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Marcel Aymé–“The State of Grace” [France] (translator Norman Denny) [The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar #4] (1947/translated 1947)

December 4, 2021 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:  hiatus

[READ: December 4, 2021] “The State of Grace”

This year, S. ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar.  The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar is a deluxe box set of individually bound short stories.

As always, each story is a surprise, so you won’t know what you’re getting until you crack the seal every morning starting December 1. Once you’ve read that day’s story, check this link where editor Alberto Manguel is providing daily commentary on each of the stories he selected for this year’s calendar.

This story was funny but also had a moral.

Set in 1939, we meet the best Christian in all of Rue Gabrielle and indeed all Montmartre.   Monsieur Duperrier was “a man of such piety, uprightness and charity that God, without awaiting his death… crowned his head with never left it by day or by night.”

He was grateful, of course, but his modesty did not allow him to show it off in public.  However, his wife did have to look at it and she was filled with resentment and exasperation.  She was afraid of what others would think of him if they saw him like that, so she encouraged him to sin a little but to lose the halo. Continue Reading »

Posted in Alberto Manguel, Canadian Content, Christmas, France, Funny (ha ha), Hingston & Olsen, Marcel Aymé, Norman Denny, Prostitution, Religion, Seven deadly sins, Sex, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar | Leave a Comment »

Cave In / Cleric (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, December 3, 2021) [DID NOT ATTEND]

December 3, 2021 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: December 3, 2021] Cave In / Cleric

Back in 1998 I really like the Cave In album Until Your Heart Stops.  Then I pretty much forgot about them.

They came back on my radar when one of the band members died in a car accident a few years ago.  He sang lead (but was not the only lead vocalist) and I assumed that was the end of the band.

But they did not break up.  Indeed, they have a new album coming out next year.

I wasn’t planning on going to this show without looking into what they’ve done this century, and I never got around to that, so I didn’t go.

I didn’t know who Cleric was.  Their Wikipedia write up is interesting, but this could go in a direction I don’t like

Cleric is an American avant-garde metal band based out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The band is known for their experimental approach to grindcore, doom and avant-garde metal

Posted in Cave In, Cleric, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Chris Womersley–“A Lovely and Terrible Thing” (Australia) [The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar #3] (2011)

December 3, 2021 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:  hiatus

[READ: December 3, 2021] “A Lovely and Terrible Thing”

This year, S. ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar.  The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar is a deluxe box set of individually bound short stories.

As always, each story is a surprise, so you won’t know what you’re getting until you crack the seal every morning starting December 1. Once you’ve read that day’s story, check this link where editor Alberto Manguel is providing daily commentary on each of the stories he selected for this year’s calendar.

You know this story is going to be unusual because the main character works for Ripley’s Believe It or Not (I didn’t know they had that in Australia).

He is off to investigate a claim when his car breaks down in the middle of nowhere.  After a few hours of fruitless struggle, a local man approaches.  They decide that the place the driver is going is too far to walk so the local (named Angola) offers to let him spend the night at his place. Continue Reading »

Posted in Alberto Manguel, Australia, Canadian Content, Chris Womersley, Christmas, Funny (ha ha), Funny (strange), Hingston & Olsen, Short Story, Supernatural, Surreal, The Short Story Advent Calendar | Leave a Comment »

Surfbort / Smirk / Dog Date / Pure Adult (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, December 2, 2021) [DID NOT ATTEND]

December 2, 2021 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: December 2, 2021] Surfbort / Smirk / Dog Date / Pure Adult

Here’s another great show from Underground Arts that I didn’t get to.

I had not heard of Surfbort until a few days ago.  They sound like an insanely fun band.  I mean, look at the picture of them.

They also seem to be all kinds of boundaries pushing.

Here’s what their blurb says about them

Channeling inspiration from the 80’s punk scene to produce rousing, explosive music, their feedback strafed, guitar-shredding music says no to a digital age full of intolerance; they radiate love and friendship. All are welcome in the SURFBORT FREAK FAMILY!

That’s right up my alley.  It’s a shame I found out about this show too late.

Smirk and Pure Adult were unknown to me.

Smirk is the solo project from Nick Vicario (who I don’t know).  The music is wiry, well-crafted punk with heaps of hooks.

Pure Adult has this as a write up

Pure Adult is pure experimental punk shit.

You will listen to this noisy goodness and you will love it.

(although, if you’re only looking for catchy bops, you might hate it)

That sounds pretty great to me.  And according to the videos below the longest set was 40 minutes.

Markit Aneight was there and recorded all four shows:

Pure Adult

Dog Date

Smirk

Surfbort

Posted in Full show video, Philadelphia, PA, Pure Adult, Smirk, Surfbort, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Darlingside / Lullanas (Ardmore Music Hall, Ardmore, PA, December 2, 2021) [DID NOT ATTEND]

December 2, 2021 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: December 2, 2021] Darlingside / Lullanas

S. and I love Darlingside and have seem them several times.  I have them on my list of bands to see wherever and whenever. But sometimes things get in the way.

I think seeing them at Ardmore Music Hall would be a treat.  The sound would be amazing.  But sometimes getting to Ardmore is a hassle.

Plus, it actually felt nice to stay home for a week.  So we blew off this show, safe in the knowledge that they’ll be back to entertain us in the not too distant future.

I’d never heard of Lullanas.  According to their label

Twin sisters Atisha and Nishita Lulla, aka LULLANAS, create songs wrapped in Americana warmth, folk eloquence, country storytelling, and unassuming pop ambition. Their debut EP, Before Everything Got Real, thrives on an inimitable and familial balance.

They sound like an excellent complement to Darlingside.

Posted in Ardmore Music Hall, Ardmore, PA, Darlingside, Lullanas | Leave a Comment »

Dubravka Ugresic–“Lend Me Your Character” (Crotia) (translator Celia Hawkesworth) [The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar #2] (1983/translated 1992)

December 2, 2021 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:  hiatus

[READ: December 2, 2021] “Lend Me Your Character”

This year, S. ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar.  The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar is a deluxe box set of individually bound short stories.

As always, each story is a surprise, so you won’t know what you’re getting until you crack the seal every morning starting December 1. Once you’ve read that day’s story, check this link where editor Alberto Manguel is providing daily commentary on each of the stories he selected for this year’s calendar.

This story was probably my favorite of the collection.

It was meta- and funny with a feminist slant and a perverse kind of sexuality throughout. Continue Reading »

Posted in Alberto Manguel, Atsushi Nakajima, Canadian Content, Celia Hawkesworth, Christmas, Croatia, Dubravka Ugrešić, Funny (ha ha), Hingston & Olsen, Meta, Paul McCarthy, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar | Leave a Comment »

Atsushi Nakajima–“The Moon over the Mountain” [Japan] (translator Paul McCarthy) [The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar #1] (1942/translated 2011)

December 1, 2021 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:  hiatus

[READ: December 1, 2021] “The Moon over the Mountain”

This year, S. ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar.  The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar is a deluxe box set of individually bound short stories.

As always, each story is a surprise, so you won’t know what you’re getting until you crack the seal every morning starting December 1. Once you’ve read that day’s story, check this link where editor Alberto Manguel is providing daily commentary on each of the stories he selected for this year’s calendar. Continue Reading »

Posted in Alberto Manguel, Atsushi Nakajima, Canadian Content, Christmas, Hingston & Olsen, Huh?, Japan, Paul McCarthy, Poets, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar, Tigers, Translation | Leave a Comment »

The Districts (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, November 27, 2021)

November 30, 2021 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: November 27, 2021] The Districts

I was supposed to see The Districts play at Union Transfer on March 12.  COVID-19 had just found its way into New Jersey and Pennsylvania and I was being very cautious so I decided to skip the show.  It was a safe decision, but one that I now regret as it would have been a pretty great final show of the year.  Shows pretty much completely stopped after that.

I was then supposed to see the Districts three times in 2021 (a lot of that was coincidence).  The opened for Modest Mouse (I had no idea they were going to), then they announced a show in Asbury Park and then, at the end of the year they were supposed to open for Dr. Dog (they bailed on that show, as did I, even though the show went on).

After seeing them open for Modest Mouse, I wanted to see them headline, because they tend to go a bit more nuts when they are in charge.

I was happy to see them in such a small place, but I hadn’t really thought this show through.  Asbury Park, on Thanksgiving weekend.  Holy crap, the place was full of reunited and drunk college students.  Which made for a more festive atmosphere but also meant that security almost had to pull somebody out and that everyone was singing along (badly) at the top of their lungs.  And of course drunk people were pushing forward throughout the show.

The band seemed to be in a really good mood when they came out and they rocked several classic songs: “4th and Roebling,” “Salt” and ‘If Before I Wake” (the crowd loves singing the “I’m just a narcissist” line)  Then they moved on to You Know I’m Not Going Anywhere for “Hey Jo,” and the moody “My Only Ghost.” Continue Reading »

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Set in New Jersey!, Sham, The Districts, The Scouts | Leave a Comment »

Alberto Manguel–“In Praise of the Short Story” [The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar–introduction] (2021)

November 30, 2021 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:  hiatus

[READ: November 30, 2021] “In Praise of the Short Story”

This year, S. ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar.  The 2021 Short Story Advent Calendar is a deluxe box set of individually bound short stories.

As always, each story is a surprise, so you won’t know what you’re getting until you crack the seal every morning starting December 1. Once you’ve read that day’s story, check the link where editor Alberto Manguel is providing daily commentary on each of the stories he selected for this year’s calendar.

Manguel introduces this set with a love letter to the short story.

For absurd commercial reasons, publishers have decreed that short stories don’t sell…yet more than ever writers continue to write stories and readers continue to read them.

He continues that we are told that bigger is better.  A huge novel much better than a tiny story.  But he offers this quote from William James: : Anybody can have a statue; but a statuette–that indeed is immortality.”

He also explains that for this collection he decided to choose a method as good and arbitrary as any other to select these 25 stories: choose stories from twenty-five different countries “(knowing that many a unicorn and mermaid would be left behind).” Continue Reading »

Posted in Alberto Manguel, Augusto Monterroso, Canadian Content, Christmas, Hingston & Olsen, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar | Leave a Comment »

Sham (Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, November 27, 2021) [THE DISTRICTS]

November 29, 2021 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: November 27, 2021] Sham

After The Scouts, Sham came out.  Sham is the project of Shane Justice McCord.  It was him and a bass player (I loved his bass guitar!) for this set.

The bass player started by playing bird calls on a small device while Shane played acoustic guitar.

The set was quiet and acoustic and perhaps a little atonal.  Very experimental (in a video I took, you can barely hear the band from all the chatter, until a guy behind me says, “this band is so weird, this is the best.”

In no way were they the right band for this particular show–a rowdy New jersey crowd looking to rock.  But aside from talking over the set, the crowd was at least respectful.

A few songs in, the bassist moved to drums and a new bassist came out and that added a little (very little) oomph to their set. Continue Reading »

Posted in Asbury Lanes, Asbury Park, NJ, Set in New Jersey!, Sham, The Districts, The Scouts | Leave a Comment »

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