Consumption – Page 17

Book review: Angelo Badalamenti’s Soundtrack from Twin Peaks

December 31, 2019 CaptainFezLeave a comment

Angelo Badalamenti’s Soundtrack from Twin Peaks by Clare Nina Norelli.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars.

Obviously this is going to be a five-star review. From me? Given my love of Twin Peaks this can hardly be a surprise for anyone.

Though I’m inclined to go soft on anything vaguely Lynch-adjacent, there’s no need with Norelli’s excellent entry in the 33 1/3 series of works: it’s a solid entry, which offers thematic, technical and widescreen views of the sonic doings in that small town in the Pacific Northwest, where there’s always music in the air.

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Book review: Exercises in Style

December 29, 2019December 29, 2019 CaptainFez1 Comment

Exercises in Style by Raymond Queneau (tr. Barbara Wright).
My rating: 4 of 5 stars.

So there’s this guy.

He’s riding a bus. During the ride, he sees a bit of space-based altercation between two dudes.

Later, he sees one of the dudes receiving advice about his jacket.

This is all that happens in this book. And it happens almost one hundred times. There, I’ve saved you the effort of reading it, right?

Let’s just say there’s a little more to this book than that. Continue reading “Book review: Exercises in Style” →

Book review: The Way of Zen

December 27, 2019 CaptainFezLeave a comment

The Way of Zen by Alan Watts.
My rating: 4 of 5 stars.

I have, of late, decided that I need to spend a little more time working on meditation, on myself. I’ve carried out a fair bit of investigation, mostly in mindfulness, but I’ve decided that I need something a little more rigorous: something I can make a more concerted effort with.

So it was that I decided to read up a little more on Zen. And what better place to start than with Alan Watts? Known for his copious writing on religions and esoterica, his The Way of Zen is considered a landmark work, something that introduced Zen Buddhism and Eastern philosophy to younger, Western audiences. Continue reading “Book review: The Way of Zen” →

Games update? Sure, why not.

December 7, 2019December 7, 2019 CaptainFez1 Comment

So I guess it’s time for a gaming update. I haven’t written about what I’ve been playing for a while because I just can’t seem to gather the impetus to do so.

The next couple of weeks are going to be hectic as fuck – the house is almost completed and we’ll be moving within the next fortnight – so I guess now’s as good a time as any to cover the missing bits. So let’s do this!

(I understand if you don’t want to, frankly.)

Continue reading “Games update? Sure, why not.” →

Fumiko! (2017)

October 7, 2019October 7, 2019 CaptainFez2 Comments

I’ve a slightly longer post brewing about the games I’ve been playing over the past couple of months. They’ve been longer and fairly involved, so I’ve been dragging my heels on getting something out there. But I just completed a game I chose at random from my collection, which turned out to be about seven hours worth of Good Times (well, mostly) and featured a whole lot of cyberpunk hoo-ha and stylish graphic nonsense, created by a very small team.

TLDR? I’ve been hanging out with an AI that has boxy hair and an alarming habit of exploding. Continue reading “Fumiko! (2017)” →

Book review: Frankenstein

September 13, 2019September 13, 2019 CaptainFezLeave a comment

Frankenstein by Junji Ito.
My rating: 5 of 5 stars.

Frankenstein is a story that most people are familiar with. Whether you’ve read Shelley’s original or no, you’re probably aware of the general thrust of the story thanks to films modern and classic. You know: creation, exclusion, and that it’s his Dad’s name, not the monster’s. So what can be brought to another adaption of the work?

To be fair, there’s fuck-all else to do on an Arctic journey. Talk away, Vic.

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Destiny and servitude but with joysticks

July 12, 2019July 12, 2019 CaptainFez3 Comments

Since I last talked about games here I’ve entered something of a slump, as far as the whole pew pew thing goes. I’ve played a couple of ’em in that time, and there’s been some really enjoyable aspects to all of them. But the overwhelming feeling has been one of meh: that there’s something that I’m missing, and I’m stuffed if I can tell what it is.

Is it me? Or is it the games that are wrong? Well, let’s see.

Continue reading “Destiny and servitude but with joysticks” →

Acute Misfortune (2019)

June 12, 2019 CaptainFez3 Comments

Adam Cullen was a bit of a handful, it seems.

I mean, he was – he died in at 47 in 2012 – a wildly successful artist, who boasted that he’d managed to figure out how to game the system. He ripped the piss out of society and manliness, travelled the world and had a retrospective at the AGNSW while still alive.

He was also into drink, drugs, firearms and a bleak view of the world that’d make Thomas Ligotti seem like a beam of light.

So of course, I watched a movie about him. Continue reading “Acute Misfortune (2019)” →

Pre-Sequel, phantoms and prehistory

May 17, 2019May 17, 2019 CaptainFez2 Comments

So I’ve been playing through a couple of games of late, and haven’t written anything about ’em. Time to rectify that. Strap in if you’re delighted by the second-hand thoughts of my gaming exploits. It’s fun, I assure you.