Jason Toney

one line: Superfly Doesn't Count

"There's never been a Superman with a minority face."

Calliope No. 8 - Nobody Knows When You're Down & Out :: Down & Out in New York City

Nobody Knows When You're Down & Out

http://calliopeno...

Previously on Calliope No. 8

Down And Out In New York City

James Brown

Books: Heart-Shaped Box

Heart-Shaped Box: A Novel

Joe Hill

Heart-Shaped Box: A Novel by Joe Hill (2007, William Morrow). It is difficult for me to separate experience this novel without talking about Joe Hill's father, Stephen King, even though I know he and his publisher would really I rather not. His fault, though, for writing a horror novel that has some key elements that are obvious emulations of his father's style. As someone who has aped the master of horror's tricks and flourishes in my own work, I know it when I see it.

That said, Heart-Shaped Box is a good read. Not lump in your throat scary but it does have a breakneck pace that pushes you towards it's end. Hill, while not as adept with word choice and phrasing as I usually like in my reading, weaves a nice yarn and hits with several big surprises over the course of the nearly 400 pages. By the end, you are rooting for the unlikely protagonists and are never quite sure that they will make it.

It wasn't a deep read by any means and didn't leave me with any of the internal questions that much of my recent fiction has inspired but I liked it enough and it did inspire a reading playlist:

1. The Horror - Rjd2
2. Your Ex-Lover Is Dead - Stars
3. Giving Up The Ghost - DJ Shadow
4. Bela Lugosi's Dead - Bauhaus
5. Dead or Alive (1988 Boingo Alive Version) - Oingo Boingo
6. Deadweight on Velveteen - Jose Gonzalez
7. Walking Dead (Feat. Chester Bennington) - Z-Trip
8. Dead Nigga Blvd (Pt. 1) - Me'shell Ndegeocello
9. Wake Me When I'm Dead - The Brand New Heavies
10. Dead Man Walking - Stiff Little Fingers
11. Walking With A Ghost - Tegan and Sara
12. Nights of the Living Dead - Tilly and The Wall
13. One More Night (Your Ex-Lover Remains Dead) - Stars
14. Ghost Ship in a Storm - Jim O'Rourke
15. 2 More Dead - Rjd2
    

Mildly recommended for the ghost story fan.

QotD: Can't-Miss Podcasts

Are there any podcasts that you never miss an episode of?
Submitted by Kadeeae.

As I've pretty much given up the radio, I get almost all my NPR exclusively from podcasts. Particularly, the 7am News Summary, the weekly technology, movies, books and pop culture podcasts and a few alt.npr joints. But my all time favorite podcast is Tiki Bar TV.

QotD: I Take These Things For Granted

What are five things you take for granted? 
Submitted by meowkitty.

1. Time
2. Permanence
3. Family
4. Friendships
5. Infinite possibility

07.04.07 Mixtape: Freedom (USA Edit)

Freedom (USA Edit)

1. Anti-American Graffiti - J Dilla aka Jay Dee
2. We Want Freedom - Dead Prez
3. American Me - C.L. Smooth
4. American Terrorist (featuring Matthew Santos) - Lupe Fiasco
5. Freedom (Radio Edit) - King Britt Presents Oba Funke
6. River of Freedom - Dee-Lite
7. Grace (Freedom Dub) - Blue Six
8. Declare Independence - Bjork
9. (Who Discovered) America - Ozomatli
10. Freedom Ain't Free - Brother Ali
11. Freedom Train - De La Soul
12. Freedom (feat. Corey Glover) - Soulive
13. Bird of Freedom - Seal

08 Freedom (Radio Edit)

King Britt Presents Oba Funke

"Declare Independence. Don't let them do that to you" - Bjork

Happy Independence Day.