Holiday phrases
Ξ December 11th, 2008 | → | ∇ Uncategorized |
Book Notes - Tim Molloy (”How to Break Bad News”)
In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that is in some way relevant to their recently published books.
Tim Molloy’s debut How to Break Bad News is a refreshingly madcap comic novel that’s not afraid to tackle bigger issues like the changing quality of news journalism.
In his own words, here is Tim Molloy’s Book Notes essay for his debut novel, How to Break Bad News:
How to Break Bad News is about a reporter whose activist girlfriend dumps him because he doesn’t seem to believe in anything. To prove his progressive credentials, he goes undercover at Gringo’s, a fast food Mexican restaurant where he hopes to expose labor violations. But like everyone who’s ever worked in a restaurant, he gets sucked into the telenovela unfolding between the employees. He soon comes to prefer the restaurant job to working in TV news.
The Jim Yoshii Pile-Up ? “Double Negative”
If the novel has a theme song, “Double Negative” is it. The singer’s scathing self-assessment is close to the one Scott would give himself: I keep forgetting why I’m here/It’s because I’m a petty guy who spends his time fabricating useless lies.
Public Enemy ? “Fight the Power”
To me, Bad News is about the phenomenon some people call white guilt. Scott knows his status as the white, male son of well-to-do Berkeley lawyers gives him a head start over 99 percent of the people in the world. But like most of us who realize our advantages are accidents of birth, he’s at a loss about what to do about it. Should he give up his advantages? Use his position to help others? Or just be happy and pretend the sentiments behind “Fight the Power” don’t exist?
Scott dodges the dilemma through a series of defiant-but-empty gestures that pose zero threat to the Power. These include demanding a hybrid rental car, trying to get Jamaican phone operators to unionize, and setting “Fight the Power” as his ring tone.
Lynyrd Skynyrd ? “Freebird”
Harper, whose dumping of Scott gets the story rolling, is just as well-off, but dedicates her life to helping others. Of course, she makes mistakes ? going undercover as a stripper is a misguided idea, as is a later decision to protest the sale of meat at immigrants’ rights rallies. But Harper does more good than harm, and her clear conscience spares her venting her rebellion through a ring tone.
“Freebird” is a sweeping, gorgeous, gloriously self-serving song about a guy who dumps his girl but makes it sound like he’s doing her a favor. Why did Beavis and Butthead single it out as the all-time worst song request? I guess because it makes its petty case with the majesty of opera. Building from sentimental organ, gentle guitar and sweet piano to the most bewailing riff ever recorded, it finally asks a question equally sentimental and cruel: If I leave here tomorrow/would you still remember me?
Dirty on Purpose ? “Audience in the Room”
Scott takes up with Keegan, his TV network handler, who drops bad habits as quickly as she picks them up. This song describes “a perfect day for a cigarette,” and for me it’s about addiction. (The band says it’s about playing onstage.) The song’s wide-open beat and My Bloody Valentine reverb are so smoky, romantic and lush that I couldn’t quit the song if it was proven to cause cancer.
A long aside: Bad News is published by Virgin Books. In a weird coincidence, “Audience in the Room” is in an ad for Virgin Mobile. Eric Steuer of the immensely awesome hip-hop group Meanest Man Contest is assembling a Bad News soundtrack coming out soon on
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