#riff herbert

[ectobiology-machines]

Not sure if hs^2 is allowed but harry anderson egbert and cirava?

Name: Riff Herbert

Title: The Grooving One

Ecto-components: Harry Anderson Egbert, Cirava Hermod

Radio DJ for a small town

Their actual taste in music is queationable at best but their boss won't allow them to play any of it

Groovin

[sirianasims]

The Don Diaries

Don will not have time to correct this mistake and tell Dani how he feels though - because Kyle Kyleson, Slacker Extraordinaire, has arrived! *cool electric guitar riff plays in the distance*

Dani is immediately smitten and OH HI MIRACLE.

And also HI GRACIE. Man, all of Don's past mistakes are out in force today.

Kyle and Dani are hitting it off though. Kyle is perfect - he's got the physique of Don but not the personality or issues of Don. Great choice, Dani.

Uh, Don? What are you coming out here for?

DON THIS IS NOT THE TIME NOR PLACE AND IT NEVER WILL BE

Fucking hell, Don. You're in love with her, just talk to her about it like a normal person.

Oh, wait, that's right - you can't. You fucked it up, Don. It's too late. Go back inside and call Cali Girl.

I don't know who at EA designed Kyle but they had a sense of humor. He's a lazy slacker who will randomly call you and pretend he's a long lost friend who needs to crash at your place for a while, but one of his traits is Genius. Talk about an underachiever.

Dani immediately invites the buff himbo upstairs under the guise of teaching him how phones work or something. Or maybe she's trying to prove some sort of point to Don.

Don knows very well what is about to happen in Dani's room, so he goes to finish his latest dating app and leaves Herbert to supervise Matteo's lunch for a moment.

As Don predicted, Dani is about to get to know Kyle a lot better.

And so, while Don rocks the dating world with yet another hook-up app...

... Kyle also rocks Dani's world.

Don tries to keep his distance to Dani after this. Has he truly lost her for good?

Maybe there is such a thing as too little, too late.

Don't think I can't see you, Bob. I've given up on you. I hope you're suitably ashamed.

HELP US HERBERT YOU'RE OUR ONLY HOPE

[owlinaminor]

wanted to post one more fic before the end of the year, and somehow it's this: a 900-word riff on the end of Dune Messiah. something something postmodernism. :)

[beansonbread2]

BEANSONBREAD AWARDS 2024 - BEST ALBUM

AWARD NO.2 - BEST ALBUM OF 2024

PAST WINNERS

2023 > Squid - 'O Monolith' (see full list HERE)

2022 > Jockstrap - ’ I Love You Jennifer B’ (see full list HERE)

2021 > Self Esteem - ‘Prioritise Pleasure’ (see full list HERE)

2020 > The Flaming Lips - ‘American Head’ (see full list HERE)

2019 > Self Esteem - ‘Compliments Please’ (see full list HERE)

2018 > Kero Kero Bonito - ‘Time ‘n’ Place’ (see full list HERE)

2017 > Richard Dawson - ‘Peasant’ (see full list HERE)

2016 > Blood Orange - ‘Freetown Sound’ (see full list HERE)

2015 > Holly Herndon - ‘Platform’ (see full list HERE)

2014 > FKA Twigs - ‘LP1′ (see full list HERE)

2013 > These New Puritans - ‘Field Of Reeds’ (see full list HERE)

2012 > Django Django - ‘Django Django’ (see full list HERE)

2011 > Shabazz Palaces - ‘Black Up’ (see full list HERE)

2010 > These New Puritans - ‘Hidden’ (see full list HERE)

2009 > Animal Collective - ‘Merriweather Post Pavilion’ (see full list HERE)

2008 > Wild Beasts - ‘Limbo, Panto’ (see full list HERE)

2007 > Animal Collective - ‘Strawberry Jam’ (see full list HERE)

2006 > Safetyword - ‘Man’s Name Is Legion’ (see full list HERE)

2005 > Animal Collective - ‘Feels’ (see full list HERE)

2004 > Devendra Banhart - ‘Rejoicing In The Hands’ / ‘Nino Rojo’

2003 > Dizzee Rascal - ‘Boy In Da Corner’

2002 > The Streets - ‘Original Pirate Material’

2001 > The Beta Band - ‘Hot Shots II’

2000 > Outkast - ‘Stankonia’

1999 > The Beta Band - ‘The Beta Band’

1998 > The Beta Band - ‘The Three EPs’

1997 > Radiohead - ‘OK Computer’

1996 > Beck - ‘Odelay’

—

THE RULES - No Re-issues, Live Albums, Compilations, or EPs.

—

SPECIAL MENTIONS for these things that don’t really live on the main lists.

Dean Blunt ‘Hackney Commercial Waste (2022-2023)’

SOPHIE ‘SOPHIE’

-

WORTH A MENTION (in no order) - A bunch of albums i enjoyed but didn’t quite make the final lists and others i just didn’t hear enough to be considered properly. 

Giant Claw / Oliver Coates / Ise Jones / Iglooghost / Poppy / FLO / Arooj Aftab / Babymorocco / Skee Mask / Dali de Saint Paul & Maxwell Sterling / Denzel Curry / Wendy Eisenberg / SZA / Death’s Dynamic Shroud / Rhodri Davies / Kinbote / Moor Mother / Afterlands / Omar Souleyman / Victoria Hume / L.T. Leif / Painting / WON’T / The Big Fuss Ensemble / Permapup / Tim Koh / More Eaze / Galen Tipton / Devonanon / Sega Bodega / COIMS / Copper Sounds, Dali St Paul, Laura Phillips, Dan Johnson / Holiday Ghosts / Bingo Fury / Ian Lynch / Permapup / Haley Heynderickx / Gerycz, Powers, Rolin / Goat Girl / Camera Obscura / Arab Strap / Four Tet / Myriam Gendron / Aphex Twin / Chinese American Bear / Violence Gratuite / James Devane / FearDorian / Tony Njoku / Joanna Wang / Matthew Herbert / GAISTER / Mstafa / Hayden Thorpe / Fievel Is Glauque / October Drift / Lanny / Niamh Regan / Extnddntwrk / Cowtown / Toro Y Moi / Fat Dog / Nicky / Beabadoobee / Excellent Birds / Fontaines D.C / Tyla / Black Decelerant / KOKOKO! / Remi Wolf / Shaznay Lewis / Sisso / Lava La Rue / Khruangbin / Robert Ouyang Rusli / Thom Yorke / Shabaka / Omni / Helado Negro / Nick Carlisle / Torres / Amyl And The Sniffers / Jordan Playfair / Bladee / Chat Pile / Jerry Paper / Our Girl / Beatrice Dillon / Rubie / Nicholas Craven & Boldly James / Kelly Lee Owens / Adam Ross / Jill Fraser / Dawn Richard / Caribou / The Hard Quartet / Vegyn / Elaine Howley / Milton Nascimento & Esperanza Spalding / Anna Meredith / Plastic Beach / PACKS / Hurray For The Riff Raff / Real Estate / Kirin J Callinan / ScHoolboy Q / Waxahatchee / Lolina / St. Vincent / Bladee / Drahla / Nicolas Jaar / Bonny Light Horseman / Skee Mask / John Cale / Fire-Toolz / Joe Goddard / Los Bitchos / Laurie Anderson / Lia Kohl / Jamie xx / Xiu Xiu / Floating Points / Ginger Root / Hinds / Being Dead / Ezra Collective / Alan Sparhawk / Masayoshi Fujita / Famous / Yasmin Williams / Warmduscher / Martha Skye Murphy / Michael / Alexia Avina / Knife Liibrary

-

2024 RUNNERS UP (in no order)

McClure & Whyte ‘Farming’

Actress ‘Statik’

Tapir! ‘The Pigrim, Their God and The King of My Decrepit Mountain’ 

Bianca Scout ‘Pattern Damage’

Galen Tipton & Holly Waxwing ‘KeepsakeFM’

Nia Archives ‘Silence Is Loud’

Bullion ‘Affection’

The Death Of Pop ‘FLOG’

Tierra Whack ‘World Wide Whack’

Blue Bendy ‘So Medieval’

Spirit Of The Beehive ‘You’ll Have To Lose Something’

Able Noise ‘High Tide’

Lots Of Hands ‘Fantasy’

Serpentwithfeet ‘GRIP’

The High Llamas ‘Hey Panda’

Underworld ‘Strawberry Hotel’

Bolis Pupul ‘Letter To You’

Colin Stetson ‘The Love It Took To Leave You’

Dorian Electra ‘Fanfare: The Lost Demos’

Yung Lean & Bladee ‘Psykos’

Adrianne Lenker ‘Bright Future’

Spresso ‘Pretty Penny Slur’

Ben Salisbury & Geoff Barrow ‘Civil War’ OST

Anna Erhard ‘Botanical Garden’

Galen Tipton ‘Tringle’

Andrew Wasylyk & Tommy Perman ‘Ash Grey and the Gull Glides On’

Savage Mansion ‘The Shakes’

Susan Bear 'Algorithmic Mood Music’

Rhodri Davies ‘Creiriau y Delyn Rawn’

Liz Lawrence ‘Peanuts’

MJ Lenderman ‘Manning Fireworks’

English Teacher ‘This Could Be Texas’

Kim Gordon ‘The Collective’

Memotone ‘Spring Clean’

Field Music ‘Limits Of Language’

Nev Clay ‘So Little Happened For So Long’

Klein ‘Marked’

Godspeed You! Black Emperor ‘No Title As Of 13 February 2024 28,340 Dead’

Bulbils ‘80.Art’

Jane Weaver ‘Love In Constant Spectacle’

Hiro Ama ‘Music For Peace And Harmony’

Kayla Painter ‘Fractures’

Robin Allender ‘Yesterday’s Yet To Come’

Langkamer ‘Langzamer’

J Spaceman & John Coxon ‘Music For William Eggleston’s Stranded In Canton’

Soccer Mommy ‘Evergreen’

Ezra Feinberg ‘Soft Power’

Tom Rasmussen ‘Live Wire’

Kelela ‘RAVE:N, The Remixes’

Crack Cloud ‘Red Mile’

Friko ‘Where We’ve Been, Where We Go From Here’

Grandaddy ‘Blu Wav’

Jessica Pratt ‘Here In The Pitch’

Lil Yachty & James Blake ‘Bad Cameo’

BABii ‘DareDeviil2000’ 

This Is Lorelei ‘Box For Buddy, Box For Star’

Karl D’Silva ‘Love Is A Flame In The Dark’

Eiko Ishibashi ‘Evil Does Not Exist’ (OST)

LICE ‘Third Time At The Beach’

Orbury Common ‘Sylvan Chute’

Urika’s Bedroom ‘Big Smile, Black Mire’

Fat White Family ‘Forgiveness Is Yours’

Tindersticks ‘Soft Tissue’

Mabe Fratti ‘Sentir Que No Sabes’

The Smile ‘Cutouts’

Minotaur Shock ‘It All Levels Out’

JLin ‘Akoma’

Michael Head & The Red Elastic Band ‘Loophole’

SML ‘Small Medium Large’

Various Artists ‘I Saw The TV Glow’ OST

Billie Eilish ‘Hit me Hard And Soft’

Jawnino ‘40’

Laura Marling ‘Patterns In Repeat’

Beth Gibbons ‘Lives Outgrown’

Dana Gavanski ‘Late Slap’

Euros Childs ‘Beehive Beach’

MGMT ‘Loss Of Life’

Clarissa Connelly ‘World Of Work’

Nadine Shah 'Filthy Underneath’

Jerskin Fendrix ‘Poor Things’ OST

Tim Heidecker ‘Slipping Away’

Lifter ‘Clasping Hands With The Moribund’

Nala Sinephro ‘Endlessness’

The Crying Nudes ‘The Crying Nudes’

Kamasi Washington ‘Fearless Movement’

Ishmael Ensemble 'Rituals'

-

MY TOP 50 ALBUMS OF 2024

50. James Ferraro ‘Genware I, II, III’

49. Louie Newlands ‘Shards Of The Vase (Songs From My 20s)’

48. Daniel Inzani ‘Selected Worlds’ 

47. Jabu ‘A Soft And Gatherable Star’

46. The Bug ‘Machines I-V’

45. Katy J Pearson ‘Someday, Now’

44. One True Pairing ‘Endless Rain’

43. Mk.gee ‘Two Star & The Dream Police’

42. Why? ���The Well I Fell Into’

41. Naima Bock ‘Below A Massive Dark Land’

40. Group Listening ‘Walks’

39. Spectres ‘AM DRAM’

38. Bonnie Prince Billy, Nathan Salsburg, Tyler Trotter ‘Hear The Children Sing The Evidence’

37. Tyler, The Creator ‘CHROMAKOPIA’

36. The Smile ‘Wall of Eyes’

35. Beyonce ‘Cowboy Carter’

34. Vince Staples ‘Dark Times’

33. Cassandra Jenkins ‘My Light, My Destroyer’

32. Death’s Dynamic Shroud & Galen Tipton ‘You Like Music’

31. Deep Nalström ‘Baroud’

30. Los Campesinos! ‘All Hell’

29. Dean Blunt & Joanne Robertson ‘Backstage Raver’

28. Moin ‘You Never End’

27. Beak> ‘>>>>’

26. Ex-Easter Island Head ‘Norther’

25. Nilufer Yanya ‘My Method Actor’

24. Bill Ryder-Jones ‘Iecyd Da’

23. Gruff Rhys ‘Sadness Sets Me Free’

22. Memotone ‘Fever Of The World’

21. Still House Plants ‘If I Don’t Make It, I Love U’

20. William Doyle ‘Springs Eternal’

19. Daniel Blumberg ‘The Brutalist’ OST

18. Doechii ‘Alligator Bites Never Heal’

17. Julia Holter ‘Something In The Room She Moves’

16. Good Sad Happy Bad ‘All Kinds Of Days’

15. Astrid Sonne ‘Great Doubt’

14. Claire Rousay ‘Sentiment’

13. Cindy Lee ‘Diamond Jubilee’

12. Clairo ‘Charm’

11. Trust Fund ‘Has It Been A While?’

10. Mermaid Chunky ‘Slif Slaf Slof’

9. The Lemon Twigs ‘A Dream Is All We Know’

8. Kendrick Lamar ‘GNX’

7. Geordie Greep ‘The New Sound’

6. Mount Kimbie ‘The Sunset Violent’

5. JPEGMAFIA ‘I Lay Down My Life For You’

4. A.G. Cook ‘Britpop’

3. Magdalena Bay ‘Imaginal Disk’

2. Charli XCX ‘Brat’ (+ ‘Brat And It’s Completely Different But Also Still Brat’)

1. Vampire Weekend ‘Only God Was Above Us’

[armchairsoapbox]

For those who don’t know, this is a riff on another poem:

Report from Paradise

by Zbigniew Herbert

In paradise the work week is fixed at thirty hours salaries are higher prices steadily go down manual labour is not tiring (because of reduced gravity) chopping wood is no harder than typing the social system is stable and the rulers are wise really in paradise one is better off than in whatever country

At first it was to have been different luminous circles choirs and degrees of abstraction but they were not able to separate exactly the soul from the flesh and so it would come here with a drop of fat a thread of muscle it was necessary to face the consequences to mix a grain of the absolute with a grain of clay one more departure from doctrine the last departure only John foresaw it: you will be resurrected in the flesh

Not many behold God He is only for those 100 per cent pneuma the rest listen to communiqués about miracles and floods some day God will be seen by all when it will happen nobody knows

As it is now every Saturday at noon sirens sweetly bellow and from the factories go the heavenly proletarians awkwardly under their arms they carry their wings like violins

TBH I think the Bazzett version feels derivative. It follows the other too closely in its development, and while I appreciate the meaning I take away from his version, I feel it lacks the same expressiveness or sweetness. The language feels a bit clunkier, and I’m not sure about the ideas developed here. I vastly prefer the Herbert version.

REPORT FROM BEYOND BY MICHAEL BAZZETT

In paradise the work week is fixed at thirty hours and manual labor is only pleasantly more tiring than typing so that a morning chopping wood is barely enough to make the ham sandwich and the cold bottle of beer a bit more delicious at the rough wooden table afterward

Punctuation is underused because words flow one into the other like branching streams of snowmelt wrinkling over rough granite into alpine meadows where tiny stars pass themselves off as flowers and the children weave green stems into crowns which are the only trappings worn by the rulers who are wise and listen intently to their subjects without merely thinking of what words they will offer in response

The parks are clean the social system stable and the new eight day week has created a gentle hammock of time in what used to be Sunday evening where the bells toll and streets are closed so families might stroll the avenues

Old men still wear their pants too high public fountains are still fish-scaled with coins the authorities have yet to solve how the smell of frying food hangs in the air for hours

At first the great beyond was to have been quite different each life was to have comprised one note in the harmonious thrum of a cosmic chord but they found it too difficult to reduce even simple lives to a single sound and a gluey paste kept getting caught at the back of the angels’ throats

God has yet to make an appearance but this absence is common fodder for the rumors which suggest he wanders among them as a breeze so they see not him but his evidence

[limelines]

i have noticed a trend

i have a very specific type, and thats pale, blonde, long-haired androgynous men who would never like me back! :D

[fuckyesdobiegillis]

Maynard G. Krebs + "What's My Lion?"

[eyes-like-the-night]

Tanz der Vampire March 5th 2023

Um holy fuck???? Wouldn’t change a thing 12/10, seeing this show live after 6 years of subsisting off of bootlegs. It’s completely different seeing it live.

Act one, phenomenal, I got jumped scared by Krolock, also got a side eye and a smirk because I whipped around so fast once he was in the aisle and was smiling like an idiot.

The dancers were incredible black vampire put so much into it and also some fun little unexpected things from him. All the dancing was absolutely flawless from everyone else as well.

Magda was incredible, her fear leading up to her getting bit was palpable, was she was a vampire she was so cheeky!

I normally hate Chagal but he was so funny, like going to bite Magda, mocking her fear, and then realizing, oh fuck he’s a vampire. Weirdly charismatic, especially with Magda when they’re in a crypt. They were fun to see.

Herbert so so baby, tall as hell, very playful, also wonderful voice!

Alfred. What a cutie, I’m usually pretty meh on Alfred’s but I couldn’t stop smiling during Fur Sarah because he was so sweet and sincere.

Fun things

Alfred dropping on top of the coffin was a solid thunk so it was very funny

Krolock kept showing Sarah off after he bit her while carrying her, dipping her down to show her bite to the others. Krolock went to say something during Vor dem Schloss and was cut off by the professor, very funny, definitely being a playful asshole with the professor but delivered such a good and moving bit once it was just him and Alfred anything that was loud and big was followed by lines delivered so softly I couldn’t help but be entranced. On a spicy note, dear lord the growls, going to bite Sarah at the end of ToFi was, oof, held her close the entire time while touching her, almost had a kiss during ToFi as well. Gier was Heart breaking.

Rebecca was wonderful, definitely the wife tired of her husband’s wandering eye but still loved him dearly.

Wow look at that back to Krolock, filippo definitely has younger vibes as Krolock, gorgeous voice, went for it with adding riffs and having fun with it vocally, it works really well with everything he has going.

Kristen was fabulous as Sarah, definitely a favorite now. She’s so playful and sweet as Sarah, very clear voice, and beautiful on the high notes.

Froze at stage door, completely worth it though. Filippo was so kind, remembered my friend and I from when he walked through the aisle and took the time to talk with us.

[chronic-boogara]

Hey I'd love a matchup if you have time! Big slasher fan lol. I'm nonbinary and studying forensic toxicology. I'm a scorpio and I'd generally say I align with most of their traits. I love horror games (especially psychological horror ones), painting and art, and playing piano. I love metal music and rock, but I'm also a die-hard Jimmy Buffet fan. I love tarantulas and other bugs, but praying mantises freak me out (they are small, but their eyes know too much). Thanks broseph :)

𝐢 𝗺𝐚𝐭𝐜𝐡 𝐲𝗼𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡- 𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐛𝐞𝐫𝐭 𝐰𝐞𝐬𝐭

♡your perfect match is another person of science dr. herbert west. while he tends to get very involved in his work he will always try to make time for you.

♡it’s safe to say herbert is a big fan of your choice of jobs..a very big fan. he finds it sexy in an almost perverse kind of way. he loves having someone to talk to about all his experiments and thoughts on his work without being shunned for his slight insanity. he might cover some things up at first but as time goes on he lets it all loose.

♡psychological horror is the best kind in his opinion. he loves the kind of media that really makes you think. he doesn’t mind the blood and gore aspect but he finds that kind of horror overplayed and made for the small minded.

♡your love of the arts is welcomed with open eyes by herbert. he loves seeing your works, so much so that he will find space in his lab to hang them on the walls. and of course she i’ll be bragging to everyone he knows aboit said talent. you’re the best of the best in his eyes and the entire world needs to know. play piano for him after a long day pls he finds it so so soothing.

♡herbert doesn’t understand what the big deal with metal music is. to him it sounds like a bunch of screaming and guitar riffs. he much prefers classical music, just something to relax his mind. he’s not an ass about his dislike of it at least. if you’re playing music he will sit and listen just because he knows it makes you happy.

♡he’s afraid of certain bugs but won’t admit it. if you were to have a pet tarantula he’d observe it from the outside but the minute you try to hand it to him he is out. he doesn’t mind beetles though. he finds them peculiar in a good way. praying mantis are not his favorite either. on

♡he’s never experienced a love like this before but it’s safe to say he’s into it.

[knifeonmars]

Comics that mattered to me in 2021

Every year when I sit down to do this I end up whinging about being exhausted with comics, and this year is no different. The churn of corporate superhero comics is deeply alienating, and after I made a concerted effort to read more prose this past year, I can't help noticing that a lot of the writing is, frankly, shit. Jonathan Hickman's Mr. Cerebral Scifi posturing looks a lot less impressive when you've been reading Herbert or LeGuin or Banks and realizing how shallow even the most acclaimed writing in superhero comics often is.

Nor did indie comics have much for me this year. 2022 will be Peow Studios' last year in operation, and while they're still publishing at the moment and their work remains stellar, knowing that they'll be gone casts a pall over things. Al Gofa's decision to cape for Brandon Graham by including him in his failed Gamma Twinkles Kickstarter campaign, even in light of the accusations of predation by Graham, after public backlash and the loss of multiple collaborators from the project really took the wind out of my sails re: indie comics by reminding me how shitty the space can be.

Spawn

The only comic which I read with any regularity in 2021 was, genuinely, Spawn, as preparation for my vanity podcast on the series, Regarding Spawn. I can't say that Spawn is good by any measure, indeed certain parts of it are complete shit, but as someone who has always struggled to find a community, it's nice to actually get to read along with someone and discuss a series for all its highs and lows. I guess the lesson is that comics and media in general are best when you share it with someone, so like, touch grass.

The Immortal Hulk

Probably Al Ewing's magnum opus at Marvel Comics, even if it is marred somewhat by its association with artist Joe Bennett and his unpleasant personal politics. While it was running there were few, if any comics like Immortal Hulk, certainly not from the mainstream superhero comics market. It was religious horror, it was action, it was sublime and funny and excellent. I'm glad that it got to have its run and, improbably for an Al Ewing comic, go uninterrupted by petty cash-ins and spinoffs (look at the current X-Men line to see what happens when that pointedly isn't the case). Immortal Hulk has unseated Planet Hulk as the best Hulk story, and it did so by being a completely different kind of story. We may not see its like again.

Home Time

The second part of Campbell Whyte's Home Time released this year, following a group of Australian middle schoolers trapped in a strange fantasy world during what was supposed to be their last summer together before high school. I'm no "YA adult", note my use of scare-quotes, but I really did love Home Time. It's hazy and weird, it evokes a kind of nostalgia which hit close to home for me, and I love the tricks and stylistic flourishes it displays in riffing on videogames.

Batman: Creature of the Night

Another title I've written about before, the last big project from the late, great artist John Paul Leon with collaborator Kurt Busiek, Creature of the Night is the companion piece to Busiek and Stuart Immonen's incredible Superman: Secret Identity, and yet it is totally distinct and its own beast. It's a story about mental illness and anger and grief, and it gets at the core of Batman in a way which is both more distinct and more honest than either fandom "BatDad" characterizations or self-serious "disturbed" takes on the character.

Jack Staff

It is a true pleasure to see a master at work in their craft, and Jack Staff is Paul Grist's clinic on the capabilities and potentials of both the comic book medium and the superhero genre. Grist pulls from reference points that a North American reader like myself has little familiarity with and in doing so constructs a superhero world which feels totally distinct from the one-millionth indie comics riff on Batman/Spider-Man/Superman/etc. The things he does with layouts, with lettering, with the page as a whole, must be seen to be believed. If you ever have the chance, do not miss Jack Staff.

Butcher Baker, The Righteous Maker

Neither Butcher Baker nor its creator Joe Casey are a problematic fave for me, and yet I guess they are. I don't love Butcher Baker unreservedly, but I can't help thinking about it in terms of my largely withered critical reading skills. I think that there is something profoundly ugly at the heart of superhero power fantasies, however much certain people online will argue that superheroes have always been politically "good" , and Joe Casey lays that bare in a totally unabashed, indulgent, but absolutely knowing way. Butcher Baker is a creep, a thug, and a libidinous bully, his enemies are over the top visions of American prejudices and fears, it's a weird book and I don't like every element of it, but I can't help thinking about it. Considering that so many superhero comics seem designed to slide smoothly off the brain as soon as possible, totally unprepared for or uninterested in critical reading, Butcher Baker is a welcome change.

Superman: Blue

It is with a heavy heart that I admit that Electric Blue Superman is Good, Actually, and these comics are damned solid. It'll sound like I'm damning it with faint praise, but this volume collecting the first set of stories from the brief Electric Blue era is just really solid superhero comics. I've slagged off series before for feeling like standard portions of superhero entertainment, but this isn't that. Superman: Blue has a lineup of great artists including Stuart Immonen in the early part of his career, and a rotating cast of writers telling charming, innovative stories using what I have to admit is a fun setup. There's no groan-inducing crossover high stakes here, nor the inflated self-importance of "nothing will ever be the same!" instead it's just solid, entertaining stories with fresh takes on characters new and old. Even as burnt out as I am on superhero stories, I must admit that you could do a lot worse.

[chernobog13]

I was not a fan of 90% of DC’s Future State event this past winter, but that’s a whole ‘other post that I don’t feel like getting into right now.

However, I am happy with the soft reboot that happened on various DC titles after Future State ended.  The Flash is one such title.

Despite being treated atrociously for the last ten years or so, Wally West is back at the forefront of the book (yay!).  Sure, Barry Allen is technically still the star of the book.   Wally was all set to retire forever back in issue #768 (by my count that’s like the 17th time he was giving up being a superhero), but writer Jeremy Adams comes up with a clever way to thrust Wally into the starring role for a time-hopping Quantum Leap-type storyline, with Barry relegated to the supporting cast.

For those who don’t know, or are too young to remember, Wally West was THE Flash for almost twenty years after Barry Allen was killed off in Crisis on Infinite Earths.  A team of writers, artists and editors worked extremely hard for several years to elevate Wally from former sidekick to A-level superhero, and they did.  Wally became the first DC sidekick to take the place of his mentor, one of many legacy heroes.  

The Flash, with Wally as the lead, was a much more interesting book than it ever was under Barry Allen (whom I found rather dull and colorless).  It was great to see Wally’s progression from sidekick to hero to family man.  And it was the first time I actually became a regular reader of The Flash.

I was saddened when a new regime came to power at DC and Barry Allen was resurrected, because it meant that Wally was ignominiously shuffled off to comic book limbo.

Anyhoo, if you want the full story of Wally’s journey, I suggest you get a hold of Back Issue magazine #128 from TwoMorrows. 

With that long-winded introduction out of the way, let’s just say I’m a fan of Wally as The Flash, hate what DC has done to him lately, and very happy that he’s headlining again.

Writer Jeremy Adams seems to be a fan of Wally, too, and is having fun with him in this storyline.  In a previous issue he had Wally catapulted back to the dinosaur era, and there was a clever bit of Wally channeling Fred Flintstone as he slid down an apatosaurus’ back.

This issue Wally has leaped into fellow speedster (and original Flash) Jay Garrick’s body during the early years of World War ll.  Jay and fellow superhero Happy Terrill (aka The Ray) are tasked by FDR to go to the Philippines and acquire the Spear of Destiny before Hitler can get his hands on it.

A few quibbles here: Jay is depicted as having gray hair, but he was a young man in his prime in WW2.  With a veritable army of superheroes (called “mystery men” back then) to call on, why does FDR only send these two?  Why and how is the Spear of Destiny in the Philippines?  Where is it now that Wally/Jay and Happy stole it from Hitler?  Also, it seems that writer Adams has either forgotten or ignored the role Hitler and the Spear played in the formation of the Justice Society of America.

Of course I know DC’s answer to all these questions: don’t worry about continuity, it’s the Omniverse.

Those quibbles aside (I don’t want to seem like a continuity-obsessed fan boy), I did enjoy the story for what it was, especially since it gave Wally another chance to shine.  It’s also a lot of fun (the running gag of Wally/Jay talking to his “support team,” and Happy’s reaction to it, made me smile).

And did I mention the artwork by Jack Herbert and Brandon Peterson, with colors byMichael Atiyeh?  I didn’t?  Well I will, because it’s phenomenal!  Don’t take my word for it; buy this issue and see for yourself!

And did I say that this issue was fun?  All, that’s nothing compared to what’s planned for Wally’s next leap:

Oh, yeah, baby!  It looks like we’re going the Super Friends route, with Kevin Maguire doing his best Alex Toth-riff (look at Luthor’s face!)!  I can’t wait!

Post Script: why does it seem that whenever the Spear of Destiny is in a story it looks like it was drawn by a first grader?  I mean literally just two parallel lines for the shaft connected to a simple, small triangle at the end.

There are plenty of pictures of the actual spear, or at least the spearhead.  Would someone at DC please Google “Spear of Destiny” or “Spear of Longinus”  and then forward the photos to the artists?  Thank you.

[jedivoodoochile]

Happy 78th birthday Keith!

Dec. 18, 1943: KEITH RICHARDS, born on this day to Doris and Herbert Richards (at Livingstone Hospital, in Dartford, Kent, England) aka ‘The Human Riff’, guitarist, singer, songwriter and member of some band called The Rolling Stones.

[magg0t-king]

🖤❤Dumb MTL art ideas I might draw or animate for Halloween❤🖤

Drawing the doods as RHPS characters (like murderface and/or Knubbler being frank and/or riff-raff)

Drawing three of the doods as my sister, her friend, and I's Halloween costumes: Banana Juggalos

The main 5 dressing up as one of those dramatic TV show families.

All or a few of them dressing up as slashers/horror characters. (Example: charles as Dr. Herbert west)

All of them dressing up as Dr rockzo as a tribute to his dumb ass-ery or all of them dressing up as Dr. twinkletits because I love that idea.

Idk, I might add more later.

[deagle]

What is all this obsession with "Tanz der Vampire" all about? Why do you like it?

:DDDD thank you for the ask, IT SPARKS JOY!

Hmmmm whyyyyy...

It‘s so... ✨haaaa✨

There‘s DANCE and there‘s SINGING and there‘s FUNKY COSTUMES (which might be because it‘s a musical but i‘ll have to run some scientific tests to prove that part)

There‘s SARAH who wants to be WILD 'N FREEEE

There‘s ALFRED who DON‘T GET ME STARTED OR I‘LL LITERALLY NEVER STOP TALKING ABOUT HIM-

There‘s the PROF who‘s got NEAT SCENES!!

Herbert who needs a fuck and a hug and a puppy, in that order

Also Drew Sarich

AND THE PIANO RIFFS

yk i‘m not sure if i have to elaborate any further at that point

THANK U FOR THE ASK!! = D

[vinylspinning]

Journey: Look into the Future (1976)

Goodbye 2020, hello 2021, and why don’t we Look into the Future (not really) with Journey’s 45-year-old sophomore LP?

After flexing their jazz-fusion and prog-rock virtuosity all over their eponymous 1975 debut, here, Journey took the first, tentative steps on a long march to becoming 1980s corporate rock gods -- not that you’d ever have guessed that if you were buying this LP, in January of 1976.

Not at all: back then, Journey were more preoccupied with the departure of rhythm guitarist George Tickner, who didn’t share his band mates’ -- Gregg Rolie (vocals, keyboards), Neal Schon (guitar), Ross Valory (bass) and Aynsley Dunbar (drums) -- career ambitions, nor their willingness to carry out the relentless touring regimen imposed by manager/task-master Herbie Herbert.

It was these ambitions that made the band amenable to Columbia Records’ demands for more accessible material, and Rolie certainly tried his damndest, but his two solo contributions to the LP, “On a Saturday Night” and “Anyway,” both felt forced and, frankly, clumsy, not helped by God-awful lyrics.

Clearly, a well-chosen cover was in order, and Journey delivered a compelling rendition of The Beatles’ “It’s All Too Much,” but why didn’t they go with any number of universally-known Fabs’ classics, instead of this relatively obscure George Harrison number from the Yellow Submarine soundtrack?

In any case, The Beatles’ influence also loomed over the ascending/descending arpeggios of “You’re on Your Own” (think “I Want You (She’s So Heavy)”), and Jimi Hendrix likewise served as the (role) model for Schon’s riffs and licks on “She Makes Me (Feel Alright)” and “Midnight Dreamer.”

Finally, while there’s real majesty in the eight-minute title track, the biggest talking point about Look into the Future over the years would revolve around its last cut, “I’m Gonna Leave You,” which fellow U.S. proggies Kansas almost surely cannibalized for their all-time classic breakthrough hit, “Carry On Wayward Son,” a few months later.

And more power to them: there’s no crying in, errr, mid ‘70s prog/fusion!

As for Journey, their calculated sonic tweaks may not have generated the sort of Gold, let alone Platinum, sales they would regularly enjoy in the next decade; but they did nudge Look into the Future to No. 100 in the U.S. charts, and gave the group confidence to knock out perhaps the strongest effort of the pre-Steve Perry era in 1977’s Next.

More Journey: Journey, Next, Escape, Frontiers.

[jacobsvoice]

Brandeis: Learning on the Left

No other American city of proximate size and population is surrounded by universities and colleges like Boston. From center city to the suburbs Boston University, Boston College, Northeastern, MIT, Harvard, Tufts and Wellesley are highly rated. But there is only one secular (and flaming liberal) Jewish university among them: Brandeis, located in suburban Waltham.

Founded in 1948 and named after the first Jewish Supreme Court Justice, it blossomed over the years to become a university overflowing with institutes and centers, among them Modern Jewish Studies, Investigative Journalism, Social Research and Women’s Studies. Its renowned alumni, with their left-wings flapping, include Thomas Friedman, Angela Davis and Abbie Hoffman.

Among its lesser-known professors is Stephen J. Whitfield, whose academic career of forty-four years was spent in the relatively marginal American Studies Department. He is the reverent author of On the Left: Political Profiles of Brandeis University (2020). With more than four hundred and fifty pages of text (many of which are extraneous to Brandeis), and one hundred pages of footnotes, it is not exactly light reading. It is difficult to imagine that anyone without a Brandeis connection would care to read it.

Names of important people with little or nothing to do with Brandeis – Harry Truman, Joe Biden, George W. Bush, Bill Clinton, Lyndon Johnson, John F. Kennedy, Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Barack Obama, Fidel Castro and Leon Trotsky among them–pass by so fleetingly that at times it feels like Grand Central Station during rush hour. Several pages are even devoted to Russian Nobel Prize winner Andrei Sakharov, whose only connection to Brandeis was the donation of his voluminous papers and letters to the library by his daughter.

Whitfield reverently dotes on alumni achievers whose Brandeis blood caroused through their veins. Among them, in excruciating detail: Michael Walzer, whose scholarly writing consumes fifteen pages; and Michael Sandel, praised in twelve pages for his You Tube lectures. Other chapters are devoted to foreign-born radicals on the faculty: Herbert Marcuse, whose career “dramatically” reveals “the radicalism of the 1960s” (twenty-one pages); and Bolshevik revolutionary Jean Louis Maxine van Heijenoort (six pages). Among left-leaning Americans who were ”connected” to Brandeis, Whitfield devotes twelve pages to Philip Rahv, co-founder and editor of Partisan Review; and ten pages to Dissent editor Irving Howe.

Whitfield is mesmerized by the impact of the turbulent 1960s on his beloved institution. Having taught in the History Department between 1965-70 I was all too familiar with the left-driven chaos by rampaging students who occupied buildings and ignited fires among their preferred strategies. The “radical spirit” that Brandeis exuded even prompted Newsweek to report “the atmosphere of barely controlled chaos [that] continued to build steadily at Brandeis.”

Whitfield’s wandering chapter on race relations at Brandeis begins elsewhere at another time. It includes Gunner Myrdal, the Swedish author of An American Dilemma, published before Brandeis existed; and Philip Roth’s The Human Stain, which had nothing to do with Brandeis. Nor did “spring theory,” the conceptual invention of Princeton professor and Nobel Prize winner Edward Witten. Whitfield seems eager to demonstrate the range of his research, including people and places far outside the Brandeis orbit.

Even when he focuses on Brandeis, Whitfield can be over the top with lengthy and doting narratives of his chosen people. Abbie Hoffman, the 1969 graduate and “radical Jokester,” consumes thirty pages having virtually nothing to do with Whitfield’s beloved university. But he deems it important to mention that Hoffman “gave the impression of liking hamburgers.” And he preposterously identifies Hoffman with “the ancient Hebrews, whose Bible describes them as stiff-necked.” It may not be inappropriate to ask: who, other than Whitfield, cares?

Whitfield’s propensity for hero-worship climaxes with ten pages devoted to Brandeis graduate Thomas Friedman, ironically deserving of recognition as the unrelenting and flaming liberal New York Times critic of Israel. But Whitfield’s overflowing recital of the wonders of Friedman reads as though he was worshiping at a Brandeis shrine–which, to be sure, he is.

Unwilling, or unable, to stop rambling (even by page 443), Whitfield concludes with a paean of praise for the university of his dreams (largely because he had no academic experience elsewhere). For no discernible reason other than his evident need for self-preening, his riffs include President Jimmy Carter and Supreme Court Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Clarence Thomas; the Hebrew word for “truth”; Hannah Arendt; and those who wonder “Will Jesus return to earth”–none of whom had anything to do with Brandeis.

Whitfield’s concluding words (at last) favor “an epistemological task – addressed to the young”–whatever that means. It is a shame that Whitfield’s Brandeis story is buried in irrelevant minutiae. The academic love of his life deserves better.

The Jewish Voice (July 23, 2021)

Jerold S. Auerbach is the author of twelve books, including Print to Fit: The New York Times, Zionism and Israel 1896-2016, selected for Mosaic by Ruth Wisse and Martin Kramer as a Best Book for 2019