Tomorrow and Tomorrow Release Week: The Annotated Playlist
The songs that grace the pages of Tomorrow and Tomorrow, the ones that inspired us to write, and everything in between. Here’s a select few of our faves:
Avon - Queens of the Stone Age: Queens is my longtime favorite band ever EVER ever, so I put their songs on all my playlists. I had about twenty I wanted to add, but I settled on this hard-rock scorcher not only because of its name (all Willy Shakes aficionados know he was born in Stratford-upon-Avon) but because it invokes the same feelings of slow creeping metal dread that I imagine the inside of Mac Shepherd’s head looks like. (LL)
Suck My Cherry - Haiku Hands: “Step back, take space!” This is one of my favorite earworms - a good friend who knows everything about music put this on a playlist for me, knowing how much I’d dig it. I adore the raunchy femme energy of this tune, and it reminds me a lot of our fictional band, The Scottish Play. I can even see them covering it with a hard-rock twist! (LEW)
Lost Girls - Tears for the Dying: Tears for the Dying is a local band here in Athens, GA that my husband and I have really been digging lately. I knew I wanted to include some local flavor, and their whole evil-80s-princess aesthetic really fits the vibe of this book in the best way. (LL)
Fast As You Can - Fiona Apple: I make a lot of book and writing playlists, and Fiona Apple is a constant. I remember so clearly when the “Criminal” video came out, and me and the rest of the world were like, “whoa, who is THIS?” Apple’s smoky voice is perfection, and the chaotic piano mirrors the chaotic circumstances of the book. (LEW)
I’m a Marionette - Ghost: Ghost is my other favorite band at the moment (a moment that has lasted 5+ years). I saw them live last year and I’m still reeling. Call ‘em Scooby Doo Metal, Blue Oyster Weezer, Metal for Theatre Nerds or whatever you want, I friggin’ love them and they work harder than anybody in the business. And this cover of ABBA’s most theatrical song is everything. (LL)
Summer Girl - HAIM: Back when Tomorrow and Tomorrow was just a twinkle in our eyes, Lillah and I talked a lot about Mac and Duff’s friendship. HAIM is one of my very favorite bands (all women - are you sensing a theme with this playlist? Good!), and they put on a killer live show. Danielle Haim wrote this song for her partner, who was in treatment for cancer at the time, and I love its theme of devotion paired with her breezy vocals (the music video is pure Los Angeles and is phenomenal). The bridge that begins with “peer around the corner at you” has lyrics that I thought about often while writing our book. (LEW)
What You Done - Lera Lynn: Another local musician, Lera Lynn hits that perfect note of goth and country (gothbilly?) and Lauren and I have been saying for over a year now that if Tomorrow and Tomorrow ever becomes a series, this song is the theme. Period! (LL)
Closer - Tegan and Sara: Tomorrow and Tomorrow is my first full-length novel for adults, and as a former erotica writer, I definitely enjoyed making things a bit more…graphic. This is my number one Tegan and Sara song because I am a cliché but also, it gives the perfect energy for our book’s sexier scenes (and there are several!). (LEW)
Stay - Shakespear’s Sister: I mean, do I even need to say why? Any girlie who grew up in the late 80s/early 90s loves this melodramatic af song (and the video!), especially when that part kicks in (and yes, we made this playlist before Ghost came out with their cover, which is FIRE). See also: their band name, because of course. (Fun fact: One-half of the duo started out in Bananarama, which I hope blows your mind). (LL)
Crazy On You - Heart: I repeat, there are some VERY sexy scenes in this book, and this is one of the sexiest rock songs of all time. You can’t get more badass than an Ann Wilson vocal and a Nancy Wilson guitar. Period. (LEW)
Cherry Bomb - The Runaways: the obvious choice? Cherie Currie and Joan Jett are the original bad girls, the IDGAF girls, the get-out-of-my-way girls. So much so, we wrote a book inspired by them. (LL)
Going Back to Georgia - Nanci Griffith f. Adam Duritz: This song actually appears in the book! Like Duff, I am not a native Georgian but have a lot of love for the south, and Nanci Griffith was a legend. Plus, I’m not ashamed to admit that I love the Counting Crows’ frontman’s voice more than I love most people. (LEW)
The Full Tomorrow and Tomorrow Playlist:
