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Archive for the ‘Authors’ Category

T. Cooper–Real Man Adventures (2012)

Posted in Chris Pureka, Dynasty Handbag, Eminem, Fears, Geo Wyeth, Girls Against Boys, Hem, Indigo Girls, Marriage (Happy), Marty Cooper & The Rifters, McSweeney's, Memoirs, Our Lady J., Peg Hambright, Rick Moody, Rocco Katastrophe, Sarah McLachlan, Scott McCloud, Scott Miller & The Commonwealth, Sexism, Short Books, Soce the Elemental Wizard, T. Cooper, The Julie Ruin, Threats, Thunderegg, Transgender, Violence on May 16, 2014| Leave a Comment »

tcoop-realmanSOUNDTRACK: REAL MAN ADVENTURES: A Collection of (Mostly) Original Songs by (Entirely) Original Artists–All Inspired by the Book. (An Album! A Book! A Shark!) (2012).

realcdThis soundtrack came with my copy of the book, although it can be ordered separately as well.  It is a varied collection of music in many different genres.  The one thread is that many of the performers are either transgendered or are openly gay or some variation in between.  And lyrically the songs are based on chapters from the book (some literal and others use the book as a jumping off point).  No one can be expected to enjoy the whole disc (the musical styles are just too different), but there’s some really enjoyable and interesting music here.

 OUR LADY J. “Picture of a Man” (live)
I’d never heard of Our Lady J., but she is a transgendered classical singer and has worked with some of the greats in theater. The song opens with a piano solo for one minute.  It acts as an introduction to this theatrical piece (with big backing vocals) about what a man “really” looks like. I love the diversity in this song. It gets really big and quite over the top.

RICK MOODY-“The Closest I Ever Came to Writing a Poem”
Yes, writer Rick Moody wrote this thoughtful song. The music is simple, stark piano with Moody singing gently. It’s quite pretty.

SOCE, THE ELEMENTAL WIZARD-“He Will”
This is a rap song (in the style of Eminem), which addresses Cooper’s troubles with  getting a passport (the lyrics are taken mostly from the book). The rapper has fast flow and the lyrics are complex and interesting, although I don’t really like his delivery that much.  Still, it’s a great lyrical song. Soce is one of the few openly gay rappers.

T. COOPER & PEG HAMBRIGHT-“Interlude: high School”
A 34 second piano, well, interlude with words from the book.

HEM-“The Beautiful Sea”
This is a pretty song, reminiscent of Sarah McLachlan. Hem have a bit more oomph than Sarah, but are equally as pretty. This song was way too short.

THUNDEREGG-“The Guest Star of the Rest Stop”
This is a country(ish) song, with a vaguely out of tune guitar and slow droning vocals. I’d not heard of them before but I see they have dozens of records out. At 5 minutes, I found this one a little long.

T. COOPER & PEG HAMBRIGHT-“Interlude: College”
Another simple piano melody with words from the book.

SCOTT MILLER & THE COMMONWEALTH-“12th Man”
Another country song, this one about (not) playing football (always being the 12th man). It’s a sweet and sad song. Miller also has a number of albums out even though I’ve not heard of him either.

GEO WYETH-“Target Practice”
This song starts as a weird electronic track with sampled voices and then it morphs into a spare keyboard track with Wyeth’s kind of high vocals. It reminds me a bit of the Mountain Moats, but with keyboards instead of guitar. And I don’t like it as much.

CHRIS PUREKA-“Old Photographs”
Pureka has a lot of albums out too (and I thought I knew music). She is a delicate folksinger (until she really starts belting out the words at the end) reminding me of one half of the Indigo Girls. This was a really good, rather dark song.

DYNASTY HANDBAG-“One Man”
This is a sinister electronic/rap song detailing the fears of violence in the trans community.  Dynasty Handbag seems to be a loose cannon with some very interesting videos out there.  Definitely check her out.

T. COOPER & PEG HAMBRIGHT-“Interlude: My 20s”
This interlude is done on accordion.

THE JULIE RUIN “Girls Like Us” (Vag Vocal Version).
This is Kathleen Hannah’s band The Julie Ruin with special guest Vaginal Crème Davis (possibly not her given name) on vocals. Davis’ vocals are way over the top, but surprisingly not that different from the originals’ mocking tone (and cheesy synths).

SCOTT McCLOUD-“On My Darker Days”
McCloud is in Girls Against Boys.  This song is dark electric guitar (very processed) with virtually no percussion. The vocals are whispered as well.  I enjoyed the beginning but then felt it was a little samey and felt a little long even though it’s only 3 minutes.

ROCCO KATASTROPHE-“F.E.A.R.”
Katastrophe is a rapper (one of the first openly transgendered). His flow is strong and his lyrics are great. I don’t care for his backing music that much.  For although it is appropriately ominous, it feels a bit anemic.

MARTY COOPER WITH THE RIFTERS-“May You Always Ride in the Sunlight”
This sounds like an old timey cowboy song (I can’t find much else about Marty Cooper).  It’s a sweet song that would fit well at the end of any mix cd of good feeling songs. Even if you don’t like the genre, it’s hard not to like this song.

So this proves to be an interesting mix of songs, with a lot of ne (to me) artists.

[READ: May 1, 2014] Real Man Adventures

I didn’t know T. Cooper before receiving this book from McSweeney’s.  Cooper has written several novels although I didn’t recognize any of them when I looked them up (Lipshitz 6 sounds familiar though).  This book is a memoir.

What’s interesting is that Cooper talks about trying very hard to avoid reviewers referencing his past, and yet with this memoir he has completely outed himself.  I was going to try to not write about his past out of deference to his preferences, but since this memoir is all about his past it’s impossible not to.

So, if you know T. Cooper’s writing and you don’t want to know anything about his past, stop reading this and don’t read the book.

I know that I’ve made that enticing, which I didn’t mean to do.  And who knows, maybe fans of his writing already know this. (more…)

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Howard Stoeckel & Bob Andelman–The Wawa Way: How a Funny Name and Six Core Values Revolutionized Convenience (2014)

Posted in Advice, Bob Andelman, Business books, Canadian Music, Charity, Constellation Records, Hockey, Howard Stoeckel, Re: on May 15, 2014| Leave a Comment »

wawa SOUNDTRACK: RE:-Alms [CST032] (2004).

cst032webRe: creates soundtracks for a dystopian world.  Where metal and computers are integrated with nature.  So a track like “Golem” which opens this album starts with what sounds like a golem walking–trudging desolate feet. Then there’s big bells that echo throughout. The multi-note music that anchors the song is eerie and enticing.

This album does not use the same “gimmick” as the previous one, where song titles were all words that should have the re prefix.  So song two is called “Orientalism As A Humanism.”  It runs nearly 9 minutes and opens with what sounds like an alarm but may actually be mechanical sounds (a saw perhaps?). But it is softened to make it a very interesting sound that swirls around half of your head.  Meanwhile the other half of the song has a totally different sound.  By the 5 minute mark it is primarily drums and noises. Until that all drops off for a bit of static. Some loud percussive noises fill the song until it turns into a fast paced drums beat which lasts for just a few seconds before the songs ends.

‘On Golden Pond” opens with more footsteps. Then there some squeaks and a splash and a voice saying “splash it.” And later a voice saying “You should see our house” These recordings are so clean, I have to wonder what they are from.   “Radio Free Ramadi” opens with near silence. After about a minute of gradually increasing sounds, the big noisy electronics come in.  It is a big noisy blast of noise like the first album.  “Lasers, Tracers, Radar Drones” opens with gentle chimes and slowly melds different noises and electronics.  “Pawk” opens with an acoustic piano–a nice relief from the electronics. It’s a simple melody, stark and bare, and is interrupted by what sounds like people making seagull sounds. The disc ends with “Home Security” a song with a huge burst of noise and electronic malfunctions.

Once again, this album is not for the timid or those who dislike dissonance, but if you’re open to experimentation, Re: proves to be a very interesting band.

 [READ: May 13, 2014] The Wawa Way

For my birthday, I jokingly told my family that I wanted a Wawa Sizzli for breakfast, a Wawa Shorti for lunch, a Wawa Bowl for dinner and a Wawa chai latte for dessert. We didn’t have any of that (although I did get some Wawa chocolate milk before work), but suffice it to say I love my Wawas (most people have one, but I have two—the one by my house and the one by my work).

I grew up in North jersey where 7-11 was the king of convenience.  I loved the 7-11, it was handy and had all kinds of junk food available. But once I moved to Central Jersey, I discovered the amazingness of Wawa. (In truth I knew about Wawa from trips to South Jersey, but it was more of a novelty then).

What makes Wawa so superior? Most people would say their coffee. I don’t drink coffee, so I can’t address that.  But what I do like is their stuffed pretzels, their hoagies (and their touch screen for ordering), their milk and chocolate milk, their hot (non coffee) drinks and their newish cold drinks—all made to order. I also like their brightness and their cleanliness. And, when I go to the third Wawa (which is out of the way but close), I think their gas prices are fair and the people who work them are always nice. And, more impressively, they were open during Hurricane Sandy when so many other places were closed.

So when the family saw that a book about Wawa was coming out, it seemed an obvious choice for my birthday (purchased, I hope, at a Wawa for ½ off the cover price). (more…)

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John Brandon–A Million Heavens (2012)

Posted in Books about writers, Canadian Music, Constellation Records, Death, John Brandon, Marriage Trouble, McSweeney's, Re: on May 14, 2014| Leave a Comment »

millionSOUNDTRACK: RE:Mnant [CST015] (2001).

cst015webThere is a (tiny) gimmick with this album.  The band is called Re: and all of the songs have titles that work when you add “re” as a prefix.  So song titles include: 1. scue 2. duce 3. solute 4. cipe 5. straint 6. buke 7. pent 8. legate 9. volve 10. ject 11. gulate.  This makes me smile, even as the music can be a bit more challenging.

The first track is simply noise and electronic pulsing for 2 minutes. It melds into track 2 in which the noise ends but the electronic pulsing continues. Then a faster, newer noise comes in and stays there while the beeping gives us a rhythm. Then all the noise drops out and it is replaced by a more delicate wave of almost strings. Then what sounds like detuned strings play some notes while the noise is buzzing in the background and swirling around your head.  The 7 minute track 3 is a bit much. It opens with the sound of a kind of static and mechanical sounds. It has a feel of a horror movie soundtrack, especially as it builds and tension mounts with the “bass” notes that come through. Even though I find it long, by the time it really gets going I could listen to a lot more of it, I think the buildup at the beginning is too long.

The fourth track brings in some interesting percussive sounds, but mostly it seems to be about the background noises that swell and get in your head (those piercing high notes).   Track 5 introduces an acoustic guitar. I feel like this should have gone earlier so it’s not as much of a surprise at this stage. It’s quite a pretty melody (with more of those electronic noises floating around the background and it’s a nice interlude among all of the mechanicals. 6 also has a guitars–this time electric–playing a staccato rhythm. The chords are nice and there’s that persistent electronic noise floating around to keep it somewhat edgy.   7 employs feedback sounds and beats with what sounds like human voices. And interesting piece of soundtrack noise.

Track 8 starts off quietly but introduces some more guitar. There’ an interesting melody with the electronics buzzing around in the background.  9 has big percussion sounds and lasts a reasonable 3 minutes. 10 is an acoustic guitar song that reminds me of something Beck might do, and it’s too short at 2:15. The final track, 11, is mostly low pulsing sounds. It’s kind of meandering end to the disc that features a lot of uptempo noisy music.

[READ: April 25, 2014] A Million Heavens

I’ve enjoyed John Brandon’s other novels, and I had read an excerpt from this one in McSweeney’s #41.  I found it enjoyable and somewhat confusing.  And, actually that’s a bit how I feel about the book as a whole.

Each section of the book (from a paragraph to several pages) has a different character as its title.  What’s confusing is that it starts off with “The Wolf” who is a major character and is (for the most part) sentient and thoughtful.  The wolf roams the periphery (as wolves do) coming close to interacting with characters but seeming more like  a narrator than a character.  The next character we meet is Soren’s Father.

Soren’s Father’s story is a catalyst for much of the book’s action.  Soren was at piano practice.  He was a new student.  When the teacher walked away, he played a piece of beautiful music for about 15 seconds and then passed into a coma.  He has been in the coma for a few months now with no real hope of recovery but with no real indication of not recovering either.  Soren’s Father is a pragmatic man, not interested in the music his son played, nor in the plans and prayers of the people who are holding a vigil outside.  Really he just wants this over so he can go back to his old life.  But he is ever faithful to his son, sitting with him every day, letting his business slowly erode.  Over the course of the story, several people become connected to Soren’s Father.

The Piano Teacher is another character.  She feels responsible for all of this.  She didn’t want any kind of prodigy, if that’s what Soren is, she just wanted kids to play the piano badly so she could teach them to do better. (more…)

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Amy Fusselman–8 (2007) [reissued 2013]

Posted in Amy Fusselman, Babies, Black Ox Orkestar, Canadian Music, Constellation Records, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Marriage (Happy), McSweeney's, Memoirs, Short Books on May 13, 2014| Leave a Comment »

8 SOUNDTRACK: BLACK OX ORKESTAR-Nisht Azoy [CST038] (2006).

cst038webOn the second (and so far final) Black Ox Orkestar album, the songs are longer and the whole disc has a more polished feel.

It feels less like friends gathered on a night for music (which is what the first one seemed like) and more like a band playing the music in the studio.  There’s more precision in the instrumentation and more instrumentation overall.  The voices,  like on “Bukharian” are layered, bringing in bass voices that didn’t appear before.  The album also feels a bit more like a GYBE type of project–more building, more epicness.  “Tsvey Taybelakh” [Two Doves] is over 7 minutes long.  And even though a song like “Az Vey dem Tatn” [Sad Is the Father] is clearly Yiddish (the vocals are the big giveaway) they sound like more than folk songs, they sound bigger, more “important.”

“Violin Duet” has a slow mournful piece and then a sprightly fun dance piece.  “Ratsekr Grec” is a big instrumental dance piece that  sounds familiar but is not the song I’m thinking of (which is from a movie, I believe).  The 7 minute song actually has elements that feel a bit like Led Zeppelin’s “Kashmir” (with clarinet).  And the final song “Golem” begins like an epic with slow guitars and strings in a very traditional melody.  It has a number of false endings at around 3:30 and again at 5 minutes.  And since album has some translation of the lyrics, (which are still sung in Yiddish) we can see the lyrics move beyond traditional Yiddish yet are firmly grounded in them:

“We made a new golem/ We created our guard/ Without soul and without mercy/ He watches the gate/ Like the cameras on the fence/ Like the barbs on the wire/ Like the concrete barricades/ He becomes landscape/ But no. It can’t go on/ No. It can’t go on/ Not like this…,”

Again, if you don’t like traditional Yiddish music (or vocals sung in Yiddish) you won’t like this, although the adventurous may want to give it a chance.

[READ: May 6, 2014] 8

The cover above is actually not the cover of the version I read.  The McSweeney’s Two Books in One does not seem to have this cover for 8 anywhere (which is a shame because I like the way the covers of each book parallel each other (and make the infinity loop as well)).   Interestingly, the original version of the book featured the subtitle: “All True, Unbelievable.”  And that might be useful to include here too.

Amy Fusselman’s 8 is a sequel of sorts to The Pharmacist’s Mate.  In that book, she wanted to get pregnant.  In 8, she not only successfully gave birth to the boy from that first book, she has also had a second child.   And like many new parents, she understands that no matter how much you wanted children, sometimes for your own sanity you need to hide from them to have a few minutes to yourself.  It’s refreshing to read a normal person write about her children.  Especially when she and her husband try (and fail) to do sleep training.

But fortunately, that is not all Fusselman talks about.  She also talks about when she was raped as a shockingly young girl.  This tragic story is dealt with in a variety of ways and, surprisingly, never in a particularly dark or somber manner.  She calls her assailant “My pedophile” and spends a lot of the book working with alternative healers to come to grips with what happened to her.  And while this story is obviously hugely important in her life, it doesn’t seem to cloud everything she does.  (more…)

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Amy Fusselman–The Pharmacist’s Mate (2001) [reissued 2013]

Posted in Amy Fusselman, Black Ox Orkestar, Constellation Records, Marriage (Happy), McSweeney's, Memoirs, Pregnancy, Short Books, War on May 12, 2014| Leave a Comment »

pharm SOUNDTRACK: BLACK OX ORKESTAR-Ver Tanzt? [CST029] (2004).

cst029webBlack Ox Orkestar play traditional Yiddish music in a somewhat untraditional manner.

There are half instrumentals and half songs with vocals sung in Yiddish (which means I don’t know what they mean).  According to the Constellation website they are a: blend of originals and new arrangements for pieces pulled from various Eastern European songbooks.  And since the members come from “punk-rock, free-jazz, and other liberation musics,” it’s an approach to this music that may interest people who don’t normally like traditional music (and may turn off those who do).

.  I can’t really speak to the music, as I’m quite unfamiliar with it.  I prefer the instrumentals because I like the way the music tends to interweave.  Like “Cretan Song” which is a rollicking fun song like the Yiddish equivalent of an Irish seisún.  And yet. some of the vocals songs are really enjoyable too, like “Toyte Goyes in Shineln” which has a great melody and feels very familiar to me.  While “Ver Tantz?” begins as a slow melancholy song and turns rambunctious–almost chaotic.

Enjoyment depends on an appreciation for tradition Yiddish music, of course.

[READ: May 5, 2014] The Pharmacist’s Mate

I read this book a few years ago.  I read it again because McSweeney’s reissued it with Fusselman’s other book 8 on the flip side.  I wanted to read 8 and decided that since Pharmacist was so short I would read it as well.

And I’m glad I did because while they are not related exactly, they both work as a form of non-fiction and 8 is a nice postscript to what she talks about in Pharmacist.

As with most genre defying books, this is more or less a memoir, although it is written in a somewhat strange format–each small section is numbered (and eventually all the numbers turn into 1s because she realizes that she is starting anew with each section.

The Pharmacist’s mate of the title is her father, now deceased.  She includes notes from his time in the war as a sort of parallel to what’s going on with her own life. She very much wants a baby.  And through the book we see her engage in multiple ways of conceiving from natural to in vitro.  And then we read her angst about becoming a parent  And losing a parent. (more…)

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Jude Watson–A King’s Ransom [The 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers: Book Two] (2011)

Posted in Adventure, Biz Markee, Death, Fears, Greed, History, Jude Watson, Short Books, Threats, Travel, Violence on May 11, 2014| Leave a Comment »

ransomSOUNDTRACK: BIZ MARKEE-“Pancakes and Syrup” (2012).

awesome4Never really sure what to make of Biz Markee, it is nevertheless very hard to resist this anthem to a delicious breakfast.

Biz has one verse (the last two lines rhyme tummy with yum yum yum yum yum yum yummy) with some actual lyrics (I like that he rhymed syrup with Europe).  And another verse which is basically him saying “eat em up” and “yummy” over and over.

But the real sell (as if that wasn’t enough) is the super catchy, utterly fun-to-sing-along-to chorus “Pancakes and Syrup…It’s breakfast time!”

You have to be pretty curmudgeonly to dislike this son , especially since it is only a minute and 16 seconds long.  Although I’m not sure why he seems so mad at the end….

[READ: May 6, 2014] A King’s Ransom

As I said, I was totally hooked by Book 1 of this new series and I started book two before the first one was even cold. I had to know what was going on!

Because the new task for Dan and Amy Cahill is to steal an ancient map that no one has seen for generations.  And there’s no clue as to where it might even be.  And if they don’t find it ion four days one of their kidnapped relatives will be killed.  Not to mention, they are being followed by Interpol and they have alienated Dan’s only friend.  And as the story starts, they learn that one of the new enemies that they knew about (Caspar Wyoming) has a twin sister, Cheyenne.  And she spends the first few chapters of the book spying on them.

It turns out that Cheyenne has been promoted to V-6 in the Vesper hierarchy (her brother was V-6 but he was dropped down and he is super angry that she overtook him).  And with Caspar angry at the Cahills and at V-1, who know just what he’ll do.

So Dan and Amy are on their way to Lucerne, Switzerland to find the de Virga World map which was created in 1411.  Their lead is an auction house where it was last seen–over fifty years ago.  This search leads to a history of Nazis and a woman (who turns out to be related to someone on their team) who fought the Nazis in her own way.  The auction house is a funny, chaotic scene–especially when a fax from Interpol comes in and shows their passport pictures. (more…)

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Gordon Korman–The Medusa Plot [The 39 Clues: Cahills vs. Vespers: Book One] (2011)

Posted in Adventure, Death, Fears, Gordon Korman, Greed, History, Michelangelo Merisi (or Amerighi) da Caravaggio, Peter, Bjorn & John, Short Books, Threats, Travel, Violence, War, Yo Gabba Gabba on May 10, 2014| Leave a Comment »

medusaSOUNDTRACK: PETER BJORN & JOHN-“I Wish I Was a Spy” (2012).

awesome4Yo Gabba Gabba has always been a source of interesting music–very cool bands devote time and music to this, frankly bizarre kids show.

This song from Peter Bjorn and John is fantastic.  While the lyrics are kid friendly, there’s no reason that this song need be played only for kids.

The song opens with a good vibrato “spy” guitar lick and vocal breaths.  The unusual percussion really shows how much this song sounds like a PB&J song even if it is of a very specific genre.  When the vocals come in (sounding very PB&J), the lyrics simply state that he wishes he was a spy, and then he gives some great examples of what he would do as a spy.

But the big surprise comes from the chorus which s bright and bouncy and talks about how we can all pretend we are all agents.

The Yo Gabba Gabba version ends at 2 minutes, but the extended version has more instrumental surf/spy guitar work.  It’s kind of an extraneous coda, but the sound they capture is really cool, so it’s fun to get the extra minute of guitar work.

[READ: May 6, 2014] The Medusa Plot

When I finished Vespers Rising, I said I would pace myself because the Cahills vs. Vespers series was six book which would conclude in March 2013.  Clearly I paced myself too slowly because here it is May 2014, Cahils vs. vespers is long done, and they are on the next series already.

But hey, I’m not playing the online game so there’s no time constraints for me.

Also, Clark started reading the original series so I wanted to keep a little ahead of him.  It seemed like a good time to start this middle series.

And man, once I started reading I was immediately brought back into the exciting world of Dan and Amy Cahill.  I had forgotten about the short story in Vespers Rising (about the ring that Amy now has) and about the Vespers in general.  But that didn’t matter, because it was quickly set up that the Vespers (led by the unknown V-1) in particular are bad and they will stop at nothing to achieve their goal (which we don’t know yet).

It has been two years since the end of the 39 Clues.  As the book opens, several members of the disparate Cahill family clan are kidnapped: Fiske Cahill, Reagan Holt, Natalie Kabra (who, with her brother is now poor since their evil mother disowned them for not being evil enough), Alistair Oh (no!) and Ted Starling (his brother Ned escaped), Phoenix Wizard (Jonah’s little cousin) and, gasp, Nellie Gomez!  They are taken to an undisclosed location, given jumpsuits and left in a small cell with nothing to do and minimal food on a regular basis. (more…)

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Ben Marcus–“I Can Say Many Nice Things” (Harper’s, December 2013)

Posted in Ben Marcus, Books about writers, Canadian Music, Constellation Records, Funny (ha ha), Godspeed You Black Emperor, HangedUp, Harper's, Marriage Trouble, Short Story on May 9, 2014| Leave a Comment »

dec20133SOUNDTRACK: HANGEDUP-Clatter for Control [CST034] (2005).

clatterClatter for Control is Hangedup’s third and (so far) last album.  As Kicker was an evolution from their debut, Clatter feels like an evolution as well.  It feels like a more experimental work with fewer “proper’ songs proper and more soundscapes and ideas.

“Klang Klang” is a fast, yes, klanging song.  The viola is slightly discordant and the riffs are abrupt and staccato and it builds into a frenzy.  “Alarm” is more spooky sounding with tape manipulation. “A Different Kind Of Function” starts with some staccato notes and then builds into merging lines of viola and feels almost like a remix song.  “Kick-Back-Hub” is 90 seconds of squeaking bowing and metal clanking along with some very fast drums. It melds into “Eksplozije” which is 2:25 and is more feedback and big noisy drums.

“Go Let’s Go” feels like an actual song with riffs and chords, while “Derailleur” is another short piece, just under 2 minutes of noise and rattling and wildly untuned viola sounds.  “Fuck This Place” has a bass guitar although you wouldn’t necessarily know it (there is more bottom end), it feels like the viola is actually vocal samplings which is neat. “How We Keep Time” is a slower song with languorous viola sounds and sparse drumming.  “Junk The Clatter” feels like the most song like of the bunch. After a minute intro a fully realized riff comes out.  There’s some beautiful melodies and when the song ends it has a cool rocking section.

I prefer Kicker in Tow, but there’s record is a lot of fun too, full of unusual and discordant sounds–if you like that sort of thing.

 [READ: May 5, 2014] “I Can Say Many Nice Things”

I wound up reading about 3/4 of this story in one sitting and I loved it.  But when I came back to finish the end, I didn’t really like it as much.  I though the first part was engaging and complex without being convoluted.  I was interested in the direction the story was going and I was disappointed that it went where it did.  The ending ultimately makes sense within the context of the story, but I enjoyed so much of what happened before that I guess I didn’t want it to end.

So what was so great?

Fleming is an writing teacher.  A disgruntled and unpopular writing teacher.  He has been given a chance to teach a writing class… on a cruise!  A five day cruise with all expenses paid and ten well-paying students signed up for a morning and afternoon class.  Everyone he knew thought he was so lucky (colleagues pretended to be jealous)–it would certainly be an easy way to rack up positive evaluations from happy cruisers?  But Fleming is a pretty miserable guy.  He’s even more miserable because he intended to get in shape for the cruise, but in fact he got fatter, and he feels lousy about himself.

Even though at heart this is a story about teaching and writing (typically not great story topics), the set up is unusual–especially as we slowly come to realize that he is trapped on this ship. And when you add in some of the other details, I thought this was a really interesting setup.

Here’s some details that i found compelling. (more…)

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Dorthe Nors–“Flight” (Harper’s, December 2013)

Posted in Constellation Records, Dorthe Nors, Godspeed You Black Emperor, HangedUp, Harper's, Marriage Trouble, Short Story, Travel on May 8, 2014| Leave a Comment »

dec20133SOUNDTRACK: HANGEDUP-Kicker in Tow [CST022] (2002).

hanged2Hangedup’s second album is bigger and better than the debut (which was pretty good to start with).  This one is far more intense, and much better sounding.

I love the way the first song “Kinetic Work” starts out in such a fast and intense fashion and then shifts gears to a slower beat about 90 seconds in. Then it reverts back to a fast building song, growing very intense by the end.  “Sink” is a scattered affair with the drums taking “lead” playing all kinds of noises and rhythms over the slow beat of the strings. “Losing your charm” is more about tone and mood—with a steady pulsing beat and ever more energetic strings. It sends a middle eastern vibe too.

“View from the Ground” brings in some more unusual sounds—very machine like (with lots of echo on the percussion). And the strings sound a bit more like guitars here. “Moment for the Motion Machine” is a 1 minute 28 second precursor to the 13 minute “No More Bad Future.” If there was ever an epic instrumental of two instruments, it is this. Like a suite from GYBE, it builds slowly with grinding viola and occasional mechanical percussion.  The song changes pace and then assumes a kind of martial beat at around 5 minutes in. And then shifts gears growing more and more intense until the end.

“Motorcycle Muffler” is metallic and machine-like with interesting effects on the cool ringing tones–it sounds like he may be actually banging on a muffler.  “Automatic Spark Control” starts slowly but builds aggressively with the occasional ringing note as a progress bar. “Broken Reel” ends the disc with a slow series of viola chords (and overdubs). The title implies and the song sounds like an Irish dance, and it does, but one that is well, broken and several paces too slow.  It’s quite a change from the rest of the record, but it shows an expanding style and shows just how much they can do with two instruments. Hangedup is a very cool experimental band for those who like melodic noise.

 [READ: May 2, 2014] “Flight”

This story is about a very stoic couple breaking up.  It is narrated by the woman.  She says that her husband, Allan, left her about a year ago.

When they were first together he talked about her in a way that sounded like he felt they had a cozy life,

like the castles he used to build out of straw bales when he was a boy.  Inside the castle was a den in which to eat cookies and drink fruit juice while listening to the rumble of the combine in the next field.  That’s what being with me was like, Allan, said.

But it seems that it was really more suffocating than cozy.  Allan worked for a wind farm company and traveled the world as a technical consultant.  But he never told her anything about where he went–he found it hard to describe and explain.  So she eventually bought him a camera.  He took pictures and sent them to her from around the world.  But he got back he still had nothing to say to her.

dolly-sods-wilderness-west-virginia-hdr-photography-sunsetThe one place that is mentioned in the story is Dolly Sods, West Virginia, (see this cool photo to the right of Dolly Sods from Captain Kimono).  [I had never heard of Dolly Sods Wilderness, but it is protected land and is described : Dolly Sods is an area of high elevation wind-swept plains on the Allegheny Plateau. At elevations of 2,600 to over 4,000 feet, the area has extensive flat rocky plains, upland bogs, beaver ponds, and sweeping vistas. The plant life and climate on this high plateau resembles northern Canada, and many species found here are near their southernmost range].  The narrator explains how there are parts of Dolly Sods that have never been touched by human hands.  In the picture that Allan sent from there, he is next to a wind turbine that is going to be put up. (more…)

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Jesse Ball–“Interview 8 (Mother)” (Harper’s, December 2013)

Posted in Canadian Music, Constellation Records, Efrim Manuel Menuck, Excerpt, HangedUp, Harper's, Huh?, Jesse Ball on May 7, 2014| Leave a Comment »

dec20133SOUNDTRACK: HANGEDUP-HangedUp [CST016] (2001).

hanged1Hangedup is a noisy band made up of two people: Genevieve Heistek on viola (often looped) and Eric Craven on drums and percussion.  The whole enterprise has a kind of DIY sound—like (very good) first takes done in fit of creative outpouring.

 “Winternational” opens the disc with slow and somber viola.  But after 1:41 the drums come in and the tempo changes into complex song–the way that simple patterns morphs around is really cool. It turns into a great instrumental song, with a low, almost detuned bass sound and lots of percussion. “Propane Tank” has more great weird percussion (sounding like he’s possibly hitting everything in the room). The sounds are manipulated and twisted but make a very interesting beat.  It’s pretty cool “Powered By Steam” builds then slows with some great strings and percussive sounds following in and out of a strong melody.  “New Blue Monday” is more of the same but with a new an interesting beat arrangement and texture. It also has a great ‘riff” and melody .

“Tapping” is mostly drums (tapping). The beginning is a little monotonous although the effects in the background are interesting to try to imagine what they are.  It builds slowly so by around 5 minutes the song has some momentum.  I imagine its interesting to see live and it works for a slow building monster song but its dull compared to the rest of the disc.  “Czech Disco Pt.II” makes up for it with frenetic drums and viola. “Wilt” plays with interesting bell-like percussion.  “Bring Yr Scuba Gear” has building viola; however, this song has bass guitars (guest bassist Ian Ilavsky who is also on “Powered by Steam”) and overdubs by Efrim Menuck which make this the most traditional sounding rock song of the bunch. Which is no bad thing.

Hangedup are certainly experimental but they are very cool and different sounding, too.

[READ: May 5, 2014] “Interview 8 (Mother)”

This is an excerpt from Ball’s novel Silence Once Begun.  As such, it’s a little hard to talk about it fairly.

It begins with an interviewer’s note that he was awoken by Mrs Oda who felt she needed to clear something up.   The rest of the except takes the form of an interview.

Mrs Oda tells a story about Jiro, (presumably her son) about why he cannot be trusted.  Her story concerns Jiro when he was young.  He would pretend that he was a lord and he would preside in judgment over his toys.  All the toys (even things like blocks or spoons) would plead to him for something.  First they would all shout at once and he would declare that they would all be executed if they could not speak in turn.

Then each toy would make its case (perhaps it didn’t like where it was placed last night).  Regardless of what the toy asked for, his response was the same to each one: “Don’t open your mouth again or I’ll have you killed.” (more…)

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