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“Love Hertz” by Aaron Mostow, Kevin Flores, Rodolfo Tagle III [Book & EP Review]

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Love Hertz is an interesting concept: a book about a DJ who has discovered a secret sound frequency capable of taking over minds and bodies, and a soundtrack to match the party atmosphere it dwells within. The book touts itself as a “romantic comedy with a sci-fi twist,” while the package altogether is deeply rooted in dance music culture.

It’s a fun concept, and the soundtrack delivers on it. Clocking in at just under 28 minutes, the EP hits hard with tracks designed for dance floors: “Revolution” sounds like a subdued merger of Calvin Harris and Tiesto, “Joyride” conjures up memories of acts like Justice and MSTRKRFT, while “Up And Down The Block” closes the album in fine form as a clincher trap house track. It’s anthemic, sweaty, and loaded with parts that would make anyone’s toes tap.

But while the soundtrack is a solid EP that delivers on its party vibes, the book, unfortunately, falls short of anything more than slapstick erotica. The first sign of trouble with the book is the number of writers. Three writers for a book that barely reaches 196 pages already runs the risk of having too many cooks. With that in mind, perhaps it’s understandable that the book would have flat characterization, stilted dialogue, and a story that feels like it could have been told in ten pages.

Additionally, there is never any real risk to the protagonist or their world. But most concerningly, there’s the perverse satisfaction that the protagonist’s discovery of a sound frequency arouses women, overriding their ability to choose what they are doing consciously. While I appreciate the story is trying very hard to be a comedy, it feels less funny with a kind of “sonic rohypnol” at the disposal of the story’s “hero” Taj, and instead devolves into softcore “bro-rotica.” For these reasons, the book pushes the reader back, and it feels like a chore to get through despite its paltry page count.

As much as the book falls short, the soundtrack is proficient, layered, textual, and frankly feels more like the light-hearted fun that the book was aspiring to. Ultimately, the book of “Love Hertz” suffers from a lack of technical proficiency in the realm of writing, while the soundtrack of “Love Hertz” shows it off in spades musically. Your best bet might be to check out the album and only the album.

Author: Paul Auster (Author), Sherma Chambers (Foreword), Spencer Ostrander (Photographer)
Publisher: Love Hertz LLC (February 23, 2022)
Paperback: 196 pages
ASIN: B09T34CCWY
ISBN-10: 0578946912
ISBN-13: 978-0578946917
Soundtrack Run Time: 27:41

Director of Communications @ V13. Lance Marwood is a music and entertainment writer who has been featured in both digital and print publications, including a foreword for the book "Toronto DIY: (2008-2013)" and The Continuist. He has been creating and coordinating content for V13 since 2015 (back when it was PureGrainAudio); before that he wrote and hosted a radio and online series called The Hard Stuff , featuring interviews with bands and insight into the Toronto DIY and wider hardcore punk scene. He has performed in bands and played shows alongside acts such as Expectorated Sequence, S.H.I.T., and Full of Hell.

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