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Ed Park–“Eat, Pray, Click” [The 2024 Short Story Advent Calendar #3] (2024)

December 3, 2024 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:

[READ: December 3, 2024] “Eat, Pray, Click”

This year my wife ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar–it’s a holiday tradition!  Here’s what H&O says about the calendar this year.

Ten years of stories! Yikes, where does the time go?
When the first Short Story Advent Calendar launched, in 2015, we frankly had no clue we’d still be sitting here today, continuing to offer up batches of tasty stories fresh from the oven. To celebrate this milestone, we’ve packed the 10th SSAC with a mix of new and familiar names—ideal company for those chilly winter nights ahead.

The author of this story was Ed Park.  Each day has an online component with the author with a brief interview. And this one opens:

It’s December 3. Ed Park, author of Same Bed Different Dreams, chooses his own adventure.

This is a very brief story set in ten brief sections.

In the first we learn that the Kindle has been hacked many times over.  Animated scorpions run amok across The Corrections.  The Glass Castle turns Swedish in the middle of chapter three.  But his friend Rolph was the first to hack the system. Continue Reading »

Posted in Books about writers, Canadian Content, Christmas, Ed Park, Hingston & Olsen, Short Story, Technology, The Short Story Advent Calendar | Leave a Comment »

Girl in Red (Wellmont Theater, Montclair, NJ, December 1, 2024)

December 2, 2024 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: December 1, 2024] Girl in Red / Momma

My daughter and I saw Girl in Red in April of this year.  I was really surprised that she announced a new show in Montclair and when I asked her if she wanted to go, my daughter said yes!  Even though it was a Sunday school night.

I wondered how much of this show would be the same as last time.   And the answer is, a lot and yet not that much.  The set was the same except smaller.  But the video screen was bigger and made the videos easier to see.   But there was no vertical section like last time (which is fine as it was neat but didn’t add a ton to the show.  Oh and there was no giant swivel light/projector,  But honestly she doesn’t need that because she is a dynamo and everyone is there to see her.

Like last time, Marie was way overdressed in a sweater and button up shirt.  But she was committed to the outfit, she said.  And she proceeded to jump around and dance all over the stage for 90 minutes.

Like last time, she opened with the dancing title track of her new album.

She dove right into one of her faves, “girls” which had the crowd going nuts.  She followed it with “New Love” a song which she said she hadn’t yet performed this tour because she’s had bronchitis.  Continue Reading »

Posted in Gigi Perez, Girl in Red, Montclair, NJ, Wellmont Theater | Leave a Comment »

Katherine Heiny–“The Hookup” [The 2024 Short Story Advent Calendar #2] (2018)

December 2, 2024 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:

[READ: December 2, 2024] “The Hookup”

This year my wife ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar–it’s a holiday tradition!  Here’s what H&O says about the calendar this year.

Ten years of stories! Yikes, where does the time go?
When the first Short Story Advent Calendar launched, in 2015, we frankly had no clue we’d still be sitting here today, continuing to offer up batches of tasty stories fresh from the oven. To celebrate this milestone, we’ve packed the 10th SSAC with a mix of new and familiar names—ideal company for those chilly winter nights ahead.

The author of this story was Katherine Heiny.  Each day has an online component with the author with a brief interview.  And this one opens:

It’s December 2. Katherine Heiny, author of Games and Rituals, saves the good china for the CIA.

This story is about a Hungarian family living in the United States.  I have recently started working with a Hungarian woman, so this was a really fun story to read right now. Continue Reading »

Posted in Canadian Content, Christmas, Hingston & Olsen, Hungary, Katherine Heiny, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar | Leave a Comment »

Gigi Perez (Wellmont Theater, Montclair, NJ, December 1, 2024) [GIRL IN RED]

December 1, 2024 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: December 1, 2024] Gigi Perez

My daughter and I saw Girl in Red in April of this year.  I was really surprised that she announced a new show in Montclair and when I asked her if she wanted to go, my daughter said yes!  Even though it was a Sunday school night.

We arrived in Montclair early enough to have some dinner ahead of time.  And HOLY COW.  The line to get into the venue stretched for several blocks!  I have been to several shows at this venue and have never seen anything like it.  Clearly every young woman in the tri-state area (as Girl in Red later said–a room full of lesbians) was at this show and wanted to get right up front.  Doors opened at 7 and we arrived about 7:10, so many of the people must have been waiting (in the freezing cold) for hours.  So we had our Tacoria and when we got back to the venue at 7:50, the line was till quite long.

But it moved quick and we entered the venue as Gigi was starting.  But we grabbed some merch since the line was short (good choice as it was huge on the way out).  This was my daughter’s idea and she was chock full of good ideas tonight.  As we entered the concert area, I headed down to the pit, but she stopped us at the bar/mezzanine area.  I always ignore it because it’s usually packed and noisy.  But it was fairly empty–everyone was squeezing in down below.  And we managed to be right behind people at the mezzanine railing.  We had a great view and weren’t crowded in the sweaty pit.  Fantastic!

So we missed a song or two from Gigi, but we caught most of her set.  And I was really impressed.  Her voice is amazing–really powerful and with quite a range.  On stage it was just her on guitar and a drummer (who may have been her brother?).   He triggered loops that added bass and backing vocals to her guitar and she sounded huge.  In fact, I have since listened to her album and found it a bit flat in comparison to how great she sounded live.

I’m not sure what she played. But she has one EP (which is actually longer than the most recent Girl in Red album but over 5 minutes) and a bunch of singles, including the massive hit “Sailor Song” which she ended with.

The crowd was with her right from the start and she gushed about being on the tour (she was born in Hackensack, which is just up the road, but she grew up in Florida, so it probably wasn’t much of a homecoming).

Overall I was really impressed and felt she was a perfect opener for Girl in Red.  It was even more fun when she came back on stage later to sing a couple of songs with Girl in Red.

 

  1. Please Be Rude
  2. Fable
  3. bad idea!
  4. Normalcy
  5. When She Smiles
  6. Chemistry
  7. Sailor Song

 

Posted in Gigi Perez, Girl in Red, Montclair, NJ, Wellmont Theater | Leave a Comment »

Robin Sloan–“In the Stacks” [The 2024 Short Story Advent Calendar #1] (2023)

December 1, 2024 by Paul Debraski

SOUNDTRACK:

[READ: December 1, 2024] “In the Stacks”

This year my wife ordered me The Short Story Advent Calendar.  This is my seventh time reading the Calendar–it’s a holiday tradition!  Here’s what H&O says about the calendar this year.

Ten years of stories! Yikes, where does the time go?
When the first Short Story Advent Calendar launched, in 2015, we frankly had no clue we’d still be sitting here today, continuing to offer up batches of tasty stories fresh from the oven. To celebrate this milestone, we’ve packed the 10th SSAC with a mix of new and familiar names—ideal company for those chilly winter nights ahead.

The author of this story was Robin Sloan.  Each day has an online component with the author with a brief interview.  Although today doesn’t have an interview just this blurb:

It’s December 1. To officially kick off the 2024 Short Story Advent Calendar, here’s a story about librarians, patrons, and one unusual musical instrument, from the author of Moonbound.

I didn’t realize that I knew Robin Sloan’s work, but I read Mr. Penumbra’s 24-Hour Bookstore about ten years ago and loved it.  I’m going to have to put his other books on my list, especially Moonbound.

This short story was fantastic. Continue Reading »

Posted in Canadian Content, Christmas, Hingston & Olsen, Library Related, Robin Sloan, Short Story, The Short Story Advent Calendar | Leave a Comment »

Blood Incantation (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, November 25, 2024)

November 26, 2024 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: November 25, 2024] Blood Incantation

My brother-in-law Ben told me about Blood Incantation a couple of weeks before this show. So I grabbed a ticket just before it sold out!

With a name (and logo) like that, I assumed they were just a bludgeoning death metal band but they display all kinds of interesting progressive rock tendencies.  And those are fully explored on their newest album Absolute Elsewhere.

The album is 43 minutes long and consists of two songs.  Each song has three parts.  And they played the album in full for this show.

When I walked in I saw that there were an obelisk on either side of the stage.  It had characters carved into it and just before the band took the stage the characters lit up red.

When the band came out I couldn’t get over how the lead singer looked.  Paul Riedl has a mustache and long hair (balding on top) he looked like a manager at Staples.  But then he stepped up to the mic and went “OOH” and the growl was perfect.

Knowing that the album was a bit more trippy (with lots of synths and quiet parts) I wasn’t sure how moshy the crowd would be.  But as soon as the band started, and the opening bludgeoning began, I quickly had to move several feet to the right.

The song starts out with some pounding guitars and Isaac Faulk using all of his drum kit.  And after a squealing guitar and a bug grunted Oooh, the band took off with some seriously fast double bass drums and wild guitar soloing.

After 2 minutes of furiousness, the song slowed down dramatically with picked guitars and quiet washes of synths.  Three minutes later it’s back to the heaviness with some growled lyrics and wild soloing from Morris Kolontyrsky.

Jeff Barrett played bass and while I couldn’t seem him from where I was, his low end was felt from the speakers.

After 8 minutes, the song segued into Tablet II. Continue Reading »

Posted in Blood Incantation, Hällas, Midwife, Philadelphia, PA, Tangerine Dream, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Midwife (Underground Arts, Philadelphia, PA, November 25, 2024) [BLOOD INCANTATION]

November 25, 2024 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: November 25, 2024] Midwife

My brother-in-law Ben told me about Blood Incantation a couple of weeks before this show. So I grabbed a ticket just before it sold out!

I knew they were death metal, and assumed that the opener would be as well.  But, wow, what a difference!

Madeline Elizabeth Johnston is an American singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and audio engineer. She is best known for her work under the moniker Midwife, and has also released music as Mariposa and Sister Grotto. Johnston describes her music as “heaven metal.”

She came out on stage and her microphone was a telephone.  She spoke into it and her voice sounded a million miles away.

And it turns out that I have seen Midwife before!  They opened for Deafheaven.  And the funny thing is that I absolutely remembered a woman singing into a telephone, but I didn’t think it was the same person for some reason.  But I see from a previous post that I saw Midwife in 2022.  And I felt exactly the same as I did this time.

She created a beat on a drum machine and began playing very slowly.  She sang quietly, from a million miles away.

All my friends are in New York
All my friends are in LA
All my friends are in Chicago
All my friends in Santa Fe
All my friends in Colorado
All my friends are here to stay
How much more death can one person take?

It was the antithesis of death metal.  It was slow and ponderous.  I think had I not been there for a death metal show I would have enjoyed it more, but the crowd–dudes in leather and chains–ate it up.  I was really happy for her as she seemed like she could have been so vulnerable up there, but she was poised and powerful as she sang these slow songs about death.

Killdozer:

This has always been my town
Now it’s a living hell
Everyone wants a piece of me
How am I not myself?
All my songs are love songs
All my songs are blue
All my songs are about death

All of these songs were pretty long, but Midwife was given about 45 minutes to play.  I didn’t actually think she’d play another song after S.W.I.M. but then Morris Kolontyrsky of Blood Incantation came out and they played No Depression in Heaven together.

The lyrics to that song?

Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying Crying
Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha

Kolontyrsky played beuatiful complicated solos over Midwife’s slow repeated guitars.  Her musical patterns are simple but effective and while he wasn’t showing off, he was playing some impressive lead solos.

When the set was over, they hugged and she began cleaning up her stuff.

I’d never listen to her music on purpose, it’s totally not my thing, but it was a mesmerizing performance.

 

2024 Underground Arts 2022 Union Transfer
Colorado £ Christina’s World £
Vanessa ⊗ God is a Cop £
2018 ∞ 2018 ∞
Killdozer ⊗ Colorado £
S.W.I.M. ∞ S.W.I.M. ∞
No Depression in Heaven ⊗ (with Morris Kolontyrsky of Blood Incantation)

∞ Forever (2020)
£ Luminol (2021)
⊗ No Depression in Heaven (2024)

Posted in Blood Incantation, Midwife, Philadelphia, PA, Underground Arts | Leave a Comment »

Godspeed You! Black Emperor / Alan Sparhawk (Union Transfer, Philadelphia, PA, November 24, 2024) [POSTPONED]

November 24, 2024 by Paul Debraski

[POSTPONED: November 24, 2024] Godspeed You! Black Emperor / Alan Sparhawk [moved  to June 24, 2025]

Back in 2000, I saw Godspeed You Black Emperor at Maxwell’s in Hoboken.  My friend Lar was in from Ireland and he went to the show with me, which was pretty awesome.

I waited 18 years to see them again, but the last time I saw them, the show was marred by the crowd.

I’ve thought about seeing them again, but this show popped up on a weekend that was really inconvenient.  And then suddenly it was postponed

Godspeed’s Fall 2024 US tour has been postponed due to illness. Information regarding rescheduled dates will be forthcoming.

Perhaps if the 2025 date works out for me, I’ll be able to see them again.

Alan Sparhawk of Low was supposed to open.  I’ve never been much of a fan of Low, because their music is just too slow for me.  Although their last album was really quite interesting.  I’m not sure what his solo show would include as he plays all kinds of music.  Maybe he’ll be opening next year too.

Posted in Alan Sparhawk, Godspeed You Black Emperor, Philadelphia, PA, Union Transfer | Leave a Comment »

The Pineapple Thief (World Cafe Live, Philadelphia, PA, November 22, 2024) [DID NOT ATTEND]

November 22, 2024 by Paul Debraski

[DID NOT ATTEND: November 22, 2024] The Pineapple Thief

The Pineapple Thief is a progressive rock band which means I should instantly like them.  And yet I just can’t seem to get into them.  They fall on the more mellow side of progressive.

The main draw for me is drummer Gavin Harrison who I saw many times with King Crimson.  But, no matter how much you like a drummer, that’s a very small portion of the overall sound of a band.

Listening to their latest EP, I do rather like it, but it’s too late for me to be into them enough to see them.  Listening a little more they remind me a bit of Death Cab for Cutie, which I did not expect to say.

I do hope to see Gavin Harrison in something else soon though.

Posted in Philadelphia, PA, The Pineapple Thief, World Cafe Live | Leave a Comment »

Babymetal (Wind Creek Event Center, Bethlehem, PA, November 21, 2024)

November 22, 2024 by Paul Debraski

[ATTENDED: November 21, 2024] Babymetal

But it’s hard to be cross when Babymetal takes the stage.  First comes the masked Kami band (their masks are cool and the band is incredible).  Then the trio came out Su-metal, Moametal and Momometal.

I didn’t realize that it had been 5 years since I last saw them.  I feel like the previous show was bigger and/or more impressive.  But again, that could just be because of my poor view.

But I was pleased when I saw my son taking videos of songs because that meant he was into it.

They opened with the first song off their first album–basically an introduction to the band.  Which is totally unnecessary.  Not only di d this show sell out, but everyone there knew the words (in Japanese) and what to do and when to do it.  Total crowd synchronicity.  And Su-metal (as a person next to me said) has total crowd control.  She waves her hands and everyone does what she says.

They had a big screen behind them which flashed various images during the different songs.  I loved hearing Pa Pa Ya (Babymetals are mostly in Japanese, so I don’t know if the stupidly catchy choruses are nonsensical or Japanese, but damn if pa pa pa pa pa ya isn’t the catchiest thing to shout.

I will repeat some things I wrote last time

Throughout the songs the trio danced like crazy.  Their precision synchronization was amazing. Continue Reading »

Posted in Babymetal, Bethlehem, PA, Japanese Music, Kawaii, Scene Queen, Wind Creek Event Center | Leave a Comment »

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