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May 6, 2020
Brady Hammes' Playlist for His Novel "The Resolutions"
In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book.
Previous contributors include Jesmyn Ward, Lauren Groff, Bret Easton Ellis, Celeste Ng, T.C. Boyle, Dana Spiotta, Amy Bloom, Aimee Bender, Roxane Gay, and many others.
Brady Hammes' novel The Resolutions is a fast-paced and imaginative debut.
Publishers Weekly wrote of the book:
"This reads like a clever mash-up of Jonathan Tropper’s This Is Where I Leave You, Romain Gary’s The Roots of Heaven, and Paddy Chayefsky’s Altered States, and delivers thrills while finding empathy for the cast’s troubled souls."
In his own words, here is Brady Hammes' Book Notes music playlist for his debut novel The Resolutions:
The Resolutions is a novel about a lot of things – drug addiction and elephant conservation and creative disillusionment – but it’s ultimately a story about the bonds between siblings. The three main characters – a drug-addicted ballerina, an elephant conservationist, and a fledgling actor – reunite back in their hometown of Chicago over the holidays. They’ve made a fine mess of their lives, and each carry with them both a longing for and fear of home. Below are a mix of songs that were on repeat during the writing of the book as well as others that felt like ones my characters might enjoy.
"Infra 5 ," Max Richter
In some ways, this is the song that sparked the novel. Many years ago, I’d been listening to a lot of Max Richter and his music led me to a ballet of the same name by the British choreographer Wayne McGregor. I’d never seen a ballet until then – aside from maybe The Nutcracker – but McGregor’s choreography recontextualized the music, made it new, and I was hooked. Some time later, I began writing a scene about a drug-addled ballerina standing in the forest, trying to get home. I wasn’t sure where home was, but Richter’s music – and this song in particular - soundtracked those early scenes.
"Windows," Angel Olsen
If I could ever get my characters in a room together, this is the track I would play for them. It’s a song to get someone out of a funk, a song that grabs you by the lapels and demands you snap the fuck out of it. Won’t you open a window sometimes? / What’s so wrong with the light? / What’s so wrong with the light? There’s a lot of living left to do, Olsen seems to say, and when the song hits at around the three-minute mark, you’re inclined to believe her.
"The Disintegration Loops, dlp 1.1," William Basinski
Like a lot of writers, lyrics are a no-go when drafting, which is why tape loops are a good source of background music, and no one does it better than Basinski. The Disintegration Loops is a single, trance-like loop that somehow conveys about twelve different emotions over the course of 63 minutes. It’s unlike any other piece of music I’ve ever heard. The song was included in a 9/11 Memorial at the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Temple of Dendur, though it could easily soundtrack the current moment. It’s the sound of the world coming undone.
"No Widows," The Antlers
No Widows is pure cinema, and if my book ever became a film I’d like to believe this song would find a place in the soundtrack. It’s sparse and haunting, infused with a vague sense of dislocation. Peter Silberman, the lead singer and lyricist of The Antlers, said of the song, “It’s intended to feel like endless, repeating movement. It’s paranoia of freak accidents, coupled with the fear of what happens to your life when you’re not around to take care of it.” I think my characters would relate.
"Tithe," Menomena
My little brother – who’s far more music-forward than myself – turned me onto this album some years ago and it’s still one of my favorites. I was listening to this song when I was working on a chapter about Samantha’s return home to Chicago. The line, “And nothing sounds appealing” seemed to me like the simplest way to describe her mood.
"Talkin’ Shit About a Pretty Sunset," Modest Mouse
There’s a scene in the book where one of my characters drives from LA to New Mexico. In a previous draft, I wrote something about him listening to Modest Mouse, but somewhere along the way that detail was cut. This is classic road trip music, as evidenced by the album title: This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About. Gavin would agree.
Brady Hammes is a writer and documentary film editor. The Resolutions is his first novel. His short stories have appeared in Michigan Quarterly Review, Guernica, The Rattling Wall, and Beecher’s. He lives in Los Angeles by way of Colorado and Iowa.
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