Steven Millhauser–”Mermaid Fever” (Harper’s, December 2009)

SOUNDTRACK: THE CARDIGANS-Best of (2008). I’ve been a huge fan of the Cardigans since their first U.S. single “Carnival”.  I was living in Boston and I vividly remember the first time I heard it on the radio.  It was bubbly and treacly and then about halfway through it turned into something fantastic. And that’s how [...]

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Periodical: Prospect (update)

I received my second issue of Prospect magazine just in time for the Thanksgiving holiday.  I’m pleased to say that this issue not only confirmed my suspicions of the magazine, it actually impressed me a little bit more.  And it sort of made me wish I had done something similar with all the magazines:  do [...]

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William Alexander Taylor–Intermere (1901-1902)

SOUNDTRACK: THE FEELIES-Only Life (1988). The Feelies were based out of Haledon, NJ, a town not more than fifteen minutes from my house.  I’ve always felt this weird association to them.  One day a coworker drove me past one of the band members’ houses when I worked in North Haledon (in retrospect this was probably [...]

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Captain Adam Seaborn [pseudonym of John Cleves Symmes]–Symzonia: Voyage of Discovery (1820)

SOUNDTRACK: KATE BUSH-The Red Shoes (1993). The Red Shoes is something of a disappointment. While I enjoyed The Sensual World, it was definitely moving in a more adult contemporary vein.  The Red Shoes proceeds even further in this direction.  Since Kate is getting older, it makes sense that her music would change as well. But [...]

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Paul Debraski–”Just Like Gene” (2000)

[WRITTEN: October 2000] “Just Like Gene” Back in June of 2008, I posted a short story that I wrote about 8 years ago.  As it’s the holiday season it seemed like a good time to post another of my old stories.  I’ve got about a dozen more stories stashed away on a disc somewhere.  And [...]

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Periodical: McSweeney’s

Many many years ago, I discovered Might magazine.  It was a funny, silly magazine that spoofed everything (but had a serious backbone, too).  (You can order back issues here).  And so, I subscribed around issue 13.  When the magazine folded (with issue 16–and you can read a little bit about that in the intro to [...]

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JR Walsh–”An Insurrection” (Esquire, November 2009)

SOUNDTRACK: KATE BUSH-Aspects of the Sensual World (1989). This was the first CD single that I can remember acquiring.  I got it from the radio station at school, and I felt like I was in on a big secret having all of these bonus tracks. There are five songs on this disc.  The original “The [...]

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Steven Heighton–”Noughts and Crosses: An unsent reply” (The Walrus, November 2009)

SOUNDTRACK:KATE BUSH-The Sensual World (2009). It was three years between The Dreaming and Hounds of Love.  And this time it took four years for The Sensual World to come out.  This was the first Kate disc that I bought as it came out.  And I was such a huge fan of Hounds, that I was [...]

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Albert Innaurato–Gemini (1978) & The Transfiguration of Benno Blimpie (1978)

SOUNDTRACK: KATE BUSH-Hounds of Love (1985). I have a very specific memory of the first time I heard the song  “Hounds of Love.”  I was in high school and the Wilderness Adventure Club was heading towards whatever destination we were going to (funny I can’t remember the destination, but I recall the car trip there).  [...]

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Pseudonymous Bosch–This Book is Not Good For You (2009)

SOUNDTRACK-KATE BUSH-The Dreaming (1982). This disc focuses Kate’s intensity somewhat.  I was just reading that it was nowhere near as popular as her previous discs in England (where she had been number 1 many times), although, interestingly it made the charts in the US because of college radio airplay. The disc is still experimental (there’s [...]

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