Shoegazer Sunday: …And the Earth Swarmed With Them’s “Everyone Will Fade”

December 9th, 2012

Here’s …And the Earth Swarmed With Them‘s atmospheric, goth-y “Everyone Will Fade,” off their album The Fading Voice Of The Old Era Speaks To Us, But Where Are The Ears Left To Hear It?, which does suggest a certain sensibility…

Slamball, ChessBoxing, or Hockey?

December 8th, 2012

With the NHL lockout looking to drag on indefinitely, America finally has a chance to ditch hockey for another sport.

So below, find a poll on what should be America’s next great sport:

  • Slamball
  • ChessBoxing
  • Hockey
  • Let your voice be heard! Vote below!

    Which Fringe Sport Should Be More Popular?
      
    pollcode.com free polls 

    Michael Swanwick and Locus on Jeff Millar

    December 5th, 2012

    It turns out that I wasn’t the only person in the science fiction community who appreciated Jeff Millar:

  • Michael Swanwick reveals that Ellen Datlow asked him for more science fiction stories.
  • Locus offers up an obituary, noting that Millar also wrote the story for the movie Dead and Buried, which sounds intriguing.
  • Turns out Millar was more multi-talented than I thought…

    Vague Movie Descriptions

    December 2nd, 2012

    There was an amusing Fark thread on people giving vague but accurate (or correct but misleading) movie summaries, and people guessing the movie. I enjoyed it enough that I thought I would offer it up here with my own vague summaries. A good number of these are science fiction, fantasy, or horror.

  • Shepherd engages in unnatural porking.
  • Guy sacrifices livelihood to raise the dead.
  • Someone comes to town. Lots of people leave.
  • Hustler falls for sap.
  • Neglectful parent meets brainless bimbo on roadtrip.
  • Amoral businessman’s life turned upside down by arrival of ex-girlfriend and her current boy-toy.
  • Foul-mouthed racist electrocutes gay man.
  • Famous actor gets strung out after life invaded by amoral threesome.
  • Mother flees to protect son, only to find new, drug-filled neighborhood changing him.
  • Courier for elderly man thwarted by last-minute theft.
  • Crazy rich guy goes completely coconuts.
  • Man’s life work crumbles around him while his wife’s underground party scene blows up in her face.
  • Overweight family man drawn into reckless adventure by hot babe.
  • Redneck leads killing spree.
  • Subjected to relentless abuse, teenager goes on violent, drug-fueled spree.
  • Serial rapist infiltrates hippie commune.
  • Killing spree ended when Clint Eastwood breaks out the big firepower.
  • Post your answers below.

    Shoegazer Sunday: Tears Run Rings’ “Waiting for the End”

    December 2nd, 2012

    Here’s Tears Run Rings, a shoegazer band from America’s west coast, with their very Slowdive-esque “Waiting for the End.”

    Jeff Millar, RIP

    December 1st, 2012

    From Dwight comes the sad news that Tank McNamara creator and Houston Chronicle movie reviewer and columnist Jeff Millar has died at age 70. To have some idea of his stature in Houston in the 1970s and 1980s, imagine that Mike Royko and Roger Ebert were the same guy.

    His regular humor column was really funny. I remember one about an IRS agents showing up on the doorstep of a nuclear war survivor’s doorstep to conduct an audit. “That whole ‘end of civilization as we know it’ excuse may pass muster with other government agencies, but not the IRS.”

    Tank McNamara was one of my favorite comic strips as well. He had a hilarious sport trial series presided over by an English-barrister sounding Dennis Rodman. (“Mr. Sprewell, please be so kind as to remove your fingers from the panelist’s throat.”) And I loved the strips with the mad sports scientist Dr. Tszap, with his frizzed-out hair, coke-bottle glasses and hula girl tie.

    I met him once, at CollegeCon at U of H, the first science fiction convention I went to in 1980. I have his signature on the back of the program book along with those of Harlan Ellison, Robert Sheckley and George Takei.

    He also had a story in Damon Knight’s Orbit 17: “Toto, I Have a Feeling We’re Not in Kansas Anymore.” I haven’t read that, or his mystery novel Private Sector.

    RIP.

    Shooting at Kansas City Chiefs Facility

    December 1st, 2012

    I know the Chiefs are sucking pretty bad this year, but shooting up the place won’t help.

    Arrowhead Stadium is on lockdown and one player has reportedly been shot.

    Putting this up mainly because I’m not seeing anything on Google News yet.

    Live updates at the Arrowhead pride blog.

    Update: Police are saying it was a player killing his girlfriend, then committing suicide at the facility. Unconfirmed reports are that player was linebacker Jovan Belcher.

    Update 2: Confirmed? “A team source tells Jason La Canfora that LB Jovan Belcher was involved in a shooting at the team’s facility.”

    Update 3: Confirmed: ” A player on the Kansas City Chiefs shot and killed his girlfriend early Saturday before shooting and killing himself at the team facility, according to police. The Kansas City Star, citing police, identified the player as 25-year-old linebacker Jovan Belcher. FOXSports.com’s Alex Marvez reports that a Chiefs source has also confirmed Belcher as the player.”

    Update 4: There’s a lot of strangeness to this murder/suicide. First, Belcher reportedly killed his girlfriend overher her staying out late at a concert. Second, Belcher reportedly drove to Arrowhead stadium to thank coach Romeo Crennel and general manager Scott Pioli for everything they had done before killing himself in front of them. I know some things should be said in person, but I think in this case both of them would have preferred an email.

    Only good news? Belcher and his girlfriend’s infant daughter is safe, though obviously orphaned.

    Important Safety Tip: Do Not Try To Rollerblade Off a Roof

    November 29th, 2012

    You know, just in case you were considering doing that.

    While there’s no end to fail video on the Internet, I’m posting this one because: A.) It was such an obviously, amazingly stupid thing to attempt in the first place, and B.) I tried to find this a while back to show friends, but had forgotten the actual conveyance (bike? skateboard?), which made finding the video difficult. So this is more of a bookmark for myself than anything else. As well as an abject lesson in what not to do.

    Only 12 Hours Left for John Picacio’s Calendar Kickstarter

    November 27th, 2012

    John Picacio ‘s Kickstarter for his 2013 art calendar only runs through noon on November 28, so if you want in, you better hurry up.

    He’s already at $25,000, and his next stretch goal is at $30,000.

    Spider-Man, Spider-Man/Commits Assault? Yes He Can!

    November 26th, 2012

    Spider-Man, Spider-Man
    Did you arrest the right Spider-Man?
    Get the one for assault?
    Outstanding warrant? His own damn fault.
    Oh yeah! You got the right Spider-Man!