I Just Read About That…

SOUNDTRACK–TY DOLLA $IGN-Tiny Desk Concert #877 [August 8, 2019]

On the year anniversary of Mac Miler’s Tiny Desk performance, Ty Dolla $ign and his band were doing a Tiny Desk Concert.  This is an except from it (the full show is supposed to be uploaded but as of April 2020 it still isn’t).

I don’t know the original at all, but what is interesting to me is the phenomenal guitar work Justus West and the always wonderful Thundercat on bass.

Last week, Ty Dolla $ign visited NPR headquarters to record a fantastic Tiny Desk concert of his own that will air in its entirety soon. But once we wrapped the taping, something special happened: I reminded Ty that he sat at the desk almost a year to the day that his friend, Mac, delivered what would be one of his final performances.

The band paused and huddled. They mulled over a few notes in a matter of seconds then gave me a signal that they were ready. The room was silenced and the cameras started rolling again.

Here’s Ty performing a moving rendition of his 2016 collaboration with Mac, “Cinderella” from Mac’s fourth studio album, The Divine Feminine. Ty’s flanked by two close friends of Mac, Thundercat on bass and Justus West on guitar, both of whom played at the Tiny Desk with the Pittsburgh-born rapper a year ago.

The rest of the band includes Cory Henry and Aliandro Prawl on keys, Mike Moore on drums and Ant Clemons on vocals.  It’s a very moving performance.

[READ: August 2019] Mind the Gap 1

I saw this book in the library and was intrigued by the title and the frankly fantastic/al looking cover image by Rodin Esquejo and Sonia Oback.

I had no idea what the story was about and I was frankly surprised by the plot and the way it was massaged.

The story opens with a woman, Jo, getting a call from her friend Elle, but it quickly gets disconnected.  Jo calls Dane and asks if Elle is with him. She says Elle sounded strange in the call and she was worried.  Soon enough Elle (Ellis) is brought into the hospital unconscious.  The next page we see her floating in an otherworld.  She can’t remember her name but she sees her body in the hospital.

She sees her friends and family in the hospital room with her family–this was a great way to show the petty differences and anger between the characters.

Back in the otherworld, things start to come into focus and Elle sees that there are a lot of other people/spirits in there with her.  One of them, a handsome guy named Blake Plangman, shows her around.

In another scene a doctor (I’m a little confused by the medical people) has a briefcase.  But he winds up in car accident when he swerves to avoid a (fake) deer.  The person who placed the deer takes the case and assures us that the doctor is alive,

As the chapter ends, Elle’s spirit is in the hospiatl.  She sees a dying man, Esteban, and just as his spirit leaves his body Elle’s enters it.  Esteban suddenly arises.  He walks down the hall saying, “Me llamo Elle,” before he collapses again.

Doctor Gina Geller has been very concerned with Elle’s case.  Doctor Hammond is technically in charge of this case and he doesn’t like Geller interfering.  He comes across as quite the dick.  Geller goes home to her wife (a policewoman whose entrance is pretty great).

As chapter two ends, the doctor who was in the car accident appears in the otherworld and says they have much to discuss.

When Elle looks back to earth, she sees Jo, who must be dreaming. Jo says there’s no way she’s watching Gentlemen Prefer Blondes and rooting for Roasalind Russell without you.  Elle shouts that its Jane Russell.  She says it over and over until Jo seems to feel her saying it.  The next day she tries to convince anyone who will listen that she got a message from Elle.

As the fourth chapter ends, Dane, who is Elle’s boyfriend is questioned for his part in her beating.  On the last page, Dane’s father shows up and says that Dane confessed the whole thing and he has the recording to prove it.

Flash back ten years and we see Dane’s father is an abusive drunken ass. Dane’s mother walked out on them.  His dad blames Dane but the neighbors assure him that his mom loved him and it was his sad that was the problem.

Then another flash back to one year ago shows how Dane and Elle met (a real meet cure).  Then we see them together at her parents’ house where her super rich parents inspect him harshly (“By the creases, I gather this is your first suit?”  “Tell me, where would a man with no need for a suit in his life originate?  How exactly were you raised?”).

Two fascinating developments happen at the end of the book.  We discover that Elle’s mother is somehow behind what happened to Elle and also that Elle is in the body of a young girl who has just called Jo and revealed a nickname that only Elle knows. What cold possibly happen next?

I know there’s a lot more volume in this series.  And although I found a lot of the book confusing, I am hooked and want to read more.