My coming-of-age American mythos satire debuts tomorrow, and I have curated a playlist to accompany it for your listening pleasure. Most of the songs are about who we are and where we come from, and what a pain in the ass that all is. Some of these songs are about the unbearable weight of history, both personal (It’s All Been Done) and political (Handlebars, No Soy de Aquí). Some of these songs are about the raw deal of being an American (Born in the USA, Pink Houses) or about the raw deal of being born at all (Father of Mine). Some of them are specific to one person. I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times goes out to the head of the Antediluvians who thinks the past is the only way forward. 21st Century is dedicated to technocrat Leon Minsky whose boredom and terror are dragging us all into his own hell.
If you’re just starting the book, put on the Bo Burnham track to guide you and Ben Franklin through the wonder and horror of the internet. I know it’s all been done before, but I had to write this book to testify.
If you’re not an Apple music user, the links below will open the song on YouTube for you.
Here’s the track list:
Father of Mine: Everclear
Pink Houses: John Mellancamp
Born in the USA: Bruce Springsteen
Everything You Know is Wrong: Weird Al
Stressed Out: twenty one pilots
Welcome to the Internet: Bo Burnham
Testify: Rage Against the Machine
Flagpole Sitta: Harvey Danger
We Gotta Get Outta This Place: The Animals
Stay Together for the Kids: Blink-182
American Music: Violent Femmes
I Just Wasn’t Made for These Times: The Beach Boys
No Soy de Aquí, Ni Soy de Allá: Facundo Cabral
Handlebars: Flobots
It’s All Been Done: Barenaked Ladies
21st Century (Digital Boy): Bad Religion
