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Archive for the ‘Death’ Category

James Joyce–Ulysses (1922) [abridged audiobook 2000–Jim Norton & Marcella Riordan]

Posted in Death, Drinking, Dublin, Ireland, Irish Writer, James Joyce, Jim Norton, Language, Marcella Riordan, Masturbation, Prostitution, Sex on October 4, 2010| Leave a Comment »

[LISTENED TO: September 27, 2010] Ulysses [abridged]

Because I am a glutton for punishment, I decided to listen to the abridged version of Ulysses as well (what’s 4 more hours of my life?).  (This edition is by Naxos, which Amazon is selling as a download).  I decided that the main reason was that since I have the text so fresh in my mind, it would be interesting to see what they abridged.  I mentioned in a recent post that the abridged version is 4 discs (just under 5 hours).  That is a serious abridgment, from 40 to 5 hours (actually the Naxos unabridged version is only 22 discs…how come theirs is so much shorter?  It seems that Jim Norton reads much faster).  And I am curious to see what they consider the “essential” text of the book.  Plus, realistically, I would never really want to do it at a later date.

So this version is read by two different people: Jim Norton (who read Dubliners, Portrait, and an abridged Finnegans Wake too) and Marcella Riordan.  There are a number of places where the two interact (she is Molly in the early scene in bed and she is some of the whores in the nightwon scene…it adds some real dramatic resonance to the story). (more…)

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Iain Banks–The Wasp Factory (1984)

Posted in Bret Easton Ellis, Death, Drinking, Iain Banks, Rapeman, Threats, Unlikable main character, Violence, Yuck! on September 30, 2010| 1 Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: RAPEMAN-Two Nuns an a Pack Mule (1989).

One of Steve Albini’s many groups, Rapeman made one album and an EP (both are included on the CD).  Probably the most striking thing about this CD is Albini’s guitar which is so sharp it practically hurts (and when your guitar is more notable than the lyrics from a band named Rapeman, you know that sound is pretty striking).  [You can hear hints of this sound on Nirvana’s In Utero (which Albini produced), particularly the screamy parts of “Scentless Apprentice”.  The template is the same, although Nirvana’s drums are much much bigger. And, of course, Albini leaves the sonic edge really sharp for himself].

Although the guitar is what really stands out on this disc, the album would be far less interesting if the rhythm section wasn’t so strong.  The bass is mixed really well, running lines that are never in concert with the guitar lines but which blend nicely and provide some needed low end.  And the drums are sharp and punctuate the noise perfectly.

The opening of “Monobrow” is squeaks and feedback (I wonder if you could even write the music for it).  When the rhythm kick in, it gives a herky jerky momentum.  There’s an interesting twist on a song like “Trouser Minnow” which is written from a woman’s perspective (and yet she’s not an exemplary woman either) so you can read it a couple of ways.  Of course, the opener, “Steak and Black Onions” is unequivocal: “Why don’t you snuff it man, you plant-eating pussy.”

But there’s definitely a sense of humor to all of this.  In “Up beat” Albini gets angry and suggests that he’d beat a guy up.  It ends, “I suppose I’m not too threatening presently.  But wait till I start Nautilus.”  There’s also something funny (I think) about them covering ZZ Top’s “Just Got Paid.”  Funny or not, this version rocks like no one’s business, and it shows that Albini can actually play the guitar, not just make noise.

The Budd EP was recorded live.  I love the description of the review here.  It sounds less screechy (and more bass heavy), but no less menacing.

[READ: September, 16, 2010] The Wasp Factory

I bought this book many many years ago (I found a card in the pages from when I used to live in Brighton, MA (circa 1992) as a “bookmark.”  But I think that the bookmark must have been not a real placeholder as nothing in the book was familiar, I just knew that it was supposed to be a dark, disturbing book.

And so it is.

The story concerns Frank, a 16-year-old who lives on an island outside of Scotland (my knowledge of Scottish geography is awful, so I don’t know exactly what he meant by an island, but suffice it to say that Frank’s family is isolated where they live).  Frank is a disturbed individual.  As the story opens, we learn that death and carnage follow Frank everywhere.  In fact, Frank admits responsibility for three of these deaths. (more…)

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The Kids in the Hall: Death Come to Town (2010)

Posted in Canadian Content, Craig Northey, Death, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Oddities, Odds, Prison, The Kids in the Hall, The Kids in the Hall: Death Comes to Town on September 26, 2010| Leave a Comment »

Beloved Canadians The Kids in the Hall who were hilarious for five years on their skit show (and who ended their reign while still being very funny) have returned to TV after a sixteen year hiatus (not including their underrated movie Brain Candy and their awesome live tours, naturally).

I was beside myself with excitement when I found out about this show (and I’m rather vexed that I didn’t hear about it until it showed up on IFC recently.  Although I suppose if I had known about it sooner, there’s no way I could have watched it anyhow).   I was also kind of surprised at how little I knew about the show before it started.  How many episodes were there for instance?

So, the details (now that the show has finished its run on IFC, with repeats to come, no doubt): It is an 8 episode mini-series.  All of the Kids are in the show, and they each play multiple roles (although the opening credits and promo stuff suggest that they each play one character).  They play:

Bruce:  Mayor Bowman, “Big City” Lawyer (one of my favorites on the show), and Ricky (an obese man).
Dave: Mrs Bowman, Levon Blanchard (news producer), Dr Porterhouse (The town abortionist), and a wonderfully ambiguously accented, where-the-hell-is-she-from? nurse (my favorite minor character by far).
Kevin: Marnie (a forgetful, middle aged woman), Shaye (the news teams’ sound guy and hipster) and Sam Murray (depressed cat loving DA).
Scott: Crim Hollingsworth (1/16th Native and a great performance by Scott), Heather Weather (the TV weather woman), and Dusty Diamond (town coroner).
Mark: Corrinda Gablechuck (anchorwoman), The Judge, and the titular Death.
Bruce & Mark also play cops, like in the old series.

There are also other actors in the series, and (according to post show interviews) a lot of the locals from Shuckton, Ontario (which is really North Bay) were used as extras.

I admit that I was a little disappointed in the first episode. After the non-stop hilarity of the skit show, this one took some time to get going.  Exposition is a bitch.  But there’s enough humor (the opening with Bruce’s CGI bid for the 2028 Olympics, Death’s arrival on a kids’ bicycle (with a motor), and Dave as the drunken mayor’s wife) to keep the show interesting.

Once the exposition is out of the way though, the story is just fantastic and very funny. (more…)

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Wells Tower–”Love in the Ruins” (Outside, March 2007)

Posted in Alexisonfire, Biking, Canadian Music, City and Colour, Corporate skewering, Death, Natural Disasters, Nazis, Outside, Wells Tower on September 24, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: CITY AND COLOUR-Live @ The Orange Lounge EP (2010).

City and Colour is Dallas Green from Alexisonfire (he’s the one with the good singing voice as opposed to the screamy guy).

This EP contains 6 songs, 4 from his last album Bring me Your Love and the 2 hits from his first album Sometimes.

As with his previous live release [Live CD/DVD], he sings these songs solo.  Each song is done on acoustic guitar.  But unlike that Live album, this disc does not appear to have been recorded in front of an audience.  There is no cheering, no banter, just him and his guitar.

If you’re a fan of Green (and you really like his voice) this is a great release.  There are several spots where he sings in if not acapella, then with very quiet musical accompaniment so his voice is pretty naked.  This is a limited edition EP (apparently) but it’s a really good introduction to the man and his music.

I must say though that I never noticed just how obsessed with death he is!  This recording style really highlights all the times he says death or dead.  Huh.

[READ: September 12, 2010] “Love in the Ruins”

This was the darkest of all of Wells Tower’s Outside magazine pieces.  And although it has some humor, for the most part it was a sad lost-love letter to a city that he once knew.

One year after Hurricane Katrina, Tower went back to New Orlenas to ride his bike.  He had lived in New Orleans for a short time before Katrina hit and he used to ride his bike for long stretches across the Mississippi River levee.  He decided to revisit it to see what it was like after the disaster. (more…)

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James Joyce–[Week 8] Ulysses (1922) [Penelope]

Posted in Big Books, Death, Fantasy, Funny (ha ha), Infinite Zombies, Irish Writer, James Joyce, Marriage (Happy), Marriage Trouble, Pregnancy, Sex, Sinéad O'Connor on August 30, 2010| 2 Comments »

SOUNDTRACK: SINÉAD O’CONNOR-The Lion and the Cobra (1987).

I was tempted to say that this album came before all of the controversy.  But then, she’s always had controversy around her.  Just the fact that she had her head shaved was enough to incite some people to alarm (not to mention, we never received this more fierce looking album cover).

But before all of the success of “Nothing Compared 2 U,” she released this amazing, empassioned debut album.

I’ve no idea what the first track is about, but there’s something about her voice on the “oh’s” in particular that still gives me chills.  “Mandinka” has a great guitar sound (seemingly destined for hit radio) that seems very out of place on this disc (again, I’m lost on the lyrics here, too).

The album comes into its own with the really odd but delightful “Jerusalem.”  Musically it’s got a sort of funk base which resolves itself into a very winning chorus.  And, once again, her voice sounds otherworldly.  It’s followed by the largely acoustic “Just Like U Said it Would B” (Prince fan much?).  It’s a  fairly simple song (with interesting arrangement–I like the flute) that builds to a strong climax.

“Never Get Old” opens with some spoken Irish (and features future star Enya), but it’s “Troy” that is the absolute breakthrough on this disc.  From the occasionall string swells, to the eerie silences to the incredible heights that she reaches (and the notes that she can hold) it’s really tremendous.

“I Want Your Hands on Me” seems like another grab for a single.  The single version featured a bizarre little rap from MC Lyte.  In the pantheon of silly rap lyrics, I’ve alwys kept this near the top: “I’m not the kind of girl to put on a show coz when I say no, yo I mean no.”  Sentiment and good intentions aside, it’s very clumsy.   Not my favoite track.

The final two, “Drink Before the War” and “Just Call Me Joe” are interesting denouements after the pop of “Hands.”  “Drink is a slow paced, somewhat quiet track, until the chorus really blasts off.  And “Joe” sounds like a demo: a raw electric guitar, cranked way up (but mixed quietly) accompanying Sinéad’s instructions to just call her Joe.

In some ways this album is less subtle, and by that reckoning, less sophisticated, than the bajillion-selling follow up, but I find the naked passion on this disc to be even more amazing.

[READ: Week of August 30, 2010] Ulysses: Episodes 18

The final chapter of Ulysses is all about Molly.  It enters her head and doesn’t leave.  It doesn’t even pause for punctuation (there’s none in the entire chapter except for the final period).  There are paragraph breaks, which means that there are eight sentences in total.

The Episode is crass and sexual, beautiful and moving, personal and insightful and it seems incredibly forward thinking coming from a male writer.  And although it gets a lot more press as a stream of consciouness piece, it’s not that far removed from Stephen’s or Bloom’s pieces, [except that she doesn’t actually intearct with anyone to interrupt her thoughts].

The Epsiode reflects upon what we’ve learned in the day.  It inadvenrtanetly corrects some misperceptions (regarding Molly’s past infidelities–she didn’t have any–), but it also shows some pretty poor judgments on Molly’s part (mostly regarding Stephen).  And there’s just so much going on in the episode that it’s hard to catalog it all.   But it is certainly full of a lot of sexual thoughts. (more…)

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Anonymous–“Los Malos” (Harper’s, September 2010)

Posted in A House, David Noriega, Death, Drugs, Essays, Fears, Harper's, James, Roberto Bolaño, Violence on August 25, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: A HOUSE-I Want Too Much (1990).

I Want Too Much saw a bit of a stylistic shift from the sort of generic indie rock of the first album.  Dave Couse’s voice begins to really come into its own with a lot of yelping and higher notes.

The album overall is more experimental, a good stepping stone towards I Am the Greatest.  This is probably the last A House record I bought (from Amoeba Records!).  And again, had I bought it in 1990, I think I would have loved it.

As it is, it reminds me, once again, of the era (in fact, this album reminds me a lot of James circa 1990).  The lyrics are slightly more deep than on the first disc, but I honestly can’t say that the songs really stick out for me.

I may have come to the party too late for this one.

[READ: August 20, 2010] “Los Malos”

This was something of a banner issue of Harper’s for me.  I’d been kind of down on the magazine over the last several months as I felt the really good stuff just hadn’t been here.  But this issue was packed with great articles.

I was keenly interested in this article because I have recently read Roberto Bolaños’ 2666.  That novel is concerned with the senseless and random killings of so many women around Juarez, Mexico.  That news story seemed to be just catching on in the mainstream press when it was supplanted by this new horror story that border cities in Mexico are hotbeds of drug-related murders (of men and women).  Strangely, I don’t know if the Juarez situation has calmed down or if this is a concurrent mass murder scenario along the border. (more…)

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James Joyce–[Week 6] Ulysses (1922) [Circe]

Posted in Aerosmith, Big Books, Death, Drinking, Dublin, Ireland, Fears, History, Irish Writer, James Joyce, Marianne Faithfull, Masturbation, Political Humor, Prostitution, Run D.M.C, Sex, Sinéad O'Connor, The Chieftains, The Rolling Stones, Tom Jones, Unreliable narrator, Violence on August 16, 2010| 2 Comments »

SOUNDTRACK: THE CHIEFTAINS-The Long Black Veil

Like the Dubliners, The Chieftains are a bunch of old men who play traditional Irish music.  Unlike the Dubliners, they have gained a fan base beyond the trad scene.  This album in particular features a great deal of crossover material.

Guest singers include: Sting (singing in Irish!), The Rolling Stones, Sinéad O’ Connor, Marianne Faithfull,Van Morrison and Tom Jones (!)

The Sinéad tracks are really great, as she uses her voice wonderfully on the spare musical tracks. “The Foggy Dew” is particularly powerful, and “He Moved Through the Fair” isn’t too shabby either).

Sting’s track is very Sting (with trad accompaniment); Mick Jagger sings the title track, but it doesn’t do a lot for me.  Van Morrison is Van Morrison, regardless of who he’s playing with.  And Tom Jones is so over the top on “Tennessee Waltz” that it’s hard not to laugh with him.

The song with no guests, “Changing Your Demeanor” is a cute Oirishy song with deedly-ee-ayes.

It’s the final song, “The Rocky Road to Dublin” (which I’ve already said is a favorite by other artists) that fares the worst here.  About midway through the song, The Stones seem to burst in (think Run DMC & Aerosmith but a lot older) and play a really sloppy version of “Satisfaction” while The Chieftains are playing their trad song.  Nobody fares well in this version and it’s a shame to have included it on an otherwise good disc.

This is not really a good place to hear the Chieftains as a trad outfit.  It’s certainly more of a showcase album.  But it might work as a crossover introduction to some of these songs.  And yes, the album is very adult contemporary…there’s not a lot of rocking going on here.

[READ: Week of August 16, 2010] Ulysses: Episode 15 [Circe]

This is the Episode I remember most from my previous reads.  I didn’t remember the details, mind you, just the absolute insanity of it.  This is also the place where you can look if you’ve ever wondered why this book was brought up on obscenity charges.  Those first few chapters, with the outhouse and the impure thoughts are mild; even Bloom’s masturbation, while controversial doesn’t hold a candle to all of the insanity that is contained within this Episode.

It was also the only week where we read just one Episode.  And that’s because it is loooooong.  True, it is written in play form (ie, lots of white space), but it is still about 4 times longer than any other Episode.  And man is it a doozy.

I’ve already read that Daryl was just going to write WTF about this Episode.  Of course, that’s sort of what I felt about the previous one, so I guess it’s no surprise that I did enjoy the nonsense of this one.  I’ve always had a great appreciation for the absurd, so this is right up my alley.  This is not in any way to suggest that I understood it, even a little.  But there were parts that I laughed at and parts that I smiled at and parts that I practically blushed at.  Good fun!

Of course, the big question in this chapter is (aside from what the hell is going on and why is it so long) what’s real and what’s Bloom’s fever dream.  This is preceded by the big question of why Bloom is having these fever dreams (or whatever they are).  I’ve been under the impression that he is drunk (but my tenuous following of the previous chapter makes me a little unsure just how drunk he was or if he drank at all.)

In a nutshell what happens is that Stephen (and Lynch) go to the red light district.  Bloom follows behind.  Bloom had a massive memory flashback/acid trip/freak out, and then he “rescues” Stephen (and his money) from the brothel.  He can’t save Stephen from getting punched in the face by a soldier, but he is able to keep him from getting arrested (with Corny Kelleher’s invaluable help).  Bloom, despite his inaction, then offers to take Stephen home.   (more…)

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Stanley McChrystal–“In the Line of Duty” [excerpt] (Harper’s, September 2010, originally published 1974)

Posted in Death, Harper's, Military, Quiet Riot, Stanley McChrystal, The Pointer, Violence, War on August 14, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: QUIET RIOT-“Cum on Feel the Noize” (1983).

I heard this song on  the radio the other day.  When it came out, I rushed out to buy it…it was one of the first metal albums I was going to buy.  I went to the local Pathmark (!) and the total of the album came to $6.66 (!).  How cool! How metal!

I loved this song so much.  But now 26 years later (!), it’s just kind of embarrassing (although not as embarrassing as their outfits in the video!).

By the way, who was the first band to have a clap along drum and vocals only part in a rock song anyhow?  They have a lot to answer for in the 80s metal department.

[READ: August 12, 2010] “In the Line of Duty” [excerpt]

Yes, this is General David McChrystal, who gave the unprecedented interview in Rolling Stone which got him fired.

McChrystal was managing editor of The Pointer, the literary magazine of the United States Military Academy at West Point, where this was published in 1974. I admit I would not have read this if it weren’t McChrystal (I don’t really like military fiction).

This was  a really good piece.  It concerns an officer named Gewissen (a fascinating name which means either Conscience or Certain, depending on the part of speech) in an unspecified country where there are Arabs (but not oil-rich Arabs like he’d expected). (more…)

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Téa Obreht–”The Laugh” (The Atlantic, August 2009)

Posted in 20 Under 40, Adventure, Atlantic, Death, Rush, Téa Obreht, Violence, Yuck! on August 7, 2010| 3 Comments »

SOUNDTRACK: RUSH-The Fifth Order of Angels (bootleg from the Agora Ballroom,Cleveland, 26 August 1974) (1974).

When I was browsing the internet I found this cool blog called Up the Down Stair.  And this blog features some bootleg concert Mp3s.

When I was in college, there was an awesome used record store called The Electric Mine Shaft.  We would go there once a week or so and browse the collection.  He caried all kinds of bootleg shows.  So I have a  lot of Rush live vinyl bootlegs from over the years.  Really they were pretty much a waste of money as I didn’t (and really don’t) enjoy listening to poor quality recordings, so, yes, wasteful.

Anyhow, with the advent of the web and free MP3s, I don’t mind listening to a bootleg.  So, this one, from 1974 is pretty interesting.

Here’s what the notes from the site say:

Neil Peart had only joined the band about a month earlier and played his first gig less than two weeks prior to this concert on the 14th. It’s a great document of the early phase of the band’s career and is notable for featuring unreleased songs as well as versions of a couple tunes that had not yet seen the light of day on vinyl. “Best I Can” and “In the End” were most likely not recorded at this point and wouldn’t emerge for another six months when Fly By Night was released. “Fancy Dancer”, a take on Larry Williams’ “Bad Boy”, and “Garden Road” were never recorded to the best of my knowledge. I believe that the snippet of “Garden Road” that you hear in the Rush documentary Rush: Beyond the Lighted Stage comes from this recording.

The most fascinating thing to me about it is that the guitar solos are in stereo (although this is a mono recording, so the solos disappear sometimes).  That’s fine; the weird thing is that it was actually recorded with the solos in stereo! In a live setting?  The guitars went around the room?  Cool!

So, obviously Rush around thier debut were nowhere near the prog mavens that they eventually became, but there’s something fun about these early shows when they just rocked and rocked.  (There’s even a drum solo!).  And I really like that the “Working Man” solo incorporates part of the as yet unreleased solo from “By-Tor and the Snow Dog.”

It’s available here.

[READ: July 30, 2010] “The Laugh”

Téa Obreht is one of the New Yorker‘s 20 Under 40.  They included her short story in a recent issue and I didn’t love it.  It was okay, but it wasn’t really moving.

Nevertheless, they mentioned that she had another story in The Atlantic, and I was led to believe it was her only other published story, so I decided to read it too.

And I am so glad I did!  It wasn’t a terribly exciting story (until the end!) and it wasn’t a very poweful story (until the end!) and I thought something very different would happen (and am so glad it didn’t!).  But there was a sense of danger, forboding, concern, something terrifying that worked as a low level hum through the whole story which made it very compelling.  Maybe it had something to do with the accompanying picture.  I mean, Jesus H. Christ, look at the this thing: (more…)

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Téa Obreht–“Blue Water Djinn” (New Yorker, August 2, 2010)

Posted in 20 Under 40, Atlantic, Death, New Yorker, Rheostatics, Short Story, Supernatural, Téa Obreht, tagged on August 5, 2010| Leave a Comment »

SOUNDTRACK: RHEOSTATICS-Barrymore’s, Ottawa, ON, February 2, 1996 (1996).

This is one of the other early shows from the Rheostatics.  It’s an audience recording.  And what that means is that there are a  few voices (young girls mostly) which have been immortalized and whose conversation has been listened to by many many people over the last 12 years.

The recording quality is okay. (And hearing somebody ask, “What do you think?” is charming.)

But the real reason to check out this download is for their cover of Blondie’s “Heart of Glass.”  The rest of the show is definitely staticky; it’s hard to make out the nuances of the songs, which is a bummer. But on some of the tracks, the band is louder than the crowd (the remastering work is actually quite good) it’s a good (and very long) show.

[READ: August 28, 2010] “Blue Water Djinn”

Téa Obreht is the author with the most to prove in the list of 20 Under 40 authors.  Her first book doesn’t come out until next year! And as far as I can tell her only other published fiction is the short story “The Laugh” in the Atlantic (which I will likely read next week).  So, I’m rooting for her!

Nevertheless, this story is one that I wouldn’t have read based on the opening section.  Although it discusses a dead Frenchman, the remainder of the introduction is about a young boy who lives at the hotel which his mother owns.

There was just something that didn’t interest me about the setting.

The story proceeds with the hotel workers seeking the body of the Frenchman (his clothes were found piled on the beach).  They assume he has drifted off to sea.  The boy lingers at the edges of the workers (he is forbidden from swimming in the sea while his mother is away).   (more…)

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