Author Archives: Lawrence Person

About Lawrence Person

Lawrence Person is a science fiction writer living in Austin, Texas. His short fiction has appeared in Asimov's, Analog, Postscripts, Jim Baen's Universe, Fear, and several anthologies. He also edits the Hugo-nominated SF critical magazine Nova Express, and runs the Turkey City Writer's Workshop. His non-fiction has appeared in National Review, Reason, Whole Earth Review, The Freeman, The World & I, Science Fiction Eye, The New York Review of Science Fiction, and Slashdot.org. He owns such a large library (mostly science fiction first editions) he had to buy a two-story house to put it in, and then adopted a golden retriever to drag him out of his house on a regular basis. He also makes a mean batch of salsa.

Shoegazer Sunday: The Cherry Wave’s “Blush”

Posted on May 4, 2014 by Lawrence Person

The Cherry Wave is a shoegaze band out of Glasgow that specializes in fuzzy walls of reverb. Here’s “Blush” off the EP of the same name. You can buy the EP for whatever you think fair off BandCamp.

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The Worst Song In History

Posted on May 2, 2014 by Lawrence Person

If you’ve ever wondered what the worst professionally recorded and released song in history is, wonder no more! It’s “John John Let’s Hope for Peace” by Yoko Ono, John Lennon and The Plastic Ono Band off Live Peace in Toronto … Continue reading →

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Library Addition: Ursula K. Le Guin’s Four Different Poems

Posted on May 1, 2014 by Lawrence Person

Another weird library addition, not so much a book as a “book-like object.” Le Guin, Ursula K. Four Different Poems. Longhouse, 2007. First edition chapbook original, a 3″x5″ card with an accordion foldout attached and a title band signed by … Continue reading →

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Crap: Almost Human Cancelled

Posted on April 30, 2014 by Lawrence Person

Fox has evidently cancelled the science fiction police drama Almost Human. Which is a damned shame, since it was the first attempt to do a serious post-cyberpunk drama on American TV. (The true first was Japan’s animated Ghost in the … Continue reading →

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Mousetrap Madness

Posted on April 29, 2014 by Lawrence Person

Back in the dim mists of time, they used to demonstrate the speed of atomic chain reactions with arrays of mousetraps. Now someone has done the same experiment, with the added benefit of a high speed camera:

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Shoegazer Sunday Bonus John Paul II Edition: Adorable’s “I’ll Be Your Saint”

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Lawrence Person

Given that Popes John Paul II and John XXIII were canonized as saints today, here’s Adorable’s “I’ll Be Your Saint”. Never mind that they’re more Dreampop than Shoegaze, or that I’ve already done a Shoegazer Sunday post; two posts for … Continue reading →

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Shoegazer Sunday: Mercury Rev’s “You’re My Queen”

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Lawrence Person

Mercury Rev is an American ban that got dubbed Shoegaze early on, then evolved in a more pop direction. “You’re My Queen” is actually one of their more pop numbers, but I think it fits nicely into the shoegaze category … Continue reading →

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William Friedkin’s Sorcerer Finally Out on Blu Ray

Posted on April 26, 2014 by Lawrence Person

In the 1970s, director William Friedkin made three great movies, one after the other. The first, The French Connection won the Academy Award for best picture. The second, The Exorcist, was not only one of the greatest horror films of … Continue reading →

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Mr. Irish Bastard

Posted on April 25, 2014 by Lawrence Person

While I was poking around iTunes listening to covers of “Road to Nowhere,” I stumbled across this: If you like Flogging Molly or The Dropkick Murphys, you’ll recognize the Celtic folk punk sound of Mr. Irish Bastard. Would you believe … Continue reading →

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Road to Nowhere: Attack of the Clones Division

Posted on April 24, 2014 by Lawrence Person

Sometimes I’ll cruise iTunes looking for covers of songs I like. While doing so for Talking Heads’ “Road to Nowhere,” I discovered that one ensemble had released the same cover of “Road to Nowhere” under multiple band names. Eleven times. … Continue reading →

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