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| Book reviews and reader participation |
| Roy Starin |
Let me explain. I have been spending way too much time reading. Mainly comic books and magazines and the like, but also some deeper stuff disguised as tawdry fiction. Have you ever heard of Tom Robbins? Up until a few years ago, neither had I. I was introduced to Tom Robbins by an ex-girlfriend who lent me her old, beat up dog-eared copy of Still Life With Woodpecker. That was pretty much the only redeeming quality our relationship had, but that's neither here nor there. Maybe that's not fair, but whatever. When I thumbed through the book, I noticed that there were many sections that were highlighted in that neon yellow usually reserved for quick reference in the average college biology textbook. I thought about how strange it was that someone deemed this author's prose so profound as to outline it, especially one whose name does not normally rush to the lips of someone talking about "classics". And then I read it. Tom Robbins' books are like opening a gift on Christmas Day while getting laid and drinking a fine bourbon, they are that good. I would like to share a little passage from Half Asleep In Frog Pajamas, in the hopes that I can turn you on to one of my favorite authors. Enjoy.
" 'We modern human beings are looking at life, trying to make some sense of it; observing a 'reality' that often seems to be unfolding in a foreign tongue-only we've all been issued the wrong librettos. For a text, we're given the Bible. Or the Talmud or the Koran. We're given Time magazine and Reader's Digest, daily papers, and the six o'clock news; we're given schoolbooks, sitcoms and revisionist histories; we're given psychological counseling, cults, workshops, advertisements, sales pitches, and authoritative pronouncements by heads of state. Unfortunately, none of these translations bears more than a faint resemblance to what is transpiring in the true theatre of existence, and most of them are dangerously misleading. We're attempting to comprehend the sprialing intricacies of a magnificently complex tragicomedy with librettos that describe barroom melodramas or kindergarten skits. And when's the last time you heard anybody bitch about it to the management?' "
Brilliant, if you ask me. On the surface, this is a story about a Filipina stockbroker named Gwendolyn who is trying to figure out what to do with her life after being faced with the dot-com market bubble going pop. Other characters and subjects include an obese tarot card reader, a born again Barbary Island ape, amphibious aliens from Sirius, an African tribe called the Bozo, and an asian doctor whose cure for cancer involves an enema administered via a magic jade douchenozzle. Add some sexual discovery into the mix, shake well, and drink slowly. I place Tom Robbins on a pedestal reserved for those whose books I will read and recommend to anyone who will listen. Did I mention he is from Seattle?
What else have I been up to, you ask? Oh, I don't know, a little of this, a little of that. I have been trying to buy some more music to listen to and write about (honest!), since all my stuff is still packed up in a storage facility somewhere. To tell the truth, it's just been kind of hard to get excited about most of the crap that's been coming out lately. I know that the Arcade Fire have that new album out, and it's supposed to be the shit, but my hype avoidance alarm went off, and I just can't bring myself to buy it yet. Also, I haven't been able to *ahem* borrow any new songs from the ol' downloady program because my damn firewall is blocking it and I can't figure out how to shut it off. On the up side, I see that Adult. and El-P just dropped some new shit, so maybe there is hope after all. And there's also that one British chick with the fucked up teeth that sounds like she stepped right out of a 60's soul group. She's got an awesome voice, and that "not goin' back to rehab" song is pretty fun. Fuck, what is her name? Amy Winehouse; thank you Spin magazine. All told, that's pretty slim pickins as far as stuff that gives me a musical boner. I mean, TV on the Radio? Yeah, not really doing it for me.
This brings me to something I have been thinking about for a little while now. Does the music being released right now have any sort of permanence to it? Like, what is gonna be considered "classic 90's" or "classic millenium" type stuff? It feels like so much of the music that I have been listening to lately is good, yet disposable. What is gonna be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 20 years? I think it's pretty safe to say that as far as the 90's are concerned, Nirvana, Soundgarden, and Pearl Jam will make it. So will Radiohead, Blur, and Oasis. Then theres Sublime, Tool, Smashing Pumpkins, and Alice In Chains. Those bands are all perfect 90's rock icons. So what do we have for this decade? Anyone? What is tomorrow's old school? I think I am actually too old to answer that. Wait, maybe not. Maybe music is now just like most things in our lives, meant to be enjoyed, then tossed in anticipation for the next new shiny object. Wow that sounds so much better than me admitting I am not young enough to "get it". Hold on, I am gonna go do a little research...
Okay, so check this out, this is a partial list of some of the bands deemed "cool" by yours truly that have been inducted thus far:
-James Brown
-Elvis (can't stand him personally, but I will admit that he had something going on)
-Jerry Lee Lewis
-Hank Williams
-Muddy Waters
-B.B. King
-The Beatles
-The Rolling Stones
-Johnny Cash
-Creedence
-The Doors
-Bob Marley
-Led Zeppelin
-Pink Floyd
-Queen
- The Ramones
-The Clash
-AC/DC
-Black Sabbath
-Van Halen
You can say who gives a shit about the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and you would be right. But I like to think about silly things like this, so fuck off. If you like discussing unimportant stuff too, tell me what bands you would put in your Hall of Fame. Judging by the fact that you guys posted up 735 comments about whether or not Salba is a kook, you definitely like spending time discussing silly crap, so humor me, will ya? Who is in your Rock and Roll Hall of Fame? Til then...
send me stuff!
rstarin74@yahoo.com
Roy Starin
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Thursday 22nd 2007f March 2007 14:47
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