Steel Birds is symbolic of the past. Danielle Doolin becomes determined to reunite the former rock duo because she wants to satisfy Steel Birds fans and resurrect the group’s old success. Throughout the novel, Beat Dawkins and Melody Gallard live in the proverbial shadow of their mothers’ Steel Birds-related fame and popularity. Although they were born around the time the band broke up, Beat and Melody cannot escape their mothers’ pasts. References and allusions to the duo throughout the narrative thus capture how the past continues to impact the protagonists’ lives in the present.

The “Wreck the Halls” project is symbolic of fame and media attention and supports the theme of The Complexities of Love Under the Spotlight. When Beat and Melody sign the contract with Danielle Doolin and the Applause Network, they are agreeing to spend the subsequent two weeks in the spotlight. The idea behind the project is for Beat and Melody “to meet with [their] mothers on camera to try and convince them to reunite” while Applause Network “film[s] the process” and broadcasts it to millions of online viewers (36).