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Rock Bottom
Once, the Blood Orphans had it a million-dollar recording contract from Warner Brothers, killer hooks, and cheekbones that could cut glass. Four pretty boys from Los Angeles, they were supposed to be the next big thing, future kings of rock and roll.
But something happened on the way to glory, and now, two years later, along with their coke-fueled, mohawked female manager, they have washed up in Amsterdam for the final show of their doomed and dismal European tour. The singer has become a born-again Buddhist who preaches from the stage, the bass player's raging eczema has turned his hands into a pulpy mess, the drummer is a sex-fiend tormented by the misdeeds of his porn-king father, and the guitar player -- the only talented one -- is thoroughly cowed by the constant abuse of his bandmates.
As they stumble through their final day together, the Blood Orphans find themselves on a comic tour of frustration, danger, excitement, and just possibly, redemption.
But something happened on the way to glory, and now, two years later, along with their coke-fueled, mohawked female manager, they have washed up in Amsterdam for the final show of their doomed and dismal European tour. The singer has become a born-again Buddhist who preaches from the stage, the bass player's raging eczema has turned his hands into a pulpy mess, the drummer is a sex-fiend tormented by the misdeeds of his porn-king father, and the guitar player -- the only talented one -- is thoroughly cowed by the constant abuse of his bandmates.
As they stumble through their final day together, the Blood Orphans find themselves on a comic tour of frustration, danger, excitement, and just possibly, redemption.
373 pages, Paperback
First published December 24, 2008
10 people are currently reading
94 people want to read
About the author
Michael Shilling
2 books20 followersMichael Shilling is the author of Rock Bottom, which Back Bay Books/Little, Brown and Company published in 2009. This summer, the book will be adapted as musical by the Landless Theater Company in Washington, DC. His short stories have appeared in The Sun, Fugue, and Other Voices. Back in Seattle after several wild years in the midwest, he teaches at Cornish College of the Arts, and is working on a novel that involves people running out of time while running after each other. He also plays the drums in a soul band.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 32 reviews
February 1, 2009
This book was an insult to men and women alike. The moral of the story being that the ritual, and sometimes criminal, abuse of young girls is just the process a young man may go through towards their personal enlightenment. And somehow these young women, even those somewhat in power (like the manager) know that this is their place and their calling.
I can't say enough how irresponsible, cliche and demoralizing, to both genders, this novel is. Bleck!
I can't say enough how irresponsible, cliche and demoralizing, to both genders, this novel is. Bleck!
January 19, 2009
A delicious, sad romp 'n retrospective; band members of the once-next-big-thing Blood Orphans are on their final tour, about to play their last show, each wondering what exactly went so very wrong. If there's any justice in this world, _Rock Bottom_ should be adapted into the next big thing on HBO, Entourage-style. Read an interview with the author on
Fiction Writers Review: http://fictionwritersreview.com/inter...
Fiction Writers Review: http://fictionwritersreview.com/inter...
February 11, 2009
entertaining, but I guess that I am becoming a prude in my old age...
January 28, 2009
In rock and roll mythology, there are two linked stories that seem to be told over and over again: Pride, and The Fall. We admire a band’s success, marvel at its excess — and then, like motorists passing a grisly accident, we rubberneck at its self-immolation. VH1’s Behind the Music series has made an industry out of telling and retelling this story — adding, for the sake of narrative, a Part Three (call it Aftermath, or Redemption) and bending over backwards to force every band into their up-down-up, N-shaped rubric. The effect, of course, is facile, the glossy television product of elided facts and carefully edited interview snippets.
Rock Bottom, Michael Shilling’s debut novel, bears a paradoxical relationship to this old rock and roll story. In recounting the very bad last day of the Blood Orphans — a very bad band that could, once upon a time, have been very good — Rock Bottom is at once a raucous celebration of rock mythos and magic and a searing portrayal of what it might actually be like to be caught at the center of a VH1-worthy storm. What makes this novel noteworthy is Shilling’s ability to reconcile these objectives. Rock Bottom embraces the myths of rock even as it explodes them.
This feat is the product of an apparently egoless author. Like a good impresario once the band has taken the stage, Shilling makes himself invisible: the narration of the novel is given entirely over to its central characters, the four band members and their female manager. Jumping, in successive chapters, from one troubled head to the next, Shilling writes in an extremely close third-person that occasionally verges on stream-of-consciousness. The effect is remarkable: constructed completely from the actions, memories, and language of the characters themselves (none of that intrusive Behind the Music narrational presence), a complete picture of the Blood Orphans’ dissolution emerges. The language may be salty, but one of the pleasures of this novel is the way in which it speaks through its characters. To deny them their F-bombs would be to deny them a certain degree of reality on the page. Shilling, to his credit, never flinches.
It would be unfair to call these characters “unlikeable” and leave it at that — more often than not, these characters don’t like themselves. Each is responsible, in his or her own way, for the failure of a band that began with such promise; the power of the novel lies in its relentless plot, which forces each bandmember and their manager to face that fact. Think of that line from Nixon: “Mistakes were made.” With the passive voice, he camouflages his culpability. Scene by scene, Shilling strips the camouflage of passive denial from his characters until at last they see themselves — and we, as readers, likewise see them — clearly.
Because of this, though it brims with brio and black comedy, Rock Bottom is also a novel haunted by the specter of what could have been; a keenly rendered awareness of loss inflects many of its best passages. (Consider the deeply tragicomic moment, early in the novel, when Bobby the bassist stumbles upon a Blood Orphans display in a record store.) The path these characters follow is mythic, but by their humanity — Shilling has imagined each so intricately, in all his or her particularities — they rejuvenate it. Shilling’s is an exciting new voice: few debut novels manage to feel so muscular, ballsy, and heartfelt.
At a key moment in the novel (I won’t reveal where, or in what context), a blue arc of electricity appears. Its purpose, I think, is to remind us: the Rock Gods are present here. Rock Bottom is a myth expertly repackaged. Through the humanity of its characters, it transcends its subject, finding art where VH1 finds only sensationalism. Rock Bottom takes an age-old rock and roll story and retells it in a funny, fresh, and surprisingly moving fashion.
Rock Bottom, Michael Shilling’s debut novel, bears a paradoxical relationship to this old rock and roll story. In recounting the very bad last day of the Blood Orphans — a very bad band that could, once upon a time, have been very good — Rock Bottom is at once a raucous celebration of rock mythos and magic and a searing portrayal of what it might actually be like to be caught at the center of a VH1-worthy storm. What makes this novel noteworthy is Shilling’s ability to reconcile these objectives. Rock Bottom embraces the myths of rock even as it explodes them.
This feat is the product of an apparently egoless author. Like a good impresario once the band has taken the stage, Shilling makes himself invisible: the narration of the novel is given entirely over to its central characters, the four band members and their female manager. Jumping, in successive chapters, from one troubled head to the next, Shilling writes in an extremely close third-person that occasionally verges on stream-of-consciousness. The effect is remarkable: constructed completely from the actions, memories, and language of the characters themselves (none of that intrusive Behind the Music narrational presence), a complete picture of the Blood Orphans’ dissolution emerges. The language may be salty, but one of the pleasures of this novel is the way in which it speaks through its characters. To deny them their F-bombs would be to deny them a certain degree of reality on the page. Shilling, to his credit, never flinches.
It would be unfair to call these characters “unlikeable” and leave it at that — more often than not, these characters don’t like themselves. Each is responsible, in his or her own way, for the failure of a band that began with such promise; the power of the novel lies in its relentless plot, which forces each bandmember and their manager to face that fact. Think of that line from Nixon: “Mistakes were made.” With the passive voice, he camouflages his culpability. Scene by scene, Shilling strips the camouflage of passive denial from his characters until at last they see themselves — and we, as readers, likewise see them — clearly.
Because of this, though it brims with brio and black comedy, Rock Bottom is also a novel haunted by the specter of what could have been; a keenly rendered awareness of loss inflects many of its best passages. (Consider the deeply tragicomic moment, early in the novel, when Bobby the bassist stumbles upon a Blood Orphans display in a record store.) The path these characters follow is mythic, but by their humanity — Shilling has imagined each so intricately, in all his or her particularities — they rejuvenate it. Shilling’s is an exciting new voice: few debut novels manage to feel so muscular, ballsy, and heartfelt.
At a key moment in the novel (I won’t reveal where, or in what context), a blue arc of electricity appears. Its purpose, I think, is to remind us: the Rock Gods are present here. Rock Bottom is a myth expertly repackaged. Through the humanity of its characters, it transcends its subject, finding art where VH1 finds only sensationalism. Rock Bottom takes an age-old rock and roll story and retells it in a funny, fresh, and surprisingly moving fashion.
March 8, 2009
Full disclosure: I almost stopped reading this book in the first chapter. See, the first few pages are narrated by the bassist (the one with eczema) and the first chapter is an obscenity-laden quest for him to find some relief from his itching hands. It's really gross, and I immediately disliked the guy. Luckily for me, the narrative shifts several times in this novel (all the guys in the band get a turn to tell their side of the story, as does Joey, the manager), so I didn't have to deal with him for very long.
The novel takes place over the course of a day in Amsterdam. It's Blood Orphans last show, although not all of them realize it yet. They've been dropped from their label, a major magazine has described them as racist, and they're basically seen as a joke. As each band member takes his turn as narrator, we learn how the band got to where it is today. We also see a lot of fighting (mostly with each other, although there is an assault on a local protester - but he really had it coming), a little romance (true love, for real) and, of course, sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll. It's an interesting story, and I really liked the way that Shilling shifted the narration. It made me - well, not sympathize, exactly, but definitely allowed me to understand and appreciate what the characters had gone through in the past and how that shaped their present actions. None of them are terribly likable, except for maybe Adam, the talented and beaten-down guitarist. He's the one I was really rooting for, but I ended the novel feeling more like Darlo (the sex-crazed drummer with Daddy issues) was the hero.
All in all, it's a pretty good book. By the time I got to the last 100 pages, I was reading into the wee hours of the night just to get finished. I've always been a little fascinated by the music industry, so this was a nice (fictional) peek into that world, and I enjoyed reading about the characters, even if I didn't like them much. Does that make sense? Either way, the characters make this book. Shilling did an excellent job of giving each an individual voice. They were five completely different personalities, and they all came alive for me while I was reading. I wouldn't recommend it for the faint of heart, but I think it's a great book.
The novel takes place over the course of a day in Amsterdam. It's Blood Orphans last show, although not all of them realize it yet. They've been dropped from their label, a major magazine has described them as racist, and they're basically seen as a joke. As each band member takes his turn as narrator, we learn how the band got to where it is today. We also see a lot of fighting (mostly with each other, although there is an assault on a local protester - but he really had it coming), a little romance (true love, for real) and, of course, sex, drugs, and rock-and-roll. It's an interesting story, and I really liked the way that Shilling shifted the narration. It made me - well, not sympathize, exactly, but definitely allowed me to understand and appreciate what the characters had gone through in the past and how that shaped their present actions. None of them are terribly likable, except for maybe Adam, the talented and beaten-down guitarist. He's the one I was really rooting for, but I ended the novel feeling more like Darlo (the sex-crazed drummer with Daddy issues) was the hero.
All in all, it's a pretty good book. By the time I got to the last 100 pages, I was reading into the wee hours of the night just to get finished. I've always been a little fascinated by the music industry, so this was a nice (fictional) peek into that world, and I enjoyed reading about the characters, even if I didn't like them much. Does that make sense? Either way, the characters make this book. Shilling did an excellent job of giving each an individual voice. They were five completely different personalities, and they all came alive for me while I was reading. I wouldn't recommend it for the faint of heart, but I think it's a great book.
February 6, 2009
There was a new rock band, Blood Orphans, in town and they that had it all. As time went by and they were touring everything started falling apart--a little at a time and a little more until they were just one big mess. The story is about the last hurrah--their last day of touring and last concert. The novel was all over the place just like the characters who were so very sad and pathetic. This book is supposed to be black comedy but there is nothing funny about it black or otherwise.
December 29, 2010
I was very hopeful when starting this book about a dying rock band's last days of glory. That hope was sorely misplaced. Adding "-itude" to make an adjective a noun just sounds stupid. The plot and characters were very uninteresting and one dimensional. I wanted to throw it away 50 pages in but kept reading because I thought it would get better. That was a real waste of time.
September 9, 2009
I am not a fan of this book. It was very monotonous. As a former music industry employee, I typically adore light, frothy music biz tales, such as Mark Haskell Smith's 'Salty' or 'Dedication' by Emma McLaughlin and Nicola Kraus, but 'Rock Bottom' was just not my cup of tea.
August 5, 2020
I read about half this book until I just couldn't take anymore. The writing itself wasn't bad, it was the characters that made this story unbearable. I've honestly never read such unpleasant protagonists. They're stereotypical, boring cliches of rock musicians. The band's songs are vulgar and utterly pointless. I highly doubt any real artists would care so little about the music they put out.
There are far better stories about Rock N' Roll and musicians out there. I'd pass on this one.
There are far better stories about Rock N' Roll and musicians out there. I'd pass on this one.
February 4, 2019
It is difficult to write a rock novel without it being a spinal tap in itself.
September 25, 2011
This book is a fiction about a band named Blood Orpheus and chronicles the last 24 hours of their last tour and last time together as a band set in Amsterdam. I enjoyed this book because it is very well written. The prose is very poetic, and the characters are three dimensional. I like that the point of view is third person omniscient, where you get five different points of view. There is Joey Fredericks, the band manager who is tough as nails, a cocaine addict, and begins to lose her touch as a shrewd businesswoman. She is the reason the band lost a multi-million dollar deal writing for and transforming the face of Sharpie Shakes ice cream. Bobby Campbell is the bassist who is the 'passenger' in the band with not a lot of talent. Eczema has plagued his existence and turned his hands into pus and sores which stay bandaged most of the time, giving him the nickname, 'the mummy'. Adam Nickerson is the lead guitar who ends up as the band's doormat. He, ironically, is the most talented but hides behind a Fu-Manchu moustache. Shane Warner is the lead singer and front man who started out in Christian rock and found his way into Buddhism because a groupie gave him a copy of Siddhartha to read. He preaches from the stage but has very few clues as to true spirituality and religious practice. Darlo Cox is the arrogant drummer, who writes all the offensive and tongue-in-cheek lyrics for the band. His dad owns an adult film empire and is Larry Flynt and Hugh Hefner combined. However, Darlo's world comes crashing down at realizing his dad makes snuff films in his basement dungeon and finally gets arrested for laundering, fraud, and becomes linked in a girl's disappearance. All five of the bands' family changes overnight, and Amsterdam is largely responsible for this. Every member has an epiphany of his or her own. At the end, the bitter rivalry and hatred that doomed the band to failure ends up evaporating, and they make their last moments together memorable and for once, amicable. There are many flashbacks written into each character's anecdotes around Amsterdam. Each character also ends up vouching for another's words/actions, and the narrative weaves together into a complete picture of the downfall of a rock band that should have toured with Aerosmith and ended up in the Rock n' Roll Hall of fame. Riots, racist labels, and animosity between band members causes the Blood Orphans to keep falling down a spiral of doom. If you love music this is like a mock-fiction of VH1 Behind the Music.ten into each character's anecdotes around Amsterdam. Each character also ends up vouching for another's words/actions, and the narrative weaves together into a complete picture of the downfall of a rock band that should have toured with Aerosmith and ended up in the Rock n' Roll Hall of fame. Riots, racist labels, and animosity between band members causes the Blood Orphans to keep falling down a spiral of doom. If you love music this is like a mock-fiction of VH1 Behind the Music.
March 11, 2009
This is a book that is potentially enjoyable, potentially disastrous--depending on the reader. You have to know exactly what you're getting into before reading. I wish there were labels for books (I actually don't--that would be terrible), but in cases such as this, a label would be tremendously helpful. There are gratuitous graphic references to subjects that could be disagreeable with more conservative readers.
I wrote this on my blog the day I started/finished Rock Bottom:
"So. I spent all day/night/day before & finished Rock Bottom: A Novel. It was a book sent to me in the mail by GoodReads (thank you, dear), and they kindly suggest readers to review in order to perpetuate the program. I have to say.. it was weirdly engaging and hard to put down, but I'm not sure if I liked it. A self-proclaimed dark comedy, it was more dark than comedy, but that may be my lack of taste. Although, I do love a good black comedy. Wes Anderson is a goddess.
Either way, I was totally absorbed in it, and it's a torrential frescacity of change compared to Milton & the bible (current class reading)--that's for sure."
If you're looking for a well-written novel about the comically, and sometimes absurd hardships of a rock 'n roll life in decline, this is the book to pick up. As a former rocker himself, Shilling's portrayal gives a realistic vibe. Though the characters are a bit over the top, they are often dazzling in a cinematic way--which truly sums up my feelings about the book. I wholeheartedly agree with what another reviewer said, about how Rock Bottom plays out like a tv show--HBOesque reference was right on the dot.
No matter what, it's a quick read, and a breath of fresh air if you've been reading dense works. Better than most commercial feel-goods, if you identify with the summary, and right away enjoy the idea of this type of book, this feel-miserable-but-not-really book is potentially a perfectly entertaining novel for you.
I wrote this on my blog the day I started/finished Rock Bottom:
"So. I spent all day/night/day before & finished Rock Bottom: A Novel. It was a book sent to me in the mail by GoodReads (thank you, dear), and they kindly suggest readers to review in order to perpetuate the program. I have to say.. it was weirdly engaging and hard to put down, but I'm not sure if I liked it. A self-proclaimed dark comedy, it was more dark than comedy, but that may be my lack of taste. Although, I do love a good black comedy. Wes Anderson is a goddess.
Either way, I was totally absorbed in it, and it's a torrential frescacity of change compared to Milton & the bible (current class reading)--that's for sure."
If you're looking for a well-written novel about the comically, and sometimes absurd hardships of a rock 'n roll life in decline, this is the book to pick up. As a former rocker himself, Shilling's portrayal gives a realistic vibe. Though the characters are a bit over the top, they are often dazzling in a cinematic way--which truly sums up my feelings about the book. I wholeheartedly agree with what another reviewer said, about how Rock Bottom plays out like a tv show--HBOesque reference was right on the dot.
No matter what, it's a quick read, and a breath of fresh air if you've been reading dense works. Better than most commercial feel-goods, if you identify with the summary, and right away enjoy the idea of this type of book, this feel-miserable-but-not-really book is potentially a perfectly entertaining novel for you.
May 27, 2009
I snagged this book through the LibraryThing Early Reviewers Program, but my copy never did arrive in the mail. I borrowed it from my local library to review instead, and it was worth the extra effort.
Shilling is a snarky, black-humored sort of author. While I love that style of writing, I found it awfully hard to become involved in this book. I think my biggest hurdle was the narrative structure. I wasn't exactly unhappy to be reading this structure – Shilling's five different points of view were ably separate and generally all kept in hand – but I quickly became frustrated at having to switch to a different narrator just when I would have gotten comfortable with the story and rhythm of the first one. By the time I'd reached the middle of the novel, the narrative switching seemed as if it smoothed out a bit… but whether that was because I'd become more comfortable at reading the juggled narratives or because Shilling's written style had evened out a bit I would have preferred it had happened far earlier in the novel.
I didn't feel Rock Bottom had really hit its stride until near the end, when Shilling picked up the habit of switching his narrators around a single scene. I liked reading the different perspectives rotating around a single action, and the narrative flow by this point was very, very smooth with never any of the he said/she said at all.
My library copy of the book included an awesome interview with Shilling that only highlighted his snarky humor, and while Rock Bottom isn't ever going to be a favorite of mine, I'd love to read more of Shilling's books. His next is apparently to be set in the Victorian time. Will this mean Victorian black humor? Ooooo.
Shilling is a snarky, black-humored sort of author. While I love that style of writing, I found it awfully hard to become involved in this book. I think my biggest hurdle was the narrative structure. I wasn't exactly unhappy to be reading this structure – Shilling's five different points of view were ably separate and generally all kept in hand – but I quickly became frustrated at having to switch to a different narrator just when I would have gotten comfortable with the story and rhythm of the first one. By the time I'd reached the middle of the novel, the narrative switching seemed as if it smoothed out a bit… but whether that was because I'd become more comfortable at reading the juggled narratives or because Shilling's written style had evened out a bit I would have preferred it had happened far earlier in the novel.
I didn't feel Rock Bottom had really hit its stride until near the end, when Shilling picked up the habit of switching his narrators around a single scene. I liked reading the different perspectives rotating around a single action, and the narrative flow by this point was very, very smooth with never any of the he said/she said at all.
My library copy of the book included an awesome interview with Shilling that only highlighted his snarky humor, and while Rock Bottom isn't ever going to be a favorite of mine, I'd love to read more of Shilling's books. His next is apparently to be set in the Victorian time. Will this mean Victorian black humor? Ooooo.
February 3, 2009
This is the story of the Blood Orphans The Blood Orphans are a rock band in serious decline. At one time they had it all and were on the road to rock and roll stardom. Then they had one horrible review and everything went south from there.
The book highlights their very last day on their last tour as they are getting ready to perform at a small venue in Amsterdam. We get introduced to Christian turned Buddhist lead singer Shane who can't stop preaching from the stage, drummer Darlo the son of a porn king millionaire fighting his sex addict demons, Bobby, the bass player who's eczema stricken hands have earned him the nickname Mummy, Adam the quiet , talented lead guitar player, and of course Joey, their coked out manager.
Their last day is both funny and tragic. We see the death of their dreams and what it has meant to each of them. We get a look into their raunchy, pathetic life on the road. This book is as much about the actual band itself as it was a commentary on the transitory and destructive nature fame.
Over all this book was a good read. It was such an interesting look into a dream so many people have had, and what happens when you let fame get the better of you. I loved watching them evolve over the course of the book. On the other hand the book is very graphic and raunchy and the language is coarse. I don't think any of it was outside the realm of what you could expect in a rock "memoir". I enjoyed this book immensely.
The book highlights their very last day on their last tour as they are getting ready to perform at a small venue in Amsterdam. We get introduced to Christian turned Buddhist lead singer Shane who can't stop preaching from the stage, drummer Darlo the son of a porn king millionaire fighting his sex addict demons, Bobby, the bass player who's eczema stricken hands have earned him the nickname Mummy, Adam the quiet , talented lead guitar player, and of course Joey, their coked out manager.
Their last day is both funny and tragic. We see the death of their dreams and what it has meant to each of them. We get a look into their raunchy, pathetic life on the road. This book is as much about the actual band itself as it was a commentary on the transitory and destructive nature fame.
Over all this book was a good read. It was such an interesting look into a dream so many people have had, and what happens when you let fame get the better of you. I loved watching them evolve over the course of the book. On the other hand the book is very graphic and raunchy and the language is coarse. I don't think any of it was outside the realm of what you could expect in a rock "memoir". I enjoyed this book immensely.
January 21, 2016
Michael Shilling seriously rocked this book. It's a very raw look at 5 people approaching a serious turning point in their lives, the end of a 2 year run as a fairly prominent rock band. The blood orphans were a fairly hard core and dysfunctional group of entertainers, some with talent, and some without that gathered in Amsterdam for their last gig before being dropped by their label. The fast paced narrative is a journey of their last day, how they got to this point, and how they feel about it.
It's a rock and roll book - filled with all the sex and drugs and debauchery that you would expect. And what better setting than Amsterdam? The language and conversations are raw and raunchy, yet very real. But the band is made up of tangible people, with real relationships and real problems who happen to be in touring rock band. But this fast paced crazy adventure really works because of human side of the characters. Each band member brings his own unique quirks and perspective to the story - but my favorite character was the manager Joey. She added a somewhat feminine take on life and the band.
The real star of this book though was Mr. Shilling himself - for a first novel, he really nailed it. It was tight, clever, original, interesting, and wonderfully entertaining. It seemed that he put an amazing amount of thought and detail into every word and phrase. Everything mattered and worked and nothing was wasted. If you are not easily offended by harsh language and adult themes, I suggest giving this jewel a go.
It's a rock and roll book - filled with all the sex and drugs and debauchery that you would expect. And what better setting than Amsterdam? The language and conversations are raw and raunchy, yet very real. But the band is made up of tangible people, with real relationships and real problems who happen to be in touring rock band. But this fast paced crazy adventure really works because of human side of the characters. Each band member brings his own unique quirks and perspective to the story - but my favorite character was the manager Joey. She added a somewhat feminine take on life and the band.
The real star of this book though was Mr. Shilling himself - for a first novel, he really nailed it. It was tight, clever, original, interesting, and wonderfully entertaining. It seemed that he put an amazing amount of thought and detail into every word and phrase. Everything mattered and worked and nothing was wasted. If you are not easily offended by harsh language and adult themes, I suggest giving this jewel a go.
October 21, 2015
Considering I was super excited when I found out there was a book called Mom, Have You Seen My Leather Pants?, a memoir about a guy's experience in a hair metal band, it's probably no surprise that I was looking forward to reading this book, too. That didn't mean, of course, that I was bound to like it. But like it I did. :)
My wife opened this book up, read a few pages and declared that it wasn't for her. "I don't tend to like books that are written to be funny," she said. And while that's within her rights, it isn't a fair assessment of this book. Sure, there are funny parts. But it's more tragicomic than anything else. I didn't feel like the author was saying, "Hey, aren't I funny? Aren't I just hilar?" while elbowing me in the ribs. Because that would have annoyed the fuck out of me.
Rock Bottom does two things very well and other books have tried and failed at: it tells a story over the course of a single day and it tells the story from multiple perspectives. Now add in the fact that the characters in this story are, for the most part, dickheads, and that makes the triumph all that more spectacular. Because while the four guys who make up the band Blood Orphans don't exactly begin as redeemable or likable, they do begin as knowable. And while they don't exactly redeem themselves, they do unfold as real human beings. And we all know guys like this. And some of us even love them, as difficult as it is.
My wife opened this book up, read a few pages and declared that it wasn't for her. "I don't tend to like books that are written to be funny," she said. And while that's within her rights, it isn't a fair assessment of this book. Sure, there are funny parts. But it's more tragicomic than anything else. I didn't feel like the author was saying, "Hey, aren't I funny? Aren't I just hilar?" while elbowing me in the ribs. Because that would have annoyed the fuck out of me.
Rock Bottom does two things very well and other books have tried and failed at: it tells a story over the course of a single day and it tells the story from multiple perspectives. Now add in the fact that the characters in this story are, for the most part, dickheads, and that makes the triumph all that more spectacular. Because while the four guys who make up the band Blood Orphans don't exactly begin as redeemable or likable, they do begin as knowable. And while they don't exactly redeem themselves, they do unfold as real human beings. And we all know guys like this. And some of us even love them, as difficult as it is.
February 16, 2009
This was an intriguing read about the last day of glory of a failed rock band. I was drawn into the story of these few desperate boys trying to hold onto their fleeting moments of fame and fortune. Shilling is a good writer with a strong grasp of the voice of his characters; although he used a lot of obscenities, they never came across as gratuitous because it was so clearly the appropriate language for Blood Orphans.
It was interesting to note that the band was on the verge of imploding from its first tortured gigs; reading this book made me think of the many "VH1 Behind the Music" specials I've seen over the years. The only quibble I had involved the revelations about Darlo and his father- I believe Shilling could have gotten another entire book out of that plotline so it seemed a bit rushed at the end.
All in all, an enjoyable read- dark humor, bleak yet occasionally uplifting, certainly an excellent selection for anyone who has been involved in the music scene. 3.5 stars.
It was interesting to note that the band was on the verge of imploding from its first tortured gigs; reading this book made me think of the many "VH1 Behind the Music" specials I've seen over the years. The only quibble I had involved the revelations about Darlo and his father- I believe Shilling could have gotten another entire book out of that plotline so it seemed a bit rushed at the end.
All in all, an enjoyable read- dark humor, bleak yet occasionally uplifting, certainly an excellent selection for anyone who has been involved in the music scene. 3.5 stars.
February 10, 2010
I originally gave this book four stars, because I really liked the different voices and the plot was well-crafted. As time has passed, I expected my first vivid reactions to fade a bit. But these characters have stuck with me for so long, and I find myself thinking of them and their relationships so often, and so much of the crazy and wonderfully-fated plot has remained in my mind long after plots usually haze away from my memory, that I realized I needed to bump this review up to five stars. This is a unique and, frankly, lovely piece of writing about rock music, the race for celebrity, the complexity of what it means to be "friends," and how we define success. You'll remember its honest details for a long time. It's also, often, laugh-out-loud funny.
February 8, 2010
i picked up this book for two primary reasons-
i like rock n' roll stories, and one of the main characters has eczema, which i also have. you don't see too many fictional characters with this condition, despite the fact that it's pretty common.
it was entertaining, if a little far-fetched. and in case you're wondering, the book's portrayal of life with eczema is pretty damn realistic- i appreciated that the author got it right. (but really, c'mon now- even though the other band members clearly had no qualms about being dicks to each other, it seems a little unfair that bobby's defining characteristic was his eczema and that everyone constantly ragged on him for it. i know it was supposed to be a biting satire and all, but still).
i like rock n' roll stories, and one of the main characters has eczema, which i also have. you don't see too many fictional characters with this condition, despite the fact that it's pretty common.
it was entertaining, if a little far-fetched. and in case you're wondering, the book's portrayal of life with eczema is pretty damn realistic- i appreciated that the author got it right. (but really, c'mon now- even though the other band members clearly had no qualms about being dicks to each other, it seems a little unfair that bobby's defining characteristic was his eczema and that everyone constantly ragged on him for it. i know it was supposed to be a biting satire and all, but still).
August 28, 2011
I have realized that I prefer my rock books to be of the non-fiction variely. Most of the fictionalized accounts that I read about rock music tend to fall short of the many great real stories that are out there. Having said that, Rock Bottom ended up being an enjoyable read. There was some concern, at about 2/3 of the way through the book, when I realized that I was not interested in learning more about these characters. At exactly that point, however, the book and the characters began to change, and I was hooked. The last portion of the book was excellent and I'm glad I stuck it out...
May 11, 2009
I really enjoyed this book. The characters are developed well, and the timescale of the story (everything taking place over a 24 hour period) was an interesting twist.
My only regret is that I read it whilst 'Espedair Street' by Iain Banks, was still too fresh in my mind .. NOT because the storylines are in anyway similar, but because both are fictional band biopics, and both include some pretty dark humour.
My only regret is that I read it whilst 'Espedair Street' by Iain Banks, was still too fresh in my mind .. NOT because the storylines are in anyway similar, but because both are fictional band biopics, and both include some pretty dark humour.
September 24, 2009
This is a rock novel done right, managing to be both hilariously funny at times while never losing sympathy for the flaws of its characters. Rather than following the trope of rock'n'roll stardom, this book follows the very funny last day and night of a band on the verge of implosion and being dropped by their label.
January 9, 2009
Rock Bottom makes a fascinating read for the music-lover—and it should be required reading for any aspiring rock star.
Read the full review at http://www.nightsandweekends.com/arti...
Read the full review at http://www.nightsandweekends.com/arti...
April 2, 2010
Michael Shilling tends a bit too far toward excess in this novel of a band's dying days, populating it with eminently unlikable characters but provides an interesting narrative structure by successfully evoking each band member and their manager.
February 19, 2009
Shilling is a powerhouse. This book had me by the throat and left me completely reeling. Raw!
Want to read
August 25, 2016not in overdrive
Want to read
January 25, 2009I think I will buy this one for my boyfriend.
He was a drummer in several bands and refuses to read books.
Maybe with this one he finally will start reading ;)
He was a drummer in several bands and refuses to read books.
Maybe with this one he finally will start reading ;)
April 26, 2009
Unnecessarily crude and cynical about a band's last day together.
July 14, 2009
The only reason this only gets 3 stars is BC i'm only 3 chapters in, although i feel this could be a 5 star read very easily.
Full review when i finish the book!
Full review when i finish the book!
May 25, 2010
twas fonee to mee
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