I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: MONSTER MAGNET-4 Way Diablo (2007).

My friend Matt and I saw Monster Magnet open for Aerosmith in Scranton, Pa many many moons ago. We had never heard of them, but were really impressed by their set. I especially enjoyed the song he introduced as “I Know Life’s a Bummer, Baby, But That’s Got Precious Little to Do with Me.” (Fact is, I was sold by the title alone). This song would of course be “Bummer” from the Powertrip album. That album became the soundtrack of our summer.

Evidently Dave Wyndorf, the singer, had a life threatening drug overdose not too long ago, and, much to my delight, came back from his experience pretty well unchanged, at least as far as his lyrics go. He’s still out in space, with a cock made of vinyl, amongst other fascinating details. Although perhaps the most fascinating thing for me was to find that he’s over 50 years old. Whoo hoo indeed!

This new album rocks just as hard, is just as trippy as the last few records (the first few ones were actually more trippy and less metal) and still really really catchy. There must be something in the water in beautiful Red Bank, NJ, because Wyndorf knows how to crank out a stellar album. It took me until 2008 to get this record, even though it’s a 2007 release, but I would say it was one of the best of 2007. Even the instrumental “Freeze and Pixillate” is fantastic. It comes near the end of the album and seems to revitalize it, as the three tracks that follow are some of the best on the disc.

So, really, how to describe the record? It’s a metal record for its bass heavy sensibilities, but it also grooves really well, and probably just falls into a heavy rock category more than metal. (And they cover a Rolling Stones song “2000 Light Years from Home,” so that shows you some of their influences, anyhow). They’re often referred to as stoner metal, and that’s probably got to do with the weird lyrics he writes: “Like a stone God, I drink from the moon.” Probably the real selling point of the band, though, is Wyndorf’s voice. He doesn’t scream, although he can from time to time, but he’s got a great mellow singing voice; even when the music is fast and furious, his voice remains calm and, okay, I admit, sorta stoned.

There’s really not a bad song on the record, and even though none could match the majesty of “Bummer” I’ve been listening to it over and over again.

[READ: January 10, 2008] Maynard and Jennica.

I saw an ad for this book in The Believer. This was the first time The Believer had accepted ads, and they promised the ads would be for books we would find interesting. At this point, the ads have been only for books, and I have in fact read several of them already. But at the time of the ad for Maynard and Jennica, I wasn’t sure what I thought about them doing ads. Well, I am now all for it. Maynard and Jennica was a great, great read.

After I read the first fifty or so pages, I put it down for a few days, and as I tried to recall the book, I realized that I didn’t know much of what was happening, but I really liked the style of the book. Now, having finished, the style is still fantastic, but the story is what kept me coming back, just racing to finish it.

I hate to use the word gimmick, because the way it is written is not gimmicky at all, it is just a technique; a technique that Joyce used in Ulysses (A book that is namechecked). The book is told from the point of view of various people in the story. Each time a person speaks, he or she is introduced by his or her name, the date of the speaking and a one-line synopsis of what the person will talk about in that paragraph or paragraphs. Most of the synopses are funny, things like Jennica continues to fail to explain what she was doing on an uptown No. 6 train and then Jennica’s point of view of what happened on the train, although not revealing why she was there.

In fact, here’s a couple of excerpts from the very beginning of the book. The books opens like this: “This comedy has five unequal parts, and what follows is THE FIRST PART. It is quite brief, and purely introductory.” Then, a character’s statement: “JOAN TATE, tipsy after another revelatory lunch with her son, illustrates her point (early August 2000).” It aims at, achieves, and mocks pretensions all at the same time. And I was hooked from the first page.

It sets the whole book up to be mirthful, which is great, as the events in the book are not always. Now, I knew nothing about this book at all, (except for the ad, and that I liked the cover). Turns out that the book is set both before and after the September 11, 2001 attacks on NYC. Typically I haven’t read too many books that have to do with it (although Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close was great), so I’m glad I didn’t know that. But what I liked about the treatment was that, although it obviously impacted everyone, lives but it didn’t affect any of the characters directly. It did not become the central event in the story, or their lives, it just had an impact on them (much like it did for many of us who didn’t know anyone directly involved).

Okay, but what is it about? Maynard Gogarty is a pretentious New York City artiste, a misanthrope who disdains popular culture and from the age of seven wanted to wear nothing but bowler hats and suits. On two occasions he runs into Jennica Green, once on the subway and once at the premiere of his film. Despite her California upbringing, and her pop culture life, she falls for Maynard’s mannerisms and erudite behaviors. And, once you get past the weird way he speaks and his outsider status in regard to pop culture, it’s easy to see that he’s a charming, well-mannered man.

The points of view of the book come from Maynard and his family (mom, dad and Gran Rose (as well as some dead grandfathers), from Jennica and her family (mom and dad speak together, and her younger brother, Gabriel), Jennica’s best friend (The wonderfully named Nadine Hanomoto), Maynard’s ex-wife (an arranged marriage) an MC who samples Maynard’s movie score, and some various and sundry folks around town. (Oh, and even flora and fauna).

The story follows a circuitous path through the different upbringings that Maynard (WASPy and wealthy New Yorkers) and Jennica (Jewish Californian) had. And, it provides extensive background that shows how their lives intersect. At heart, it is a fairly simple love story, but the style and quirkiness of it really provide a great narrative structure. I laughed more than once, and often out loud.

Some real highlights include the great Scrabble tournament as narrated by Gran Rose. Wonderfully astute comments from Jennica’s brother in Berkely, California, about Jennica and New York in general. Hilarious multi-person descriptions of what happened on the aforementioned uptown train. And, the disastrous person that is Maynard’s ex-wife.

Just recapping this book is making me smile. If you haven’t heard of the book, check it out, it’s definitely worth a read!