Title: Battle of the Bands
Editors: Eric Smith and Lauren Gibaldi
Genre: Contemporary
Audience: Young Adult
Series/Stand Alone: Collection
Format read: ebook
Publisher: Macmillan Audio
Date read: 20 May 2023
First published: 14 September 2021
Contributors: Lauren Gibaldi, Brittany Cavallaro, Ashley Woodfolk, Jeff Zentner, Preeti Chhibber, Justin Courtney Pierre, Jay Coles, Sarah Nicole Smetana, Katie Cotugno, Jasmine Warga, Ashley Poston, Jenny Torres Sanchez, Shaun David Hutchinson, Jenn Marie Thorne & Sarvenaz Taghavian
Content Warnings: Homophobia, toxic relationship, gaslighting, alcohol, abuse, drug use
“Your school has a battle of the bands?”
Miss Somewhere by Brittany Cavallaro
“It’s your school, too. Where have you been,” he laughed, “under a rock?”
Mini Review:
Have you ever wanted the full experience of a high school battle of the bands competition without the crowd? Really want to see it from every angle? Wait no longer, this is the short story compilation for you! Centered around the Raritan River High School Battle of the Bands competition, this collection is full of stories that all intertwine with the main event by 16 different authors, including Justin Courtney Pierre, lead singer of of Motion City-Soundtrack. Not only does each character have some relationship to the event, characters overlap between stories which is always good fun!
May our group text be undying.
The Sisterhood of Light and Sound by Jeff Zentner
Full thoughts:
As with any short story complication, some stories are more my taste than others, but overall it’s a very well done compilation. You get to see the event from all angles and experience a bit of high school again from many points of view.
This is very much YA contemporary, most stories are written from the first person so you do jump perspectives a bit. There’s angst, love, lust, stress, everything! Emotions are running pretty high and most likely they’re going to sing about it and let it all out onstage. It is really fun that all the stories intertwine and while very different, are still mostly taking place on the same evening.
There is a pacing to the collection which is well done, keeping the Battle of the Bands competition at the core of the stories while still bringing in so many of the issues you might face during high school, or when dealing with people in general. The first and last stories were especially well chosen and gave a good flow to the compilation.
I have to say, hearing the Postal Service named as “an old electro-indie band” did make me feel a tiny bit old, but perhaps it’s a tiny bit fair. There was also a mention of Motion-City Soundtrack which I found amusing after realizing their lead singer was a part of the compilation.
Most of the authors were new to me but I’ve read stories by 2 of them before, Ashley Poston and Jeff Zentner. I’ve heard of some other stories by some of the other authors so I’ll have to investigate those later.
Now for some thoughts directed at the individual stories:
Miss Somewhere by Brittany Cavallaro
Being the new kid can be hard. Being the new kid and your twin aka safety net suddenly being distant, extra not great. This story is about a set of musically inclined twins who move to a new school at the end of their high school career.
Does she really want the worst night of her life to be in a Naruto T-shirt and ripped jeans? Why not, honestly.
Cecilia (You’re Breaking My Heart)
Cecilia (You’re Breaking My Heart) by Ashley Poston
This story references characters in some earlier books by Ashley Poston and while it’s not necessary to know that, I enjoyed it! I’m a big fan of her work so I wasn’t surprised that I really liked this one. Like many characters in this anthology, Cecilia is trying to navigate high school and figure out feelings which is never easy to navigate. I enjoy the title (which got that song stuck in my head for a while), the band references and just the general writing style.
Sidelines by Sarah Nicole Smetana
Aside from making me feel old in referencing the Postal Service, this one talked a lot about what happens after high school and making plans for the changes that will come. Also a little bit about taking up space and not being ashamed to do so.
I thought about Amina, and everyone on the sidelines, and the boys who always seemed so much bigger than us, who never worried that they weren’t enough.
Sidelines by Sarah Nicole Smetana
Battle of the Exes by Sarvenaz Taghavian
The title really gives this one away. Sometimes love and music really sets you up for disaster. Sometimes the act before you does something that kind of totally throws you off. Let me know if you figure out the proper definition of heart shitter. This one was a fun one too!
Love is a Battlefield by Shaun David Hutchinson
This one gives us the perspective from a judge of the competition, and a reluctant one at that. Sometimes it’s hard to know what you want, sometimes it’s hard to decide to go after it.
“What do you want?” “Truthfully?” I say. “Someone who wouldn’t mind playing video games with me. Someone who wants to be my player two.”
Love is a Battlefield by Shaun David Hutchinson
You Found Me by Ashley Woodfolk
This story focused some on song lyrics and those moments that feel like a defining moment. This story felt like one I wouldn’t mind having a lot more time with the characters, but it was still well done for this format.
Adventures in Babysitting by Justin Courtney Pierre
What a trip… literally. I was a bit disappointed by this story but I think the goal was to try to represent all aspects of what might happen around this kind of event, and overall the story was reasonably written. Some kids decide to try drugs prior to the show, including one who is supposed to be playing in the show.
Peanut Butter Sandwiches by Jasmine Warga
Amina has defined herself by being a good girlfriend for so long it’s become a part of her. Maybe instead of anticipating someone else’s needs, she’s going to take care of herself for a change.
Let yourself out of the box, Q. You can’t keep yourself in there forever.”
Reckless Love
Reckless Love by Jay Coles
This story was a bit chaotic but very true to high school. Secrets between friends can’t always stay secret.
Where in the hell am I even driving besides away?
The Ride
The Ride by Jenn Marie Thorne
Sometimes you just have to go. Sometimes you don’t have the words for it, but you finally have clarity of mind and something clicks, and you just have to get out of there now. This story is about one of those moments.
Three Chords by Eric Smith
This was one of my favorite stories of the mix. It’s a little bit about trying to reclaim the things you love after they’ve been tainted for you. Or just taken literally, a high school student keeping his identity secret because people can be really problematic.
Merch to Do About Nothing by Preeti Chhibber
Sometimes you have other plans but then you get forced to work the merch table. This was one of my favorite stories of the bunch, showing a different side to the event! With this story we basically see the entire line up of the show, at least up to the Three Chords short story.
All These Friends and Lovers by Katie Cotugno
This story felt a bit similar to some others, but also very high school and very fitting for the anthology. Sometimes it’s hard to juggle friends and relationships with your band, but perhaps the best take away here is it’s never a good idea to just avoid someone.
A Small light by Jenny Torres Sanchez
This story had some heavy issues going on and is a really strong addition to the collection. It’s another very different perspective, someone who loves music but gets involved with the event a bit on accident.
In theater, we know to leave the drama for later, not for when we’re supposed to be 100 percent concentrating on what’s happening onstage. But apparently that’s not a thing with musicians — they dump out their emotions everywhere.
Set the World on Fire
Set the World on Fire by Lauren Gibaldi
Theatre kids know the stage is sacred, but sometimes you need to let lose as well. This story focuses on Lilly, the fearless stage manager who has been trying to keep everyone in order for the whole event.
“That’s a lot to hang on a single, frankly pretty inexpressive look.”
The Sisterhood of Light and Sound
The Sisterhood of Light and Sound by Jeff Zentner
This was a solid conclusion to the collection, wrapping up some conflict introduced in the first story while also showing the tech side of things which always makes my theatre kid heart happy.
Notes on edition:
I read the kindle ebook for this collection which included tidbits on each author’s relationship to music in the bios at the end of the book.
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