5/5/2021
2+0+2+1=5
$5 to download the new Pentameth Demon release
X A R G R O P T H I S T
(Grim, Dark, Strange, Uncanny, Weird)
Free to stream
Sales will be donated and reciprocated with a note of thanks
Discography deal will be in effect for Bandcamp Friday
Thank you for listening
https://pentamethdemon.bandcamp.com/album/xargropthist
The world, the country, the state, our city, and our household has had more than its share of stress and bad things happen this year. But I want to take a few moments to reflect on 2020, and to share some of the good things that have happened this year.
Jenny and I remain happily married-with all that has happened
we remain glad to spend our days together. Jenny remains the chief reason why
life is a good thing for me. I love her the most.
Rumi continues to be in good health overall and aside
from a check up has not had to go to the vet for any emergencies this year.
Every day he injects humor into my life. I love him second most.
I got down to my lowest weight since my early 20’s in
March-discipline and activity in 2021 will get me back down from where I am
now, and will hopefully carry me to my next goals. My sleep has largely been
better this year. I haven’t had any health emergencies necessitating a visit to
the doctor or convenient care. My back pain, which typically flares up in Autumn
did not hit me as badly as in previous years. By being cautious I have not been
exposed to Covid-19; 2021 will continue to be a time to be cautious before and
after I get vaccinated.
My parents continue to be healthy and are largely heeding
advice from health experts on staying safe and healthy.
My job continues to be a source of purpose, security, and
stability. I am fortunate to be able to work from home. My supervisors think
highly of me and my abilities, and I am respected by my co-workers. I developed
a refined process for monthly Sunday updates to our databases that saves hours
of work for myself and the team. In June I was chosen as co-chair of the hospital’s
ethics committee, which is an unbelievable responsibility and honor for me.
Also, in June I presented a talk on the Ethical Dimensions of Hospital
Volunteerism. 2021 will see me co-presenting with the Ethics chair on our
committee, and moderating a panel discussion on Physician Impairment.
I began writing more this year, and submitted poems and
short stories to some of my favorite publications. A 2021 goal is to get some
published work out there, with a longer-term goal of creating enough of my work
into a second collection in 2022-3 (Black Ribbon and Other Perturbed Textiles
is the likely title). It has been very gratifying to get positive responses
from folks I respect about what I have written thus far. I have also become a
beta-reader for some of my favorite authors, offering along with my “reader’s”
perspective some basic proof-reading. I am proud to call these authors not just
professional acquaintances, but also friends. I am excited to maybe be doing
more of this in 2021.
This year also saw me returning to recording music. I
finally was able to execute a project I have had in mind since 2016 called
Pentameth Demon, thanks in large part to my oldest friend (since grade school) prompting
me to consider the possibility of making music exclusively via computer. That
released spawned 3 more releases this Autumn, the latest of which is an audio
production of a Russian novella from 1905 (which was a result of an author
friend’s recommendation). It has been surprising and awesome to see people
giving these a listen on Bandcamp. 2021 will see me create/release a “faux”-riginal
soundtrack to an imagined 1970’s Italian horror film that will hopefully show some
continued evolution of sound and composition.
Lastly, I have been fortunate to have strong, supportive,
and loving friendships with dozens of people. Their generosity inspires me to
be a better person. They are close to my heart; their struggles and successes
are my struggles and successes. I celebrate the chance to have them in my life,
and eagerly await the day when I can see them in person again-in the meantime,
technology allows for connection with them which has been a lot of fun.
Carrying the lessons from my revelatory November 2019 trip to Rochester, and
applying them, I have been able to reconnect with people I have not had the
courage to reach out to previously. It has been both humbling and warming to be
thought of well by these old friends, and I look forward to continuing this in
2021.
If you are reading this, I love you and appreciate you, and
I wish you the very best 2021 can offer. Be safe, be healthy, and be happy.
Better days are ahead.
In the 1970's, an unknown director from Italy released a giallo film called "Il Burrattino Di Velluto Del Diavolo" (or "The Devil's Velvet Puppet" in English). No known prints of the film exist today-however, Get Out of Jail Free Productions presents the Soundtrack to this obscure* piece of International Horror Sin-ema.
Synopsis: A series of gruesome murders have the police baffled. The victims all have a piece of rope sewn into their scalps and hands. A reporter for the local newspaper is also on the trail after her boyfriend is one of victims.
Coming in 2021.
*some would say, non-existant
Coming next month: The first spoken word release from Get Out of Jail Free Productions. The Red Laugh: Fragments of a Discovered Manuscript by Leonid Andreyev. Written in 1905, this very obscure novella explores the horror of war with an ear for the weird. Read from a translation by Alexandra Linden, this reading includes supplemental sounds to enhance the listening experience. The unadorned reading will likely get submitted to Librivox, while the enhanced recording will go up on Bandcamp. There is another compilation project in the works which may also use some readings from this novella. Stay tuned, and BEWARE THE RED LAUGH
The following was submitted for a micro-fiction contest; since it was not a finalist, it is submitted here for you to enjoy. Thank you for reading it.
2:45 AM: The End of Reality
Awake, the shadows moving, crawling along the wall. The dark
shapes tumbling into other shapes, impossible shapes, and the panic blooms
inside my chest. My eyes shifting right to left to up to down, adjusting to the
gloom, I reach for my lamp. A click and a brief flash of illumination reveals
an insect-like leg before the light is extinguished. I hear a sound like a
clicking, but backwards, and a sub-bass growl, and a hiss of air inhaled. My
heart thrumming madly, and an involuntary whine escapes my lips. I should not
have read the passage last night. I should never have picked the cursed book
up. I move against the wall-while solid it is canted at a strange, acute angle
against my back. Trembling, I peer out of the window and I gape at the sight.
The sky is dimly colored ochre, black smoke rising from the city. The skyscape
is broken-I don’t recognize any of the familiar sights. In the air, undulating
discs float setting those buildings still standing on green fire. Other things
with four-jointed legs stalk the neighborhood. I hear the crunching of bodies
under their steps, and the screams. Mine joins them as across the street I see
the bulbous body of one of the beings. It turns and stares at me, uncountable
eyes blinking, uncaring. The motion makes me at once dizzy and nauseous. I
stumble, crying out, falling to my knees. Why did I read that book? My rational
mind is slipping away, only an animal awareness of danger remains. My breaths
are now jagged, along with sounds that aren’t words but expressions of my panic
rising. I feel cold sweat pour off of my skin, a stink of pure terror. I
writhe, worm-like, trying to move towards the closet, where I have my loaded
gun. Inch by inch I slowly make my way, until an indescribable tearing sound
assaults my ears. The roof of my home is peeled away, revealing the sky, now
splitting, exposing black space. In the space, exploding pin-pricks of
purple-blue light that I would have thought were stars exponentially increase
in number. Then I realize it is them, them that my ignorance summoned.
The terrifying harbingers decimating the neighborhood, the city, the world-they
are nothing compared to them who were written about. My vision starts to
wash out, only white after-images are what my mind can perceive. My body refuses
to move other than seizures as the new occupants of reality pass into our
dimension, and I know no more.
Dance of the Woodsmen was created for a never produced compilation of tracks inspired by David Lynch.
All others were recorded at the end of October.
Thank you for listening.
https://pentamethdemon.bandcamp.com/album/hexicene-level
One of the compliments I have received is that my music could work effectively with film. I have been interested in this for some time, and with that in mind created this "library" music, of a sort. Shorter pieces that can be put on in the background. Some is soothing, some is not. A good deal more palatable than the Pentameth Demon project.
Exclusively on Bandcamp - 5 bucks gets you a download - as always the majority of any money I make on this goes to charity.
If you like it, please share with those you think might also dig it. I am not the best at self promotion, and more ears on my work makes me happy.
Thank you for listening.
https://pentamethdemon.bandcamp.com/album/scorches
New for 2020 -The Year of The Goat
Pentameth Demon is the natural progression of my THUD project which ended with a live performance in 2013.
Two sonic explorations of entirely synthesized sound.
Harsh, brutal, industrial, long-form.
High volume is recommended for best results.
Available for streaming and purchase NOW exclusively at:
https://pentamethdemon.bandcamp.com/ (download will be available starting Friday, September 4)
A portion of the purchase will go towards human rights organizations.
Is this The Year of The Goat?
You're goddamned right it is.
