Agit Reader: Mark Eitzel - Restless Stranger

Agit Reader: Mark Eitzel - Restless Stranger

By Elizabeth Murphy

What is your relationship with pop culture? 

ME: I don’t want to be mean-spirited, but most of it seems like it is machines. I don’t mind machines—I love electronic music quite a bit—but the whole notion of moving to the machine kind of worries me a bit. Like “Call Me Maybe,” I don’t hate Katy Perry, but I guess I do. 

There is definitely something to be said for mass art dulling the upper faculties, and Katy Perry is a great example of that, although I always find myself rooting to hear a really great pop song on the radio. When that happens it is fantastic. 

ME: I do too. The thing is, I am old. So when I hear something like Lil Wayne’s “Baby Bump” or... What’s that called? “Lovely Lumps?”
“Lady Lumps.” 

ME: “Lady Lumps,” that’s right. I listen to that and think that music is really beautiful, really well made. But then I listen to what he is saying, he is just spitting out noise because to actually say something would be not cool. I am from such a different generation. Just say something! C’mon, try it. They don’t and there is nothing to say, because they can only handle the noise. So it is not my thing. It just seems like cruelty. Our whole American culture is a celebration of liars and how well they lie. Our politicians are not at war with gangsters. In a way, that is our whole culture now. Everyone’s a “bitch” or not. I hate it. It is so dumb. So that is my relationship with pop culture. I have never particularly liked it. I don’t think something is good just because it is successful. I mean, Hitler was successful.