Blurry And Disconnected: Tales of Sink-or-swim Nihilism (ISBN 1411626974)

Nice, Twisted Work:
Dave Riley's "Blurry and Disconnected" is a collection of two short stories and one novella that are written in an extremely funny, satirical, alternative style. Of the three, the novella, "Chinese Finger Puzzle," is the most engaging. The novella follows the adventures of Philo Smith, a sharp-tongued (or rather, sharp-penned) columnist for a small music magazine. The work mostly deals with Philo's contempt for small-time bands trying to make it big. His contempt for these pretenders is rivaled only by the absolute scorn for he feels for mainstream music. The strong point of "Blurry and Disconnected" is Riley's pointed criticisms of many of modern culture's most irritating traits. Through the character Philo Smith, Riley takes us on an epic journey through small clubs and dingy lofts in college towns, and paints an accurate, if unflattering, portrait of the denizens who dwell there. Philo Smith is one of those interesting characters who seems to inhabit a world that, at first glance, is similar to our own, but upon further investigation is blessedly free of many of the more irritating obstacles most of us have to deal with on a daily basis. I was reminded of Douglas Adams' character Dirk Gently, a wonderful creation who makes his living as a "Holistic Detective." Philo Smith is similar to Dirk in that he has lucked into a position as a columnist in a magazine that allows him to get away with virtually any crazy thought that comes into his head. Free from the constraints of normal magazines, and contrary to general thought (though not necessarily general practice), the magazine and Philo's column are, eventually, successful. It is gleefully cathartic to bear witness to Philo's constant and scathing criticisms of every one and every thing he encounters. Although this formula does bear the risk of becoming stale and bitter, in this case, the book remains light-hearted, mainly, I think, because the objects of Philo's scorn are so wonderfully deserving of it. Philo's harshest criticisms are saved for pretentious rock bands made up of art-school drop-outs who live on generous trust funds--surely a group that anyone would like to see sand-bagged. Riley uses a writing style that is somewhat distant, but effective for the material he's presenting. He'll commonly offer a great deal of information in the form of an omniscient narrator about peripheral characters. These digressions are generally designed for the purpose of injecting some humorous anecdote, and are quite often very funny. The one criticism I do have about the work, however, is that it lacks a strong thematic element. All of the component parts are there, but I would have preferred a stronger underlying thread to connect them and magnify their significance. Still, this book works very well as a sort of chaotic ensemble of snapshots from the club and music scene. Overall, I found "Blurry and Disconnected" to be an extremely enjoyable read. It has some wonderful, piercing criticisms against culture and society in general, and it is written in an effective and innovative style. If you are looking for an alternative novel that takes chances most mainstream publications would never dream of, then this is the book to pick up. The End

An opinion on this book:
This book was written by David Riley, formerly a bassist in a band called "Big black," in the early to mid 1980's. Upon reading this book, keep in mind that Big black wasn't your typical happy go lucky band about snowflakes and brownies. Expect this book to be dark and comedic at the same time. Essentially, the book deals with music "scenes" and how groundless trends can form because of it. It points out the fact that people will do almost anything to be popular and take credit for things that they may or may not have even done. In the book you meet self-serving spineless characters who eventually significantly alter a young man's life as well as interesting characters that may have more real value in the end. The catch phrases David Riley uses in his book when the main character, Philo Smith, interacts with everyone is witty and hilarious. David Riley writes this book with elements of cruel reality so don't expect this book to end like a melodrama. As a man in my early twenties, I can easily relate experiences in this book to my own upon dealing with people in music. This book is funny, shocking, insightful, dark, and well worth the buy.