Your Favorite Band Cannot Save You by Scotto Moore
Tor (February 2019)
128 pages; $13.53 paperback; $3.99 e-book
Reviewed by Dave Simms
Just when you thought Lovecraftian horror couldn’t get any weirder, Scotto Moore tosses out this tongue-in-cheek tale of a band that is destined to bring about the end of the world. It’s a fun read that can and will be easily read in one sitting, and is sure to leave the reader with a smile.
A music blogger happens upon a new group on the “Bandcamp” website (akin to Soundcloud) with the name Beautiful Remorse. Of course, the infectious music soon causes quite a stir in the industry. The first song causes strange reactions in those who listen to it and the narrator of this novella decides he needs to meet the singer of the band, Airee McPherson.
When he lands the interview, he learns that the woman of the enigmatic band has a plan for him, as she informs him she’s not from this dimension, and will not be satisfied until she brings forth the end of the world as we know it.
Every day Beautiful Remorse releases a new song, something tears into the reality he knows, something changes that just might signal the apocalypse. Airee plays the blogger like a finely-tuned instrument, despite his realization that he is a witness to all of it and can do nothing to stop it.
What ensues is pure entertainment, sheer fun in grandiose storytelling that just might cause old Howard Phillips to rock a bit in his grave. Reminiscent of Skipp and Spector’s The Scream, Moore’s book eschews the sheer horror of that classic for something much lighter—if you consider summoning forth old gods out of other dimensions “light.” Think of Lovecraft crossed with Jeff Strand and one might get the proper feel for this book. The bottom line is that Your Favorite Band Cannot Save You is a fun read and is recommended for a dark and stormy night.
