Rocking Around Albert Camus: Camus and the American rock

This article aims to explore the value that the notion of hybridisation can hold in a study of the interplay between literature and song. It focuses on the first album by the American rock band Titus Andronicus, The Airing of Grievances, , which establishes a dialogue with Albert Camus's works. This process informs the story told in the album, that is a fictional autobiography by Patrick Stickles, the author of the songs and leader of the band. His reinterpretations of Sisyphus and Meursault in particular help him structure his fictional alter ego. . First, we will analyse the pop-philosophical background that supports Stickles's narrative. Then, we will propose some analytical tools that hybridise elements of transtextuality and aspects of pop music semiotics. This will allow us to study Stickles's reinterpretations of Albert Camus's characters in three songs from The Airing of Grievances: : "Joset of Nazareth's Blues", "No Future Part II: The Day After No Future", and "Albert Camus". In this way, we will be able to analyse the process of hybridisation that structures Stickles's aesthetic identity.