SOUNDTRACK: PEARL JAM-Vs. (1993).
Ten was a solid record, and although it had diversity within it, overall the sound was pretty consistent. On Vs., Pearl Jam mixed it up sonically and otherwise.
It opens with “Go,” a track that rocks harder than anything on Ten but which retains a great Pearl Jam chorus. “Animal” is also loud, with Eddie’s voice sounding incredibly rough and raw.
It’s on the 3rd track that PJ begin to really mix it up with their first ballad: “Daughter,” their first acoustic track. It’s catchy, and really works with Eddie’s voice. I can never listen to the next track “Glorified G” without thinking of my college roommate who spoiled it for me. And I’ll spoil it for you because every time you hear the chorus you will now think “glorified version of a pelican.” It’s not my favorite song anyway, as the chorus is kind of weird, but the verses are really strong and do redeem this track.
“Dissident” and “Blood” continue the great rocking vein. Although they are quite different from each other, (“Blood” being much harder) they both showcase Pearl Jam’s excellent rock aesthetic.
The track between them, “W.M.A.” is the other track on the disc that shows Pearl Jam’s experimental side. It’s percussion heavy and seems like a rambling track…it works much better live, actually.
“Rearviewmirror” on the other hand is PJ at their best, a fantastic rocking (but not too heavy) song with a great chorus, and excellent vocals by Eddie. Its complement is “Elderly Woman…” which highlights the other end of PJ’s spectrum: a sort of ballad that rocks more than you might think.
“Rats” and “Leash” are two rough, almost punk songs that continue to mix up the tempo and tenor of the disc. “Rats” seems to get ignored a lot even though its chorus is a good one, and “Leash” is another angry song that’s, again, enjoyable live.
“Indifference” ends the disc and it’s a song that I wasn’t all that excited about initially. However, again, after hearing the live versions, I gained a much better appreciation for the song and now I really enjoy it. All in all Vs, is a great step forward for Pearl Jam, strangely enough pulling them away from arena anthems and into more intimate areas.
[READ: April 16, 2009] The Book of Other People
I discovered this book by searching for A.M. Homes in our catalog. I was surprised I had never heard of it. The premise of this collection, put out by McSweeneys and benefiting 826 is that each author was asked to make up a character. The requirement was that the story would be named after the character. There were no other rules. And as such, you get a wide variety of stories about all different characters: people and otherwise. In fact, it’s surprising what a diverse collection of stories have arisen from this rather simple concept.
Zadie Smith is the editor and she wrote the introduction. I like to cover all of the written pieces in the book, but there’s not much to say about the introduction except that it fills you in on the details of the collection. She thanks Sarah Vowell for the idea but I gather that the rest of the work was done by her.
I’m not grousing about the different covers this time, I’m just showing the UK one. It has the same basic set up, including pictures by Daniel Clowes, but as you can see, it’s slightly different.
And check out this roster of talent that has written (or drawn) a story: it’s like a who’s who of contemporary young writers.
DAVID MITCHELL-“Judith Castle”
A clever story with a completely unreliable narrator. As she reveals more things about her life they prove to be slightly, or even not just slightly different than what she says. As the story opens she learns that her fiancee was killed. The revelation at the end goes beyond a twist into devastation.
DANIEL CLOWES-“Justin M. Damiano”
A short comic strip about a film critic who meets a director that he idolized ten years earlier, when he was “naive,” and whose new film he doesn’t like. Daniel Clowes’s art is spot-on as always.
A.L. KENNEDY-“Frank”
A story told in partial flashback about a man whose life is crumbling around him. As he seeks solace in an old film, his erratic behavior reveals how tormented his is. The scene where his wife catches him with blood on his hands is quite memorable.
ZZ PACKER-“Gideon”
A brief, mostly funny story about a shy Jewish boy who is dating a black woman (the first he had the nerve to ask out). The story is told from her perspective and it is endearing and nasty in the same breath. The ending removes the humor but to very good effect. A really enjoyable story.
ANDREW O’HAGAN-“Gordon”
A story in eight small sections. I found it a disjointed and couldn’t really follow what was happening.
ZADIE SMITH-“Hanwell Snr”
A story about a man trying to win his father’s…something: admiration, respect, ire…something. Hanwell Snr wandered around for most of Hanwell’s life, seeking adventure and fortune and returning with nothing. When Hanwell, in his teens, learns that his father is operating a chip van in the park, he rides his bikes there and shows up unexpectedly. Hanwell Snr, nonplussed, offers him a free meal and little else. The coolest part of the story is the revelation of the narator at the end…it puts a wonderful new spin on this already interesting story. It’s also available here from The New Yorker.
NICK HORNBY WITH POSY SIMMONDS-“J. Johnson”
This is a cool conceit: Following an author’s life through his book jacket blurbs. Posy Simmonds does the accompanying art. You learn a lot about the man through these little blurbs.
EDWIDGE DANTICAT-“Lélé”
This story, set in Haiti, has a lot of details to cover, although the basic plot is that Lélé is pregnant and is living apart from her husband Gaspard. Lélé has moved back into the house of her childhood to stay with her brother for the time being. While all of this is happening, the ancestral house is plagued by frogs and floods (literally, not biblically). The two stories intertwine into a nice tidy conclusion. It is a somber tale, but the details are exquisite.
ALEKSANDAR HEMON-“The Liar”
A great story with a twist. It covers the trial of two men, a thief and a liar. It reimagines a familiar story from a new point of view, and that’s all I can say without revealing too much.
CHRIS WARE-“Jordan Wellington Lint”
Chris Ware is a marvel. His art is meticulous and fanatically detailed. His stories are not always easy to read, as he has large boxes and tiny boxes all piled on top of each other. But regardless if you read them in the exact right order, the point always comes across. Another notable thing about Ware is that his stories are pretty much universally depressing. This story follows the sad life of Jordan Lint from his birth, to his school (where he tries to rename himself Jason) through to his reckless pre-teen years. As always, good reading.
HARI KUNZRU-“Magda Mandela”
This story is about “Nelson’s Mandela’s” daughter Magda (there is no real daughter by that name). She is a loud, raging woman (in a green thong) who stares people up and down and tells them she “knows” them. Her outbursts cause disruption on a quite English street until she is taken away. The narrator of the story is sympathetic for her and wonders if her ravings have any basis in reality.
TOBY LITT-“The Monster”
This is the story of a monster. The monster is trying to learn as much about himself as he can. He has some memories, but he has little cognizance beyond up, down, eat and merd. It’s a sad story but with very funny moments.
ADAM THIRWELL-“Nigora”
Nigora is a woman who makes lists. Whether they are lists of lovers she has had, lovers she wished she had had or lovers that she has had and would have again, Nigora is continually rethinking her life. It is one man in particular that she pines for, and despite her husband, despite her upbringing, despite the fact that her mother claims she never acts out of character. Nigora feels compelled to act on this man.
HEIDI JULAVITS-“Judge Gladys Parks-Schultz”
This story has lots of meta- elements to it. The ending especially is a bit of a mind bend. Gladys Parks-Schultz, or Glad as she is known, is a woman who grew up with a rather uncaring mother (the flashbacks to her childhood are shocking and funny). She has tried to instill a different homelife for her own daughter. However, as is the way, her daughter disrespects her life and questions her judgments. On this particular holiday, when she served ham to her vegetarian daughter, Glad is left thinking about her life and her memories of various events (and how the flashbacks contains flashbacks within them). A dark, but very cool story.
GEORGE SAUNDERS-“Puppy”
This story follows two families, the one who wishes to get rid of the titular puppy and the one who is thinking of buying it. The puppy owners are, let’s face it, white trash. The scene of her son in the backyard is simultaneously hilarious and horrifying. The puppy-buying family are well off, and looking forward to their new family member. The description of the white trash family’s house from the viewpoint of the other woman is absolutely hilarious. And yet the ultimate outcome of the story is very, very sad. Beyond sad, in fact.
JONATHAN SAFRAN FOER-“Rhoda”
This story is an interview with Rhoda, the interviewer’s older relative. We get the impression that the interviewer has not asked a question yet, but Rhoda has already begun answering . Rhoda’s discussion of the schwarze people in her life is, once again, hilarious, and yet very offensive. An amusing look at an elder Jewish woman.
VENDELA VIDA-“Soleil”
Soleil is a visitor to Gabrielle’s parents house. Soleil knew her parents a long time ago, when she, Soleil, had a stutter. However, on this visit–in which she clearly shows that she is still interested in Gabrielle’s father–she proves to be a different character: loud, vivacious, stutter-free, and very judgmental. At first Gabrielle is put off by Soleil, but she quickly grows to admire her, enough to go on a trip to visit Soleil’s friend Katy. This visit, which involves a dance club, changes Gabrielle’s opinion of Soleil. The ending is quite delicious.
MIRANDA JULY’-“Roy Spivey”
This story is a funny one. It concerns a 5’11” woman’s two encounters with celebrities on airplanes. The first was Jason Kidd, the second was the titular Roy Spivey, a near-anagram of the actual actor’s name. During the course of her flight, the actor makes overtures to her, including giving her his nanny’s personal phone number. The narrator treasures this secret gift until she realizes something important. The opening was quite amusing, but by the end, sadness sets in.
A.M. HOMES-“Cindy Stubenstock”
A brief story that looks at outrageously privileged women taking a private jet out of Teterboro airport. Their disdain for everyday moments of life is quite funny. As is their shock at the things that people do every day (like staying at someone else’s house…who knows how often they change the sheets). The amount of lampoon packed into these few pages is wonderful.
DAVE EGGERS-“Theo”
A cool story about three mountains who wake up one day and are, in fact, giants. Theo is the smallest giant of the three. Theo spends a lot of time with Magdelena, to the point of feeling sorry for Soren because he is alone. It is only later on, when Soren and Magdelena wind up together, that Theo feels like a third wheel. As the story ends, Theo has wandered to a new land and discovered a new mountain range.
JONATHAN LETHEM-“Perkus Tooth”
A wonderfully weird story about Perkus Tooth, a young graffiti artist who has become something of a cause célèbre at Criterion DVDs. The narrator is a former child actor who has been called up to give a commentary track on a film. While there, he meets Perkus Tooth, a random guy who doesn’t work there, but who has written some Criterion DVD notes. The narrator quickly becomes ensnared in Perkus’ life of diners, coffee, pot and theorizing. The story is hallucinatory and really cool.
COLM TÓIBÍN-“Donal Webster”
After having just read the Colm Tóibín story “The Color of Shadows” in the New Yorker, I have to wonder what kind of experiences he had recently. In this story, as in the previous one, the narrator must attend to the death of a mother figure (in this case, his actual mother). And, like the other story, the story reflects the character himself, and not how the death affects him. This story is told as an imaginary phone call to a former lover. It has been six years since his mother died, and he is thinking more about the lover than his cold, distant mother. A very powerful story, with an excellent last line that changes everything.
ANDREW SEAN GREER-“Newton Wicks”
A story I could relate to as it dealt with two kids thrown together by virtue of their parents’ friendship. It shows the kids playing with toys, and Newton acceping the less “cool” roles of princess and animals in the game world.
For ease of searching I include: Toibin.
[…] short story sees the return of Perkus Tooth, who I first encountered in Lethem’s story in The Book of Other People. In this story, Perkus has had it. He is tired of his life and of his lifestyle. He wakes […]