For the most part I hate the trend in audio drama to attach Big Names to projects at the expense of pesky things like writing and sound design. So I was a bit hesitant to get excited about Quiet Part Loud when I heard it was executive produced by Jordan Peele and written primarily by Mac Rogers (who has the honor of making Steal the Stars, the audio drama the sold me on the medium).
But this was exactly what I was hoping for. Quiet Part Loud has all the powerful social commentary and compelling horror you’d expect from anything with Peele’s name attached to it, along with the emotional punch and artful storytelling of Mac Rogers.
From the blurb:
Disgraced radio host Rick Egan (Tracy Letts) has finally found his chance at reinventing himself: by chronicling the cold-case disappearance of several Muslim teens from Staten Island—a group he himself disparaged—in the wake of 9/11. But Rick soon discovers this is no ordinary hate crime, as his ill-considered investigations bring him face-to-face with an ancient American evil that’s ready to offer him a monstrous bargain.
There’s already a lot to unpack here. Unethical talk show hosts exploiting bigotry and paranoia in their base to stoke hatred and spike ratings. Widespread racism reveling in a popular talking head justifying their intolerance. The exploitative tendencies of true crime. And that’s all without considering the supernatural elements of the horror, which are intriguing and perfectly tailored to the audio medium.
The show does an admirable job of walking the line between a relatable main character with someone you hate on an instinctive level. Rick Egan is entirely unsympathetic… except when he isn’t? I never truly liked him, but the systemic evil he encounters is far worse than he is.
Quiet Part Loud has a lot to say about the current political climate and the awfulness of many popular conservative talking heads, while largely crafting a story that feels nuanced rather than heavy handed. Combine that with a horror plot that doesn’t leave the main characters feeling completely hopeless, and you’ve got me hooked.
This is a story you should definitely make sure you’re in the right headspace to listen to first. There’s a lot of bigotry shown, mainly of the post-9/11 Islamophobic variety. The main character never fails to remind you he’s a piece of shit whenever you start feeling sympathetic towards him.
Similar to my experience with Steal the Stars, the plot escalates exponentially toward the end. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, but it’s something I wish I was prepared for going in. The emotional core of the story largely remains intact, but the plot explodes.
All in all Quiet Part Loud was a powerful listen that I couldn’t pull myself away from. Monkey Paw Production’s first foray into audio is a moving experience that I would absolutely recommend. Just make sure you’re in the right headspace first, since it’s a story that can touch uncomfortable close our current political reality.
