Waiting up all night for the inhumanely early, German morning cab, I finished reading the surprisingly mediocre Perfect From Now On: How Indie Rock Saved My Life by John Sellers. I really should've liked this book. I mean - I really wanted to like it going in. It's about bands I like for the most part, and even sports that sweet ass picture from The Monument Club of Bob Pollard rocking out. The reviews online and blurbs on the back of this edition made me actually kind of excited when I started, but quickly, sadly I figured out this wasn't at all "a good companion piece" for Our Band Could Be Your Life (a truly great indie rock book).
I was expecting a few things that would have helped me out a bit and if there - could've made me like this book more than I did. Maybe that's my fault but all signs pointed to Wonderful instead of just Alright.
Here's The Top 5 Reasons This Book Disappointed Me
- This book should've been more about Music. Less about Sellers fun facts, and more about music. Not pop culture. Not indie rock or "alternative" 90's culture. This book swerved too much, shuttling quickly through a lot of different stuff without really saying much about it - high school, child hood divorce, growing up in the Midwest, early MTV, some rock journalism, college, being kind of dorky, and not being good with girls. More music. Less blah blah. When this stuff goes off on mini tangents -- it's like Sex, Drugs and Cocoa Puffs-Lite and a lot less fun.
- This book should've had more time with or specifically about GBV. Will someone please write a great GBV book? In the words of Senator Clay Davis from The Wire: Shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit. For someone obsessed with the band, it took quite a while to get around to talking about them. Also, if you 're such a fanboy that you just gotta use your favorite obscure band's picture on your book cover - at least warn other fans that the book isn't really or nearly as much about them than you'd think. I could count on my hands how many times Tobin Sprout gets mentioned and to me -- he was that missing half of classic GBVs songwriting force that left GBV and made them less good over time. The Pollard picture use was nerd cock tease. Noone likes a cock tease.
- According to Webster's Dictionary... No book should ever, ever have this in it unless it's a class assignment for something you are a) disinterested in ad just going through the motions b) being cheeky or c) being paid by the word and are trying to pad your way to a free 6 pack.
- John Hodgman & Chuck Klosterman & Magnet & The New York Times Book Review - You lent praise and blurbs to the book . You said kind words. You pumped it up to seem a bit more than it really ended up being - to me at least. Some of you must be friends with Sellers, right? New York Time -- "Impressively Obsessive"? He merely likes things. Ive met waaaaaaaaay more obsessive vinyl hounds and music junkies in about every city that I've ever lived. If anything Sellers seems mired in the comfortable. An obsessive actively seeks out the new and the more. He writes about basically having cute or smart girls or people in his dorm hooking him up only. Not one net find mentioned? For a blogger? Doesn't seem that obsessive to me.
- Footnotes. I know that there is an admittance in the book that credits this device to The Mezzanine - which I liked much better in the Infinite Jest btw - but This book ain't that and the footnotes add to the identity complex that the overall book has in my opinion (see #1 and #2 above). I did however from time to time really like where the footnotes took the book at times but maybe it would've been fun to have a better narrative structure where those stories came up a bit more naturally. Using the footnotes certainly did make it easier to jump around in time and subject matter but also was like talking to this one girl I know who can't tell you one story without starting 6 other ones -- which reminds me.. did I ever tell you about... etc.
Things That I Really Liked About This Book
- The Lists. Mr. Sellers disses the rock lists and praises them at the same time and then actually delivers great lists in the very end of the book (however that Formula math bit still don't add up much to me). I don't think rock lists are trite or cliché anymore than ranting and raving about bands you like to anyone that will listen. If anything it makes the whole memoir make a bit more sense and gives some useful perspective on where the author is coming from overall.
- It had some GBV and when it did - it praised them in the right way while acknowledging respectively the group's foibles. It made me want to listen to tons of GBV and made me realize that my iPod didn't have nearly enough of them on it. Thanks. Want to hear some? <--- their official site has some MP3s posted gratis. Might I recommend the following for you if you're new to all of this GVB stuff.
- My Valuable Hunting Knife - Live from X-fest 9/14/99
- Echos Myron - Live from Solana Beach CA 11/13/99
- My Impression Now - Live Acoustic 1998
- Motor Away - Live in Australia 2000
- (I'll Name You) The Flames That Cries
- Sensational Gravity Boy - From the Suitcase Abridged LP
- June Salutes You - From the Official Ironmen Rally Song EP
- Wished I Was A Giant - From the Live in LA video
- Teenage FBI - Recorded Live in CBC Studios
- Draw(in)g To A (W)hole - From the Clean Tribute Album
- The apologies about not talking about Built to Spill except in passing and still using that awesome tune as the book's title... Also for mentioning the bands that should've been mentioned and weren't. Nice.
So if you like music books --- this one isn't really that bad -- it just the I was expecting it to be great instead of okay. You might like it more than I did, but then you'd be wrong or at least less than right. In any case, that's my impression now.
My Impression Now
You told me you'd give your soul to the crowd
You run to the edge of the warzone
You're finding out that it's way too late
To be happy around your friends
You changed your head
And made your bed
Through time, circumstances and medicines
You lied a lot
Created a plot
To escort you safely away
My impression now
My impression now
Stand on the edge of the ledge
Jump off cause nobody cares
You told me you found a way to escape
Through silence and not a suggestion
To apply it all to everyday life
But it can't find the connection
The magic lens
You contacted friends
Who just never seem to be with you
Flying up on a paper cup
They land to s-sailing away
My impression now
My impression now
Stand on the edge of the ledge
Jump off cause nobody cares
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