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Persian Surgery Dervishes by Terry Riley
Persian Surgery Dervishes by Terry Riley
2017 | Electronic
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"That's like a bookend thing really, because it's one of the latest records I bought, only two months ago. Side one is the best side, sometimes he gets a bit busy, but the first track starts so sparsely, it's incredible. I saw Terry Riley recently when I was playing at the Primavera Festival. Everybody ends up staying in the same hotel near the site and a lift door opened and I saw him and he went 'hello Jarvis', and that was a very proud moment because I've only met him once before. Mark Webber, who was the guitarist in Pulp, he knew Terry Riley a bit and we actually did a performance of 'In C' with him at the Barbican years and years ago, and he remembered me from that. I was really touched. I think it's a really romantic record - none of these records have to be for any purpose but I have to say if you want to get it on with someone, it's a good one to put on. When Mark first introduced me to minimalism I thought 'there's not much happening here', but it makes you listen to music in a different way, you're listening to the actual sound of it. That expands your mind. Persian Surgery Dervishes is using that weird tuning, with loads more notes, it's questioning the idea of the Western scale, saying we can find notes within the notes. It's a long way from pop music, it's exciting, it's good to know you can be enthralled by music in which not very much happens. 
"

Source
  
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Karl Hyde recommended Inside Out by John Martyn in Music (curated)

 
Inside Out by John Martyn
Inside Out by John Martyn
1973 | Rock
(0 Ratings)
Album Favorite

"It may seem like a change of tack, but it’s not actually. This is his most processed album. This is what I’m a fan of John Martyn for and something I don’t think anyone else has ever done before. It’s that sort of processed acoustic guitar that features a lot on my solo record, where the guitars are so heavily processed. John did this brilliantly. I saw him tour this album – it was one of the first gigs I ever saw as a youngster. It was astonishing hearing him making these beautiful soundscapes on a battered old Martin guitar through a delay line and a fuzz box. Not only was he a master of the guitar, he was also a master of processed sound. He used the voice in the way, again, that was like a tone generator. The words were barely audible but they made tones, in the way that Miles Davis might play his horn. Sometimes he’d sing in a completely different key. It was all about where he positioned the sound and the timbre. I don’t think he ever released another record that explored the acoustic process in the way that he did here. I know people that worked with him and had his effects pedals – I tried to get hold of them for this project (Edgeland) but they were long gone. It was a reference point for me for this album. I wanted to take that concept on, and Inside Out was my jumping off point."

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The Decorator Who Knew Too Much
The Decorator Who Knew Too Much
Diane Vallere | 2017 | Mystery
9
9.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
Did Madison Find a Dead Body?
It’s been seven months since we last saw Madison, and she’s been enjoying her new relationship with Hudson James. When he suggestions they take a working vacation to Palm Springs to help his brother-in-law with a project he has going on there, she accepts. However, their first day there, Madison spots a dead body below the surface of the river that runs near the project site. By the time the police show up, the body is gone. The delays to the project and the suspicion that Madison just imagined what she said she saw begin to make the trip stressful. How can Madison prove she was right?

As I expected, I was caught up in Madison’s latest adventure once I opened the book. The stakes are soon personal, and I loved watching how everything unfolded. The climax was suspenseful and answered all of our questions. We do get some updates on someone back in Dallas, but the focus is, naturally, on Madison and Hudson for this book. The rest of the characters are just as sharp. The Doris Day movie that inspired this title was the only one I had watched before starting to read this series, and I enjoyed picking up on the Easter eggs from the film in this book. Not that you need to be familiar with the film to enjoy this story. If you are looking for a creative series that will keep you glued to the page, this is the series for you.
  
King of the Mountain (Love at Lake Clyde #1)
King of the Mountain (Love at Lake Clyde #1)
Aiden Ainslie | 2023 | Contemporary, LGBTQ+, Romance
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
quite the betrayal I saw coming.
Independent reviewer for Archaeolibrarian, I was gifted my copy of this book.

I liked this, I liked it a lot.

Clifford is racing in his final Tour de France, he needs total focus on winning. Meeting the lost student in Paris throws him, but Gabe pushes buttons he didn't know needed pushing, at least, not for a long LONG time. Can they see it through, for Clifford to win his final tour and then be with Gabe?

I found this quite an easy read, but I needed that right now. It flows and ebbs, as does the relationship between Clifford and Gabe. The big gap in the time line was necessary, I think, for them to fully recover from France, and be open to moving on.

That things were conspiring against them was obvious, but just how far that conspiracy and plan went was quite the betrayal. I liked that I saw that coming, to be honest. Something was said, and I had alarm bells ringing, much as Clifford did but I put the pieces together faster than he did.

I liked how things sorted themselves out, in the end.

It was, like I said, an easy read. Some steam and smexy times, some drama and some emotional times.

If I reading things correctly, this is the author's first book under this name. I'd like to follow them as they hone their craft.

4 very good stars

*same worded review will appear elsewhere
  
The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
The X Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
2008 | Drama, Mystery, Sci-Fi
OK storyline (0 more)
Not got the X factor
I was a big fan of the TV series but missed some of the last two series. This is definitely set after the end of the last series, both agents are now doing other work and are no longer in the FBI, until they called upon to help with an X file type case. This could be viewed as a stand alone film on it's own if you never saw any of the TV series (Really?!) However it just plays more like an extended episode and not really the type of story line the fans want to see in a X files film. It's ok but wont satisfy fans that loved the show so much.
  
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Nightmares! (Nightmares!, #1)
8
8.0 (1 Ratings)
Book Rating
I wasn't quite sure what to expect with this book. Being a teacher i saw it splashed throughout our book fair & I. The Scholastic book orders so I decided to give it a try. It is definitely aimed at a late elementary early middle school set. It started off a bit slow in my opinion, but the last half hooked me & I flew through it. It tells the story of Charlie & his "stepmonster" who of course, turns out to be not nearly as witchy as he thought. It has great themes for a preteen audience & the story flows nicely. It's supposed to be the first in a series but it ended satisfyingly so we will see. I'd keep reading the, though.
  
Kick-Ass Vol. 2
Kick-Ass Vol. 2
Mark Millar | 2012 | Comics & Graphic Novels
4
6.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I wanted to like it, I really did.
Okay my low rating isn't because it was necessarily a bad comic because it wasn't, it had some really awesome parts and I love the super group so much but it was like Millar saw how much people loved the violence, myself included, and kind of just went so overboard with it in this volume that it really took away from the story because it was just violence for the sake of violence the hyper violence this time around just didn't add anything to the story and one instance really was just cringe worthy and honestly ruined the rest of the comic for me.

So as much as I wanted to like this one I just didn't.
  
Big Little Lies  - Season 1
Big Little Lies - Season 1
2017 | Drama
Amazing
When there's a book, I almost always read it first. I made an exception for Big Little Lies after I saw the trailer. The cinematography, the pacing, the acting were all so compelling in the ads alone that I held off on the book. I'm so glad I did. Everything about the series was pitch perfect. The performances were stellar. Reese Witherspoon and Nicole Kidman were phenomenal. It was gorgeously shot. The music was atmospheric, and the setting--different from the one in the book--fit the story perfectly. The writing was very well done--the kind of mystery you congratulate yourself for figuring out except for one little piece (it's designed that way, and quite elegantly). One of the season's best shows.
  
Holmes and Watson (2018)
Holmes and Watson (2018)
2018 | Adventure, Comedy, Mystery
Literally nothing (0 more)
Literally everything (0 more)
Utter codswallop
First I have to be honest - for the first time I'm reviewing something that I've not finished watching/playing/reading. However there is a reason for that...I am a massive will Ferrell fan. I love everything he does and especially love the connection he has with John c Reilly. Step brothers and Talladega nights whilst by no means classics thoroughly entertained me. So when I saw they were reuniting again I was excited. So I've never been so disappointed in a film. I managed maybe 45 mins in before I had to give up. Just truly awful. Literally nothing even came close to making me laugh. Lots of poor knob gags and 'funny' accents. Just utterly dreadful - avoid!!!