tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-1620388225897274182024-03-19T17:01:41.176-05:00Shooflypie Season 3Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.comBlogger174125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-27936676652212210832011-01-01T09:30:00.000-06:002011-01-01T09:31:01.056-06:00MovingI'm making one last blog move to start 2011. This move allows me to maintain my Shooflypie name while also including my name in the URL. I feel like it makes sense. So please follow me over to <a href="http://justinsteiner.blogspot.com/">justinsteiner.blogspot.com</a>. Thanks and welcome to 2011!Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-60590901294769719222010-12-26T15:17:00.003-06:002010-12-26T15:52:29.471-06:00Sunday Shuffle #210I hope everyone had a great Christmas yesterday - we certainly did. I did get some new music, though all in a physical form. Haven't listened to any of it yet but I will very very soon. Meanwhile, let's get the last Sunday Shuffle of 2010 going!<div><br /></div><div>1. Destroyer/King Khan And The Shrines (2)</div><div>2. If You Let Me Be Your Anchor/Dawes (5)</div><div>3. The Ballad of Bjorn Borg/Pernice Brothers (4)</div><div>4. Moby Octopad/Yo La Tengo (1)</div><div>5. Without a Heart/Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings (7)</div><div>6. The Game Gets Old/Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings (8)</div><div>7. I Can See Your Future/Belle and Sebastian (8)</div><div>8. Chasing After Deer/Midlake (3)</div><div>9. My Pretend/Apples In Stereo (2)</div><div>10. Nobody/Shearwater (2)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-31025704060998755212010-12-22T15:26:00.002-06:002010-12-22T15:52:08.830-06:00Comics CatchupA couple weeks ago I decided that it was time to make the change back to only trades. I had a bunch of comics I've bought over the last year or so that I would trade in for some credit but I let the pile sit here for a while to make sure I wanted to go that route. Finally, I wrote the note to the owner and took in the comics. After about a week-and-a-half, of course, I decided I was wrong. Luckily, he hadn't gone through them yet and I was able to take them back. I don't know who I'm kidding at this point - my love for comics is as strong as it's ever been; I'll sort out the monetary and space issues one way or another.<div><br /></div><div>I have managed to read a handful of comics and some trades over the last few weeks...</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Adventure Comics #521</b> - This is the issue where the title becomes what I thought it would be when it switched from focusing on Superboy to focusing on the Legion - a second Legion title. Okay, it has been one but the stories Paul Levitz were telling took place in the past and not current continuity. I was so disappointed by that fact that I didn't even pick up the book. I know, I know. Anyway, now that it is set in current continuity I am picking it up. This story is a little scattered between the selection of a new Green Lantern and various Legionnaires getting things done but it was solid enough. The Atom backup was part six and didn't make much sense. It's done now anyway as DC scales back to $2.99 titles and only 20 story pages.</div><div><br /><b>The Flash #7</b> - This is a patented Geoff Johns look at the lives of the Rogues, this time focusing on Captain Boomerang. While the look back at his history is solid, the most interesting bits come from his chat with Reverse-Flash - clues for the next big story event. This issue is drawn by Scott Kolins, who tweaks his current style to be more in line with regular artist Francis Manapul with better success than his art on Justice Society of America.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Superboy #1</b> - A comic where The Phantom Stranger shows up on pg. 4 is a comic I will read. I was a big fan of the previous <i>Superboy</i> series when written by Karl Kesel but the character is tonally different these days. That said, I enjoyed this introductory issue by Jeff Lemire and Pier Gallo enough to pick up the second (maybe today).</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Thor the Mighty Avenger #7</b> - This is the penultimate issue of this cancelled-too-soon series by Roger Langridge and Chris Samnee. Seriously, why can't we get more of this fun comic? I'll probably do a longer post on this series after next issue.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Unwritten #20</b> - One of my favorite comics on the shelves, hands down.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Fables Vol. 14: Witches</b> - You should be reading this book.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Chew Vol. 2: International Flavor</b> - You should also be reading this book, if you like things that are funny and awesome.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-2348629295885328852010-12-21T19:10:00.004-06:002010-12-21T19:27:57.168-06:00Superchunked IIOn Dec. 2 I took my first trip to the Metro in Chicago to see Superchunk for the first time (exactly 2 months after seeing The National in Indy). I came late to Superchunk, so late that they'd been on hiatus for a few years already and only doing occasional shows. During the months before their fantastic new album Majesty Shredding came out in Sept., I started hitting up their catalog and fell head over heels. When I found out they were coming to Chicago I just knew I had to go. I was not disappointed.<div><br /></div><div>The members of the band are only a few years older than I am and they just had so much energy, particularly Mac McCaughan. He was jumping all over the place while ripping off great solos. Jon Wurster kept the beat going and Laura Balance was doing some pogoing while holding down the bottom end. Jim Wilbur plays it more cool but you could tell he was enjoying himself.</div><div><br /></div><div>I had no complaints with the set list, a mixture of new songs and old favorites with some solid tracks from the middle years thrown in. I couldn't pogo for a whole song but I did some work on many many songs. You could see my head bobbing up and down during "Precision Auto" in a video shot by a guy who wasn't standing far behind me but it looks like he took it down.</div><div><br /></div><div>The Metro is a cool place to see a show - it isn't a big room and the stage is up higher than everyone. I'd definitely go back.</div><div><br /></div><div>It was an awesome night and one of the highlights of my 2010.</div><div><br /></div><div>Set list:</div><div><br /></div><div>Learned to Surf</div><div>My Gap Feels Weird</div><div>Punch Me Harder</div><div>Cursed Mirror</div><div>Crossed Wires</div><div>Rosemarie</div><div>Detroit Has A Skyline</div><div>Song For Marion Brown</div><div>Watery Hands</div><div>So Convinced</div><div>Digging for Something</div><div>Late-Century Dream</div><div>Hyper Enough</div><div>Slack Motherfucker</div><div>Everything at Once</div><div><br /></div><div>Encore:</div><div><br /></div><div>Driveway To Driveway</div><div>I Don't Know (Naked Raygun cover)</div><div>Precision Auto</div><div>Throwing Things</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-39743461655974104922010-12-19T09:46:00.002-06:002010-12-19T10:05:23.411-06:00Asimov's June 2010In my never-ending quest to catch up on reading my SF mags, I recently tackled the June issue of Asimov's. Here are some quick thoughts.<div><br /></div><div>Allen M. Steele continues to impress with "The Emperor of Mars," a sweet ode to Mars SF over the years and the story of how a man deals with the loss of his family. This is a complete departure from his Coyote stories but just as engaging. I think maybe I should delve into his catalog a bit further in 2011.</div><div><br /></div><div>Chris Beckett's "The Peacock Cloak" was an interesting exploration of how people go about helping a brand-new world...by making the same mistakes that humanity has been making for years.</div><div><br /></div><div>Stephen Baxter's "Earth III" is a continuation of a series of stories but I don't remember reading "Earth II," to be honest. It's a story of power, exploration, and challenging the predominant views of the world. I enjoyed it.</div><div><br /></div><div>The rest of the stories were solid enough but nothing else jumps out as worth mentioning here.</div><div><br /></div><div>I have started the next of the now 11 magazines I have stacked up, so I'm sure I'll be writing about it soon.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-944605188436403152010-12-19T07:46:00.002-06:002010-12-19T09:11:28.724-06:00Sunday Shuffle #209It's the last Sunday Shuffle before Christmas, which is hard to believe but here we are. Christmas music has been eligible for the shuffle the past few weeks but nothing's come up. Maybe today. I know for a fact that I'll be at my parents' house frosting sugar cookies this afternoon - a yearly tradition that I love.<div><br /></div><div>1. What I Mean to You/Justin Townes Earle (5)</div><div>2. My Lovely Jezebel/Elvis Costello (5)</div><div>3. Changing Partners/Elvis Costello (1)</div><div>4. Philippians 3:20-21/The Mountain Goats (2)</div><div>5. Sunshine State/Superchunk (3)</div><div>6. Fallen Idol/Imperial Teen (1)</div><div>7. Islero/Crooked Fingers (5)</div><div>8. Won't Want For Love (Margaret in the Taiga)/The Decemberists (4)</div><div>9. Useless Switch/Portastatic (3)</div><div>10. Modern Art/Art Brut (4)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-88605603970837898442010-12-12T08:23:00.005-06:002010-12-12T09:31:40.704-06:00Sunday Shuffle #208It's been a rough week and this upcoming one won't be much different. Music helps, though, so let's get to today's ten...<div><br /></div><div>1. Play The Part/Little Joy (1)</div><div>2. Theme to Wendel Stivers/Spoon (3)</div><div>3. Sleepin In/The Morning Benders (7)</div><div>4. Floating Vibes/Surfer Blood (5)</div><div>5. We Can Work It Out/The Beatles (3)</div><div>6. Beautiful Machine Parts 1-2/Apples In Stereo (1)</div><div>7. You Don't Have To (If You Don't Want To)/Gentleman Jesse (3)</div><div>8. Linda Blair Was Born Innocent/The Mountain Goats (2) - 2 weeks in a row!</div><div>9. Nomenclature/Andrew Bird (2)</div><div>10. Gwen, Now and Then/The Broken West (1)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-88214647738546552872010-12-05T08:51:00.002-06:002010-12-05T11:07:46.327-06:00Sunday Shuffle #207I'm in a work mode today, in part because I couldn't find the motivation to get much done yesterday. Accordingly, we'll jump right into the music...<div><br /></div><div>1. 1 Samuel 15:23/The Mountain Goats (3)</div><div>2. Shame Shame/Sloan (1)</div><div>3. Northern Lights/Bowerbirds (1)</div><div>4. Black Hole/She & Him (4)</div><div>5. Linda Blair Was Born Innocent/The Mountain Goats (1)</div><div>6. The Angel's Share/Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (4)</div><div>7. Sensory Deprivation/Sloan (2)</div><div>8. I Fought Piranhas/The White Stripes (1)</div><div>9. What I Mean to You/Justin Townes Earle (4)</div><div>10. It Ain't Easy/Robert Forster (1)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-62551121067477023372010-12-04T12:56:00.003-06:002010-12-04T15:20:55.074-06:00The Pile #2<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY1UOLoSaSMgN_HuxpF6ghqkUrUn-3WF45Bz9jbspma9A9zOzrgV_STyStVfIvcrd6gUpClBVxjsC3GNV0q_cylDEong9e_Zk2m2TmI0OYCJ1loXKdkokEW-jcymWRSu_Y3x7rN9cXWKq_/s1600/Picture+20.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY1UOLoSaSMgN_HuxpF6ghqkUrUn-3WF45Bz9jbspma9A9zOzrgV_STyStVfIvcrd6gUpClBVxjsC3GNV0q_cylDEong9e_Zk2m2TmI0OYCJ1loXKdkokEW-jcymWRSu_Y3x7rN9cXWKq_/s320/Picture+20.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5546903041251555762" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Here's an updated look at the to-be-read pile to my right, from top to bottom...</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories Volume 1</b> - We have been reading selections from here for the past 2 weeks of class, which has been just fine with me. This week we will be discussing "A Scandal in Bohemia" and "The Five Orange Pips" to close out our semester (outside of the paper due Wed. and our final the following Wed.). At some point, I would like to read everything in this and the second volume.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Asimov's June 2010</b> - Yes, I'm still many months behind on my SF magazines but I have at least started this one, which got off to a great start with Allen M. Steele's "The Emperor of Mars." </div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Passages of H.M.</b> - I just read about Jay Parini's novel based on Herman Melville's exploits and decided to request it at the library. It came in and I picked up it today. For some reason, my 19th century Brit Lit class has me thinking of the same period in American Lit and Melville is a biggie.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Masked</b> - This has not been touched since the last picture of the pile. It will be at some point.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Chew Vol. 2</b> - The same can be said about this.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Fables Vol. 14: Witches</b> - This latest volume of the long-running series just came out Thursday and I can't wait to dive into it. I really should finish the paper before that happens, though.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-56602459427427964342010-12-04T11:23:00.002-06:002010-12-13T09:39:56.818-06:00Superchunked II have lots to write about Superchunk over the next month or so and to kick it off, here they are from The Current the other day.<div><br /></div><div><script type="text/javascript" src="http://minnesota.publicradio.org/www_publicradio/tools/media_player/js/swfobject.js"></script><div id="minnesota_the_current_performances_2010_12_02_20101201_superchunk_20101202_128s_player"></div><script type="text/javascript">/*<![CDATA[*/var so = new SWFObject("http://minnesota.publicradio.org/www_publicradio/tools/media_player/s_player.swf", "minnesota_the_current_performances_2010_12_02_20101201_superchunk_20101202_128s_player", "319", "83", "8", "#ffffff");so.addParam("quality", "high");so.addParam("menu", "false");so.addParam("wmode", "transparent");so.addVariable("name", "minnesota/the_current/performances/2010/12/02/20101201_superchunk_20101202_128");so.write("minnesota_the_current_performances_2010_12_02_20101201_superchunk_20101202_128s_player");/*]]>*/</script></div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-1406714286497390582010-12-01T21:42:00.002-06:002010-12-01T22:06:29.876-06:00Batman's BackToday I finally caught up on Batman. Well, Grant Morrison's Batman anyway. And by caught up I mean only on recent developments; I still haven't read most of his run. For today, though, I'm going to set aside all those comics, as well as the final issue of <i>Batman: The Return of Bruce Wayne</i> and <i>Batman: The Return</i>. Why? I'd rather talk about the awesome <b>Batman Inc. #1</b>, "Mr. Unknown Is Dead."<div><br /></div><div>The premise behind the new book is that Bruce Wayne has decided to take his war on crime global. He's leaving Gotham City in the hands of Dick Grayson and Bruce's son, Damian, who will continue as Batman and Robin (as will that title). Bruce has picked up the mantle of Batman back up as well and this issue has him traveling to Japan with Catwoman after a little B&E at Dr. Sivana's lab.</div><div><br /></div><div>Japan is the home of Mr. Unknown, about whom I know nothing - brand-new character or has he been seen before? No matter, as the title of the issue suggests he is no longer among the living, having been killed by Lord Death Man, who has a skull for a head and dresses in a long black robe. Mr. Unknown's sidekick (?) survives and confronts him at the end of the issue. Meanwhile, Bruce and Selina chill out by working out and bantering sexily before getting involved with the goings-on at the end of the book.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, we have new mysteries and new directions. The book is a ton of fun and is helped tremendously by the art team of Yanick Paquette and Michel Lacombe. The visuals of Lord Death Man and his henchmen are creepily cool and his Catwoman is as curvy as you would want her to be.</div><div><br /></div><div>This is a great starting point for anyone interested and I can't wait to see where the book goes from here.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-22598272617304391922010-11-21T09:11:00.002-06:002010-11-21T13:05:57.064-06:00Sunday Shuffle #205/206It's my annual Sunday before Thanksgiving weekend double issue. Why a double? We'll spend most of next Sunday driving back home from PA, where we'll have had a great time with my side of the family. I wish all of you a very happy Thanksgiving as well.<div><br /></div><div>1. Ballad Of Sire Frankie Crisp (Let It Roll)/Yim Yames (4)</div><div>2. As I Rise/The Decemberists (2)</div><div>3. 36 Inches High/Nick Lowe (2)</div><div>4. Disney Time/Jarvis Cocker (2)</div><div>5. Crimson/Apples In Stereo (1)</div><div>6. River's Edge/Great Lake Swimmers (3)</div><div>7. Chesley's Little Wrists/Pavement (2)</div><div>8. We Are Underused/Pavement (4)</div><div>9. Here's Where The Strings Come In/Superchunk (2)</div><div>10. On My Way/American Music Club (1)</div><div>11. All I Got Is Me/Spoon (2)</div><div>12. Sallie's Heart Is Stone/Say Hi (1)</div><div>13. Blue Angel/The Love Language (9)</div><div>14. The Old Days/Dr. Dog (3)</div><div>15. Awkward Kisser/Telekinesis (5)</div><div>16. Baby's Coming Back To Me/Jarvis Cocker (2)</div><div>17. The Ghost Inside/Broken Bells (2)</div><div>18. I Know You/Sloan (2)</div><div>19. God, Please Let Me Go Back/Josh Rouse (1)</div><div>20. There Will Be No Divorce/The Mountain Goats (1)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-76641794962689678842010-11-14T07:33:00.002-06:002010-11-14T09:00:37.201-06:00Sunday Shuffle #204Not much to say, so let's get right to the music...<div><br /></div><div>1. Ruination Day/Gillian Welch (3)</div><div>2. Staples/Buffalo Tom (2)</div><div>3. The Royal We/Frankel (2)</div><div>4. Dress Me Like a Clown/Margot & The Nuclear So & So's (4)</div><div>5. Heavy and Hanging/Patterson Hood (4)</div><div>6. Way Out West/Big Star (6)</div><div>7. Videotape/Radiohead (1)</div><div>8. Big Light/Roman Candle (4)</div><div>9. A Long Time Coming/Sloan (3)</div><div>10. Rule of Three/The Lemonheads (2)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-35888492258744472812010-11-13T14:22:00.002-06:002010-11-13T15:11:04.801-06:00Mile RunGreg Rucka and Dennis Lehane are forever linked for me. In 1998, I bought and devoured Rucka and Steve Lieber's <i>Whiteout</i> from Oni Press. Somewhere in that time I learned Rucka had written a few novels, which I quickly found and started reading. I'm still a fan of his Atticus Kodiak books. A friend of mine from the APA I was in at the time (Hi, Tim and Pulp Legacy!) recommended Dennis Lehane's novels about Kenzie and Gennaro to me and I bit. I was reading one of them on my trip to Spain in March 2000. They both moved away from those series - Rucka to many comics, one of which spun out into a couple novels, and Lehane to standalone books like <i>Mystic River</i> and <i>Shutter Island</i>. Both published new books within the last couple weeks and I've managed to squeeze both into my busy schedule.<div><br /></div><div>First was Rucka's <i>The Last Run</i>. It's not a return to the Atticus Kodiak cycle, though his last book was. Instead, this is the third Queen & Country novel, the same series that started as a comic I mentioned before. In fact, the comic returned for a while after the last novel, <i>Private Wars</i>, came out in 2005. I do not own those issues in any form, something I should rectify.</div><div><br /></div><div>The new novel begins with Tara Chace feeling like it's time to stop being a Minder. Events, of course, conspire to keep her active for one last mission involving double crosses and politics in Iran. Back home, her boss Paul Crocker is dealing with political repercussions from his utter support of his Minders over the years. It's fast-paced and very engrossing and I loved every minute of it. I did see the ending coming but I was okay with it, as it puts a pin on the series.</div><div><br /></div><div>Speaking of putting a pin on a series, Lehane's <i>Moonlight Mile</i> is his first Kenzie and Gennaro novel since 1999's <i>Prayers For Rain</i>. The new one actually deals with events from <i>Gone Baby Gone</i>, which was released the year prior to <i>Prayers For Rain</i> (and made into a critically-acclaimed movie by Ben Affleck that I still haven't seen). Amanda McCready, the kidnapped girl from that book, has once more disappeared. Kenzie and Gennaro are now married with a four year-old daughter, barely holding on in the down economy and find themselves drawn back into Amanda's life. It's a compelling book that deals with guilt and class issues and the big issue of right versus wrong. I read it quickly. Unfortunately, I don't think there will be another one but I'm okay with the way it ended.</div><div><br /></div><div>If you like your PI/bodyguard genre, you could do worse than picking up some Rucka or Lehane. I'd start at the beginning, though. You won't be able to stop yourself from catching up quickly.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-62551646396865589892010-11-07T07:26:00.003-06:002010-11-07T08:24:03.337-06:00Sunday Shuffle #203It's been a busy week for various reasons and this upcoming week will be busy for some of the same reasons. I hope everyone remembered to turn their clocks back last night...<div><br /></div><div>1. January Wedding/The Avett Brothers (6)</div><div>2. I Will Kill Again/Jarvis Cocker (1)</div><div>3. Help Help/Mates of State (1)</div><div>4. Someday I'll Be Forgiven for This/Justin Townes Earle (1)</div><div>5. You Threw A Spark/Crooked Fingers (5)</div><div>6. White Collar Boy/Belle and Sebastian (4)</div><div>7. Station Approach/Elbow (3)</div><div>8. Chill Out/The Hold Steady (3)</div><div>9. The Lost Brigade/Ted Leo & Pharmacists (2)</div><div>10. I Know You/Sloan (1)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-64157594244217675432010-11-01T10:09:00.003-05:002010-11-01T10:29:54.208-05:00F&SF Mar./Apr. 2010One reason I haven't been doing these posts on the SF mags I've read this year is that I haven't read that many of them. However, I ran out of space in the nightstand drawer I store the unread mags in and that spurred me to get reading. It's no secret I like the anthology format and I consider <i>F&SF</i> to be the better of the two SF mags I read on a regular (well, sort of) basis.<div><br /></div><div>Humor is difficult to writer because it is so easy for the words to fall flat on the page. A couple stories this time out worked well - "Epidapheles and the Insufficiently Affectionate Ocelot" by Ramsey Shehadeh and "The Frog Comrade" by Benjamin Rosenbaum. The former was a tale of a bumbling wizard narrated by an invisible chair named Door that mixed humor with an affecting character study of Door and the latter was a twist on the old princess and the frog story with a nice dose of Communism thrown in. Once you throw in Paul Di Filippo's "Plumage From Pegasus" about a penal system full of writers, you've got a nice set of humor.</div><div><br /></div><div>The humor works well in contrast to darker stories, of which there were a few good examples. Dennis Danvers' "The Fairy Princess" is a story of a woman divorced from life and newly-sentient sex robots. "Blue Fire" by Bruce McAllister looks at the night a child Pope met a child vampire and what it meant for both of their souls.</div><div><br /></div><div>You also get your classic themes and classic writers in this issue. The opening story was a take on mythology and time-crossed love ("Amor Fugit" by Alexandra Duncan) and the always dependable Albert E. Cowdrey gave us a story about art and death in "Fort Clay, Louisiana: A Tragical History." Mix that with the books column and the hide-and-seek nod to one of the stories in the classifieds and you get another good issue.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-41115760157681244962010-10-31T07:48:00.002-05:002010-10-31T10:17:43.921-05:00Sunday Shuffle #202I hope the football games on my TV today are treats and not tricks. Happy Halloween to you all. Don't think today's ten will be very spooky but you never know...<div><br /></div><div>1. Proud Mary/Creedence Clearwater Revival (4)</div><div>2. The Past/Teenage Fanclub (7)</div><div>3. Crumble/Dinosaur Jr. (5)</div><div>4. Calculating Bimbo/Belle and Sebastian (6)</div><div>5. You Are Free/Joseph Arthur (3)</div><div>6. Lucky One/Michael Penn (3)</div><div>7. Biology Tricks/Centro-Matic (2)</div><div>8. Take Heart, Sisters/Bowery Boy Blue (2)</div><div>9. The Salesman (Tramp Life)/White Rabbits (1)</div><div>10. Die Die Die/The Avett Brothers (1)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-16544914660180713602010-10-30T21:34:00.004-05:002010-10-30T22:05:36.716-05:00The Pile<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYUIHML6_yooDzE8xHibq1R4g0faAhlh8UCHPfjuyhHvN1hkJPckq17Xkr9IdMAtdEjTxg0TFv24rx00ehS9gM_p3t705K63EKAceSc2A82ccupULT6C3_MowiCyx7lDSi4LpRPtek0r0x/s1600/The+Stack+10-30-10.jpg"><img style="cursor:pointer; cursor:hand;width: 320px; height: 240px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYUIHML6_yooDzE8xHibq1R4g0faAhlh8UCHPfjuyhHvN1hkJPckq17Xkr9IdMAtdEjTxg0TFv24rx00ehS9gM_p3t705K63EKAceSc2A82ccupULT6C3_MowiCyx7lDSi4LpRPtek0r0x/s320/The+Stack+10-30-10.jpg" border="0" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5534033154773011282" /></a><br /><div><br /></div><div>Now that I've written about the last two things I've read, I thought I'd run down what's currently sitting in my to-be-read pile. I'll go top to bottom...</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Mar./Apr. issue of F&SF</b> - No, you didn't read that cover date incorrectly. I'm waaaaay behind on my SF magazine reading - there are 3 more issues of <i>F&SF </i>and 7 (!) of <i>Asimov's</i> still socked away in a drawer (well, the drawer isn't big enough to hold them all, so some are shifted to the bookshelves behind me) after this one. On the plus side, I've read over 120 pages of this issue since last night and will read more after this post is completed.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>English Victorian Poetry</b> - We're spending two days on poems from this anthology between novels in my English class. We covered Robert and Elizabeth Barrett Browning and Matthew Arnold on Wednesday and will discuss Alfred, Lord Tennyson on Monday.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Woman in White</b> - This novel by Wilkie Collins is next up after the poetry. It's the longest novel we've read in class so far and I'll need to knock out large chunks in a short amount of time. I'd heard of Collins before this but not the book and I'm eager to check it out. Strangely, it also got a mention in <i>Bob Dylan in America</i>.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Masked </b>- This is an anthology of super-hero prose stories edited by Lou Anders, who usually puts these sorts of things together very well. I've read the first four stories so far but that was a while ago. It's not that I've lost interest - I just need to carve out some more time.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk</b> - I was a fan of David Sedaris's essays in <i>The New Yorker</i> back when I was a subscriber and this small book of short stories seemed like a good way to check in with him again. The title alone, you know?</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Last Run</b> - This is the third (and final?) Tara Chace novel from Greg Rucka, a series that started as the comic <i>Queen & Country</i>. You know, I'm still not sure I own all those trades (a quick check reveals I didn't get the final one of the main series or a couple of the offshoots). Anyway, the last novel came out in 2005, so it's been a while.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Chew Vol. 2</b> - This collects issues #6-10 of the ongoing series about cibopathic Tony Chu. It's an odd premise and a great book.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Fantastic Four</b> - This is one of the most venerable comics in the Marvel Universe, of course. This particular collection contains the first six issues of the current run by Jonathan Hickman which has gotten pretty good reviews. The first story is a multiple worlds tale and I'm a sucker for those, so I'm interested to see Hickman's take on the team.</div><div><br /></div><div>It'll take a while to get through these but I'm always ready to read...</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-45324021532462189162010-10-30T20:46:00.002-05:002010-10-30T21:13:41.751-05:00Heavy Rotation #13Here are the albums I've been listening to a lot the past couple of weeks...<div><br /></div><div><b>Belle & Sebastian/Write About Love</b> - This is another band I was late on. I did pick up <i>The Life Pursuit</i> a few months after it was out and really liked it...but didn't dig back into the catalog. The songs on this album got quickly stuck in my head and that was just fine with me. I owe this one a more in-depth review and I owe it to myself to start grabbing their earlier work.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Bob Dylan/Blonde on Blonde</b> - I pulled this out because there was a section on its making in Bob Dylan in America and kept listening because it's <i>Blonde on Blonde</i>. Don't know that I ever noticed the awesome drumrolls in "Sooner or Later (One of Us Must Know)" before. Gotta love the Robbie Robertson guitar on "Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat" too.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Ben Kweller/Ben Kweller</b> - I pulled this out to play for the teacher I'm working with this year - she said she was into hearing new music and you don't have to invite me twice. She liked it a lot and I haven't been able to stop listening to it since. This is pure power pop goodness and performed entirely by Kweller. The way he harmonizes with himself on "I Don't Know Why" is awesome and there is not a dud track to be found.</div><div><br /></div><div><b>The Long Winters/Putting the Days to Bed</b> - This is another one I tried out on Katie (the teacher), though I'd been listening to it before that. I took it on my trip to Indy to see The National at the beginning of the month but didn't listen to it then. A week or so later I did and was hooked all over again. This is literate power pop at its finest and I can't wait until the new album comes out in early 2011 (I hope).</div><div><br /></div><div><b>Old 97s/The Grand Theater Volume One</b> - I spent some time listening to Rhett Miller's recent self-titled album and the band's last one , <i>Blame It On Gravity</i>, in the run-up to the new album's release on Oct. 12. I had to get myself prepared, you see. Anyway, I like the new one. A lot. I'm also excited that the current plan is for <i>The Grand Theater Volume 2</i> to come out in May. I need to write more in-depth about this as well.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-88386254572290403682010-10-30T13:23:00.003-05:002010-10-30T20:44:01.719-05:00Bob and JaneMy reading has been dominated by two books over the last two weeks or so, both of which I have now finished. One was for pleasure, the other for school. One was fiction, the other non. One was a classic, the other written about a classic songwriter. Have you used all the clues to figure them out yet? That's right - <i>Jane Eyre</i> by Charlotte Bronte and <i>Bob Dylan in America</i> by Sean Wilentz.<div><br /></div><div><i>Bob Dylan in America</i> places him as an American artist and spends a lot of time dealing with his influences and even people who may have influenced him. Early chapters deal not so much with Dylan as with Aaron Copeland and the Beat writers. It also deals with more recent projects and I had no idea people were calling him a plagiarist during that time period. Naturally, the book does talk about the music as well, including a section on <i>Blonde on Blonde</i>. It's a very interesting read, though I suspect someone who doesn't care for Dylan would find much of interest.</div><div><br /></div><div>I've read a Bronte before but not Charlotte; I read <i>Wuthering Heights</i> multiple times in my teens and really liked the novel (maybe I should reread it now that I'm older and see what has changed). I've also read <i>The Eyre Affair</i> by Jasper Fforde, though that didn't really prepare me for <i>Jane Eyre</i> itself (I did flip through the Fforde after finishing the Bronte and it made me laugh now that I know the novel). I did enjoy the book and enjoyed our class discussion just as much. Jane is very headstrong and steely and though her romantic foils weren't the greatest, they still illuminated her resolve.</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-62180618037540158612010-10-24T07:44:00.002-05:002010-10-24T09:01:34.536-05:00Sunday Shuffle #201Back to the regular old shuffle today...<div><br /></div><div>1. A Bite Out Of My Bed/The New Pornographers (10)</div><div>2. Border Guards/The Rosebuds (2)</div><div>3. Wait And See/Reigning Sound (3)</div><div>4. Snake Song/Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan (7)</div><div>5. A Slow Parade/A.A. Bondy (2)</div><div>6. Hello Darlin'/The Rosebuds (1)</div><div>7. Pour Me Up Another/Amy Millan (1)</div><div>8. Time To Die/The Dodos (3)</div><div>9. River's Edge/Great Lake Swimmers (2)</div><div>10. Sonnet 46/Roman Candle (4)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-1660403756999330642010-10-17T08:05:00.002-05:002010-10-17T12:42:05.445-05:00Sunday Shuffle #200I have combed through the archives to pull up the dates of the other big episodes of Sunday Shuffle. Here is a quick recap:<div><br /></div><div>#1 - Aug. 27, 2006</div><div>#50 - Aug. 19, 2007</div><div>#100 - July 27, 2008</div><div>#150 - Sept. 9, 2009</div><div><br /></div><div>There have been some skipped weeks and double issues along the way but 200 is a pretty big number. This feature has been a constant for over 4 years now and is ingrained into my Sunday routine. And yes, there are long stretches where these Shuffles have been the only posts I've done...and I'm okay with that.</div><div><br /></div><div>Enough with the talk - it's time to get to the music. I'm making today a double issue, so here's today's twenty...</div><div><br /></div><div>1. Anonanimal/Andrew Bird (4)</div><div>2. Any Time At All/The Beatles (1)</div><div>3. Angela/Oakley Hall (3)</div><div>4. I Feel Better/Frightened Rabbit (1)</div><div>5. Kiss Yourself/Verbena (2)</div><div>6. My Punishment For Fighting/The Rosebuds (2)</div><div>7. Daisychain/Matthew Sweet (2)</div><div>8. Uncovering The Old/Dr. Dog (2)</div><div>9. Everywhere I Go/Lissie (4)</div><div>10. I'm Not There/Buffalo Tom (2)</div><div>11. Mole/The Mountain Goats (4)</div><div>12. The N.S./Sloan (1)</div><div>13. Nature's Wrath/The Budos Band (5)</div><div>14. I Will Sing You Songs/My Morning Jacket (2)</div><div>15. She Handed Me a Mirror/Elvis Costello (3)</div><div>16. Change of Time/Josh Ritter (4)</div><div>17. Shadows/Yo La Tengo (1)</div><div>18. Motion Suggests/Pavement (2)</div><div>19. Romanian Names/John Vanderslice (2)</div><div>20. Low Branches/Superchunk (4)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-24411051359976434252010-10-10T07:41:00.002-05:002010-10-10T08:54:01.017-05:00Sunday Shuffle #199Today is 10/10/10 and to celebrate I'm going to do what I always do and write down the first 10 songs from shuffle mode on my iTunes. 10!<div><br /></div><div>1. Faust Arp/Radiohead (2)</div><div>2. Lowdown/Tom Waits (1)</div><div>3. Reach Out/Sloan (3)</div><div>4. Pride of the Yankees/Patterson Hood (3)</div><div>5. I Wanna Know Girls/Portastatic (1) - an acoustic version</div><div>6. Better Things/Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings (8)</div><div>7. Most People Are DJs/The Hold Steady (1)</div><div>8. The Lady Vanishes/White Rabbits (2)</div><div>9. Rabbit/The Essex Green (2)</div><div>10. Angela/Jarvis Cocker (3)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-27586461850513932052010-10-03T12:17:00.002-05:002010-10-03T13:04:16.449-05:00Sunday Shuffle #198I'm off to a later start than usual today because I was up late. Why? I drove down to Indy last night to see The National with my friend Trevor and some of his friends. It was a great show (more on it later) and great to finally meet Trevor face to face. It's also a football Sunday and I have stuff to do for English, so let's get to the music...<div><br /></div><div>1. My World/The Thermals (2)</div><div>2. You Won't Let Me Down Again/Isobel Campbell & Mark Lanegan (7)</div><div>3. Who Makes Your Money/Spoon (5)</div><div>4. I Felt the Chill Before the Winter Came/Elvis Costello (2)</div><div>5. Dark as Days/Army Navy (2)</div><div>6. An Imagined Affair/Elbow (1)</div><div>7. Unison Falling Into Harmony/Great Lake Swimmers (2)</div><div>8. Runaway/The National (13) - perfect!</div><div>9. In My Younger Days/Eels (1)</div><div>10. Tuberculoids Arrive In Hop/Ted Leo & The Pharmacists (11)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-162038822589727418.post-80565845981091613352010-09-26T07:29:00.002-05:002010-09-26T07:57:28.859-05:00Sunday Shuffle #197I didn't get much done on my weekend to-do list yesterday and I want to watch football today even though my Bears don't play until tomorrow night, so we'd better jump right into the music...<div><br /></div><div>1. The Trouble With River Cities/Pela (1)</div><div>2. Take Good Care of the Poor Boy/Sloan (2)</div><div>3. Don't Say A Word (Hot Chicken #2)/Yo La Tengo (1)</div><div>4. Bandits/Midlake (1)</div><div>5. Fat/Archers of Loaf (1)</div><div>6. Bunny Ain't No Kind Of Rider/Of Montreal (2)</div><div>7. Someone I Can Be True With/Sloan (1)</div><div>8. Trash Talk/Reigning Sound (1)</div><div>9. Wild West Love Song/Marah (1)</div><div>10. Saints/Army Navy (3)</div>Justin Steinerhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09151752685005651437noreply@blogger.com0