SOUNDTRACK: BLUE ÖYSTER CULT-Spectres (1977).
Let’s face it, Blue Öyster Cult are silly. If I didn’t know better I would swear that Spinal Tap is a takeoff on them. And yet, they have such well regarded people associated with them: Patti Smith; Michael Moorcock! I first got into BOC because of MTV. Back when MTV first came out they played videos by basically anyone who had a video. And it seemed that at the time it was mostly new wave and metal bands. And naturally, we metal heads embraced all of the metal videos and scoffed at the new wave ones. But it was through MTV that I found out about some of the best metal bands around: Judas Priest, Iron Maiden, Blue Öyster Cult to name just a couple. And it was through MTV that I got Fire of Unknown Origin, my favorite BOC record. Several years later when I got to college my roommate was a huge Rush and BOC fan. He got me into BOC in a big way, and even though I know they’re silly, I still love ’em. And this album is a pretty strong classic.
It has the great silly song, “Godzilla.” The hilariously Spinal Tapesque “R U Ready 2 Rock” (with the great chorus answer: Yes, I am.) And of course, “The Golden Age of Metal.” It also contains possibly the worst BOC song I can think of “Going Through the Motions”: A tinkly keyboardy song that belies BOC’s metal roots, and the apparently unironic chorus that they are just “Going Through the Motions.” Weird. Anyhow, I’ve been enjoying the reissues of the BOC CDs, and am looking forward to the special treatment that Fire of Unknown Origin ultimately gets.
[READ: July 28, 2007] The Secret Language of Sleep: A Couple’s Guide to the Thirty-Nine Positions.
I bought this book through the McSweeney’s sale. It looked really funny. And it is. Funny enough that I can’t decide if it’s all a joke, or an actual guide tarted up like a joke. The premise is fairly simple: there are 39 different sleeping positions, grouped by one of the four “elements:” Sun, Wind, Sea and Wood. And these positions range from the common Spoon Position to the rather ludicrous Springloader. What is so very intriguing and simultaneously disconcerting about the book is the way claims to realism are balanced with great absurdity. Suggesting that the way you sleep can determine your personality seems reasonable, and further, that changing the way you sleep can similarly have an impact on your personality also seems plausible.
But as we go further down that line, saying “[People who sleep in the Ventriloquist position’s] natural charisma is so potent that they easily charm their way into a new job or group of friends” surely belies that this is all a joke, right? I hate to seem so gullible about a work like this, especially since, joke or not, I enjoyed reading it. I simply don’t know how much the author takes it seriously.
For ease of searching I include: Blue Oyster Cult
I Just Read About That... 
Hello Paul,
If I were to describe the book, I’d say I definitely took the topic seriously, but wrote about it more from a place of personal insight and experience vs. hard/fast science, if that helps you sort through the “what the hell is this?” question?
Thanks so much for buying the book, I’m so happy you enjoyed reading it!
Yay!
Evany (the author)
Thanks Evany! Best answer ever! I’m glad to hear that it’s not a joke. If you read the reply, you can tell me if you made up the names yourself or if the folks who you know who use those positions came up with the names. (Surely you didn’t try ALL of them yourself!) But, indeed, maybe I ought to try that ventriloquist’s position after all. I meant to say in the review, so I’ll add it now, that the illustrations are great too. Very helpful.