Punk rock, reality TV and battles with addiction and hepatitis C virus (HCV) are the focus of a new tell-all autobiography by American rock band NOFX. The book, titled The Hepatitis Bathtub and Other Stories, was created with help from Jeff Aulis, a writer, filmmaker and former lead singer of Dead Kennedys. He tells a nearly 30-year oral history of punk music and one group’s will to overcome the struggles that come with a rock ’n’ roll lifestyle, the AV Club reports.

 

The collective memoir, published by Massachusetts-based Da Capo Press, features first-hand accounts from all four of NOFX’s members: vocalist/bassist “Fat Mike” Burkett, guitarist Eric Melvin, drummer Erik “Smelly” Sandin and Aaron “El Hefe” Abeyta. The Hepatitis Bathtub reads as a backstage conversation that covers the musicians’ history since the 1980s, from their early years of partying, world tours, heroin use and eventually sobering up and starting families.

 

Particularly interesting is the story arc of Sandin, who uses his sections of the book to detail his battle with heroin addiction, what got him through it and the experience of touring sober with a band that still loved to party. According to the book, Sandin was diagnosed with HCV in 1999 and is still living with the liver virus today.

 

The Hepatitis Bathtub, which includes swear words, an explicit cover and gross anecdotes throughout may not be for everyone, but it touches on the issues of addiction and hep C in a real-world, rock ’n’ roll kind of way.