Perfect from Now On: How Indie Rock Saved My Life Review

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(More customer reviews)Since Mr. Sellers can't seem to help himself when it comes to lists, I think a review which parrots that particular form is fitting.TOP 5 REASONS WHY YOU SHOULD AVOID BUYING "Perfect From Now On" by John Sellers:
5 - Sellers (by his own admission) is more interested in appearing "with it" than actually enjoying the music. He bases his musical choices/obsessions on how 'obscure' they are, and how knowledgeable he can be regarding the band in question.
4 - His holier-than-thou (and occasionally hypocritical) approach to:
- drugs (although he abuses alcohol like a fiend)
- other parts of the world (although he grew up in Michigan?!)
- any music he doesn't deem 'worthy'
3 - The (sub)title of the book... nowhere is there any indication that 'Indie Rock' did anything greater for Sellers than give him a soundtrack to his studies and drinking. That isn't "saving" your life-- it's what EVERYBODY uses music for.
2 - Guided By Voices. Sure, I love them too, had an intense period of listening/collecting/concert going. But come one man... enough. It's just downright embarrassing reading about Sellers' slavish idol-worship. Plus, he didn't even get on board with GBV until the end of 2002? For somebody who seems desperate to be on the 'cutting edge of music', there is simply no excuse.
1 - The condescending tone of the book. Sellers doesn't just come across as a passionate music fan (really- who isn't?). No, reading this book, Sellers comes-across as a snippy, shallow know-it-all. His barrage of pop-culture references and "I'm-right-you're-wrong" writing is tiresome and provides little more than what you might find on a teenager's blog.
This book ends-up being little more than one sad person's attempt to brag about a shared, collective experience (enjoying/obsessing over music). It's the sort of paper-thin observation that can be read for free on-line; it's the literary equivalent to Sellers standing in front of a mirror and rhyming off his favourite artists (and why he enjoys them more than you). Really - why waste money on it?

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