Best of 2013

5) Magic Circle – Magic Circle

Just like with food, occasionally I'll get a craving for certain music. One of those cravings is for old occult doom, Black Sabbath, Pentagram, Saint Vitus, etc. When I feel it I'll pull out one of their albums and spin it until the craving is satisfied. I know there are a lot of bands out there that try to pull off that occult doom style even to this day, but none of them do it nearly as good as those three bands. None of them except Magic Circle apparently.

This album effectively quashed my urge for Black Sabbath this year. It won't replace them as the years go by. I'll still listen to Black Sabbath, but Magic Circle have managed to design an image and delivery that sounds authentically 70's-80's occult doom. The thick, groovy power chord riffs with that sweet spot of power amp saturation, the soaring leads and solos, the charismatic vocal yelling lyrics of warning and repentance. And, with each spin the album charismatically grows in your memory as something special, something epic. Even the production sounds authentic with a little noise and reverb that makes it sound like it's from one of the dustier shelves of the collection. This might be a turn off for some, but at a good volume with a little wattage behind it, the album sounds so warm and organic. From now on my occult doom binges will be mostly stuff from the 70's-80's and one very special album from 2013.

Best of 2013

6) Katalepsy – Autopsychosis

Everyone hates death metal, especially brutal death metal. I completely understand. It's an easy target. You can't understand the lyrics and when you look them up they're usually pretty gross. The guitars shred along with hardly anything to hold on to. The song structures are chaotic and disturbing making any normal person edgy and anxious. Death metal presents a challenge to which there is no discernible reward.

But, I can't help loving it. When I was younger it was like someone flipped a switch and death metal was all I could listen to. And I was never completely satisfied with any one band. There was this insatiable hunger for something more brutal, more complex, more disturbing than anything I had heard before. Though I listen to a lot more these days, that hunger stays with me like an itch I can't help but gouge at. And lucky for me, there is no limit to how brutal these bands can get. Granted, it's the rare band that can impress me at this point, but a few still manage to do it. This year it was Katalepsy, a band that hasn't had a full-length in 6 years.

Autopsychosis came out of nowhere and it can easily compete with any modern death metal album and win. The leads are so memorable, full of perfectly timed pinch harmonics and frantic jumps between octaves. The percussion is so dynamic, swapping out neck-breaking rhythms with lightning precision. The vocal is ferocious, literally frightening. The lyrics are surprisingly thoughtful, each song reading like a modern H.P. Lovecraft. Even the album art is an intricate work of horrifying surrealism. I just hope it doesn't take them another six years before the next masterpiece of brutality.

Best of 2013

7) Run the Jewels – Run the Jewels

I don't listen to much rap and hip-hop, but once in a while an album will make a few waves on the blogs and my attention will be stirred. It's great fun to listen to with a beefy subwoofer and though I may not relate to it well, I can pretend long enough in the summer months to provide a welcome break from the heavier stuff. But, I have the same expectations for it that I do for anything else. It has to be well-written, it has to have depth and originality, it has to be a good mix of interesting words and captivating music, and Run the Jewels is all those things. When everyone was slobbering over Robin Thicke's tired track saying things like, “This is the song of the summer,” I was spinning this.

Run the Jewels is a collaboration from El-P and Killer Mike, two artists I honestly don't know much about, but after spending so much time with this I'm going to try to remedy my ignorance. These two guys are brilliant. The lyrics cover so much ground, sometimes sticking to misogyny, but mostly just being unabashedly clever. The standout for me is the track, “No Come Down.” It's about getting high, but it really tries to bring you there. There's a description of a surreal psilocybin trip with equal parts sex and death. There are even a few nods between these two guys, just complimenting each other on their form which is great to hear when you have the perception of a genre as mostly ego-fueled and self-centered.

Best of 2013

8) New Keepers of the Water Towers - Cosmic Child

I've spun this album a whole lot, but this is the first time I happened to see where New Keepers of the Water Towers were from, that being Sweden. This is a fairly major surprise for me because this music sounds very American to me. The music is heavily psychedelic rock/metal with plenty of thick amplifier worship, but there's a depth here not many similar American bands seem to achieve, complex chord progressions, smooth but captivating key changes, progressive song structures. Then it occurred to me that there's another Swedish band with a similar sound and a similarly complex delivery, Dozer. I don't know if there's any connection between these bands as they are very unique and take the music in different directions, but the existence of these two bands is going to make me take a closer look at the Swedish psychedelic rock/metal scene because as with a few things, the Swedes might just be better at it than we are.

Cosmic Child is really a stunning record from beginning to end. There might be a few naysayers taking a snooze during some of the more mellow or atmospheric passages, but it's because of all the weed and subsequent short attention spans. The album flows beautifully, creating tension and then resolving it in brilliantly creative ways. There are so many memorable passages, some with obvious influences. I would say there's a big Pink Floyd presence, maybe even a little Opeth, but everything sounds fresh, displaying a distinct personality. Even the production job is wonderful, each instrument mixed perfectly, complementing each other as the vocal guides you through very cosmic territory.

Best of 2013

9) Witherscape – The Inheritance

Before death metal even had a shape, rules of conformity within the genre, there were two bands that seemed to transcend anything that was happening in heavy metal. They were Death and Edge of Sanity, led respectively by two visionaries, Chuck Schuldiner and Dan Swanö. Unfortunately we lost Chuck some time ago, but Swanö has been with us for the duration, hardly ever in the spotlight, but contributing his musical brilliance to countless projects, either as a vocalist, guitarist, or sound engineer. His latest being this remarkable album.

Witherscape could easily be mistaken for a full progressive death metal quartet with years of experience under their belt, but this is a collaboration of two people covering all instrumental duties, Dan Swanö and Ragnar Widerberg. The chemistry between these two musicians is unmistakable. Each track is full of catchy guitar leads, vocal hooks, interesting rhythms, even some really great, restrained synth work. Obviously I'm biased because this is Swanö and his voice sounds just as good as it did twenty years ago alternating seamlessly between passionate croons and guttural growling, so I could be overlooking some flaws, but I really don't see any. If you dig Edge of Sanity and miss the times when death metal was thoughtful and not hopelessly focused on violence and misogyny then this is an essential album.

Best of 2013

10) Tim Hecker – Virgins

I saw Time Hecker a couple years ago at a local venue. At the show little pamphlets were handed out, sort of like a playbill, but it described how Tim had designed the sound system for this particular theater over a period of weeks, positioning certain speakers in just the right places, making absolutely sure to have the audience in a state of complete immersion during his performance. It was one of the most unique musical experiences I've ever had. 

At first it was very chaotic. His signature sound is less about pleasant melodies and consonant harmonies and more about aural texture and frequency contrast. Soon the overwhelming vibration of low bass and upper register frequencies became a little more comfortable and I closed my eyes for the rest of the set, completely at the mercy of the enveloping sound. The performance was a journey, at times uncomfortable, at times hypnotizing, at times very calming, and ultimately a very emotional and rewarding experience.

Virgins is a continuation of his signature style, which is to say unlike any other electronic music you're likely to hear. Using sampled percussive beats, distant breathy instrumentation layered into lattices of hypnotic texture, Hecker tries his absolute hardest to immerse you. And without any words or obvious emotional direction, it's up to you what kind of experience a spin of this record is going to be. For me it's exactly the type of album I want playing on long, lonely drives at night.

Movie: Blue is the Warmest Color

I saw the trailer for this a while back and remember being excited to see it. Lea Seydoux is a wonderful up and coming actress and the lead Adele Exarchopoulos seemed like an infinitely charming girl in just a few seconds of footage. And then the reviews came out and it attained a bit of a reputation. I mentioned that I wanted to see it to a coworker and he gave me that suggestive smirk... I felt so much rage in that moment, but this is an older coworker who has a history of objectifying women, so I let it go. But, it left a residual ickyness about going to see it at the local indie theater. If the assumption is that no single young guy could ever appreciate a film like this, a film that closely examines the intense passion between two young girls, then what am I doing there in the eyes of other people. I must be there perving out. People should know the difference between pornography and drama, but that single comment from a coworker made me question that.

But, tonight I built up a little courage and went to see it. Unfortunately, my worst fear came true. I walked in to find a seat and while taking off my coat a woman in the next row looked at me with eyes of harsh judgment, but without initially saying anything. To break the tension of the moment, I said "Hi," with my library voice, given the venue. After an awkward pause she raised her voice so that everyone around could hear and said, "Uh, hi. You here to watch the girls?" I was stunned, shocked, disgusted that someone would actually accuse another person of something like that. Instinct delivered the next line, but I was so flustered it came out awkwardly, "No! This is an art film... funny though." She just turned back to face the screen and I tried to hide the red hot anger I felt. 

Then the film started... and it was beautiful. It was passionate and intimate, full of complex, confused emotions, intelligent scenes of witty dialog. The lead actresses gave such stunningly real performances. But, the audience in the theater tried their best to judge it, giggling during scenes of immense tension, giggling and guffawing during the sex scenes which really did push the boundaries of mainstream film, but why we're still considering the human body a taboo at this point in societal development is beyond my comprehension. All people should care about is that the sex was important for the filmmaker to express. He wanted to show us the frantic love between two girls, one confused with her sexuality, confused with what love means, and the other mysterious and charismatic, a teacher, a happy guide into unknown territory, and the sex between them was a very important part of that. I loved the film and I'm glad Abdellatif Kechiche had the guts to do this.

On my way out of the theater I was behind a few young people and overheard one person's review which was met with agreement among friends, "I thought it was bland, I wasn't even surprised by anything, it was just boring." A comment like that after a film like this makes me think they had never loved before, had never been lied to and felt pain, had never had frantic, desperate sex with someone they were infatuated with, because if they had, this film would remind them of all those moments in their life and fill them with an appreciation for life itself.

5/5

Beer: Ballast Point Victory at Sea Imperial Porter

Appearance: Thick pour on this one, like pouring out a bottle of motor oil that's been sitting in a broken down chevy pickup for decades. Thin, dense, light brown head leaving sticky lacing as the level descends.

Aroma: Smoke, vanilla, coffee, with a dark fruitiness somewhere in there, like raisins or figs.

Taste: Over the top richness, like biting into a block of fudge topped with vanilla bean seeds. The coffee presence brings a little chalky bitterness balancing all the sweetness. The resolution is reminiscent of caramel.

Mouthfeel: Very thick, but not unpleasant. That slight chalky bitterness is enough to resolve the molasses-like heft and the alcohol at 10% is right where it should be for a beer with this much body. It's a dessert for sure, so if you approach it with that perception, it's not too much to handle.

Overall: Ballast Point won't be winning any awards for subtlety any time soon but that's alright by me and if you're looking for a rich dessert beer this is perfect. 

5/5

Beer: Dogfish Head - Bitches Brew

I was watching Bill Maher today, his latest installment of Real Time, an HBO show which attempts to address modern times in a comedic way, a little more caustic than the Daily Show is allowed to be. Bill was explaining that a trend is rearing its head in that notorious stretch of America known as the bible belt. People are snubbing their waiters and waitresses with small rectangles of paper that look very much like currency, the green color, the intricate bordering, but it's not money, it's a trick. On the front is all the legitimacy of what a ten dollar bill looks like, but on the back is a line of dialog: "Some things are better than money, like your eternal salvation that was bought and paid by Jesus going to the cross."

Hearing about that sort of thing hurts me, somewhere deep inside where empathy comes from. I'd like to resolve the disappointment with some sort of answer, some form of hope, but I can't really. There will always be people who compartmentalize their capacity for compassion and only dole it out to people they deem worthy. All I can do in this particular circumstance is, when the opportunity should arise, to tip a lot, tip half the bill or more because I can still make ends meet and I need those people to keep me company on lonely nights.

That information isn't really related to this review, other than the fact that it depressed me to the point of needing a drink. So I drove to my nearest distributor and wandered the short aisles for... I really don't know how long. Long enough for the people working there to take a passive interest in my reading every label on every shelf looking for the right kind of help in my moment of weakness. Scanning through the Dogfish section, Bitches Brew caught my eye. This is a beer brewed by someone who just likes to honor people, to respect them and remember them, authentically and compassionately. The micro-brew industry is a group of people who just want other people to be happy, and Dogfish Head is a distilled embodiment of that sentiment. This particular beer was originally designed as a commemoration to the late, the great Miles Davis on the 40th anniversary of the release of his "Bitches Brew" album and so begins the review.

Appearance: Impenetrable darkness, the gentle light of my table lamp is obviously unworthy of making it through this brew. The head is luxuriously fluffy, huge bubbles of carbonation the color of the froth on a freshly brewed cup of espresso. Lacing is heavy as the level descends maintaining that lovely brown hue.

Aroma: Not much of a tell. I get a little smokey malt, I get a little cocoa, maybe even a slight dose of vanilla. But, this is subtle and all it does is invite you. For this beer, it's a perfect introduction. The big, bold appearance gives you a vivid expectation, then the aroma baits you with a little mystery, inviting you to see what other surprises are in store.

Taste: The foretaste is surprisingly light, slightly acidic, slightly sweet, reminiscent of a caramelized cherry. Then the roasted malt takes center stage revealing lots of dark flavor, bitter cocoa, dark coffee, which hangs around for a good long time. The darkness resolves into the final ingredient, the warming sweetness of raw honey, a very welcome twist on the imperial stout varietal.

Mouthfeel: Everything about this beer implies heavy, but it's surprisingly delicate on the palate. At 9% ABV, the alcohol is just right to balance the smoked malt letting the presence of honey resolve into a sweet beckoning for the next sip. 

Overall: I don't have much to say here. If you like beer, get this beer. Enjoy it with dinner or dessert or just by itself. Share it with a friend, talk about it, express joy. Let it distract you from all the ills of the world for a second and in the next second shoot a few bucks over to http://wfpusa.org/  to help a few people in the Philippines.

5/5

Book: The Art of Loving by Eric Fromm

I can't remember what caused me to download this. It must've been a whim of some sort, maybe in seeking another book exploring the elusive concept of charisma, this was referenced. That seems most likely considering the argument this book, The Art of Loving, attempts to make. It attempts to make the point that the average person has lost the ability to love. That the loving person, the charismatic, charming, person is so rare in this modern Western society because the system we rely on to guide us, guides us away from the basic skill set it takes to love.

Many people should object wholeheartedly to this. If I flagged down the regular passerby and asked them to honestly say if they have ever loved, they would invariably say yes, assuming of course they didn't judge the question too personal to begin with. Fromm would say that the way the average person views love is a meaningless distortion. He describes our modern conception of love as seeking and attaining a commodity; a side-effect of living in a capitalist society with relatively free markets that determine value of certain products and services. We approach life in a way that gives us the most potential to succeed, which can be easily reduced to making enough money to have shelter, to feed ourselves, to clothe ourselves, and to progress in some way continuously into the future, much like the economy, with a constant hunger for innovation. So when we seek out a partner, we're not seeking out someone to love, we're seeking out someone to use to further our potential for success. We're looking for security, an investment in the future.

I can't disagree with this sentiment and I wish I were immune to it, but I'm certainly not. I don't value money as much as most people because I make enough to be completely self-sufficient. I never have to worry about making rent, or buying nice clothes, or feeding myself. So when I meet a girl, her financial security isn't something I generally think about, but there is another way that I do judge a potential girlfriend. She has to know a thing or two about the arts, film, music, and literature, and if she isn't already knowledgeable, she has to be ready and willing to learn what I know. I view my experience in that subject matter to be an investment toward my future and I'm seeking someone to make that investment more secure. There are many examples of the arts which I'm sure have no productive influence on my life, but I still value them very highly and expect the people around me to do the same. I think sometimes the fact that they might have similar interests and obsessions would result in good character traits, but I should look for those traits directly instead of expecting to have so much in common with someone in a world where everyone's interests are so unique.

Fromm would say that what people should look for in a mate is universal kindness, but only after first nurturing universal kindness for yourself because you'll only be able to recognize it after cultivating it in your own personality. He used a term toward the end of this book effectively to describe this kindness, rational faith. He said rational faith is the confidence you have in yourself and in the people around you. It's an undercurrent of instinct that guides each action. To have a strong sense of rational faith you diminish your potential to feel anxiety or depression because you always feel the buoyancy of a strength in self and a clear picture of the people around you. If the overall sentiment is negative toward a given conflict then it obviously points to a personal weakness, which you should strive to improve, or it points to the weakness of your company which you can't expect to improve, but through a well-honed ability for empathy, you should be able to anticipate the reaction.

There are a lot of really profound ideas presented, but to discuss each one would make this already long blog post much too long. So I'll just say here that this is essential reading for anyone who wants to be fully aware of their emotions. And to see that the major lessons we can learn about our most human emotions aren't being taught to us because the system wouldn't profit from it. We were born into a framework that would prefer us to be automatons, skilled, efficient, obedient to our leaders, and argumentative toward our competition. Universal kindness would cause the capitalist system to not work anymore. It would cause us to share, to feel empathy toward those less advantaged, to spend time appreciating life and the people around us. We'd stop hoarding money, we'd stop arguing, we'd stop trying to impose and project our own priorities onto other people. We'd stop diminishing other people. Fromm noted at the end that a society that doesn't teach love will inevitably fall and I believe him. I guess we'll see how things go.

5/5

Beer: Shipyard - Smashed Pumpkin Ale

Appearance: Lovely. I was sipping this while scanning the limited vista from my little wooden balcony. The trees are changing color bringing vibrant shades of yellow and orange where there was only green. I wish the season lasted longer, but the reality is that the color in a leaf signifies death and the resulting decay is swift. Of course that fleeting interval provides a certain delicate character. I'm babbling, but the colors are lovely and this beer, as vibrant as it is, fits perfectly with the swift decay of the season, fleeting in a similar way because it was greedily consumed. Picture deep, radiant orange with a fine, fluffy, off-white head which didn't stick around for long leaving a bit of lacing, not much, but enough to remark upon.

Aroma: Compared to the last pumpkin ale reviewed, this is a great improvement. Big pumpkin flesh with nutmeg and that noticeable heft from a beer of relatively high ABV. 

Taste: I might subtract a point for what this beer forgets and that is quite simply that it is a beer. There isn't much bitterness and there isn't much malt in the background, there is only pumpkin and spice and the warming, smothering alcohol. But, it pains me to do so because even though it doesn't have the subtlety of other pumpkin beers, it does bring the pumpkin in troves. This is a beer for people who miss the taste of pumpkin pie, although don't expect it to satisfy completely. You'll still need a fresh slice along with this to be sated completely. A dollop of whipped cream wouldn't hurt either.

Mouthfeel: As mentioned before, the alcohol makes itself known, 9% is quite a bit, but it doesn't overwhelm. I was surprised by how smooth this is, very drinkable, not at all cloying. If it weren't so expensive I would want to enjoy more of it, but I'd rather save my money for the sake of variety.

Overall: I really liked it. The dogfish offering was a subtle work of art, true to it's roots as a brown ale with pumpkin. This takes a step away from tradition and offers something else, lush pumpkin smothered in molasses sprinkled with sweet autumn spices. 

4/5

Beer: Dogfish Head - Punkin

It's fall. Summer is over. I think that usually makes me a little bit hesitant, as if there's some sort of loss to deal with. I don't feel that way this year. The only emotion I'm feeling about the idea of fall is excitement. I feel prepared. I know what fall is about, I know I look good in a sweater, I know the pumpkin beers just showed up on my distributor's shelves. So let's get to it. Let's review some pumpkin beers and embrace the change of seasons.

Appearance: Pours a light, orangey, amber with a course white head which dissipates quickly. There is some cloudiness which I expect from a nice Dogfish ale. Just looking at this beer is a delight, exactly what my imagination would dream up when given the task of picturing a pumpkin ale. Lacing is minimal as the level descends but it is there.

Aroma: I hate to mention my first criticism this early on, but I think aroma is the one weakness of this brew. There just isn't much of it. I get some nutmeg, some pumpkin flesh nuances, but it's very subtle and I just wish it was a little fuller, warmer, a little more welcoming.

Taste: This is a delicious beer. I just want to get that out of the way. Dogfish can really do no wrong with me. everything I've had from them is so solid from their production staples to limited releases. This is no exception. Big, fresh, buttery, pumpkin balanced out with a nice dose of nutmeg and cinnamon. But, I don't want you to think this is just a gimmick pumpkin beer. This is still very much a brown ale, the malt provides the backdrop, the structure, while the unique, exciting flavors dance in the foreground.

Mouthfeel: Amazingly well designed. This is 7% abv which seems on the high side for a brown, but you wouldn't know it unless you looked at the bottle. There is a fresh effervescent character to this, slightly like club soda, that cuts right through the alcohol and presents these deep, buttery, spicy flavors with a certain finesse that is so welcome.

Overall: Seasonal beers are special for me. When I walk into a distributor, sometimes I'm overwhelmed with the options, all the bottles screaming for my attention, the nice guy working the register passively watching as I pace the isles. I try to seem like I know a thing or two, but really, I'm 28 and there are so many great beers out there. A seasonal offering helps me with the choice. Seeing a beer I haven't seen in 9 months is exciting, it creates a sense of anticipation, a sense of excitement greater than just getting what I normally get or getting something I've never gotten which may very well be no good. I know Dogfish is great. I know Punkin will be at my distro come end of September, and I know I'll really enjoy it. For a guy like me who battles with the task of creating enough enjoyment in their life, it's so nice to know all that and be able to pick up a six pack.

4/5

Book: Ringworld by Larry Niven

This is another book featured in all of the "Best Sci-Fi Books EVVARRRR!" lists. At the time of publication it was an introduction to the concept of a Dyson Ring, which is something I was interested in long before I knew this book existed. The concept is fairly simple, and for those not in the know I'll attempt to describe it. There is a zone around any given star known as the Goldilocks zone. We're in it right now. It's a variable band around a star where if a planet exists and if the planet has water on it, the water is going to be in liquid form. We call it the Goldilocks zone because it's a "just right" environment for organic molecules to form and eventually turn into life. That's what happened here and that's why scientists are more interested in planets in the Goldilocks zones around their respective stars than other planets. These planets might actually have life on them or could at least be a potential habitat for us once we destroy this lovely planet. Now given any modern society with a reproductive rate faster than its death rate, two major problems present themselves: habitat scarcity and energy scarcity.

The perfect solution to this problem is the concept of a Dyson Sphere. A Dyson Sphere is a gigantic structure that completely encapsulates a star. The entire region inside the shell of the sphere is potential habitat because the Sphere would be built in the Goldilocks zone. And since the star is completely encapsulated, every photon of energy emitted by the star would be captured by the inside of the sphere. So you have a whole lot of space with a whole lot of energy to sustain a civilization for a very long time. But, the sphere has a problem. There is no possible rotation of the sphere which would provide uniform gravity for all regions of the inner shell. To address this problem Larry Niven came along and came up with a similar and slightly more feasible structure, the Dyson Ring. A Dyson Ring is a thin band around a star in the Goldilocks zone with a normal rotation which could provide uniform gravity for all regions on the inside of the ring. The ring would obviously have less space than a sphere, but we're still talking about a land mass millions of times more vast than that of a planet.

This is a brilliant idea and it provides for the setting of the book Ringworld. Now, I'll start my review of the book with a very simple observation. Niven is a really smart guy and within this book there are several really fascinating technological concepts which may very well show up in the distant future. For that alone, Niven gets a few gold stars, but that doesn't mean the book is perfect, there are certainly flaws. Some are forgivable: occasional clunky description leading to confusion, character quirks with no other purpose than to provide for conflicts, and conflict resolutions that seemed a little too convenient. There was one flaw, however, which for me, was unforgivable and I'll provide an excerpt from the book as an example:

"Seeker stood at bay with his black iron sword. Three men were down before him, and others stood back, and the sword dripped. Seeker was a dangerous, skillful swordsmen. The natives knew about swords. Teela stood behind him, safe for the moment in the ring of fighting, looking worried, like a good heroine."

Let me repeat that for the people in the cheap seats, "Safe for the moment, looking worried, like a good heroine."

This is really hard for me to read in a book about the future from a supposedly forward thinking guy and this isn't the only absurdly sexist detail in the book. Teela's entire character is ridiculously constructed to form the ultimate sexist stereotype. She's physically weak, weak-willed, temperamental, moody, and is used primarily throughout the novel as the protagonist's sex toy. I can see a handful of people making the argument that this isn't an example of sexism, this is just dumb luck for Niven to pick out a character that best fills a void in his narrative. He needed Teela to be weak because the other characters were strong and there needs to be balance somewhere. Nope, wrong, the only other female in the novel was equally as absurd. Her name was Prill, and her one skill was being really good at sex, manipulating men not through reasonable argument or passionate presentation, but because she had a reasonably comfortable hole. Prill eventually became the protagonist's new sex toy after Teela was traded out. And, one last example just in case you're not convinced. The females of the other two alien species featured in the novel were non-sentient.

This costs you points Niven. No matter how much I wanted to keep turning the pages and no matter how fascinated I was with some of your ideas about speculative technology, I can't recommend this book to anyone because I can't support the objectification of women.

2/5

Beer: Evil Twin - Imperial Biscotti Break

Appearance: When I started pouring this one I knew it was going to have to be vigorous with a capital V to get any amount of head and even then it was minimal. I won't count this against the beer though because Imperial stouts are just too heavy to have much carbonation. Lacing was also nonexistent but while you take a sip you can see that slight head stick to the glass like frothy honey. Needless to say, this beer was impervious to light, it might have even devoured the occasional careless ray with greedy malice.

Aroma: Deep, dark sweetness, like smelling a cup of coffee with gobs of cream and sugar. Strong notes of vanilla are present and I can't help but frame this beverage as a dessert before I even rest my lips against the glass.

Taste: It's like drinking chocolate cake, like letting a pint of B&J fudge brownie with a pint of Haagen Dazs vanilla bean melt down and then chugging it. This is beyond dessert, this is the epitome of indulgence, this is guilty pleasure manifested. And all of that depth reveals itself gradually, transforming from fore to aftertaste with grace and patience. The resolution attempts to be bitter but doesn't quite succeed. Again, for this style, I don't expect there to be much bitterness, I expect to be drowned in molasses, which is exactly what happened.

Mouthfeel: Thick, creamy, syrup. This is a massive beer reminiscent of a dying star. The alcohol is 11.5% so get ready to live with a mildly bitter chocolate palate while you tie in a nice strong buzz. I had this at 2 in the afternoon so I'm left with the decision of either embracing a drunk Saturday with another brew or falling from the heights of imperial bliss. You are free to assume which path I chose.

Overall: I'll be honest. There's no reason to have this beer mid-day other than to resolve a recent breakup or other similar let down. This is a beer of selfish indulgence, of self-destructive hedonism, of reckless abandon, which is just what I needed. Another girl is gone, another experience is learned, and for all the pain it caused, this is the antidote. I paired it with a maduro cigar and I'd strongly recommend the same to anyone else. The deep flavors of sweetness are complemented by the earthy pepper of a decent maduro perfectly.

5/5

Beer: Maine Beer Company - Lunch IPA

This is the second offering from Maine Beer Company in Freeport and it's another great one. They've given their IPA quite the identity to define itself. When first opening a bottle in Maine I assumed the title meant this would be a great IPA to pair with the mid-day meal, but looking at the label I discovered this little tribute:
"Lunch is a special whale that has been spotted off the Maine coast since 1982. She has what looks like a bite taken out of her fin which adds to her unique character. We dedicate this beer to her determination and persistence."

Appearance: A dull orange hue with a notable cloudiness just the way it should be: unfiltered with lots of particulate matter. The head is off-white and of a similar texture to the previously reviewed stout. There's lots of heavy lacing as the level descends and a thin head is retained until the last sip, very impressive.

Aroma: The familiar floral hoppiness is present, evidence of liberal dry-hopping, but there's an interesting sweetness there too, subtly fruity, very pleasant.

Taste: Big bright bitterness as expected but that fruity character is unmistakably raspberry/strawberry, a fantastic dimension to add to an IPA. The flavor doesn't go very far or develop as much as I would like from a big IPA, but the simplicity is something to be admired because it is so delicious from beginning to end.

Mouthfeel: Similar feel and finish on this as the stout, light, finished clean, minimal hop oilyness. The alcohol content is perfect to keep this beer tight and crisp, 7%.

Overall: A lovely IPA, the bitterness you expect from the style with the light fruit to balance. Raspberry and strawberry presence is so welcome to round out the otherwise hop-centric IPA style. Hophead purists need not get their hopes up; this beer should be enjoyed with the expectation of consistent deliciousness. It could easily be used as an introductory IPA to someone just trying out the style because one sip will hook them for life and introduce them to a new exciting world of fine brewing.

5/5

Beer: Maine Beer Company - Mean Old Tom

While sitting at home in New Jersey the morning before the departure of a week long vacation in Maine my father told me that he hadn't bought any beer for the trip. This was a problem, but I stayed positive, immediately flipped out my phone, and did a search for Maine breweries we would be passing en route to our destination. There were a couple in Portland, Allagash was one and I plan on going some time in the future, but knowing my father hates even medium sized cities, I chose one in the little town of Freeport. I knew nothing of the place when the decision was made so it was a gamble. Luckily, it was one of the better gambles I've ever made in life.

The Maine Beer Company in Freeport, Maine just opened their doors earlier this year. Before investing in an acre of land and a barn with four big stainless steel tanks, the owner was a home-brewer who honed his craft in his little garage. At some point he decided his beers were good enough, got a few friends together, and made a business out of it. Upon arriving my expectations were low, every new brewery has to work out the kinks, has to evolve their products to something really special. As I sat down with a flight of all of their production beers I had no idea my expectations would be completely blown away... Needless to say, I bought a case, two of everything, and I have a few left from the trip for review.

First up is the stout, the Mean Old Tom.

Appearance: This is a stout for sure, darker than a cold, moonless, winter night with a fluffy luxurious light brown head which has a fresh effervescent coarseness against the lip. Lacing is minimal although present as the pint glass is emptied and the head is retained for a remarkably long time.

Aroma: Rich vanilla, bitter cocoa, and subtle coffee. But what separates this from a lot of similar stouts is a noticeable smoke on the nose. These are toasted malts for sure, but unlike some guys who turn the toasting into a gimmick, the smoke is in perfect balance with the rich sweetness.

Taste: Vanilla vanilla vanilla, more cocoa, but it's got some extra bittersweet, and the smoke is still present, like the nose, subtle, but a major contributor to the beer's unique character. The flavor does recede a little quickly and this is due to the alcohol content. For this style I'm usually looking at beers that top the 8% mark, but this is a modest 6.5%. I appreciate the happy medium between blissful flavor and not getting shwasted off one, but a little more might have coaxed an extended flavor profile out of this.

Mouthfeel: Surprisingly light for a stout with this amount of vanilla and cocoa. This is not a soul-crushing stout, this is a refreshing dessert of a beer that could only be the product of a very patient, wise brewmaster. The abundance of carbonation gives a slight seltzer presence that cuts right through the deep dark flavors in a good way. I could drink this all day and the only pang of regret would come the following morning.

Overall: This is a great american stout. I can't really say much more than that. So many breweries turn their stout into a gimmick, into something flashy to show off just to stand out and trick the market into paying attention, but this is a brewery that's focusing on quality, on subtlety, on the beauty of their craft and I have nothing but admiration for that.

Additional Note: It's so rewarding to blindly stumble upon a brewery that just opened it's doors, a brewery that, within their first year, is making potentially award winning brews. I will be sure to shout their name from mountain tops, or whisper it on quiet beery evenings, whichever turns out to be more productive.

5/5

Thoughts on Morality

I remember a conversation I had with a girlfriend while I was in college. I was trying to describe cultural relativism to her as a basis for tolerance of different cultures. Her slamming her fist on the little cafe table was a clear indication of what she thought about that particular perspective. I tried in that moment to soften the conversation by saying I don't necessarily believe cultural relativism is the way to go, but I did see the merit in it if you're going to accept that you must tolerate the practices of cultures that have no relevance to our own.

To bring others into the fold since I'm sure moral theory isn't something many people think about, cultural relativism is the idea that the cultures of the world all have vastly different origins and paths toward modernity. To accept this point you couldn't possibly impose your cultural values onto another culture because you'd be negating their entire cultural evolution. You'd be stripping them of their identity and telling them to do something they could potentially be very uncomfortable with. This generally makes sense, except when you bring cultural traditions into play which directly harm people. The theory of cultural relativism basically endorses practices like genital mutilation, abuse of women, executions for myriad small offenses, sexual repression, even genocide by saying we just don't understand the context of those practices. This is the point my girlfriend at the time was so disgusted with.

As I've grown and watched cultures around the world tear themselves apart time and again, I think I've reached a point where it's just not suitable to exist behind a veil of universal tolerance. My current perspective is pretty much summed up by the want for universal well-being. I think that's a very easy thing to wrap one's head around. People shouldn't harm each other. But harming each other is a current cultural norm and to explain why I'm going to attempt to describe a brief history of humanity in simple terms and show how we arrived where we are which is quite simply an environment that openly accepts harm as a norm. Then I'll offer an alternative way of being. And I'll say up front that the alternative is going to happen. It's going to take a few generations, but as long as nothing catastrophic happens to earth and globalization continues, there isn't any doubt in my mind that it'll happen.

When we were just starting out as humans it was a tough life. We couldn't explain anything about our existence because we were limited to the tools given to us by our biology. We had eyes, and ears, and a tongue, nose, and could feel things. That allows us to keep ourselves alive and proliferate as a species, but that skill set is very limited when you ask questions like, "What is that big yellow ball in the sky that lights up the village in the morning?" and, "What happens when we die?" Questions were asked and people worried and then something interesting happened in primitive human cultures. Some people from the villages figured out that if you act like you know the reason for something intrinsically mysterious other people will be curious to know about it. They might even worship you for it because obviously you were given a skill set that fully outweighs their own. Enter religion: a few people who thought they knew better than everyone else, people who may have even fooled themselves into really believing the underpinnings of their ridiculous fabrications because they may have had very believable dreams or succumbed to very vivid hallucinations.

Now along with all the various explanations for the questions of the environment, religion also explained what you should do in order to be a good person. Keep in mind that before these rules of morality were being engineered people existed for a long time without killing each other off, which means without the religious framework of morality, it wasn't complete chaos. People lived together without constantly killing each other, territorial disputes aside. But to modernize, culture needed more rules involving limitations on ownership to prevent stealing, limitations on sexuality to prevent disease and coveting, even limitations on what you could eat because in those times certain food was much more dangerous than it is now.

So people had it made. We knew how to be good and we knew how the universe worked. All our concerns were covered, which gave us the freedom to be productive, to build families, to give back to society. This contentment only existed within the confines of the various religions that had taken hold though. The conflict between religions was extremely volatile. The reason is obvious. If someone says your entire perspective of the universe is wrong, and you've been living a lie, and you might very well go to a place of eternal hell fire for eternity because of it, you might get a little touchy.

As time went on, a select few people in each civilization started to write things down. And with a few generations information started piling up. People from younger generations were given knowledge from older generations and it resulted in individual people coming up with really big, ambitious ideas because they didn't need to start from scratch with each new thought. Enter science.

At this point the religions of the world got a little worried. People like Newton and Galileo and eventually Darwin explained the universe in terms that contradicted the explanations of the original people that said they already knew everything. Religious leaders took a few different approaches to this problem. They killed really smart people, they said, "Why ask these questions, GOD doesn't want you to," they said, "Wait, wait, maybe some of this stuff you're saying is right, but your observations still don't conflict with anything you need faith to believe in, like how to get into heaven, BOOM! gotcha." The idea of non-overlapping magisteria is born.

This pretty much leads up to today, depressingly. When people talk about morality, they generally say that religion has it covered because good and evil can't be scientifically derived. Why should we help each other? Why should we protect each other? Why should we try to contain our basest of impulses? The religious answer is if we follow the rules we'll be rewarded in some arbitrary afterlife. There is still no formal science of morality. With all of our historians, anthropologists, psychologists, sociologists, we still haven't agreed on what moral guidelines drive society forward.

But, there's an easy answer to the question of how to move forward: universal well-being. If you enter a conflict with the objective want of not harming anyone, it's likely you won't hurt anyone. If you set aside your pride and look at every interaction as an opportunity to learn, then there's no reason to even fight. If you understand how your country came to be in the first place and that every other country has an equally rich and interesting history, why fight about it? And if we know objectively that women are just as strong and intelligent as men, why mess with them so damn much? The only remaining hurdle in shifting the backbone of morality from religion to common sense is making objective information universally available.

This is why I say the eventual solution is inevitable. As soon as people are capable of reading whatever book they want, or going to whatever website they want, they'll stop looking to local pride in their religion and familial tradition for answers. Keep in mind, I'm not talking about an individual. Individuals are remarkably stubborn when it comes to existentialism. To change someone's mind about their existence after their 20's is extremely difficult. But, as generations pass, as groups of people are gradually alienated by objective information, the problem will fix itself. So, our responsibility is to help the technological infrastructure grow as much as we can. Open the pipelines and let the people drink up the observations of scientists using tools infinitely more effective than our senses. Spread objective information. And I say that while giving the middle finger to the myriad philosophers who say there is no such thing as objectivity. Fuck you guys. You're making it hard for people to tell which way is up.

Beer: Southern Tier Oak Aged Unearthly Imperial IPA

Appearance: Pours a definite orange hue producing a sparing head which reduces quickly to a thin foamy layer. There is slight lacing which retains the bubbly, foamy character, but doesn't last long on the side of the glass.

Aroma: For a liberally dry-hopped beer, as this claims to be, the aroma is very minimal and the character of the aroma is odd for an IPA. There is a definite vegetable greenness to it, like the smell of a green stem breaking or of freshly cut grass. I get almost none of the floral hop quality I'm so used to from beers of this style. If it were still pleasant and made me excited to taste I would be open to it, but it's ultimately off-putting.

Taste: There's certainly a lot of hops in this brew, but that vegetative greenness is the strongest flavor presented by them and it lasts from beginning to aftertaste. Besides the unexpected character from the hops, there is a slight brineyness, finishing with a heavy sweetness, vanilla, brown sugar, a combination of the overdone malt, amplified by oak, and the high alcohol content, 9.5%.

Mouthfeel: Much too heavy considering the lack of complexity. I've had other southern tier brews and they certainly push it to the limit with alcohol content, but usually they achieve complex, full flavors. This is a syrupy mess of a beer with the only reward being a strong buzz after the 22oz is empty.

Overall: I get what they tried to do here. Oak aging an IPA is something I've seen only sparingly by breweries that try to transcend tradition; I know Stone has one as well. But in this beer the interesting idea falls flat. By adding time in an oak barrel, the glorious hop has been transformed from a fresh, floral, complex treasure to a combination of broccoli and maple syrup drowning in cheap booze. I won't be revisiting this one and I can't recommend it.

2/5

Beer: Founders Centennial IPA

Appearance: Pours a beautifully deep amber with a subtle redness. The head is tan in color and less fluffy, more foamy in texture. Lacing is minimal as the head dissipates and the first few sips are taken.

Aroma: The aroma is sweet with a freshness about it, light and crisp, a subtle reminder of the smell of a granny smith apple balanced by the floral dry-hopped presence.

Flavor: This beer is a crescendo. Trying to focus on individual flavors, there is an initial sweetness of honey reaching but not quite achieving the character of light molasses. The subtle apple is still present, but it's more reminiscent of champagne with the carbonation. The balancing bitterness is so incredibly full, never harsh, never overwhelming, coating the tongue and toward the end it gently bites down before receding into a toasty amber sweetness.

Mouthfeel: This is interesting. I remember the first sip being light and crisp and looking at the label for ABV, I was surprised by the 7.2% written on the neck. My notes say, "this is a dangerous beer." But now that I'm most of the way through the pint and the beer has had a chance to come closer to room temperature, the heft is becoming more obvious. At warmer temperatures the amber malt is much more present giving a slightly syrupy feel. This is definitely one of the heavier IPA's I've ever had which is certainly not a bad thing considering the complex structure such weight is capable of delivering.

Overall: Founders is a brewery I don't think of often and I think I figured out the reason. They don't stock bombers of it at my local distributor. If I'm looking for great beers I usually focus on the big 22oz labels proclaiming brew mastery. It's a prejudice plain and simple and from this minute forward it is quashed. Founders makes ridiculously good beer and I plan on reviewing a few of their different offerings. As for this IPA, it may very well be my favorite IPA, but like girls, I tend to fall in love with whatever's in front of me at any given time. Hopefully as these reviews pile up I'll be able to be more objective.

5/5

Beer Review #1: Smuttynose IPA

Appearance: With a mildly vigorous pour a frothy velvety head appeared, off-white, which quickly dissipated leaving some lacing on the side of the glass. I'm not sure if I've ever encountered this before, but I immediately noticed myriad little white specks suspended throughout.  It gave me pause at first, but knowing the relatively high alcohol will kill anything life-threatening, we will continue. (I looked this up and here is a quote from the Smuttynose website: Our IPA is dry-hopped and unfiltered. The lees (sediment) that form on the bottom of the bottle are a natural part of this fine ale.) The color is a light amber, dully golden.

Smell: The aroma is a hoppy floral as expected with an added sweetness, somewhat buttery, like light caramel. The sweetness makes the aroma very well-rounded.

Taste: This is certainly an IPA, big hop presence from start to finish. That isn't to say that's all there is though. The hops take on a very citrusy identity to start, orange zest accompanied by the aforementioned sweetness, again like light caramel. As the flavor evolves it abandons the sweetness and resolves to a very pleasant bitterness, not too sharp, and lasts a considerably long time on the tongue before dissipating.

Mouth Feel: I definitely get the oily presence from the hops, a little sticky, which is amplified by the caramel presence from the malt. This is a good thing though for this style of beer. It's not a light example of brewing artistry; this beer is meant to be enjoyed slowly and thoughtfully by someone who appreciates what hops have given to brewing. That being said, never does the oily presence offend because of the familiar citrus zest that helps resolve it.

Overall: I've had this beer many times in the past and return to it with frequency because it's an example of everything an IPA tries to be. The hops are huge and lush, but that's not the selling point for me. It's the restraint and balance that gives this beer its reputation. Hops are nothing without their sweet opposing force, the malt. And the balance of the two in this beer will keep me coming back for more.

5/5

Book: Rendezvous with Rama by Arthur C. Clarke

My biggest criticism of my other recent walk through sci-fi territory was a lack of intimacy between characters. The characters in Nemesis by Asimov were missing a sense of humanness that would've made them more believable, more conducive to provoking various levels of sympathy and kinship in the reader. This novel suffers form the same weakness, but I can't remember a single moment where I cared at all.

The only character of any importance in Rendezvous with Rama is Rama itself. The cylinder of metal spinning through the solar system stole every ounce of spotlight, leaving the characters tasked with exploring the object and discussing it from afar mostly ignored. Sure, attempts were made to explain the futuristic culture and some textures of emotion, but Clarke did such a great job building suspense, peppering small details in at very strategic moments. It was as if I was exploring the alien terrarium that is Rama with my own eyes rather than through the eyes of the crew. And Rama itself was infinitely interesting to explore. I rarely blast through books so quickly, but I needed to see everything, I needed to know the purpose, to investigate why Rama had flown into our plot of space instead of any other.

But Rama didn't care at all, which was obviously my favorite part of the book. All of the characters assumed Rama had come with the purpose of making contact with the human race, for reasons of enlightenment or destruction or resources. But, all Rama needed was to recharge it's batteries by way of the sun, then it sped off without the slightest interest in anything human. Rama's mission was obviously infinitely more complex than our selfish, monkey brains could wrap around. It was a humbling moment that was infinitely appreciated. So even though my perception of sci-fi as less human hasn't changed, the brilliant unfolding of events in this novel makes it essential reading for anyone who digs an adventure.

5/5

Movie: To the Wonder

You know... I'm too uptight. I take life too seriously. Everything has to mean something. All art needs to be innovative and boundary transcending. And the only good film is the indie film about longing and loss, invariably ending badly because that is the only true reflection of our short meaningless existence. Sometimes I wish I weren't like this. Sometimes I wish I could sit back and enjoy fluff engineered to make you smile and feel better about yourself. Silver Linings Playbook shouldn't be met with derision, it should be met with a mutual laugh among friends, it should be seen as an entertaining romp to interrupt the tedious daily demands of the middle class american. But that's not who I am. I demand film to be artful, to push boundaries, to make me feel something I wouldn't normally feel and Terrence Malick is doing a great job meeting my expectations.

Malick has been honing his craft for a couple decades. To look back on his previous works is to watch an artist first find his favorite techniques and then master them. The Thin Red Line was a little messy, it wandered a bit, it felt unrestrained and slightly unfocused, but there was brilliance and beauty throughout. The Tree of Life was a natural evolution being a film of massive scope, but with a sharper focus and it displayed a mastery of his shooting style which can only be described as an angel's perspective. The camera flies through the air in graceful arcs reacting to the humanness of the characters on screen while capturing the environment, the natural lighting, the grass underfoot. The Tree of Life was an absurdly beautiful film even though it explored some very challenging and painful themes.

To the Wonder is Malick showing further mastery of his unique shooting style while experimenting with the narrative in a very innovative way. There are very few vocal exchanges between characters. Most of the script is inner monologue, poetic observations, internal conflict, quiet thoughts the characters never share with anyone. Whenever there are two characters on the screen they are silent, they are shown reacting to each other in a very instinctual, very physical way. This was the biggest complaint from critics. The lack of dialog between characters made it a challenge to follow the story. But I love a challenge and the story seemed clear enough to me. Although, and this is the beauty of art in general, it's up to interpretation. This is what makes good songs great, this is what makes good literature timeless, so I'm not sure why critics would be unwilling to consider the merit of poetic delivery in film. Poetic delivery ensures the audience will take in the presentation and interpret it in very personal ways giving them all unique perspectives, unique ideas to share and pass on.

To the Wonder explores love in this poetic fashion, how it flows, sometimes beginning with fire and urgency, sometimes drifting away or slowly eroding, sometimes evolving into something truly transcendent. We invariably seek it with fervent anticipation, but oftentimes what we seek is unrealistic causing much anguish. And just as I expected from a film about real life, it ends badly. I have no doubt that Malick will keep giving us examples of brilliant artistic expression as long as he's able, making films that will stand the test of time, films that will be a normal part of film school curriculum and I look forward to each and every one.

5/5

Movie: Silver Linings Playbook

I'm hesitant to write this review. It might very well turn out to be a colorful display of my close-mindedness, but so be it. I had an emotional reaction to the film and it might be worth writing about so the future me can look back on how much of an asshole I was and have a good laugh.

This film was awful. Let me explain. I loved how it started out. Bradley Cooper is a wonderful actor and watching him suffer the symptoms of bi-polar disorder was striking. The flashes of violence, the spontaneous destruction that surrounded him, the constant tension I felt every second he was delivering dialog was really a joy to experience for someone who appreciates the intricacies of human dysfunction. But, every other detail in the film was pure romantic comedy fodder.

His father is a bookie who regularly puts the family's life savings on the line over football games, but in a perpetually endearing way. His mother is possibly the most cliched and forgetful character in film history. He has a wife with a restraining order against him, which could have been a wonderful source of conflict, but devolved into a silly subplot of him not being able to write her a letter. He has a new love interest who manipulates him into a dance competition who is devoid of the slightest ounce of charisma outside of her bouncing bust. The love interest has her own psychological issues but they're never explored beyond a few awkward situations and a few unexpected lines of dialog. There's a more successful brother who holds his life's accomplishments over Cooper's head, but this isn't even the slightest bit realistic because the bitter sentiment is covered with one dialog exchange in the most heavy-handed way possible.

I think this is what hurts my perception of the film the most, the heavy-handedness. It's as if the writer had the intention of covering as many human quirks as possible without actually exploring any of them enough to make them feel real. And to top it off the major conflict of the film is a football game and a dance competition... So you end the film exactly the way it began. None of the characters grew at all, they just celebrated over an arbitrary victory. Cooper professed his love to his new love interest and the credits rolled. I get that it wouldn't have been pretty to mention that two psychologically unstable people might not have the smoothest chemistry down the line, but to not even hint at it is unforgivable.

This is a fairy tale where everything works out in the end, just like everyone had hoped. Love, money, success, and everyone is happy. This is not a reflection of the human condition. This movie is fluff, popcorn drama, meaningless, and it'll be forgotten. Cooper earns a point for his performance, but this was damn close to being my first 0.

1/5

Book: Nemesis by Isaac Asimov

The first book I remember really enjoying was Foundation by Asimov. I eventually read the entire series, but after that I went genre hunting never to seriously return to science-fiction. Thinking about it now, I think I made the right choice in exploring other genres rather than sticking to what I was comfortable with.

Science fiction does one thing really well. There are countless examples in this book of a character making an observation and reporting it to an audience, the audience discussing the observation at length coming up with reasonable explanations, and one explanation is deduced to be the correct one. That might sound fairly bland, but when we're talking about celestial bodies, alien life forms, and faster than light speeds, it's pretty neat. 

Science fiction does not do human emotion well though. The essential requirements were fulfilled to build out perfectly believable characters, but once that was done Asimov chose to focus on the plot, the conflicts, the physics. The few scenes of intimacy between characters were either glossed over or broad-stroked to the point of picturing the author as someone who had yet to pass second base with the fairer sex. 

Intimacy obviously wasn't the point of the book though. The point was to stir the imagination, to picture the universe as a beautiful yet unfathomably destructive environment, to picture a future humanity still struggling with prejudice and greed, and to give a few really good examples of logical reasoning. And if there's one thing modern society needs, it's some help with patient logical reasoning. 

4/5

Book: Last Exit to Brooklyn by Hubert Selby

There are lists of books posted online by avid readers with the purpose of guiding other readers toward a particular theme or genre or period. I think I found this book in a list called Literary Smut. The list was created by someone who had the original intention of warning people away from indulging in the books posted, but since I love fringe culture and since a good portion of the fringe is made up of different forms of obscenity, the list had the opposite effect than was originally intended.

Last Exit to Brooklyn is a series of short stories which attempt to describe the slums of Brooklyn in the 1950's. The stories are only loosely connected, mentioning the same bar and maybe a few recurring characters. The focus isn't on making a story arc of any kind, but rather on a few short illustrations of people struggling to survive conflicts that are completely internal, completely dependent on the human condition. The conflicts covered: drug and alcohol abuse, sexual dysfunction, and violent urges of almost every kind imaginable.

I don't want to get into any explanations of the stories because each story is worth complete immersion without forewarning. I would like to defend the merit of a book like this though. I think most would immediately dismiss it as mentioned above, literary smut, an author getting off on creating revulsion in the hearts of his readers. But, it's not that at all. Last Exit to Brooklyn explains in great detail the insecurities of man taken to absolute extremes, insecurities that are present in everyone. For me this novel is a warning to watch those insecurities, those universal weaknesses, and attempt to address them in a thoughtful way. So many people rely on their insecurities, view them as parts of their identity, embracing them and lashing out at people for questioning them. If those people read this book they would see parts of themselves in the characters and as they turn the pages they would be disgusted in themselves for embracing traits that could lead to so much pain for them and everyone around them.

5/5

Movie: Rust and Bone

It took me a while to build up the courage to watch this film. I was afraid it would be too depressing, knowing a little of the story line. It helps to remind myself that no matter how depressing a film is, if it's good, I'll always return from it with the feeling of having learned something about life and human nature. Last night telling myself that a few times "you'll learn something, it'll be alright," I decided to turn it on and suffer through. What I watched wasn't at all what I was expecting. Yes, there is a fair amount of disaster, but that's not what this film is about.

This film is about adapting to disaster, feeling the emotions that come from it and trying not to despair. Marion Cotillard's character Stephanie is a trainer of killer whales. Her passion for her job is made very clear and her connection to the marine beasts is unmistakable. You can feel a sense of mutual respect when she gives an order to them, watching them leap out of the water with graceful ferocity. This scene gives way to the first disaster. One of the orcas leaps onto the stage where Stephanie is giving direction and slides into her, crushing her legs. She wakes up in a hospital a double amputee. Marion is beautiful in every sense of the word and a dimension of her character Stephanie is that she relies on her beauty, toying with men, watching them perform for her. This is the first parallel to her profession.

She gives a back story of how she likes to go out to night clubs alone and drum up passion and jealousy, watching as the beasts perform for her. On one particular night a bouncer takes her home after one of the nameless men takes his frustration and jealousy out on her. Stephanie is put off by the the bouncer, Matthias, at first. He's blunt, aggressive, and seemingly careless. But, as she tests him she feels more comfortable with him, again, like her killer whales. He's an unrefined beast and she's captivated by his ferocity, his dominance over other men and after her accident, she relies on his lack of emotional weight to bring her out of despair.

He makes a perfect partner during the most difficult of times. One scene illustrates this perfectly. He takes her out in her wheel chair and seeing the ocean shore nearby decides that he wants to go swimming. He asks her to if she wants to as well and she says no, possibly fearing the environment that caused her injury. Without hesitation Matthias leaves her and heads to the shore. After a few minutes realizing she's made a mistake she yells to him. He comes back and carries her into the water. A more gentle man would have gone along with her sentiment and just kept walking, trying to comfort her, but Matthias treated her as temperamental and ridiculous for not wanting to do something she would obviously love.

In time Stephanie realizes the price of spending time with someone so impulsive. She is taken to a night club, stirring up old memories of her dominance. Now she views herself as powerless, devoid of the beauty she once had. Matthias doesn't realize the weight of this, how fragile Stephanie might be and takes home another girl in front of her. In the moment she's devastated and feeling defeated, lets him leave. The next day she makes it clear that that behavior is not acceptable, that she cares about him and demands that if he cares for her, he must show it. She is once again trying to train a beast.

The filmmaker guides us through Matthias's life as well. He has a son, he's living with his sister struggling to find work. To make some easy cash he gets mixed up in an underground bareknuckle fighting ring. Through all of these minor conflicts he leaves a trail of wreckage behind him. I won't mention the final conflict because it's worth witnessing without warning, but the theme is that normal every day life can allow people to focus too much on petty conflicts while disasters pull people together. It's a horrible thought that we require disaster to feel solidarity, but it's often the case. This film is so mutli-dimensional, but that's the point that fulfills my original intention of learning something. Personal conflicts are often petty and it's so important to put them aside now and again and see other people as people, see humanity as a family capable of dealing with the worst of human disaster.

Needless to say, I loved the film

5/5

Book: Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoevsky

When I was younger I liked the idea of Dostoevsky but I couldn't get through any of his novels. I'd start flipping the pages and feel like I wasn't getting anywhere, like nothing was happening, as if the characters were petty and thought entirely too much about things with little to no consequence. I vividly remember  trying to read Crime and Punishment for the first time. I knew the major conflict in the book was the murder of the decrepit pawnbroker and her delicate sister beforehand. So I read up until that point and then was completely thrown by the resulting chapters. He had such a revulsion to what he did and dwelled on it endlessly. He hid his spoils in such a way that he could never use them. He even hinted to people that he did it. This all seemed incongruent with everything I new about murderers and violence.

In youth we see things as black and white. If you kill you're a murderer, if you steal, you're a thief, and if you do either you'll be caught and thrown in jail, unless you get away with it, then you just get away with it. As you get older you realize that the world isn't black and white. It's gray; the intentions, the motivations, the perceptions of man are infinitely complex and oftentimes it's very hard to stand in the shoes of someone and see their perspective. With patience and precision, this book forces you to stand in the shoes of a very complex young man. You see him at his worst, you see him destitute, without hope, you see him murder. As he constructs various justifications for his actions, as he taunts other characters, you see him tear himself apart. His body decays, his mind is torn to shreds, but he doesn't realize it until he experiences something that might actually be worth living for. 

The turning point in the novel is the experience of meeting someone he might love. He has no idea what the emotion is at first but he feels an indescribable attraction to her. He goes to her, rebukes her, toys with her. He doesn't know what to do, but ultimately he confides in her. He tells her what he's done knowing it might be the end of him. Her name is Sonia and she is the symbol of innocence, of godliness, of devotion toward goodness. Raskolnikov thinks she's petty, a whore, a perpetual victim, but this is only one level of his consciousness. Buried below all of his judgment is truth. He can't live with what he's done, and she is his salvation. 

Now think for a second that this is only one dynamic between two characters in the novel and then add 7 or 8 other characters with as much depth. You have the ability to see everything, every slight nuance of the human conflict from every perspective imaginable. Crime and Punishment is a classic for a reason and if you can maintain patience enough for everything to develop, you'll be rewarded with some new perceptions of society, of human nature, of existence in general. 

5/5

Book: Secret Rendezvous by Kobo Abe

Every reasonably successful writer has one work used by publishers to sell all the others. "If you liked _____, you'll love ______." I have no criticism for this technique in marketing because it has worked on me a number of times walking through aisles in the local bookstore. Whether or not this method is accurate depends largely on the author. Some writers stick to certain subject matter as their muse, delving deeper and deeper into previously traversed themes, but some authors are just too unpredictable to market this way. Kobo Abe is certainly one of the loose canons in surrealist literature. Printed in bold lettering on the cover of Secret Rendezvous is "Author of The Woman in the Dunes," but having read Woman in the Dunes I can confidently say it didn't prepare me for this.

The story starts out with a fairly easy to accept conflict. A husband and wife are sitting in bed when an ambulance stops at their front door. Two medics rush into their home, grab the woman, and strap her to a stretcher. The wife attempts to convince the medics that she is in perfect health and has no idea why she's being taken but they are under orders. The husband, seeing the proper paperwork allows his wife to be taken and decides to drive over to the hospital later on to pick her up. Unfortunately, when the husband arrives at the hospital his wife is nowhere to be found. She checked in, but was never assigned a room and the security guard has no idea where she could have gone.

The man begins a journey in search of his wife and from here the narrative devolves into absolute chaos. There's an on-call doctor who is found masturbating (for the purpose of donating to the fertility ward) and breaks his neck upon being discovered. There's an impotent hospital executive who wants nothing more than to be a horse and uses the bottom half of the injured doctor to achieve his goal. There's a nurse who was born in a test tube, and therefore has no basis for human intimacy, who thinks the only way to be close to someone is to watch them pleasure themselves. There's a girl with a particularly horrifying disease causing her bones to gradually dissolve into liquid. And all of these characters are preparing for the yearly anniversary of the hospital which is celebrated with a contest to pick the female patient that can have the most orgasms in a day. While all of this is going on, every detail is recorded on innumerable listening devices hidden around the hospital grounds, the tapes of which are sold in a sort of black market for people who take pleasure in overhearing others.

The obvious themes here are sexual disorder, identity disorder, and exhibitionism. And through it all the husband is a constant victim of the insanity surrounding him. He only wants to find his wife. None of these other characters are of any consequence to him, but in time it becomes obvious that his wife is there for a reason and so is he. The insatiable beast that is the hospital ensnares him, devours him, and, for continuity of the metaphor, shits him out.

I have no shame in saying I love books like this, books that explore the absurd, books that pay no mind to what might be socially acceptable to talk about. Highly recommended.

5/5