Month: December 2015

Devious Bloggery’s Favorite Music of 2015

Jason Preu, , , 10 Comments

Art Angels by Grimes

If I had to pick a favorite this year, Grimes is the one. I loved Visions so much that I was worried this record would never come. Worries put to rest.

Every Open Eye by CHVRCHES

This is a high energy synth rocker from open to close. Every time I played it I thought, “Why am I not playing this more often?”

Sound & Color by Alabama Shakes

So schmoove and emoschunull.

Compton by Dr. Dre (not on Spotify)

“I just bought California!” is how this record opens and it doesn’t let up until it’s over.

To Pimp a Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar

Had Grimes not come along, this would have made my favorite album this year. Ambitious and not sounding like anyone else right now, this album is everything a rap record should be: hard, smart, and fun.

No Cities to Love by Sleater-Kinney

Yes. Yes. More, please.

Depression Cherry by Beach House

This is my most played album of the year. It soundtracked the latter part of this summer. Turn it on loud and melt away.

E·MO·TION by Carly Rae Jepsen

Pop gold magic fairy happy yay yay music.

Death Magic by HEALTH

This is like what Pet Shop Boys would sound like if they were Sith Lords. I like HEALTH and think this record may be their best and most cohesive yet.

Coming Home by Leon Bridges

Love this dude! This record got much play in my house this year. Feels so good.

In Colour by Jamie xx

Jam. Jam. Another jam. Then a jam. Jam. Jam. Some more jams. Oh, hey, another jam? Jam. Guess what? Jam. Great record. Dance, suckas.

Blogging will be light for me after this weekend as I am going on staycation starting Monday. Remember to always wipe and stay off the pipe. Hope you all get everything you want and more in 2016.

Devious Bloggery’s Favorite Music of 2015

The ABCs…Of Death!

Jason Preu, , , 16 Comments

A is for Asphyxiation
     When all you need is air

B is for Beheading
     Say, how’s the view from there?

C is for Crucifixion
     Yes, nailed upon a cross

D is for Dismemberment
     Your limbs get plumb torn off

E is for Electrocution
     A zappy way to go

F is for Firing Squad
     Riddled through with holes

G is for Garrotting
     A wire through the neck

H is for Hanging
     Thirteen knots is best

I is for Impaling
     Through the heart, you’re to blame

J is for Japanese Encephalitis
     Asian problems with the brain

K is for Keelhauling
     Not a pleasant way to cruise

L is for Lockjaw
     With rusty nails you always lose

M is for Malaria
     Don’t forget to drink your DEET

N is for Necrosis
     Rotting flesh is not that neat

O is for Obesity
     Must be hauled out by a truck

P is for Poisoning
     You drank that? Of all the luck

Q is for Quartering
     Pulled to pieces under blue skies

R is for Rabies
     From when the bat flew in your eye

S is for Stoning
     Body pummeled by short sharp shots

T is for Typhoid
     Poop-tainted water -> rose-colored spots

U is for Uritis
     You should’ve gone to the loo

V is for Venom
     From the viper that just bit you

W is for Wandering Spleen
     That goes in all directions

X is for X-linked severe combined immunodeficiency
     So you cannot fight infection

Y is for Yersinia pestis
     Though we know it as Bubonic

Z is for Zygomycosis
     A common fungus that goes chronic

Now you know your ABCs
     Your time is short, so live with glee!

The ABCs…Of Death!

Now, Dada, Now

Jason Preu, , , , 15 Comments

Vast and free and open markets
Don’t believe it, don’t believe it
Forget the markets, head on home
Head on home and kiss your wife

The markets have all closed today.
Monetary volatility at play
What did your dada teach you to say
When the things you own…blow away?

Now your home has dusty, empty pantries
Can’t believe it, can’t believe it
No TV dinners, no TV, maybe a bucket
Half-filled with crumbled chicken bits

The markets cost too much today
Wheat corn oil futures at play
What did your dada teach you to say
When the life you’re living…fades away?

Under all this, buried deep
Do you see it? Can you see it?

You melt to nothing when the trading’s done
You melt to nothing in the midday sun
What did your dada teach you to say
In the flowered fields of joy that day?

Now, Dada, Now

Vote Hard

Jason Preu, , , , , 4 Comments

Story of the Month Club is putting out a 2015 Anthology of all of the great stories from the past year. Like last year, they will be featuring one of their contributors on the cover of the anthology, and to choose which one, they’re holding a contest to determine the fan faves. My tale, “The Night Before Christmas, 1987“, was SMC’s December story.

Anyone at all can vote from December 15th – January 15th on the Story of the Month Club website. Here’s the link: http://www.storyofthemonthclub.com/?page_id=294

The Rules:

  • One vote per person per day.
  • Anyone can vote.
  • The author with the most votes at the end of the day on January 15th (11:59pm) wins. If there’s a tie, they’ll feature both authors.
  • Anyone that subscribes to Story of the Month Club will get a 40% discount on the anthology.
Vote Hard

Friday Fun Facts: Pterobunocephalus depressus

Jason Preu, , , 1 Comment

Did ya know…?

Pterobunocephalus depressus is a species of banjo catfish that occurs in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Ecuador, Paraguay and Venezuela. It reaches a length of 8.9 cm. It is not a very upbeat fish and can often be found on the river pluckin’ and frownin’ along to ‘Down in the Willow Garden’, ‘The Long Black Veil’, or ‘Will You Miss Me When I’m Gone?’. Pterobunocephalus depressus learn the banjo from its crazy, unkempt uncles: Uncle Pterobunocephalus depressus. Pterobunocephalus depressus has tried altering diet, exercise, and sleep schedule to help mitigate its condition but the only thing that gets it through has always been music: slow, sad, bluegrass music, which is sorta like curing a head wound by slamming one’s head into a wall but “whatever gets you to another sunrise on the river,” Pterobunocephalus depressus always says. Whatever gets you through, indeed.

…So now ya know!

Friday Fun Facts: Pterobunocephalus depressus

Listen of the Week: EMA

Jason Preu, , , 5 Comments

#HORROR Original Score by EMA

Isolated from their source inspiration, soundtracks can often feel diminished as a listening experience. But EMA has taken #HORROR’s knowingly post-modern title as a cue to create a score that subtly references many of the masters in this area – Bernard Herrmann, Goblin, John Carpenter etc – while remaining distinctive in its own right.

http://thequietus.com/articles/19427-ema-horror-original-score-review

Listen of the Week: EMA

Listen of the Week: Troye Sivan

Jason Preu, Leave a comment

Blue Neighbourhood, by Troye Sivan

His is soul music for the X Factor generation – kinks ironed out, immaculately teased, and with lashings of instantaneous, three-minute emotion. This is not a slight by the way. On a song like the mournful Betty Who collaboration, Heaven, he exhibits a clear understanding of a fundamental truth. Everyone has their own blue neighbourhood.

http://www.theguardian.com/music/2015/dec/04/troye-sivan-blue-neighbourhood-review-

Listen of the Week: Troye Sivan

Friday Fun Facts: Swan Falls Dam

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Did ya know…?

Swan Falls Dam is a concrete gravity type hydroelectric dam on the Snake River, in the U.S. state of Idaho. It is located near Murphy, Idaho.

The dam was built in 1901 to generate electricity and prevent swans from falling. It is the oldest hydroelectric dam on the Snake River and the first dedicated to stopping swans from falling. In the 1990s the Murphy, ID swans, after 90 years of falling, decided they needed to seek the help of a gravity counselor. For this reason, among others, in 2054, the Swan Falls Dam will be renamed the Swan In Recovery from Falls Dam. Thus the dam will become a testament to the long-term viability of hydroelectric power as well as group gravity counseling for the avian community.

…So now ya know!

Friday Fun Facts: Swan Falls Dam