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The Daily Cardinal Est. 1892
Sunday, July 20, 2025

'Drummer' pretty darn great in bed

While MTV and fictional novels don't necessarily go hand in hand, the music television channel has expanded its hold on American popular culture to the literary world, and the result is surprisingly acceptable.  

 

 

 

In one of MTV Books' first original publications, \Don't Sleep with Your Drummer,"" first time author Jen Sincero follows fictional 28-year-old wannabe rock goddess Jenny Troanni on her journey from copywrite,r to high school tutor, to tortured musician through a year and a half of the protagonist's diary entries. The pages are a quirky mix of Troanni's uncensored opinions, checklists, contracts, observations and answering machine messages from prospective bandmates, all of whom seem to call while wasted out of their minds.  

 

 

 

In the first few months of her rise to pseudo-stardom, Troanni begins to cut ties with her monotonous former life by first quitting her office job and next breaking up with her Hootie and the Blowfish-loving boyfriend, Jason. The author herself obviously finds this idea hilarious, as she mentions Jason's affinity for the mid-nineties radio staple at least four times within the book's first few pages.  

 

 

 

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Once free to explore the musical world, Troanni records the trials and tribulations of putting a band together, from excruciating auditions to problems with chemistry and hairstyles, finally arriving at a core group of misfits who call themselves Sixty-Foot Queenie.  

 

 

 

Guitarist Lucy, who may or may not be the reincarnation of Jimmy Hendrix, is Troanni's best friend and a world traveler who thinks she becomes a native of every country she visits. Bassist Rodney is a greasy-haired 17-year-old with a lot of talent but an overbearing mother who becomes one of Troanni's main sources of stress. With Troanni as lead vocalist, rounding out the group is the annoying but well-meaning drummer Matt, later replaced by the impossibly attractive Scott, the object of Troanni's infatuation.  

 

 

 

As the band scores local gigs, gains a cult following, and gets signed to a record label Troanni's personal relationships begin to crumble. Fame and money predictably cause rifts between the bandmates and Sixty Foot Queenie constantly changes players as Matt's musical ability is no longer up to par and Rodney's mom pulls her son away from the hedonism that ensues in the clubs they headline.  

 

 

 

Troanni's post-it notes evolve from ""Do laundry"" to ""Come up with funky new illegible signature."" Eventually she comes to value the advice of a guitar teacher named Flowers (who describes himself as a ""fabulist"") over that of her mother.  

 

 

 

The one constant throughout the novel is Troanni's undying love for making music. It weathers the storms of hookups, breakups, screaming fans and bad reviews, making all the pitfalls along the way worth it.  

 

 

 

While her attempts at wit sometimes falter, as when she refers to her feline's moodiness as ""catitude,"" Sincero's unorthodox style and mostly humorous insights make the book a quick, fun read that entertains much in the same way as MTV's ""The Real World."" It's not Shakespeare but the intense relationships and fast paced action make it hard to resist. 

 

 

 

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