I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Greatest Hits (1987) & ROGUES GALLERY (2006).

RHEOSTATICS-Greatest Hits: I first found out about the Rheostatics many many years ago on a driving trip to Niagara Falls & Toronto. I bought Introducing Happiness and really liked their weird sensibilities. They don’t really sound like anyone else (except perhaps one or two of Neil Young’s phases); whether it’s Martin Tielli’s alto voice, the meandering guitar work, or the harmonies of Bidini and Vesely, the Rheostatics are uniquely them.

So, as I am wont to do, I got the rest of their catalog, including this, their first album, Greatest Hits. (Which is pretty funny to start with). What really strikes me, while re-listening to this record is how unlike the Rheos this really sounds. In my head the Rheos are linked to the cover of their Double Live album: a double neck guitar with a maple leaf on it. And yet, the first song on Greatest Hits is quite synthy.

It sounds like it could fit on a Jane Siberry album (The Speckless Sky in particular). Then two songs later they pull out one of their greats: “The Ballad of Wendel Clark Pts 1 and 2.” Possibly not the greatest debut, but a solid effort nonetheless. They didn’t put out another record until four years later (Melville) which really solidifies the sound of the Rheos and sets the stage for greatness. Sadly, they broke up about a year ago.

SOUNDTRACK PT 2: ROGUE’S GALLERY

My other selection for today is Rogue’s Gallery: a 2 cd set with a tenuous connection to the Pirates of the Caribbean movies. There’s some vaguely interesting backstory about the disc, but the summation is that the producer travelled to different hotspots and got the artists to do a shanty or two. The results are a remarkable mixed bag of well established artists (Nick Cave/Richard Thompson/Sting (!)) and less well established artists trying to do the aural equivalent of Johnny Depp’s acting in the Pirates movies. It’s good for a lark, and some nice chant-alongs.

[READ: Summer 2006] Alternatives to Sex.

I love Stephen McCauley. He writes great, fast reads. I first encountered him while living in Boston (cf. Oranges are Not the Only Fruit for my Boston/gay connection). I don’t recall how I first got turned onto him, probably a review in the Boston Phoenix (which was simply the best weekly going…although I’ve no idea what it’s like now). Anyhow, McCauley’s books are breezy and light, and yet they deal spectacularly with angst and love and angsty love and relationships, all surrounded by witty quips and great dialogue.

The plot is more or less beside the point. It involves a 40-something gay man and his attempts to find alternatives to sex. The post-traumatic stress of the Bush administration has led him into a life of promiscuity; but witnessing the happiness of a married couple has made him think about settling down, one way or another.

But what I’m trying to say is to just enjoy the book, and pass it along to someone else. It works particularly well if you’re just coming down from a big heavy book. Oh, and if you like this book, all of his others are similar in style and are to many people, even better than this one.