Well, this kind of thing is why I made this thread. I know people are passionate about this book, and I think I need to vicariously feed on them because I'm not always passionate about it.
I'm glad there's something to be gleaned without necessarily understanding everything because I'm not understanding a whole lot, but I am generally enjoying the rhythm of the writing as you put it. Pynchon is undeniably onto something here. I don't know if I'm into it enough to truly become familiar with the material, but I don't think I'll regret getting through it (if I do. I most likely will at this point.)