Vennart: D__k Privilege Review

Posted on July 8, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

I wrote the bulk of this over a period of one hour yesterday.
I’ve spent the last few hours editing it into something more readable.
This could’ve been much better. I feel as though what I wrote is clunky where it could have been quite deft. That said, I’m happy that I was able to start and finish this review quite quickly.

Most of my interview and review work now appears on Culture Eater.
My colleague and I set up a Patreon to further develop Culture Eater as a source of good quality arts coverage from both ourselves and our contributors.

We’re looking at what we can give to supporters as we don’t want to set up a one way relationship, so suggestions are welcome. Podcast Eater is one of the things we’ve got going. We’re going to do a live broadcast of the podcast soon and are looking to add more things for supporters.

Please consider supporting, or at least sharing the Patreon page with others. Please also check out what our wonderful contributors are contributing.

I hope you enjoy.

—

There’s an explanation as to why Dick Privilege exists. However, I’m not going to get into it other than saying that a rather cordial conversation Mike Vennart had with someone led to a large (though unsurprising) overreaction. If interested in finding out what happened, further details about said conversation are here. Suffice it to say action led to reaction which eventually led to Mike’s musical reaction.

Knowing at least that much and it should be fairly understandable as to why Dick Privilege sounds as aggressive as it does comical; Both of its songs are slabs of noisy sound that dip heavily into excess.

“Dick Privilege”‘s introduction is this rolling, thick sound that sets the tone quite well. The song soon shifts to something else, makes a return, shifts again, etc. There’s a fair bit crammed into the song, giving it a strong sense of the frantic. It’s loud (and at times funky), occasionally reshapes itself and drives on home with just enough seconds at the end to have something akin to a really obvious-sounding breakdown.

“Rat Catch” is much more aggressive, frenetic and angular in sound. It too reshapes itself and gives off a sense of the oblique and abstract throughout. However, befitting its aggressive sound it is highly direct.

The vocals for both songs are kind of similar. Kind of. A bit of singing and screaming on both; a bit of something unexpected to boot. “Rat Catch” is more willing to venture into the unexpected than “Dick Privilege” by featuring a (mostly) flat delivery, so to speak. There’s not really much else to say about the vocals; They work quite well with the music regardless of whether they’re in harmony or not.

The whole thing is quite punchy and taut, but some of it feels rigidly constructed and disjointed which likely has a lot to do with how much the two songs shift around. Some of the sections connect really well; some don’t. Maybe sounding disjointed was part of the point. Perhaps it’s an attempt at capturing the stress surrounding what inspired Dick Privilege. Perhaps not.

That said, Mike does make his point pretty clear and concise; It doesn’t take too many listens to get what he’s saying. Due to Dick Privilege falling roughly eleven seconds shy of six minutes, it doesn’t take too long to get through repeat listens either.

On Dick Privilege there’s a fair bit going on; It’s willing to be quite variable and quick, but it’s also quite narrow and linear. What comes across most, however, is that it sounds a lot like Mike Vennart stopped treating the release’s subject matter completely seriously a while ago. Dick Privilege has some pretty serious words amid some over the top, excessive music, and Mike just seems to be reveling in the absurdity of it all.

Dick Privilege is available here.

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Rippling

Posted on July 7, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

As seen somewhere in The Royal National Park.

This is a small stream on a beach.

I really like how the water is moving over the sand. It’s altering the textural appearance in an interesting way, I think.

I hope you enjoy.

Posted in Photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Pat Metheny: From This Place Review

Posted on July 6, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

This is a review I started… probably a month, month-and-a-half ago and ended up putting aside. I wanted to write something big and really dig deep into it but I ended up scrapping the whole thing and starting again a few hours ago as I realised that right now I don’t quite have the skill to write about From This Place at length. I think that one day when I’m a better writer I might make another attempt.

I think that, at the very least I got some of what I wanted to cover across.

Most of my interview and review work now appears on Culture Eater.
My colleague and I set up a Patreon to further develop Culture Eater as a source of good quality arts coverage from both ourselves and our contributors.

We’re looking at what we can give to supporters as we don’t want to set up a one way relationship, so suggestions are welcome. Podcast Eater is one of the things we’ve got going. We’re going to do a live broadcast of the podcast soon and are looking to add more things for supporters.

Please consider supporting, or at least sharing the Patreon page with others. Please also check out what our wonderful contributors are contributing.

I hope you enjoy.

—

So I had this plan of writing a rather lengthy review on Pat Metheny‘s From This Place but I was not able to make it work. Instead I’ve written something shorter which I feel is a bit unfair to both the album and Pat Metheny’s career.

A review doesn’t have to be long, but From This Place is an album I feel is worth the time and effort of writing about at length. Whilst appreciable on the surface, the album has a great deal of depth to its compositions. It feels rather cinematic and expansive, and is full of beautiful, lush sound.

A lot of the full sound comes from the orchestration which came after recording the compositions. It’s quite beneficial as it fleshes out a lot of the music and enhances the emotive content. It shines most in “America Undefined”, “You Are” and “From This Place”, but it does work well throughout as it’s often more in balance or subtle than it is overt. However, some parts would benefit from being more naked. The decision to not have the compositions rehearsed before recording gives From This Place a specific energy and thrust which doesn’t always agree with the orchestration. This isn’t a major issue though; it comes up from time to time, but overall there is a good balance when it comes to the orchestral elements.

The album’s compositions sound like they belong to each other, but there is a bit of variation between the songs. There is a great deal of liveliness, but there’s still room for relaxed pieces. “You Are” works well in this regard; it starts off slow, quiet and tender and gradually builds into something more vivid and energetic. Instead of holding onto that energy, the song lets it go and ends quiet and tender. Many of the other compositions are more linear, but overall From This Place ebbs and flows in a really smooth manner.

Part of that is in due part to how the quartet handles the compositions. They work well as a unit, know when to push forward and when to hold back, and when to give room for someone to take the lead. There’s an excitement to their playing when required, as well as a tightness. They also do well at playing softly and more relaxed. If the quartet had rehearsed the material, they still would have done a good job. However, it’s clear that going into the studio without rehearsing didn’t diminish, but instead enhanced their performative strength.

Throughout From This Place there is a strong sense of imagery and emotion. Each piece handles these differently, but perhaps the finest moment of these are on the title track. Featuring Meshell Ndegeocello on vocals, the song carries a sense of both bleakness and determination. Meshell’s sublime voice remains gentle throughout and adds a sense of comfort to the song. It’s almost as though the piece is a reaction to some unpleasant happening and looking to express a solution. It’s a journey that says more than just its words, just like the rest of the album.

From This Place is available here.

Posted in Reviews | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

One Thousand Word Challenge 55: Suburban Days 5

Posted on July 5, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

Standing and sitting in silence seemed as though it was going to be the main thing for the rest of the afternoon, so NAME walked back around him and went back inside. Perhaps he too should have gone back inside, but, along with the hangover taking grip, things were beginning to sink right in and take grip. Thoughts grew contiguous with the burgeoning headache before they mixed together into a large, amorphous entity that commanded attention.

He really should have gone inside, but instead he sat on that step and stared out into the backyard’s overgrowth. He had only seen a bit of the rear fence before when attempts had been made at clearing out the whole thing. At this point the overgrowth was too thick to see if there was indeed an end to the property at all.

He sat there, staring out, looking for something, anything at all, but there was nothing to be found other than the neglected backyard. There was just nothing. Still, he kept on staring and stewing in pain, hoping that some sort of hard bitterness took over and justified the whole thing. He needed to be a serious man at this point and so he needed a serious stare.

The backyard itself stretched a lot farther than the property suggested, though not to the point where it encroached onto the other side of the block. There was a serious amount o overgrowth but there also was a great deal of space. A shed that – at least for as long as he had been living there – never saw use or entry sat near one of the sides, and somewhere in a roughly quantifiable middle of the backyard was a hills hoist.

Regarding the toilet being outside, almost not feeling like living in suburbia when using it was a major benefit. The downside, whilst not always obvious, made itself readily apparent in winter; you had to go outside and walk along a concrete surface to use the toilet. It was a relief that the toilet was still in the house, though only due to having to walk a second or two under shelter rather than a few more into the backyard.

On the few steps leading to the backyard he was perched, trying to think serious and look serious whilst also trying to untangle the mess in his head to work out just what it was that was going on then, what had happened that led to that particular moment and what he was going to do form that moment onward. There was a lot to unpack, but there seldom isn’t in those kinds of situations. However, try as he might, there just wasn’t going to be any progress made. It was more important that he dealt with the hangover first, though that wasn’t readily apparent to him in the state he was in, so instead of doing so he just kept on staring.

The afternoon steadily passed on by, changing the lighting of the area and the feel of the backyard. It seemed rather warm for a while, though that was in part due to the heat that made sure it was readily apparent. He kept on staring, seeing the shift in tone and shade until the evening begun. By that point he’d been smoking for a little too much of his time sitting out there and so decided that perhaps it was better to stop and go inside. Smoking wasn’t making him feel any better and likely was prolonging the cloying feeling that so easily took over. It also was getting cold faster than expected. It was easier to just make something to eat and then go to bed, but then of course the challenge was to work out what to eat.

He got up, went inside and shut the door behind him. The house still was quiet. NAME was probably out by that point and the other housemate was likely gone for the week. It was going to be a slow evening stuck in thoughts that rolled over incessantly.

He stood there in the kitchen for a while, staring out into the backyard, still looking for something, but nothing made itself apparent other than the shift into night which of course hid the backyard from view. Eventually the sounds of possums moving about broke the stillness of the image and pulled him out of his focus.

Food still was required, but due to not feeling much like eating he boiled noodles and ate them plain. Whilst a small portion he only consumed half of what he made and threw the rest out as, despite his attempts, he could not override the lack of feeling a need to eat. He knew that he had to, but it just wasn’t happening at that particular point.

After washing his dishes he went into the living room for a minute or so, trying to work out as to whether he might be better served sitting on the couch and hoping that something interesting would be on the television, but then decided against it as it seemed like it would be too great a commitment at that particular hour, though it wasn’t by any means late in the evening. Instead he brushed his teeth, went to the bathroom, had a shower and then, once feeling a little better due to making a token attempt at looking after himself, went to bed.

At this point he was exhausted. There was little done during the day but it still had taken it out of him and he needed to rest. It seemed as though his thoughts were refusing to allow him to rest, but it was due to them feeling as though they were overwhelming. They stretched a few minutes out far longer than he thought possible, but they were only a few minutes and nothing more. Rather than drift off over a long time, it seemed as though he suddenly fell into a state of heavy, uninterruptible slumber.

The time it took to write one thousand words: 28:21:52

A continuation of this.
Part three is here.
Part two is here.
Part one is here.

This took a lot longer than I had hoped. I spent a lot of time thinking about what I was writing and trying to make sure that it made sense. The setting of this “series” is one in which I lived, but a bit more of my past is creeping into here than I had expected. Not exactly in what happened and how things happened; it’s twisted around a bit and there isn’t much of it, so this still remains quite fictional, but it is in there.

I have an idea of what I want to try and express which I’m pretty sure has been part of the main drive of writing this story since I started it a few years ago. I’m hoping that if I continue this, what I’m trying to express becomes clear.

Written at home.

Posted in Fiction | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Five-Hundred Word Challenge 711: It has Crept in

Posted on July 5, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

Alright, so somehow it has crept in and there is now no avoiding it, so we must make sure that we are armed. We must make sure that we are heavily armed… well, not heavily, but appropriately. There is a good chance that there will be little ability to escape when we do encounter it and as such we need to be able to face it both directly and indirectly.

It probably was just a matter of time before this happened, but we hoped that we would be safe right where we are. We held out, hoping that we would not be found and thus did not prepare enough. We underestimated what was coming for us and we had no reason to do so. Grab what you can, make sure that you are armed. we do not have time and we do not have as much as we would like, but we have more than enough to last a long time.

Take only what is needed at first. We need to make sure that everyone is as armed as possible. Anyone less than the others means we are weaker. We need to make sure that any holes are covered and any blind spots are accounted for.

Hear that? That is the sound of it making its way closer to us. It’s slowly, yet steadily making its way through this complex. If we’re lucky it’ll take a wrong turn and give us a little more time. However, I would not count on it.

Once everyone is armed and ready, perhaps the first thing we should do is hide. Once it gets in here we may be able to maneuver around. Perhaps we can get a little but more of ahead start. Even if we cannot, then we can, at the very least get the jump on it and hopefully catch it by surprise. I doubt we’ll catch it off-guard, but if we can at least get the second move, then we’ll have a greater chance of getting out of here. There are doubts as to whether we can stop it and right now it is not something I think we should risk trying to do. If it happens, then we are the luckiest people here, but that is not the aim. We need to get out and hopefully trap it in here for a while. If we can do that, we can work out our next plan. If it gets out, then all we can do is keep running and hiding.

Alright, you’re all geared up. Just in time.

Sounds like it’s at the door. Alright everyone, get into position. Find somewhere where you can get around the viewpoint from the doorway, but stay close to that end. There’s only one chance to get out of here, so we need to make sure we take advantage of it.

Everyone ready? Good. Here comes our chance. Here comes our one chance for escape. Whatever you do, do your best.

Here it comes.

The time it took to write five-hundred words: 09:18:67

I think that I was trying to express pressure in the face of an encroaching, somewhat-unknowable force.

I feel as though this is a bit flat, but it points in a direction, so to speak.

Written at home.

Posted in Fiction | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cupid Statue

Posted on July 5, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

As seen in The Royal Botanic Garden in Sydney.

Whilst this was taken roughly mid-afternoon, the light is as warm as it is as (if I remember correctly) the the bushfires were still in full force. It’s evident from the smoke in the sky.

I want to go back and take this shot again, but from a different angle. I’m fine with how this turned out, but I can do better. That said, I do like how everything is positioned.

There’s space around the statue which I think creates a sense of distance outside of the obvious, and the people around the statue mostly seem to be expressing a sense of interest that otherwise would not necessarily be there.

This is my submission into the one hundred-and-fourth Lens-Artists Photo Challenge.

The theme for this one is “Summer“.

Whilst the bushfires are having an impact on this scene, this was taken in Summer. To me it feels summery, mostly because it doesn’t feel overtly bleak whilst still feeling rather dry.

The challenge is hosted by four people and cycles weekly:

Week 1 – Patti

Week 2 – Ann-Christine aka Leya

Week 3 – Amy

Week 4 – Tina

This one is hosted by Amy. Next week’s host is Tina.

Come on in and join the challenges. They’re fun to interpret and there’s a nice community developing around them.

I hope you enjoy.

Posted in Photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | 7 Comments

Uphill Once More

Posted on July 4, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

I knew that I’d taken a shot similar to this a while ago, but  in thinking of how to name this image I realise that it was the same slope.

When it comes to detail and light balance I do like this one more. In terms of colour it’s a hard call. I think the previous photo is a bit better as it feels a bit more representative of the area. That said, there likely were different conditions in terms of rainfall and temperature when the last shot was taken.

I still like the slop and shape o this hill. It feels almost as though it’s an area you could easily walk through. The grass is good at concealing the ground with its height and prominence; as such it’s not somewhere I’d walk through unless I was absolutely sure it was safe.

I also like how it seems as though the trees are engulfing everything.

I hope you enjoy.

Posted in Photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

One Thousand Word Challenge 54: Writing of This Length

Posted on July 4, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

I’m feeling a little overdue for a writing of this length and I keep on meaning to write some senseless fiction of the length of which I am currently undertaking, but to be honest I’ve no ideas. That’s not really much of a reason to not try and write; It’s not so much that I need ideas as, so long as I start with a chain of something then it can blossom into something else. It would be more accurate to say that I am rather tired, though after a draining day of dealing with people getting angry over things that they should not get angry over (though admittedly there were quite a few who were justifiably angry) I find it difficult to not be tired. That’s the framing that you’re getting for however many paragraphs follow this paragraph.

So anyway, I’m sitting here and writing away and all I want to do is have the energy to finish reviews and not feel like I’m struggling right now. It’s not that bad a problem, but it screws with my productivity. On the plus side (as evidenced by this existing) I am pushing through it, but I do wish I was able to push through it all with a bit more efficiency than I currently am able to. Oh well. Such is the way of things. It’s not like I won’t go to sleep tonight and end up feeling well-rested in the morning.

But of course I am just sitting here and writing about how I am just sitting here writing about how I am just sitting here, writing whilst trying to think of things to write. To be fair, it is one of the things that I write about more than other things but I am trying to move away from it as it seems that I’ve said as much as I care to say about trying to write and trying to come up with things to write. It’s an easy thing to dig into, but that’s no real excuse at this point. What needs to be done is the branching of the out so that I can vary it up a bit instead of saying the same thing as many times as I have.

Branching out… now that is something to write about, but right now that is not what I will be writing about as instead I’m just going to get this done, then share a photo, then make my bed, then do the dishes, then go to bed. It is getting late in the evening and I do want to rest. Well, I want to write, then get things done, then rest and preferably in that order, but if I am not careful than I could very well mess it all up which would leave me in a situation of some level of confusion or imbalance or something else. Either that or I’d just make sure that, once I realise I’m not going in the order that I was in, reorient myself so that I was, or just go with it. There are a few options there for the choosing and so I’d end up choosing one of those, which I guess makes sense as even if I were to walk away from the whole situation, that too would be one of the options that was available to me and so I’d still be within the realm of making the choices that are available to me, or something.

So anyway, I think I need to get back to trying to work out what it is that I’m trying to write about, but I’ve strayed so far from that that there is no turning back at this point. I could turn back but instead I’m going to say that I cannot as that is more exciting and adventurous and leaves a path of uncertainty in front of me even though I know what lies ahead. I;m still going to pretend, however, as that does make the excitement more exciting and right now that is what I’m trying to cultivate, even though this is by all accounts one of the more… well, not relaxed, but perhaps calmer things I’ve written in a long time. Maybe that’s a good thing, but if you are looking for excitement, you might be best served going elsewhere for the time being. Right now this is the place of dull writing, though whether it is or is not is not something that I am able to tell.

Well, I’ve got all of that out of the way so I guess I should start wrapping the whole thing up. Once more I am nearing the end of the text and once more I am struggling, but I think I have a better idea in mind for an ending for this one.

It involves the conjuring of the visual of looking out across a desert that lies in front. It has some features but seems featureless. It seems to stretch on farther than what is imaginable, yet remains surmountable. There is a person standing, looking ahead and trying to work out as to which way is the best way to go. They are yet to know it, but all options lead to some sort of location where something can be gained depending on what it is that the person is looking for. Right now it is all the working out which way is the best way for them and trying to make sure that they are prepared for what lies ahead.

They look back and behind them is the same desert with the same expanse still appearing as though it is insurmountable. They look forward once more and, knowing that they have made their choice, refuse the idea of turning back. They reject what it is that is behind them and look outward, working out how they will follow the path of which they feel they need to follow.

With certainty, they take their first steps.

The time it took to write one thousand words: 14:53:35

Probably one of the more grounded things I’ve written of late. Kind of a mess but still able to be followed… I think.

I have a strong desire to go for the thousand word mark a bit more to see how it influences how I write.

Written at home.

 

Posted in Life | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Five-Hundred Word Challenge 710: All Unfair and so on and so Forth

Posted on July 4, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

Cold morning and it is the weekend and this is all unfair and so on and so forth. You get the idea and you get the picture, but the picture will of course come a bit later on in the day as right now it’s all about the writing and the getting out of the words and that is currently what I find myself doing as something that I am currently doing.

Anyway, cold, cold cold. I should be wearing gloves. I should also be wearing a jacket, now that I think about it, but right now it is all about the gloves. The gloves will help keep the fingers warm and thus will help keep them moving in a way that does not feel stiff. Need to keep the fluidity up. Need to also keep my fluids up. Need to drink more water as I’ve had a bit too much salt in my food as of the times that are considered to be recent relative to what the time currently is, which is the time of writing. So relative to right now (as I type) it is only recently when I’ve consumed many a food with a bit of salt in it which has led to the high consumption of salt which isn’t necessarily good for my health so I need to bring it back down and find a balance.

Of course I am now drinking more water than usual, but soon once everything is back to normal I will consume less water. To be honest, I don’t know if that is how salt consumption works when it comes to thirst so I could be quite incorrect about the whole thing, but that’s okay sa it is a learning experience. Need to be able to take in new information and work out how it stacks up against other information.

Anyway, I think that as soon I do begin the beginning of the work day, I should look at wrapping this all up. I will return later in the day whilst I am inevitably tearing my hair out (in the proverbial manner, of course) to do some more writing. Feeling like being productive and I don’t want work to drain that out of me. I have things to do and my hours are important to me. The doing of things outside of work is more important to me than being yelled at by people getting unreasonably angry over alcohol.

So anyway, this is the wrapping up bit, as you can all tell. In a few sentences I will have finished this little bit of writing and thus will get to the finalising being ready to start the day of work. Well, I would but I already am ready so instead I’ll just relax for a few minutes. Just need to get to the end of this first, but it’s taking a bit longer than I expected, though I wasn’t actually expecting an early end.

Wait:

Here is the last sentence.

The time it took to write five-hundred words: 08:23:12

I think I used too many words to write about things with this one.
Could’ve fit a few more things in.

Not sure why I waited until the afternoon to post.

Written at home.

Posted in Life | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Downhill

Posted on July 3, 2020 by Stupidity Hole

Or uphill, depending on how you want to view the thing.

I really like the slope’s angle. It shifts a little, but almost feels as though it smoothly curves whilst remaining steep.

I also like the contrast in light brought out by processing this view in monochrome.

The whole thing feels as though it is without context. It also feels rather striking, I think.

There’s a sense of expansiveness from the area feeling massive which (other than size) I think is abetted by the shifts in vegetation.

I hope you enjoy.

Posted in Photography | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment