Tutsi Picnic

Band mentioned twice in the 2010 novel Freedom by Jonathan Franzen. They are a local Hoboken, New Jersey band mentioned as playing at real club Maxwell's when main character Richard Katz happens to stop in. Later, an annoying fan mentions them:

...he had the feeling that no more than fifteen minutes had passed between his eating of his lunchtime sandwich and the sudden, unwelcome looming-up of Zachary. The kid was wearing a hoodie and the sort of low-cut skinny pants that Katz had first observed in London.

“What do you think of Tutsi Picnic?” he said. “You into them?

"Don't know 'em," Katz said.

"No way! I can't believe that!"

"And yet it's the truth," Katz said.

"What about The Flagrants? Aren't they awesome? That thirty-seven minute song of theirs?”

“Haven't had the pleasure.”

“Hey,” Zachary said, undiscouraged, “what do you think about those psychedelic Houston bands that were recording on Pink Pillow in the late sixties? Some of their sound really reminds me of your early stuff."

"I need the piece of material you're standing on," Katz said.

I thought some of those guys might be influences. Especially Peshawar Rickshaw.”

“If you could just raise your left foot for a second.”

“Hey, can I ask you another question?”

“And this saw will be making some noise now.”

“Just one other question.”

“All right.”

“Is this part of your musical process? Going back to work at your old day job?"

Their name references mass slaughters of Tutsis in 1994, during the Rwandan Civil War.

See also

• The Traumatics
• The Flagrants
• Peshawar Rickshaw

External Links

• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freedom_(Franzen_novel)
• preview on Google Books