death at the age of 27, 27! Imagine how much he could've done if he wasn't taken from the world so early. I love Jimi and this book is a beautiful look at his life and impact on the world.

First of all, the art is glorious. A very minimalistic, graphic, color-blocked style that really resonates with the story and ups the emotional impact of a truly emotional story. Which is a good thing because the story itself has a ton of holes that I'm pretty sure might leave someone that's not super familiar with Hendrix's life a bit confused. The time jumps are confusing and the most important events don't get any text to augment the images. Not always a bad thing because one of the most powerful moments of his life and the book does not need anything beyond the emotive images, but it would help fill out some of the blanks.
Overall, a good primer for someone interested in maybe starting to look into the legendary musician's life or for super fans that would like to include a gorgeously illustrated book with nothing but the most salient/basic details.

Very happy thanks to NetGalley and Ablaze for the gorgeous read!

HENDRIX: ELECTRIC REQUIEM by Mattia Colombara and Gianluca Maconi took me on a journey in this legendary guitarist’s mind and life. The illustrations are phenomenal, and the story is awesome. I learned a lot about this iconic guitarist. It gave a great overview of his early life and his relationship with his father, mother, and grandmother and how it impacted his mental health as an adult. I also learned how he was inspired to become an exceptional musician; and what he had to do to become a star. His candle burned out too early and it is sad that, like so many musicians in that era, drugs had to do with his death. This book is no doubt for an adult audience who loves music.

An attractive visual story that, forgive the pun, truly rocked. I enjoy when comics form is used to tell real-life/biographical stories in interesting ways, and this book accomplishes that.

This graphic novel takes you on a trip through infamous rock and roll legend Jimi Hendrix’s life from the beginning to the tragic end and even into the afterlife.

First of all, I’ve been a fan of Jimi Hendrix’s music for years and I was so excited to get to know more about his life. I feel like this graphic novel gave me that in a beautiful way. I loved the artwork and vibrant colors of the illustration! And although it’s stated at the end of the book that some of the scenes were fictional, I still learned new things about Jimi, from his upbringing to the problems between him and Little Richard.

However I did have a few problems. First, I got confused at times with who characters were. I think maybe I was just expected to know some of them as rock stars, but I didn’t and I think the book should’ve been a little more friendly to those that aren’t very familiar with some of the popular bands and managers of the time. But my big problem with this book was that some things made me, as a Black person, uncomfortable. There is a scene where Jimi is depicted as a monkey. After finishing the book, in the author’s notes, it said that scene was in reference to the movie 2001: A Space Odyssey. I’ve never seen the movie, so I don’t understand the context at all. But, non-Black authors and illustrators, understand that it is never okay to depict a Black person as a monkey. Also I felt the author tried to depict the Black people that were protesting after Martin Luther King Jr. died as unreasonable. And I didn’t appreciate that either.

It’s hard to rate this book because of those problems, but I do think it did its job of teaching me a little more about Jimi Hendrix’s life.

Thank you Diamond Book Distributers/Ablaze and NetGalley for this arc. All opinions are my own.

TW: nudity and drug use

even though I didn’t really know anything about Hendrix before reading this book, it was still an emotional and entertaining ride to me ! + I didn’t actually like the art style at the beginning but it grew on me :]
his story was so tragic - especially near his death when things started going south in his life - and the way he died was so unfortunate :( - i kinda feel this way about every artist who dies young, more so if their death was due to their addiction (and this is exactly why i mostly avoid books about real dead celebrities 😫😫😫😫 their stories are always too sad and stressful to me and i end up in a shitty mood after finishing them 😫😫😫😫)
the epilogue was nice though :] + i listened to some of his songs while reading and i liked them ;} !!

An illustrative fever dream examining the life of Jimi Hendrix. A story told in episodes from youth to beyond.

Thank you to Netgalley and the Publisher for giving me this eArc to review.

I will say, I do not know much about Jimi Hendrix so I cannot say if this is entirely true or if there has been liberties taken (other than the obvious). A warning for the fact that there are acts of racism within the book as it recounts parts of his life.

The art is absolutely wonderful in terms of the colours, they truly made the book super engaging. This was an interesting book filled with quite a lot of detail considering Jimi's short life and I found it a quick read. I would reccomend it to Jimi fans and at the back it shows a bibliography and then after that, there are a few notes on certain pages that show certain liberties being taken or further context which I found very helpful.

Thankyou to both NetGalley and the publishers Ablaze and Diamond Book Distributors for an advanced copy of this graphic novel biography on a musical and spiritual legend.

I'd 100% recommend this for fans of Jimi Hendrix or for music fans in general.
The art and story are very good detailed and really fit the whole Hendrix vibe. The life that they are covering is fascinating, as well as sad. I learnt so much about him and his music career, how not only was he fighting to be noticed on the music front but also the racism of his time.
Comic books and music biographies seem to go very well together and becoming very popular, as the create easy and informative reads about our favourite celebrities.

I am excited to see what these creators have planned next.

My thanks to both NetGalley and the publishers Ablaze and Diamond Book Distributors for an advanced copy of this graphic novel biography on a musical and spiritual legend.

Jimi Hendrix was only 27 years- old when he left this earth for a higher plain of existence almost 52 years ago. To have lived so short a life and yet to burn so bright, leaving both a legacy and a legend that will spoken of as long as humans make music is inspiring and beautiful to contemplate. Sadly a member of the 27 club, artists who never passed the age of 27, some with so much more left to give, others whose muses had seemed to have left them is, adds to his mystique. Hendrix changed the idea of what a musician could and should do, what an instrument offered and where it could go, and what music and sometimes just pure noise could do for the human soul. Hendrix: Electric Requiem by creators Mattia Colombara and Gianluca Maconi is an overview of a life, accomplishments, spirituality, and the demons that haunted this immensely talented, and yet doomed musician.

James Marshall Hendrix was born in Seattle Washington to a country at war, and at war with itself. An unhappy childhood along with his mother's early passing left Jimi with a roaming soul, always looking for a place to belong. The guitar became his refuge, and during his stint in the Army a way to meet people, though Army life was not for him. Following the military he wandered the south as part of the 'chitlin circuit' another name for the tours that black acts would take through the segregated south, where he found racism, and confusion over his playing. However Jimi was always practicing and always watching learning from everyone and increasing his skills and ability. Soon a manager who believed in him and a chance in England was offered, where he wowed the biggest acts over there, from Clapton to the Who and others, culminating in a show at the Monterey International Pop Festival that blew people away.

A very good look at a life that was complicated by numerous views, stories, family members and other legends that have been excepted as fact. Like Jimi's life it is amazing all that the creators could cover in such a small amount. The story is well told, with a little bit of spirituality and religion that doesn't take away from the main story about the man, but might seem a little odd to some. There are plenty of footnotes and a very complete bibliography for those who wish to learn more about the guitarist. The art work is really good. A mix of both psychedelic and realism, that ties in well with the words and story. I enjoyed the color alot also, there seemed to be a brightness in the pages where Jimi was playing that wasn't present during the story parts, something I thought that highlighted what Jimi found most important. Performing.

Easily recommended for fans of Jimi Hendrix or for music fans in general. The art and story are very good, and the life that they are covering is fascinating, and well sad. Comic books and music biographies seem to go very well together. I am excited to see what these creators have planned next.