Emerging Writers Network

2019 - Movies

It was not a year we attended many movies in theaters (not all that uncommon in recent years with really only one that we got into a habit of seeing movies semi-regularly). In fact, if our records (a word sketchily used here) are accurate we were only in theaters 7 times and 2 of those were for 1 film. Maybe it's just because we were pretty selective on what we went to see but we really enjoyed all of these quite a bit.

 

From bottom to top our favorites were:

 

6)  Tough Guy--the Bob Probert Story.  The only documentary on the list it showed the life of former NHL player, Bob Probert. Son of a copy in  Windsor, big strong guy that was an excellent combination of talent and strength/fighting ability that back when he played (late 80's and 90's specifically) was still a very useful combination. It's a tough, but necessary, film to watch as a long-time fan of the sport and of the fighting/tough guy aspect that the league has predominantly winnowed out. Between this film and the handful plus of former tough guys that committed suicide while in their 40's or early 50's and all of them showing signs of CTE, it's hard to rationalize the ability to still want that aspect of the game to be a part. Tough Guy lets one see all of Probert's sides from gregarious fun-loving to extremely aggressive to loving husband and father to obviously affected with CTE. It's well worth the time to watch if you're a fan of hockey at all.

 

5)  Once Upon a Time in Hollywood.  It's been a few since we really enjoyed a Tarantino film fully but this one did the trick. Not sure what it was, but it seemed like maybe there were less 'look at me, the director' moments this time around and more, 'sit back and enjoy the film' moments. The film seemed to be trying to dig back to that time of films that Tarantino loves and describe that era as opposed to trying to be one of those films, or another type of film he loves. And the performances were fantastic from top to bottom. And maybe it's just because we're going into a QT movie assuming
there will a ton of violence that it slips by not seeming to be too much, or even surprising. That said, we liked smaller and quieter films more this year.

 

4)  Donnybrook.  Based on the novel by Frank Bill, you'd think a movie where the last half involves a bare knuckle fighting contest would feel like an action movie but this did not. Everybody in the cast was fantastic but especially Jamie Bell, Frank Grillo and Margaret Qualley. Set in Southern Indiana and the times are extremely rough--one guy with some wealth sponsors a big payday winner take all fight. Donnybrook takes us on the trail of simply trying to get to the event, let alone partake and try to leave victorious. The fact that it's as believable as it is makes it a tough watch at times--the movie does a nice job of capturing the spirit that Bill's novel has. The bare knuckle scenes are realistic, which isn't always the case with fight scenes in movies. Saw this during a one shot only deal out in Southfield and it's the only time we saw this film mentioned in the Detroit area--which is part of what leads to the relatively low number of films caught each year.

 

3)  The Dead Don't Die.  The latest Jim Jarmusch film, a writer/director we try to not miss, though again, one doesn't get much time to catch his films in the theater. This one might have been worth seeing if only for the 10 seconds of watching Adam Driver's character pulling up in a smart car at full speed. One of the biggest changes in Jarmusch films from the mid-80's to now is the names he attracts as actors--this one has Bill Murray, Adam Driver, Chloe Sevigny, Danny Glover, Steve Buscemi, Selena Gomez, Rosie Perez, and Carol Kane in it, along with some past names like RZA, Tom Waits and Tilda Swinton, among others. His take on a zombie movie, seeing as zombies are hot these days, drew in a much larger crowd than when we saw Paterson a few years back (about 7 at that one). Which also led to a lot of "WTF?" questioning, especially from the young quartet behind us in the theater. Maybe a touch more humor than they were expecting, a touch more odd philosophy, and way more Tom Waits character than they were expecting. Not so much a zombie movie as a Jim Jarmusch movie with zombies as its vehicle--which is exactly as we were hoping it would be.

 

2)  Booksmart.  The movie we saw in theaters twice as 4 days after seeing it we convinced the daughter to go see it with us knowing she'd love it. Less than a week after that first viewing, it held up completely. Nothing laughed at the first time wasn't as funny the second time, if not more. Branded as a female version of Superbad, and one can see why since comparisons tend to be the method of explanation these days, it fits but isn't necessary to use. Simply put, it's a hilarious, and at times touching, portrait of high school in these days where good grades typically aren't enough to get one into the big named schools. The performances are fantastic--the main duo portrayals by Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein are wonderful, and the group of teens they both push away and try to group themselves with are all great. Smaller roles are filled perfectly by Jason Sudekis (principal of their school, and sometimes Uber driver), Lisa Kudrow and Will Forte (as Dever's character's parents). And Billie Lourd as Gigi was beyond a delight. We've seen it again once at home and loved it just as much. In most recent years this probably would have been our number one film.

 

1)  Wild Nights with Emily.  This look at the life of Emily Dickinson written and directed by Madeline Olnek, contrary to the views of all 20 or so of us in the theater beyond my sister and myself, hilarious. Leaning toward an over-the-top look at the theory that Dickinson wasn't simply a lonely spinster, but that she had a life-long affair with her childhood friend, Susan Gilbert (who then married Dickinson's brother so they could be together in a way that otherwise wouldn't have worked out). The performances of both young and older Gilbert and Dickinson characters by (Susan  Gilbert) Sasha Frolova, and Susan Ziegler and (Emily Dickinson) Dana Melanie and Molly Shannon are wonderful, especially those of Frolova and Shannon, who truly carries this movie albeit with some help. Brett Gelman as a condescending Thomas Wentworth Higginson, an editor with the Atlantic Monthly, is fantastic in his role and Amy Seimetz as the woman who "knew" Dickinson's work and life (though she'd not met her in real life) posthumously bringing her work (though edited) to the world, Mabel Todd, suffuses her character with just enough to make you want to give her a nudge every time she appears on screen. It's a great look at Dickinson and at her work, and done so with amazing humor and passion. Definitely one we'd have seen again had it still be in the theater a week later.

2019 - Recorded Music

We don't foresee buying any more music between now and next Wednesday (though that damn iTunes makes it REALLY easy to do so) so we're going to jot down some things about recorded (as opposed to the live/concert post we put up recently) music from 2019. Hopefully by the end of this you don't hate the terms singer-songwriter or power pop as that is where much of our musical tastes lie.

 

We picked up two multiple-CD (yes, while we do dabble in the electronically transmitted music finally, we do still help keep the CD market alive) sets and loved them both. Prince 1999 Deluxe which comes with 5 CDs and a DVD includes the original album, as well as the B-Sides, two CDs worth of previously unreleased studio efforts from that time period, an after show concert from Detroit from the 1999 tour and then a DVD of a similar after hours show from that time period recorded in Houston. Some of the materials on the non-first two CDs has been available over the years in bootleg form but is much cleaner here and nicely packaged together and not jumbled with other studio and live materials. The other was Dead Man's Pop by The Replacements--the going back and remastering their Don't Tell a Soul, allowing the original producer (well, second producer--more on that shortly), Matt Wallace, to do the final mix, in a manner that most believe the band originally intended the album to sound like, as opposed to the original studio version that was sent to a master engineer "hitmaker" who put a very 90's pop-gloss on the sound that a) alienated many of the band's fans (not all) and b) did not excite the masses that had previously been ignoring the band (though it did sell better than their previous albums). There are three other CD's in the box--one has some of the songs from an earlier attempt to record them with the original producer and a drinking session between the band and Tom Waits with the recorder going that is all right to listen to once out of curiosity but I don't see hitting that half of that particular CD again. The other two are a full concert from that tour that four or five songs have been around forever as they used them as a radio station incentive tool. If you loved Don't Tell a Soul the way it was originally released and don't care about the Wallace version, this set might still be worth buying just for the concert--it's one where the band doesn't seem to have hit the bottle as early as usual and they blow through a ton of their songs all wound up faster and louder than on record, but the melodies stick and if you were a fan, this show is representative of the old tag that they were the greatest band in the land at the time. 

 

When it comes to local music--there was a fair amount we picked up this year but we'll concentrate on that which was released in 2019:

7. Michelle Held - a 3 song ep that we don't remember having a title. Michelle has a great voice and writes really wonderful songs and this trio were recorded very well. 

6. Tom Iscariot - If the Morning Comes - a 4 song ep. We've been fans of Tom since the very late 80's when he fronted Weeping Rachel, and then later as part of the original duo known as Breech, and then fronting American Mars, and now it continues as he stands alone with his guitar and his words. He's always written great songs--excellent guitar and wordplay from what we'd call his rock-i-er days on through the Americana of American Mars--and that hasn't changed at all.

5.  Carmel Liburdi - Yes! We're Open - this full album was released a month or so ago to a packed house at Trumbleplex and is a step up in songwriting for Liburdi. While we love the humor and wordplay of her earlier efforts, there's maybe a bit more sincerity or deeper looks at the topics she brings forth on her latest. She's also added a band to bulk up the sound a bit and it works well. This one has spun at least once per week since we picked it up.

4. Audra Kubat - The Sliver and the Salve - this full album joins a few others from Kubat on our shelf as she's somebody we've been listening to for the better part of the last decade if not a little longer. Kubat's passion for her community shines through song after song and this effort sees maybe a wider usage of instruments (on up to the flute) than previous albums of her as there's a mix of both acoustic and more of a group band dynamic to the songs. This one also came out toward the end of the year and has been steadily listened to by us.

3. Blueflowers - Relapse - an ep that came out just a while ago is something we listen to very regularly. The band is seemingly pushing from what used to be a sound that we'd describe as a something to maybe expect in a David Lynch film to having more edge, more grit. And as well as the band plays, it's the voice of Kate Hinote that grabs me every time I hear one of their songs. 

2. This Life. We Lead - Drink Responsibly - a full album that we first learned about via the Metro Times back in May (we were a bit behind in our reading). We checked the music out online, and then bought the CD and if two weeks has gone by without a spin we'd be shocked. We caught them live once toward the end of summer and they were great in that setting as well. The only rap album anywhere near this post.

1. Mike Galbraith - Here Elsewhere - a five song ep, this collection of songs is his second and while we've gone back and picked up Finster (his debut) and enjoy it, these songs are a big step up in our opinion. Galbraith to us is like a rocker holding himself back a bit and doing the singer-songwriter thing but, allowing other musicians to support him, not holding his songs back--they still crank with power, both raw and emotional. This one spins at least twice a week and has since purchased earlier this year. 

 

Non-Local - we picked up quite a few things this year, some of it catching up due to lack of keeping current with music the last too long to remember, but a fair amount were 2019 and of the full length lps that we acquired:

10. Palehound - Black Friday - One of the very few bands on this specific list that we'd listened to prior to 2019, this was a pre-order. The band added keys to their sound and quieted down a bit with the songs getting a bit more focused. An excellent follow up to their earlier works.

9. The Beths - Future Me Hates Me - A CD purchased mainly because they were coming to Detroit to play and the couple of songs we listened to were catchy. Turned out to be a great purchase as this quartet from New Zealand's second effort is catchy, power-pop-ish and their concert was great. 

8. Amy LaVere - Painting Blue - Received this CD due to support of a crowdrise or some such fund raiser. Had a few of her CDs and had sort of forgotten about her work and jumped on board with the fund raising thing and began to listen to her again. She plays stand-up bass and her partner (husband? not positive) Will Sexton plays guitar and their songs fit perfectly into Memphis. We don't remember if she ever worked with Jim Dickinson, we believe so maybe just before he passed away--but her music is built for a producer like him. This is a stellar effort that we've listened to dozens of times this past year.

7. The Regrettes - How Do You Love? - We'd been listening to their earlier effort nearly non-stop for a while when this one was announced so it was pre-ordered and while we didn't get into it as much as the earlier work, we greatly appreciate the effort---this is a concept CD working from those initial sparks of a possible romance through falling in, and then out, of love--the failed relationship in full. And in that respect, it's probably a more polished effort than the earlier work--words maybe thought over and worked over at a deeper level--which doesn't say much for us--we prefer the sonics of the earlier work (not that this is a quiet effort), but still enjoyed this greatly.

6. Marika Hackman - Any Human Friend - One that we picked up because we had purchased a ticket to go see her opening act in Ann Arbor and figured we'd most likely be sticking around, so we should probably get at least familiar with her work. Turns out we loved it. Reminded us a bit of the Natalie Pratt album from last year that surprised the hell out of us with its sound and variance between songs. This might have as many songs that we simply put on repeat for 3-5 listens at a time as any we purchased this year.

5. Big Thief - Two Hands - Another band we found out about because of an opening band (Palehound this time). The second of two really excellent 2019 albums by this quartet, it was the louder of the two if we had to designate why this one over U.F.O.F. from earlier in the year. Big Thief feels like the kind of band that just keeps getting bigger every album until they're done--many places have both of their 2019 efforts on their best of lists for the year and it's not surprising. 

4. Ezra Furman - Twelve Nudes - We've since gone back and listened to Furman's previous efforts and hear the swinging saxophone and keyboards and while some of those songs are protesting about something, they didn't lead one to be ready for this album. It's an in your face, brash/loud protest album about the state of things in this country. It gets to the point and that point is hammered home. It's not that there's no melody--there definitely is--it's just that it might take a few seconds to find it in each song. But these songs were much appreciated by us this past year, and seemed very necessary.

3. Charly Bliss - Young Enough - This one probably fits our definition of power pop better than any other we listened to this year. Hendrick's vocals are higher than most, but seem reigned in a touch after the debut album, and the band digs deep with its songs and lyrics, not just bringing up subjects and doing fly-bys as they might have in the past. And they are energy personified on this excellent CD. Their debut was really really good, but this is a solid two or three steps up.

2. Emily Wolfe - Emily Wolfe - Wolfe plays the hell out of her guitar on this debut full-length effort (after a solid ep). From Austin, the songs lean a bit bluesy but are rock-n-roll for certain. It's a great record for driving, though one that we need to remind ourselves to be careful while listening as that gas pedal slowly lowers itself maybe a bit too much. She's also fantastic in concert and simply one we look forward to hearing more from often in the future.

1. Stef Chura - Midnight - A local/national artist whose name we'd seen many times but sadly during those "not really keeping up on music" years and so we'd never really heard her. Another concert related purchase we've listened to this nearly every day since picking it up in  August. It's loud, the vocals are unique (something we've always been fans of), the song structures vary widely. The band she's got behind her are tight and it was simply our favorite 2019 full-length album we heard.

 

National EPs

We picked up a quarter of EPs that we listen to as much as anything else listed above:

4. Alvidrez - Palace - One of the members of Girl Friday released this five song effort in August and we both love it and are baffled by it. Songs, spoken word, and more--it's like a few different artists recorded songs, but listening closely it's clear that there's a singular thought process behind the work. We look forward to more work from her and hope it's soon.

3. Heaven Honey - Head Case - Okay this one came out in late 2018 but we didn't hear of it, or them until a local show in the spring of 2019 so we're dragging it forward. This female fronted band reminded us of Alyeska a bit based on the at times haunting vocals. Have been listening to this one extremely regularly.

2. Taylor Janzen - Shouting Matches - She opened for Lucy Dacus at the El Club and we were blown away. We quickly purchased her previous EP and this one which was fairly new and have listened to each damn near daily since. She's coming back in January and we've got our ticket and can't wait. Singer-songwriter fits her style, but the newer work is leaning toward more levels, more instruments and she's writing songs with that in mind.

1. Girl Friday - Fashion Conman - It was a mighty close call but Girl Friday squeaks it out by the thinnest of margins over Janzen for our favorite artist of 2019. Girl Friday was part of our favorite concert, as well as our third favorite concert and this CD is the one we played more than any in 2019. Their debut recorded a couple of years earlier was probably third in spins for the year behind only this and the Janzen. They are loud, they're strong-minded, they share in the singing duties and their song structures are different every time--different from other bands and different from song to song. It's simply a great listen and better yet, they were just in the studio recording a full-length effort!

 

A few pre-2019 titles that we picked up this year and have listened to a TON:

Emily Rose - Wake Up Brave; The Regrettes - Feel Your Feelings Fool!; Girl Friday - Tiny Hats; Lucy Dacus - Historian; Taylor Janzen - Interpersonal; Carmel Liburdi - Insomnia Slumber Party; and Scott Fab - Leave My Friends

2019 - Concerts

Curating the Brain Candy Monthly Arts Series at Green Brain Comics in Dearborn has led to us paying more attention to all art forms, not just writing. More than we have in the past at least. This in mind, we attended many more concerts this year between national and local acts. We hit 34 shows in 25 different locations in 2019. 10 of those times we attended with somebody, the other two dozen we flew solo--something we said WTF to in 2019. It was an excellent year for shows and looking back, we don't think there were any that were disappointing. The following ten though were our favorites:

 

Honorable Mentions--both Bob Mould's show and Richard Thompson's show at The Ark were huge bucket list shows; Kings X at The Token was a great memory inducing show; a night of Lu Fuki and Divine Providence with Trey Priest and Sophiyah E opening at the Psychedelic Healing Shack was great; This Life. We Lead at Playground Detroit was fantastic; and the Songbirds show at the W.A.B. with (among others we're apologetically forgetting) Carmel Liburdi, Kubat, Finlay and Rose, the Luddites, Emilie Rivard and Sodra, and Courtney Hurley with Kate Hinote hosting was a great evening of music.

10.  Amy LaVere with Will Sexton--John Merchant opening at the Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill in Grand Rapids in August

We've been listening to Amy LaVere since late 2007 when Jim Ruland wrote about her and her debut album for the music issue of The Oxford American that year. Earlier in the year we supported a Crowdrise or GoFundMe or something to help her with her latest, Painting Blue. However, we'd never seen her name listed anywhere near SE Michigan for a live appearance. Granted, there were some years there we weren't looking hard for concert opportunities, but still, not once. Most likely via Facebook we saw she was coming to Grand Rapids, only a couple of hours away, on a Saturday night. A crazy idea was hatched. We'd hit the Detroit Zoo first thing in the morning and then drive across the state, first stopping at Potter Park Zoo in Lansing for a stroll, before heading to Grand Rapids and checking into a room before going to the zoo over there, and from there to the bar for dinner and a concert. The day was a beautiful one and the trio of zoos made for a great way to spend the day. We didn't realize that Grand Rapids would be having their version of the Woodward Cruise that day and my hotel was on that main drag of road, but we still had plenty of time to get to the bar a few hours before anybody else was considering showing up. The opener, John Merchant, was great and we picked up his new ep. LaVere with Will Sexton on guitar were great and covered tunes from her career while concentrating on the new CD. Had a chance to speak with each after they were done and really all three (including Merchant) were really nice. 

9.  Carmel Liburdi with Maray Fuego, Emily Rose, and Jack Oats opening at the Trumbellplex in December

After a mostly entertaining opening, Emily Rose came up and played 5 or 6 songs with her usual excellence--a beautiful voice and great guitar playing, Emily added two secular holiday tunes to the night. Next up was Jack Oats, a band we'd heard of, but not heard, and they were great--a stripped down two person version of the quartet, they have an almost haunting version of a country/rock hybrid. Incredible stage presence by Mr. Oats (not his real name...). And then Liburdi came out and kind of played two sets--first she played her new CD which was released that night straight through, and then played close to the same number of songs from her past efforts. We don't know how many people fit into the Trumbellplex safely, but whatever that number is, the crowd was right there plus or minus a dozen. It was packed, they were appreciative and predominantly paying attention. The sound was excellent, the new CD is great. She had a band for most of the songs that included a trombone, a saxophone, a stand-up bass, and percussion to go with her guitar and words. It was great seeing a local CD release crowded and the show itself more than justified that big crowd.

8. Audra Kubat with friends at the D.I.A. in November

Speaking of a local act and a good crowd. Audra played in the large room at the Detroit Institute of Arts with the Diego Rivera murals and it was jammed. Hundreds of people in there, not dozens and they showed up early (if they were smart--we "thought" we were showing up early and had the privilege of standing in the back off to a side--but at least was IN the room). While we assume the view was better from up in the front, you could hear great from anywhere in the room. Audra brought up many of her friends to share songs with her--many of whom are on our list of favorites from the area. It was a pretty incredible showing of love for this wonderful singer-songwriter who has contributed greatly to the city's music scene, as well as to city members through her mentoring both in and out of schools.

7.  Lucy Dacus with Quinn Christopherson and Taylor Janzen opening at the El Club in September

We showed up very excited to hear Lucy Dacus and then found ourselves leaving as big fans of Taylor Janzen as well. Her opening set was great--she and (we believe) Ben on guitar played probably 8 or 9 songs in a pretty stripped down fashion. Great songs, great voice and from Winnipeg of all places. Quinn Christopherson had won the NPR Tiny Desk concert and was also accompanied by a gentleman on guitar. The songs we liked of his we really liked quite a bit but it was more hit and miss than Janzen had been. The duo was definitely energetic and enjoying themselves which is always great. Dacus was simply excellent playing with a band. Not the biggest chatterbox in between songs, but spoke enough to be engaging to the crowd. The crowd was very into her music, including a couple of songs where she more or less allowed the crowd to take over the singing near the end of the night. As is typical with the El Club shows, all of the bands were out at the merch table after the show and those spoken to were very nice.

6.  Emily Wolfe at DIME in September

This show was moved from The Pike Room in Pontiac to DIME in Detroit maybe two days before. We don't know if this contributed to the sparse crowd (if you count the band members and the workers we might have hit two dozen people in the room) or not but if you just paid attention to the stage you'd never have known the crowd was diminutive. Wolfe and her two bandmates played like they had a packed, screaming house, tearing through her songs. This was a show we decided to go to after actively looking for concerts to attend. We reviewed those coming to places like The Pike Room, The Crofoot, The Loving Touch, and El Club and found examples of their work online and on occasion were interested enough to pick up a ticket. These shows generally run 10 to 20 bucks and if it's not a great time, it's not the end of the world--unlike the insanity of prices for shows at LCA. We read a bit about Wolfe and then listened to some songs via YouTube, then ordered her latest via iTunes and decided the trip (so we thought) to Pontiac would be worth our time. The fact that it moved to DIME actually put it closer to the EWN homestead and got us into a new room--one run very well. Great sound, great stage, a nice bar in the back. And again, the band put on a helluva show, roaring through songs, hanging out with people after the show. We currently have plans to shoot down to Cleveland to see her in February as there's nothing in Michigan on the current tour.

5.  Big Thief with Palehound opening at the Majestic Theater in October

This ended up being a year of discovering a lot of bands that maybe a lot of others had already discovered. Some of it was by the route listed above--searching out who was coming to town and listening to their works. Other times it was opening bands and in the case of Big Thief (and Cherry Glazerr) it spun from being headliners on a tour Palehound was opening as we were going to buy tickets to see them for sure and decided we should probably find out who that headliner was. This one was a big win as Big Thief put out two albums this year that are on many critics best of the year lists--both of them, not just one. We found that we liked them quite a bit and were floored by their live performance. Palehound was great, having added a keyboardist since the last time we saw them and playing much from their latest, Black Friday, but filling in with some of our favorites from earlier works. And while the latest is a bit quieter of an effort than the last CD they put out, live tends to find them cranking things up just a bit. Then Big Thief came out and played like a four headed person, not a quartet--every movement by a member was perfectly offset or joined by one, or more, of the others. They played a crazy long version of the song "Not" from their latest album that was mesmerizing. And it was great to finally see a show at the Majestic as well. This was also the only show on this list that we attended with somebody outside of the EWN.

4.  Ezra Furman with Stef Chura opening at the El Club in August

We believe our decision to attend this started by finding out Stef Chura was playing and having picked up her latest. As we found ourselves doing much of the year, that led to reading up on and then listening to Ezra Furman and realizing that hell yes we wanted to show up. Chura and her band were great, and Furman joined on the duet, "Sweet Sweet Midnight," walking up out of the crowd and hopping up onstage. It added to the fun that Chura and band were already providing. Then Furman and their band came out. They had on a black blouse with pearls and the trio backing all wore something akin to mechanic jumpsuits. Furman leaned into the microphone and stated "This is not the century we were promised" and then led their band through a solid hour and a half of what we'd call provoked angry protest music. Listening to earlier Furman albums there is less raw emotion, less anger, and maybe a touch more swing to the songs. Not to say the songs on Twelve Nudes isn't melodic, because it is, it's just performed at full angst--understandable these days--and in concert even a touch more so. Which from five or six feet away was incredibly powerful. 

3. The Beths with Girl Friday and Benign Appeal at the El Club in July

Another that we purchased to attend after searching for a show to hit, finding great reviews of The Beths latest, buying it, and loving both it and their prior release. Benign Appeal is a local band that played 4 to 6 songs and were entertaining and one we'll look for shows from in the future. Girl Friday came out and kind of looked at each other for a few seconds, and then drummer Virginia did a ONE-TWO-THREE count on the drumsticks and BOOM! All four hit their microphones in unison with maybe the best cold opening we've ever been hit with--especially by a band we'd known nothing about. They crushed a 40 or so minute set leaping very high onto our list of live bands we've witnessed. They were loud, with oddly quiet moments, didn't have a lead singer but all took songs or parts of songs, the guitar was great, the drums fantastic (how her glasses never flew off still amazes me) and their stage presence was one where you simply knew they were having a blast and it became contagious. Then The Beths came out and played for over an hour and were nearly as entertaining--a cleaner sound, more straightforward songs, and they nailed them. They'd have been well worth our time and money with no opening acts--the fact that they brought out the others was an incredible bonus.

2.  Charly Bliss with Emily Reo opening at The Loving Touch in June

Our first foray into this club, it's up high on our list of local favorites now. Yet another show where we had heard some good things, picked up a CD and bought a ticket within a day or two. We think we got lucky here--we'll be stunned if Charly Bliss is playing shows at venues this small again. Their latest and their concerts have been showing up on best of lists all over the place and the show was really quite packed. Emily Reo ended up being another opener that we'd go see for sure if she was coming back to town. A keyboard playing lead singer, she had a trio with her that at times looked like they were still learning songs, but the songs were excellent. Then Charly Bliss came out and were basically a ball of musical energy for the next 90 minutes. All four members were active and entertaining and great at what they do. The songs are high energy and live even more so as one might expect. 

1. Marika Hackman with Girl Friday opening at The Blind Pig in October

Ticket purchased the day we saw the show announced. Embarrassingly, we'd not heard of Hackman at that time--we were simply excited we had another chance to see Girl Friday. However, we picked up Hackman's latest and loved it and then delved into past work and liked that quite a bit too. We got there early the night of the show and were outside where you can kind of hear sound check, but not completely clear. It seemed to be taking longer than one might expect based on door opening and show times--in retrospect we'll guess that it had something to do with making sure the Girl Friday replacement guitarist (Vera was sick and unable to perform) knew the songs well enough to get through the show. Turns out she did. Girl Friday was just as excellent, just as exciting, just as interesting--if not a bit more with the addition of a few new songs--as they'd been nearly four months earlier. They crushed their second show that we were fortunate enough to attend. Then Hackman came out and sang two songs solo--just her and her guitar. For song three and the majority after that her backing band joined her--that band was none other than Girl Friday again. They backed Hackman, filled in backing vocals where necessary and you'd have sworn they'd been playing her songs for years. She's a great front person--excellent singer and guitarist and her songs, especially the most recent album's worth, have great variance to them and hit on important topics. The fact that  Girl Friday basically played the full show here certainly had something to do with bumping this show up to number one for the year.

 

Books We Are Looking Forward to in 2020

Coming in May from Saga---The Only Good Indians by Stephen Graham Jones

Reading Review - Monster House Press at Room Project - August 17, 2019

A few months back (if memory serves), we were introduced to Christin Lee at a Signal-Return reading (most likely by Kelly Fordon). It was then that we found out about Room Project, per their website, "a space for women and non-binary writers and artists to work individually and collaboratively."

Not too long after that, we attended a reading at Room Project--one with four members of the space and it was excellent--all four readers were great, the place itself was welcoming, etc. From what we remember the four readers were fellows from that time period.

A couple of weeks after that Room Project held a reading/fundraiser for a member, Yasmine Rukia, as she was heading to Lebanon and then Iran for a poetry fellowship. The event was another excellent one with music included, as well as the poetry of Rewa Zeinati. That was early June.

During Detroit Art week, a test. Had the original two readings gone so well because members were reading on their home field? A place they were especially comfortable? The event at the David Klein Gallery shot that suggestion down--Christin Lee and Lynn Crawford hosted a reading/conversation with Yasmine Rukie, Cherise Morris, and Rochelle Marrett. It was well attended and another great event--both the reading portion, and the conversation afterward.

Another reading at Room Project in early August with two members--both non-fiction writers. Similar to the past readings, Room Project was a welcoming space, it was packed, both readers were excellent, and Christin Lee's introductions, particularly that of Lia Greenwell, were fantastic. Between the first reading we attended and this reading, we had asked four of those writers we'd seen read to participate at Brain Candy. To say we were enjoying the work Room Project is promoting would be an understatement.

Last night, a wildcard. A reading with five writers, four of whom were not affiliated with Room Project. They are involved and publishing with Monster House Press. The reading was great--all of the writers' works were excellent and they all were also quite adept at pre-and between works small talk (something not every reader is). This includes Katie Nowinski, a member at Room Project, whose work was both very funny but also personal in that great universal way--it was excerpts from something I look forward to seeing in longer form.

This bringing in of outside talent: WLS, Michelle Gottschlich, Bella Bravo, and Rosechard Wehrenberg--and have it be so successful leads one to believe that Room Project is not only doing great work as noted above, and giving writers a fantastic locale to work and share their work, but that Christin Lee also has a great idea for talent working outside the project's walls. Look for more readings here and get out to them.

 

2019 Short Story Collections

To date we're aware of 101 short story collections that will publish during the 2019 calendar year. We currently have 17 in hand, 2 more on order and will absolutely be ordering more through the year and know for sure that Homesick: Stories by Nino Cipri coming in October from Dzanc Books will be one of those titles.  Had a chance to read in the pre-edited manuscript form while reading for their Short Story Collection Contest last year and it quickly caught our eyes.

 

Author	Publisher	Title	Month
Aboulela, Leila	Grove Press/Black Cat	Elsewhere Here	2
Ahern, Cecilia	Grand Central Publishing	Roar (N)	4
Ambai	Archipelago Books	A Kitchen in the Corner of the House, translated from the Tamil by Lakshmi Holmstrom	9
Au, Nancy	Acre Books	Spider Love Song and Other Stories	Fall
Bakic, Asja	Feminist Press	Mars, translated from Russian by Jennifer Zoble	3
Ballingrud, Nathan	Small Beer Press	The Atlas of Hell: and Other Stories	4
Bob-Waksberg, Raphael	Knopf	Someone Who Wil Love You in All Your Damaged Glory: Stories	6
Brown, Lorna	Fomite Press	Treading the Uneven Road	3
Bucak, Ayse Papatya	W.W. Norton	The Trojan War Museum	8
Caputo, Philip	henry Holt	Hunter's Moon: A Novel in Stories	8
Chang, Ted	Knopf	Exhalation: Stories	5
Chao, Yu-Han	Red Hen Press	Sex and Taipei City	4
Chinquee	Ravenna Press	Wetsuit	3
Cipri, Nino	Dzanc Books	Homesick	10
Croley, Michael	Blair	Any Other Place	4
Danticat, Edwidge	Knopf	Everything Inside: Stories	8
Dennis, Chris	Soho Press	Here is What You Do	6
Denslow, Josh	7.13 Books	Not Everyone is Special	3
Dhar, Debotri	Harvard Square Editions
Diehl, Dana and Goodrich, Melissa	Gold Wake Press	The Classroom	1
Evenson, Brian	Coffee House Press	Song for the Unraveling of the World	6
Fajardo-Anstine, Kali	One World	Sabrina and Corina: Stories	4
Flamm, Eric	Inkwater Press	Portland Zionists Unite! and Other Stories	2
Flores, Paulina	Catapult	Humiliation: Stories, translated from the Spanish by Megan McDowell	11
Foster, Clair Rudy	Interludes Press	Shine of the Ever	11
Galvan, Ana	Fantagraphics	Press Enter to Continue	8
Geoghegan, Elizabeth	Santa Fe Writing Project	eightball	5
Gloss,Molly	Gallery/Saga Press	Unforeseen: Stories	7
Grieshober, Taylor	Low Ghost	Off Days
Hempel, Amy	Scribner	Sing to It: new Stories	3
Hodge, Brian	CHIzine publications	Skidding Into Oblivion	2
Hofmann, Karen	Newest Pr	Echolocation	5
Howard, Kat	Saga press	A Cathedral of Myth and Bone: Stories	1
Huynh, Philip	Goose Lane Editions	The Forbidden Purple City	3
Ikonomou, Christos	Archipelago Books	Good Will Come from the Sea trans from Greek by Karen Emmerich	2
Jemc, Jac	MDC	False Bingo: Stories	10
Jemisin, N.K.	Orbit	How Long 'Til the Black Future Month: Stories?	8
Keret, Etgar	Riverhead	Fly Already: Stories	9
Kim, Young-Ha	Mariner Books	Diary of a Murderer, tr. from Korean by Krys Lee	4
Laidlaw, Alex	Nightwood Editions	Dead Flowers	4
Lenzo, Lisa	Wayne State University Press	Unblinking: Stories	5
Levine, Elise	Biblioasis	This Wicked Tongue	5
Lynn, David H.	Braddock Avenue Books	Children of God: New and Selected Stories	5
MacLean, Ron	Braddock Avenue Books	We Might As Well Light Something On Fire
Maizes, R.L.	Celadon Books	We Love Anderson Cooper	7
Marbais, Amanda	Moon City Press	Claiming a Body	4
Mascarenhas, Derek	Book*hug	Coconut Dreams	4
Mathews, Brendan	Little, Brown	This is Not a Love Story	2
Mayer, Mark	Bloomsbury	Aerialists: Stories	2
McBee, Ann Stewart	Hoot-n-Waddle Press	How Rabbit Went Down and Other Mishaps	3
McGraw, Erin	Counterpoint	Joy: and 52 Other Very Short Stories	3
McQuade, Kate	William Morrow	Tell Me Who We Were	7
Meijer, Maryse	FSG Originals	Rag: Stories	2
Moore, Hadley	Autumn House Press	Not Dead Yet	10
Mowdy, Joel	Catapult	Floyd Harbor	5
Mularz, Marina	New American Press	Welcome to Fredom Point	1
Mutunj, Tea	Arsenal Pulp Press	Shut Up, You're Pretty	3
Novakovich	Dzanc Books	Honey in the Carcase	2
O'Brien, Dorene	Baobab Press	What it Might Feel Like to Hope	2
Onetti, Juan Carlos	Archipelago Books	A Dream Come True tr from Spanish by Katherine Silver	11
Orner, Peter	Little, Brown	Maggio Brown & Others: Stories	2
Parsons, Kimberly King	Vintage	Black Light: Stories	8
Pease, Emily W.	Hub City Press	Let Me Out Here	3
Percy, Benjamin	Graywolf Press	Suicide Woods	10
Pilkington, Maureen	Regal House Publishing	This Side of Water: Stories	4
Pimwana, Duanwad	Feminist Press	Arid Dreams, translated from Thai by Mui Poopoksakul	4
Pinsker, Sarah	Small Beer Press	Soon or Later, Everything Falls Into the Sea: Stories	3
Power, Chris	Farrar, Strauss, and Giroux	Mothers	1
Punti, Jordi	Atria	This is Not America: Stories	7
Pursell, Peg Alford	Dzanc Books	A Girl Goes Into the Forest	7
Rawlings, Wendy	LSU Press	Time for Bed	8
Reid, Molly	Boa Editions	The Rapture Index: A Suburban Bestiary!	4
Reid-Benta, Zolika	House of Anansi	Frying Plantain	6
Ribeyro, Julio Ramon	NYRB	The Word of the Speechless: Selected Stories	8
Rosenwaite, Polly	Doubleday	Look How Happy I'm Making You: Stories	3
Rothacker, Jordan A	Stalking Horse Press	Gristle	3
Roupenian, Kristen	Gallery/Scout Press	You Know You Want This: "Cat Power" and Other Stories	1
Russell, karen	Knopf	Orange World and Other Stories	6
Sacksteder, Joe	Sarabands Books	Make/Shift	4
Sartor, Collette	University of Georgia Press	Once Removed	9
Sarvis, Caleb Michael	C&R Press	Dead Aquarium	3
Savage, Sam	Coffee House Press	An Orphanage of Dreams	1
Schwebllin, Samantha	Riverhead	Mouthful of Birds: Stories	1
Scott, Rion Amilcar	Liveright	The World Does Not Require You	8
Shapton, Leanna	Riverhead	Guestbook: Ghost Stories	3
Singleton, George	LSU Press	Staff Picks	3
Spatz, Gregory	Tupelo Press	What Could Be Saved	6
Squires, Constance	University of Oklahoma Press	Hit Your Bright Spots: Stories	1
Suarez, Dariel	Willow Springs Press	A Kind of Solitude: Stories	1
Suresh, Bindu	Invisible Publishing	26 Knots	5
Svoboda, Terese	Mad Creek Books	Great American Desert: Stories	2
Tabucchi, Antonio	Archipelago Books	Message from the Shadows, trans from Italian by various	5
Taylor, Joe	Sagging Meniscus Press	Ghostly Demarcations	6
Tebordo, Christian	Bridge Eight Press	Ghost Enging: Stories	11
Thiongo, Ngugi wa	The New Press	Minutes of Glory and Other Stories	2
Tremblay, Paul	William Morrow	Growing Things and other Stories	7
Vladislavic, Ivan	Archipelago Books	Flashback Hotel	3
Wang, Xuan Juliana	Hogarth	Home Remedies: Stories	5
Washington, Bryan	Riverhead	Lot: Stories	3
Wisel, Kate	University of Pittsburgh	Driving in Cars with Homeless Men	10
Woods, Josh	Press 53	O Monstrous World!	3

2019 - the first half

Lately I've been trying to do more things that I realize make me happy. The odd introvert that starts up an Arts Series so he "gets" to talk in front of people once a month, I love going out to events--I just don't feel the need to talk to anybody once at said events. It's not that I won't get into conversations, but I'm almost never looking for them and just awkward enough once many start that they fizzle off quickly. That said, I've come to the point where I simply don't give damn. I'm more than comfortable going to readings, art galleries, and even concerts by myself. It's always been one thing to dine alone, a book is handy enough in those situations, but these other events don't always lend themselves to be solved as easily (though the pocket sized kindle does help out there as well). I've been looking backwards through the 2019 calendar to date and come up with the 20 things I've enjoyed the most so far.

One thing I took off the table was Brain Candy. That has been, of course, a six month tie with itself and just doesn't need to be ranked up against the efforts of others. Another thing removed was getting a sneak peek at a favorite author's next work--it's not something readily available to others. Some near misses to the list include eating at The Balkan House, seeing Johnny Marr at St. Andrew's Hall, the book Zatouin: Recipes from the Palestinian Kitchen (at least five recipes tried and liked by the people I cook for!), and the Detroit Cookie Company. And I'm sure the minute I hit Publish on this post half a dozen other ideas will pop into my head.

20.  Seeing Lacey Crouch in Freaky Friday. I don't remember many high school plays I've seen (not a ton) done this well, and it was very fun seeing my cousin's elementary school aged daughter get to be in 3 or 4 scenes.

19.  The movie Tough Guy with Ann Novitsky and STRtCoF. The exciting and then tragic story of Bob Probert. Well done and seemingly a very honest look at a troubled life.

18.  A comedy night at a bar in Gibraltar that the youngest went with me to see. A father of a former classmate of my daughter, who I used to see often both when throwing Free Press routes, and also at sporting events, had been doing comedy for a little over a year and I finally got out to see him and half a dozen other locals do their thing. A couple of rough spots, but the last 3 or 4 to hit the microphone, including Bill Morrison, were quite funny.

17.  Cousin's breakfasts. The idea of Raymond Fisher brings as many cousin's from my dad's side of the family together for a breakfast out as possible each month. We've had as low as 3, and on up to 16 (expanded to include cousin's offspring, aunts and uncles, and a near cousin by proxy).

16.  Songwriter's Night at the Gaelic League Irish American Club in Detroit. John Freeman hosts this and the night I attended had 6 excellent acts do sets of four to six songs apiece. A great spot for music to boot.

15.  Robert Fanning's Severance. Both the poetry collection--his fourth full--and his performance of them I caught at the Hannan Center. Seeing and hearing Robert read the work only enhanced my understanding of it and its' links to his previous collection. 

14.  Receiving a painting from Maggie Fanning. This was a reward for donating some money to help this young artist spend some time up at Interlochen this summer and I highly doubt it will be the last of her work that I own.

13.  Heaven Honey with Primer and CashforGold at Ghost Light in Hamtramck. A small bit in the Metro Times caught my attention and led to my picking up the ep of Heaven Honey a few days before they were going to be in town. All three acts were good and the bar is a solid place to see a show.

12.  Finding places to see readings that I'd not bumped into before: Signal/Return (which was my fault as I'd known about their series for some time), The East Side Reading Series Aubri Adkins runs, Light Box, and Room Project--two places I'd not even heard of before attending performances at each. All were great, with excellent hosts that are bringing in performances worth seeing.

11.  Reading at Book Suey with Casey Rocheteau, Franny Choi and Jamaal May. Great readings of their work and a really good Q&A afterward. 

10.  Hatch Gallery -- Uncurated with paintings from Linda Ward, paintings from Waleed Johnson, and sculptures from Jen Fitzpatrick. I love this smaller gallery on a side street in Hamtramck and was there to see Ward's work in particular. Really liked the paintings Johnson had as well.

 9.  The Dead Don't Die -- the latest Jim Jarmusch film. Went with Ann Novitsky and STRtCoF and found it funny and very entertaining. In some ways, a step away from earlier works, and in some, nearly exactly the same. 

 8.  Wild Nights with Emily -- film with Molly Shannon playing the role of Emily Dickinson. Went with STRtCoF and I don't care if the other 6 people in the theater weren't laughing--this movie was hilarious at times. Horribly sad as well, and especially when jumping forward so many years and realizing things aren't nearly as different as we'd like to sometimes pretend they are. Every actor, young and older, in this was just fantastic.

 7.  Saturdays that include trips to the Detroit Zoo, Pages Bookstore, River Bistro for brunch, and Green Brain Comics. Sometimes enhanced by trips to Dearborn Music and during non-summer months, Cordon's chocolates. Looking at that list of names I can only assume you're all wondering How can there be six slotted higher than this?

6.  Buried on the Beaches: Cape Stories for Hooked Hearts and Driftwood Souls by Colin Fleming. A simply wonderful short story collection. A perfect beach read where the read isn't fluff, but life and Cape Cod situations. One of those rare collections where every story is the type that you'll want to read again.

5.  The Archive of Alternative Endings by Lindsey Drager. A quick note that this book was published by Dzanc Books, a publisher I co-founded. However, were I lucky enough to have stumbled upon it having been published by anybody else, the ranking would be this high. Her third novel, Drager continues to improve from an already high starting point. This novel spans a millenium, uses the Brothers Grimm's Hansel and Gretel, Halley's Comet, and some other seemingly unrelated historical figures, jumping through time to coincide with the times that the Comet can be seen from Earth and more than successfully blends post-modern ideas with emotional substance. 

 4.  Booksmart -- I can't remember the last movie I saw twice in theaters. It was most likely Purple Rain and the bulk of the times after my first viewing of that were dollar day viewings. I caught this with both STRtCoF and then again nudging the daughter to come see it with me. Just a really well done, well written, funny, well acted, film. It lost nothing on the second viewing.

 3.  Charly Bliss -- both the latest album, Young Enough, which has rarely left the player in my car since I picked it up, AND their concert at The Loving Touch with Emily Reo opening. Reo was a more than solid opening act and then after a short period of time Charly Bliss came out with an overabundance of energy and excitement and they roared their way through 18 songs. I'd go see them again in a heartbeat.

  2.  Christina Kallery -- the long awaited publication of her poetry collection, Adult Night at Skate World. A collection I've carried around in binders and folders for the last two plus years can now be picked up in book form! A bonus, it has a flexi-disc with Christina reading two of the poems included. Poems full of longing, subtle nostalgia, disappointments, and wry commentaries make it a collection extremely worth your reading time.

  1.  The three day trip through the zoos of Ohio with the daughter. Got to see Laura Wickett and her fiance (for the next week), Bob, as well as about a half day each at the Cincinnati Zoo, the Columbus Zoo, and the Cleveland Zoo, plus some side trips to outlet malls, restaurants, and thrift stores. The zoos were mostly excellent and the bonus of hanging out with a kid whose life has become much to busy to do so very often made this an easy choice for the top spot.

Comeback number 912

We've grown to miss this site, especially as we've gotten deeper into Brain Candy, so <we're hearing the weakest drumroll ever> we are planning on making a bit of a comeback. Look for reviews this week of Colin Fleming's Buried On the Beaches and Robert Fanning's Severance later this week as well as a Reading Report or two.

Short Story Month - Please Tell Us Your Beautiful Secret by Beth Mayer

A currently unpublished story from Beth Mayer's forthcoming collection from Black Lawrence Press, We Will Tell You Otherwise (August 2019).

 

Please Tell Us Your Beautiful Secret

 

The angel of death was running behind schedule. It had been an exhausting day, even for a celestial being.

Sister Josephine was playing Bach’s “Prelude in D Minor” on her upright piano when the angel of death found her, so he knew that she must be expecting him.

When he had tried to take his previous client, Chuck Hauser, from his bed at hospice, Chuck had been reluctant to leave his wife behind. The angel of death pointed out the way his wife was stroking Chuck’s hand, how she had loved him but would never be through loving him. The angel of death informed Chuck that his wife would remarry a good man, a widower with the children and grandchildren they had once wished for, that she would be happy again, in a different, less feverish way.

“Sorry I’m late,” the angel of death told Sister Josephine now, just for his own entertainment. Everyone knew that adults could not hear angels while they were still alive, unlike dogs and unattended children.

“Yes,” said Sister Josephine, “I am quite tired, actually.”

The angel of death was shocked because this had never happened to him personally. Had not, as far as he knew, happened to any of them for several hundred years.

The angel of death composed himself. He was in charge here. And pronounced: “Sister Josephine, your time has come.”

She smiled at him now (how lovely!) and stood up to reach for his hands.

“Is this alright?” she asked.

The angel of death honestly didn’t know.

Her good nature unnerved him. Most were like Chuck Hauser, so the angel of death was used to selling. Good news! He had told Chuck just hours before, in just over nine years (which would seem a very short time to Chuck now that he was dead!) his wife would die, too! And so, the very best parts of them would indeed meet again. Chuck said forget it, he didn’t believe in any of that crap. Eventually though, Chuck had ascended, spent but free.

 

But here, this Sister Josephine was surprising him again. The angel of death would win (he always did) and the end would be the same, so he took her hands in his own for the moment.

“Any questions?” he asked her, to be polite.

“Oh, yes!” Sister Josephine said, her feet already stepping out of her body, “I’ve been wondering for the longest time now, what is your name?”

In his entire service, the angel of death had never once been asked his name. He had to think about it, laughed when he remembered, and called it out to her as she rose up.

 

 

Beth Mayer’s short story collection We Will Tell You Otherwise won the 2017 Hudson Prize with Black Lawrence Press (forthcoming July 2019). Her fiction has appeared in The Threepenny Review, The Sun Magazine, and The Midway Review. She was a fiction finalist for The Missouri Review’s Jeffrey E. Smith Editors’ Prize (2016), her work recognized among “Other Distinguished Stories” by Best American Mystery Stories (2010), and her stories anthologized in both American Fiction (New Rivers) and New Stories from the Midwest (Ohio University). Beth was a Loft Mentor Series Winner in Fiction (2015-16) and holds an MFA in creative writing from Hamline University. She currently teaches English at Century College in the Minneapolis-St Paul area, where she lives with her family and impossibly faithful dog. (Photo credit: Mark Riddle, Riddle Photography Studio)

Short Story Month - Staff Picks by George Singleton

Out and about today so we grabbed a book--Staff Picks by George Singleton--to take and read while in lines, or taking a break. There is never a bad time to be reading a short story by George. Comic. It's a word you'll almost always see when Singleton's work is discussed. And that is absolutely accurate--there are no Singleton stories that we can remember reading that aren't funny as hell in at least three or four places. What isn't mentioned enough is all of the non-humor aspects of Singleton's works. 

His characters are oddballs. They frequently don't quite fit in. They try though, they try and try and try--never really giving up on connecting with at least one other person. The situations they find themselves in are things that really happen in the world, but aren't the types of things typically written about--a hands-on contest to win an RV, for instance, in the title story.

This is Singleton's eighth story collection, and he continues to get stronger each time around. Next year will see the publication of a Selected Stories from Hub City Press and truthfully, it could have happened a couple of books back and we cold be working on the second one now. Pick up one of his collections, you won't be sorry.