Edward's September 2016 Mix

Still working oodles of overtime (most Saturdays) but still making time for getting my fair share of gaming in. But not all is sitting at my computer desk. Having Netflix is the perfect excuse to exercise, and I make the best of it. Nothing beats sitting on the bike and spinning while losing myself in an episodic serial. I turned another year older this month, but sometimes I wonder if my mind is one half frame step out of synch with my body. Most people my age converse and cogitate about mutual funds and retirement looming on the horizon. All I think about is beating the next level of an RPG, or how long it’s going to take for me to beat XCom. Ah, the perks of being a gamer!

1.      Wolfsheim Spectators/ Casting Shadows on CD: Composed of two members who unofficially disbanded (and took each other to court with a 2004 ruling that neither member could perform as Wolfsheim without the other, this synthpop band reminds me of a band that hatched in the 1980’s (which they did) and then continued on making the same style of music into the oughts. Their legacy is a true testament to the fact that not every band needs to constantly progress or improve. If a band can continually produce great music in the same vein over and over, why change? If not for my friend Memri Hunt who introduced me to the band in the virtual environment, Second Life, I never would have heard of them. If you’re curious check out “Find You’re Gone,” on Youtube. The video is as interesting as the song. Thank you, Memri.

2.      Lost: Season 3 on Blu Ray: So now I’m about halfway through the third season which is the midpoint for the whole series. Like I mentioned before, the show seems to have switched focus concentrating more on “the Others,” and I’m not as captivated by them as I am the original survivors, still, I find their stories entertaining. I still like Sawyer’s constant allusion to literary characters, he’s a man after my own heart in that regard. And I like John Locke’s intimacy with nothing but bad luck and the redemption he seems to have found in or on the island. But the main star of the show, for me, anyway, is still the island itself. If I lived at such a beautiful place, why would I ever want to leave?

3.      The Complete H.P. Lovecraft on Amazon Kindle: Just finished this tome of Lovecraft’s complete tales. He had a penchant for mood and setting, but as far as being a master of the macabre, I’m not so sure. He wrote in the same vein as his heartfelt fan, Robert Howard, the creator of Conan. Actually, I should say Howard wrote in Lovecraft’s vein since Lovecraft was more established as a writer when the two of them corresponded through letters. But honestly, I found Howard’s Conan stories more entertaining. Lovecraft’s stories are repetitive, usually involving an educated man (a college professor more often than not) who either through dream or invitation in the physical world finds himself in strange places, a mountain top or deep within caves housing relics and remnants of a lost civilization home to otherwordly creatures, fiendish monsters that had little use for mankind. And then our fearful protagonist discovers a pocketful of these wicked denizens still prospering and barely escapes with his life. Howard P. Lovecraft was an important contributor to modern horror, and I feel accomplished having digested all of his works, but I’m not his biggest fan.

4.      Assetto Corsa on PC: Still, again . . . yet again, my go to PC racing sim. I’m 57% through the “campaign” of t the game. I’m in the GT BMW Z4 GT3 Series which puts me behind the wheel of a monster BMW road course car. The car is capable of straightaway speeds of 160 mph, and it gets there rather quickly. In this series, the races are longer, going from 5 laps to 8 laps, but the lap times are faster which makes the races seem to be much quicker. The sunlight on the pavement looking like hot flashes of searing light in the distance, the blur of verdant greenery of grassy hillsides and trees rushing past the side windows, and the engine powerhousing beneath the hood sounding like a captive Grizzly Bear. This is as real racing gets from a computer desk affixed with a Racing Sim wheel/shifter/paddle set

5.      Hell on Wheels: Season 4 on Netflix: I just finished this acclaimed season, which, like I said last month was the best season in the whole series so far. I couldn’t believe what happened to Ruth, the church lady. And despite Bohannon’s distant treatment of his Mormon wife, we now find him searching for her after the village he left her in for safekeeping is ravaged by smallpox. As luck would have it, we find him working for the railroad once again, but this time in competition against Durant. This is the best and the most authentic modern western I’ve seen since 1998’s venerable movie, Tombstone.

  

6.      Grand Theft Auto IV on PC: $800 million dollars in its first day. 1 billion in its first three days. Guinness Book of World Records for the most lucrative entertainment in modern times. 92% score rating in PC Gamer Magazine. The game is stunningly gorgeous with infinite draw distances and frame rates that kill the 60 fps bullcrap promulgated by consoles. (Thank goodness for my GTX 970 card.) The open world mechanic of the game is incredible. And despite the learning curve involved with switching from mouse/keyboard to Xbox 360 controller, I’m even having fun with the challenge of that. But . . . I don’t like this game. Yes. Seriously. I just don’t like it. The game takes misogyny to all new heights, and the character, Trevor Phillips, is so over the top in his shallowness he’s simply incredulous. The game is irreverent seemingly for nothing more than the sake of irreverence. I feel there’s an inside joke that I’ve been left out of. It’s as if the Rockstar teams who developed this game were helmed by a thirteen year old who suffered a lack of parenting, and found bathroom graffiti and flattened roadkill guffaw hilarious. I’m not a prude, or at least I never thought I was, and admittedly I’ve never laughed out loud while playing any PC game, but this game doesn’t even having me cracking a smile.

 

7.      The Book of Ruth by Jane Hamilton I’m only 75 pages into this tale about a poor family in the deep south narrated by a young girl, a simpleton overlooked by everybody in her family. Hamilton’s writing voice is compelling, and her prose almost lyrical. I’m looking forward to progressing in the novel.

8.      PC Gamer Magazine: I’ve been a loyal reader since 1996, and a subscriber since probably 2001. It seems to have changed a lot since its inception, now having writers and editors proffering their political allegiances (not a good thing.) But it now the only PC dedicated vehicle in print now. They just released their Top 100 PC Games of All Time. Not surprisingly, The Witcher III heads that list, and no small wonder since CDProjekt is so PC friendly anyway. I know one day PC Gamer will go the way of its brethren publications, Computer Gaming World and Computer Games Magazine, which is online only, but until that day comes, it’s still a special joy to go out to the mailbox and find a fresh issue waiting for me.

Edward's August 2016 Mix

 

 

There are tinges of upcoming autumn in the air which is welcomed being that it’s been so hot lately. Having to work three Saturdays in the month of August has left little time for gaming, reading and binge watching Netflix, but I’ve managed to squeeze in a little time to do so.

1.      Joy Division The best of Joy Division on CD: Watching Netflix’s remarkable series, Stranger Things I discovered what piqued my interest about the show the most was the music. To my great surprise the music supervisor even included a snippet of Vangelis from his mesmerizing album, Oceanic, his late nineties album of nothing but nautical music. But what made my mouth drop open was the Joy Division song, “Atmospheres” that played in one of the first few episodes. I immediately let Google be my friend and discovered it was performed by The Joy Division. It’s odd that all I ever really knew about them was the great song, “Love Will Tear Us Apart,” and how they later emerged into New Order. I bought this greatest hits album immediately. I’m pleasantly surprised by how good it is. Granted, the hardcore reviewers on Amazon tirade about how this album is for sissies, and die hard fans should buy every one of their albums. I think buying this album is a great gateway.

2.      Lost: Season 3 on Blu Ray: My friends who have watched this series (the ones who finished it, anyway) tell me this was the last of the finest in regards to the show. I’m told it took a serious downturn after this season. For me, that remains to be seen. I’m thoroughly enjoying this season so far. I can’t deny I have a sort of crush on Juliette. And I’m thinking she’s going to become Jack’s love interest. The Scotsman, Desmond, who calls everybody “brother,” and has the uncanny gift of seeing snippets of the future is a sympathetic character. The main action seems to be settling more on “The Others,” now leaving our old friends we hung out with in season one and two in the background (for now, anyway.) It’s quite entertaining to see how this is all unfolding, especially on a 4K 55” screen.

3.      For a Few Dollars More on DVD: Last month I took in Sergio Leone’s first Clint Eastwood Spaghetti western and this month I was able to revisit his sophomore effort. I can easily see Eastwood’s character has grown into a man of even fewer words, and Lee Van Cleef plays an interesting support character. Interestingly, before he was cast as Colonel Mortimer in this film, his career was taking a downturn, but Sergio Leone saw him and said, “He looked like an eagle. He looked like Van Gogh. He was perfect for the part. I was afraid to actually talk to him because I thought he might not be right for the part after all.” But the most interesting character in this movie is perhaps Ramon Rojo played by the Italian actor, Gian Maria Volonte. This is a man who shoots a man repeatedly, and then keeps shooting him to watch the bullets enter his body, and maniacally laughs while doing it. How can anybody turn on one of his own men so suddenly and with such ferocity? This guy does it with total credibility. And when you think he can’t sink to lower depths of depravity he coerces his own gang into a gunfight where he knows they’ll be outgunned and outsmarted, for the simple reason it will save him from having to split the gang’s most recent bank haul. This is the bad guy all bad guys should take notes from.  

4.      Assetto Corsa on PC: Still, yet again, my go to PC racing sim. I was able to pick up the Red Pack, another small DLC for a modest amount of moolah that introduces more Ferraris and another track. I inadvertently reset my current season progress, thereby having to start it over again, egads! But I’m now able to tweak the car in the pits, changing to stickier (although shorter life span tires for the sake of qualifying and change my wings for better aerodynamics.) So, I’m actually qualifying for better start positions than I ever have before. Maybe this reset was a good thing: the chance to do it better a second time around.

5.      The Ocean Blue Davey Jones’ Locker on CD: This has been on my Amazon Wish List for a long time, and I finally decided to pick it up. I’ve been a fan of this band since their 1989 appearance on Late Night with Conan O’Brian. It’s been a pure joy to see how they’ve progressed with each album they’ve done since. Davey Jones’ Locker seems like the perfect fruition of each of the albums that preceded it. The guitar work has that 1960’s The Byrds sound to it. One can’t help but listen and smile. The song “Do You Still Remember Me?” is a personal favorite for the lyrics alone. “Think of me on the road to nowhere that goes outside your door.” And then there is the haunting “Denmark” with its beautifully rendered high e string opening and the band’s equally haunting vocal harmonizing. This was the song that put the album on my wish list. 

6.      Hell on Wheels: Season 4 on Netflix: So far, this has been the best season yet. Durant is reluctantly relinquishing his hold on the railroad. Cullen Bohannon returns to Cheyenne after being held captive by a group of Mormons (where he takes a wife and has a new baby son.) Upon his return we find the town being usurped by carpetbagging government men: a marshal, a judge, a sheriff, and a tax collector. I sit to watch one episode and am immediately forced into watching another. This is how compelling this series has become.

  

7.      Xcom on PC: I’m enjoying this game, despite its difficulty. There are achievements to be had for playing it on impossible difficulty. I don’t see how anybody could beat this game at that kind of difficulty level. I’m in the alien base presently, and I wipe each time I attempt it. But I’ve not ragequit yet. Each time I feel like, “I’ve got this!” The game is getting a little long in the tooth, I’ll be glad when it’s over, but I have a feeling it will have been worth it.

8.      Nightcrawler on Blu Ray: I really liked Jake Gyllenhaal in Donnie Darko, I mean who doesn’t? But I thought he was kind of “meh,” in Jarhead. And then I saw this movie. He plays Lou Bloom, a man who discovers there’s big money to be made in “nightcrawling,” using police scanners to speed to crime scenes and filming the aftermath, selling the videos to local news agencies. As Bloom’s greed escalates he blurs the line between observer and participant to churn out maximum interest in his video feeds. Gyllenhaal’s performance is spot on as a man who, despite his infallible work ethics, is a dark and sinister character that you’ll either root for or who will make your skin crawl.

Edward's July 2016 Mix

Had a two week vacation this month which kept me busy in real life (away from the computer) for a spell anyway. I took the time to see the Arch in St. Louis, Missouri with a friend I’ve known a very long time. You gave me memories that will last me all the days of my life. And the City Museum gave me a chance to visit a world Jules Verne would have created had he been alive today, again, thank you. Despite my real world adventures, I had to report back home to the mother ship as always, and was able to accomplish the following:

1.      The Complete Works of H.P. Lovecraft  on Kindle: I’m about 75% through this tome. Despite the similar vein that seems to run through each of Lovecraft’s stories, the man definitely carried the baton between Edgar Allan Poe and our modern day, Stephen King. Lovecraft definitely honed his craft in each ensuing story. It’s like watching a glorious woodwork appear out of a tree stump from a simple penknife. I’m currently reading “At the Mountains of Madness” and I can kind of get a taste of what possibly inspired, John W. Campbell’s famous short story, “Who Goes There?” which was later made into two stellar movies, The Thing From Another World and John Carpenter’s The Thing.

2.      Star Trek: The Next Generation Season 3 on Blu Ray: Just finished this remarkable season. At this point the characters are starting to feel like family to me. The tumultuous arena of the writers on the show in the first two seasons appeared to have settled down by this third season since Michael Pillar took over as head writer, and he actually allowed anybody to submit a script for the series. At the time (1990) it was the only television series to accept unsolicited screenplays. Kudos to Paramount for that. The series ended on a cliffhanger, actually a part 1, of Picard being turned into a Borg. But my favorite episodes were probably “The Offspring” in which Data creates a daughter and learns a lesson in human grief, and “Sins of the Father,” in which we see Lt. Worf forever shunned by his homeplanet. The episode had me reaching for a handkerchief. And then, of course, “Deja Q” where we see Q stripped of his godlike powers and reduced to a simple human male. I also enjoyed “Transfigurations,” in which Dr. Beverly Crusher almost falls in love with an alien being rescued from an escape pod. This was Gates McFadden at her all time best.

3.      The Long Dark on PC: Despite its lack of story mode (yet) Andy Kelly, my favorite writer from PC Gamer Magazine said this game was worth playing simply for survival mode. The man was right. I picked it up on this past Steam Sale, and was immediately engrossed in its ambience. It’s a conglomeration of so many things, my winters as a child in a cabin in Indiana, John Carpenter’s stellar movie, The Thing. The winter scenarios in the first Call of Duty game. It took me three attempts to garner the achievement for staying alive for 5 days. This is a game that will keep me coming back again and again, if simply trying to stay alive for as long as I can.

4.      Assetto Corsa on PC: Still my go to PC racing sim. Another patch has been released which introduces better racing AI and better usage of pit stops. I’m at 45% now. And the game is still giving my wheel and shifter set a good workout. There is still so much untapped potential in this game; I’ve not even touched online racing yet.  

5.      Road Redemption on PC: Remember the old arcade game, Road Rash? The one where you rode a crotch rocket down western desert highways and used chains, axes, shovels and firearms to defeat fellow cyclists trekking down the same road? Well, Darkseas games has released a spiritual successor (rip off?) of that very game. I’ve never laughed so hard playing a video game. Best played with an Xbox controller, if you like arcade games this is a must buy. And the beauty of it is it’s EA, so it’s not finished yet. Still more joy to come. :P

6.      The 69 Eyes Devils on CD: Described by fans as “Goth and Roll” this is about the best way I can think of to describe them. From Finland, their lead singer sounds like an opera singer suddenly out of a job who decides to become a rock singer. If you like Type O Negative give this band a listen. I think you’ll be impressed.

  

7.      The Book of Eli on Blu Ray: I’ve mentioned this movie before on my mix. Just re-watched it. Gary Whitta, I love you. You are my childhood dreams come to fruition: a gamer who becomes Editor in Chief for PC Gamer Magazine, and ends up playing the hell out of Fallout 3, and then pens the screenplay for the best movie I’ve seen up until Mad Max: Fury Road. (Obviously another gamer’s brainchild.) I’m a big fan of spiritual movies, and Whitta’s movie made me want to go back to church. Influential.

8.      Stranger Things on Netflix: I heard too many of my friends telling me I had to check this out. I knew three of them who set out to watch the first episode and binged watched the whole season (of which only the first season exists presently.) It reminds me of something Stephen King has already covered, but it’s still compelling. Set in 1983 in the state of Indiana, it really hits home (pun intended.) There are some glaring anachronisms: Middle School wasn’t called as such back then, it was called Junior High School. The term “mouth breather,” was non existent then. And kids calling each other “douche bags” was unheard of at that time. The IMDB forums will tell you differently, but bear in mind this is Indiana, the Flinstones’ Bedrock of America. We would have been the last state to become “in the know.” This is X-Files mingled with a late 70’s early 80’s Stephen King miniseries. Wynona Rider's role as a hysterically grieving mother who believes her son is still alive is played impeccably. But the real star of this show is the music. I even watch the opening credits each time because I love the music accompanying it. It's as if John Carpenter, Vangelis, and Tangerine Dream all came together to compose the soundtrack. And not to mention, Joy Division. It’s well worth a Netflix subscription.