Starbody

Just call me Jack of all trades (we’ll just skip the second part of that phrase).

Sonica: Last weeks KCRW Music Exchange played a bit from a band called Test Icicles, described by their engineer as “the Arcade Fire meets Slayer”. S’right, that’s what I said. Due to release a neon green 7″ titled Boa vs Python on August 1st on Domino Records, the song Boa vs Python is well … give it a listen yourself. The full song is available for play from their site. Although the comparison seems a strange one, I can see why the Arcade Fire came up as a description. The pitch of the music has a vehement fervor that seems genuine and is paired with a sort of controlled insanity.

Visual Delights: In movie news, there are about a million alternates to the ’summer blockbuster’ out there. 9 Songs tops the list of movies I will definitely be seeing. Garnering controversy because of a real sex scene (bravo!), the film opens here in Seattle on August 19th and in major cities elsewhere throughout the summer. Check out their site for more information. Or, if you’re one of those must-read-the-review first types, Salon has a formidable one. It’s got to be better than The Island. Word is that movie is bad, even for Michael Bay.

Techcentric: The official name (or re-name, if you prefer) of Longhorn is now Vista. Excuse me while I’m slightly nauseated. Do you think these people are happy? Or what about these people? Is it true? Well, Engadget says so. But just so you know, if they jumped off the Brooklyn Bridge … I wouldn’t. Well, not right away. Baa.

Sushi for the Mind: If you haven’t yet read The Historian from Elizabeth Kostova, please do. The historical novel was 10 years in the making and crafted from a single memory of her father reading stories of Dracula to her as a child. How do I know? She told me so at a reading she gave on Monday at my favorite bookstore, Elliott Bay Book Co.. It’s hard to conceive of a work of fiction based on Vlad Tsepesh and the mythos surrounding him without falling into the horror see also: vampires category. But, believe me when I say, this book is about the relationship between a father and a daughter, rich landscapes and a love of researching history.

On the heels of this book, I burned through the latest Harry Potter. All I can say is, wow. And now, on to Legends from Robert Littell. I don’t normally go for spy/espionage type novels, but it was picked through a book club and I’m always willing to give new books a try. The opening chapter was a bit horrifying, but that has certainly never stopped me before (see: Exquisite Corpse from Poppy Z. Brite).

And that’s that.