Season 1, Episode 3 Gary Shteyngart + Elissa LeCoque
Gary Shteyngart is one of the world's fiercest satirists. His work includes the novels Absurdistan and Super Sad True Love Story, many articles in the New Yorker and New York Times, and the memoir Little Failure.
Gary's most recent book is the novel Lake Success, about the flame-out and subsequent freak-out of hedge fund manager Barry Cohen in the days leading up to the 2016 election.
HBO has just announced the development of a series based on Lake Success, starring and produced by Jake Gyllenhaal.
Photo by Brigitte Lacombe
In Episode 2, Gary reads a chapter from Lake Success at the Union Square Barnes and Noble, and Elissa LeCoque of the band Kodacrome performs a song written in response titled "Weak Wrists."
Elissa discusses her inspiration for the song, and recalls working for a man a lot like Barry Cohen (a cage of finches is involved).
Photo by Jordan Kleinman
For the show with Gary and Elissa, I wrote a song called Lake Success - you can listen here, or anywhere music streams,