Conrad has been a fixture in the city and it's suburbs for Lo! over thirty years. He works in the very beating heart of it, in what he fondly imagines is the humourously-titled "Electric Goldfish Bowl". On the Saturday after payday he even dares to venture into this latterday Nineveh* to stock up on comics, books, CDs and DVDs. Walking to the bus-stop of an evening he passes the patient Jehovah's Witnesses trying to hand out pamphlets, nice polite people, and he also passes the alcoholic tramps who lurk around the corner from his bus stop, grimy yarking folks.
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| View from a hill: Royton at dawn. (That's not mist, it's smoke: they burnt a witch last night) |
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| Manchester city |
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-29459243
- because it's hard to argue with 2.7 million people and an annual turnover of over £50 billion.
Oh, it also has two football teams. Hang on - you didn't think this was about one of them, did you?
A Clutch Of Powers
Actually, what is the collective noun for a group of superheroes? Or supervillains? "Clutch" seems appropriate for the villains. A "Smiting" of heroes? A "Whelm"? A "Schmaltz"?
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| 15 volumes of raw POWER! |
Apparat Organ Quartet
In fact they used to be a quintet, but are now indeed down to four. They make those lazy gubbers Royksopp look like the Protestant Work Ethic made concrete, having only released two albums in 12 years. The more recent one is "Polyfonia", which is a corker, absolutely top stuff, and which came out in 2010. Conrad has played it endlessly on Grooveshark, for probably a year.
Now, as is my wont, I travelled to that purveyor of exotic sounds Fopp on Saturday last, and, screwing my courage to the sticking place**, I asked about Polyfonia.
I expected that it would have to be ordered as an import from Iceland***, and would cost £25 at least - but no! It comes out in the UK in mid-November.
Just one of those things that put a bit of a gloss on life.
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| In all their Bank Manager rock'n'roll awesomeness |
The science-fiction novel I mentioned yesterday? Do keep up! As I explained - and there will be a test later - it was written by Philip Dick and Roger Zelazny, two wildly differing authors, and part of the book's appeal is wondering who wrote which bit.
Today Conrad appreciated that there is quite a bit of theology in the novel, and he wonders which author was putting across Christian ethos and gnosticism.
| Gnomesticism. Close enough |
He was a Catholic priest and scientist, involved in geology and paleontology, who came up with the concept of the Omega Point - what might be described as an evolutionary singularity that the Universe is heading towards.
"Omega Point" - also a track by Apollo 440 from their album "Millenium Fever"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9wLjYlEZa_A
- where were we? Oh yes. Tibor McMasters is accosted by an intelligent, talking thrush - given the imagery this is probably Roger's writing - who is a bit conceited and self-important. Conrad wondered about the jay in folklore but all that came up was one of Aesop's Fables about a jay trying it on with some peacock feathers, failing to fool the peacocks and irritating other jays.
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| J. Close enough. |
Ah yes, Conrad's one-man war against tabloid tat continues.
Today we had front page and an inner column spread about a small boy wearing a coat^.
Yes, really. This, apparently, counts as news.
IT IS NOT NEWS! GO AND PUT SOME EFFORT IN YOU LAZY GUBBERS!
<vein in temple slowly ceases throbbing>
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THIS is news! If this was overhead, how many people would be saying:"No! Tell me of coats! I MUST KNOW OF COATS!" |
By 1983 punk had become like a zombie, dead but still moving. The band, who are not stupid by any means since between them they have four degrees, a Masters and a Californian licence to raise chickens, realised this and decided to "re-align". This move was condemned by the NME as "selling out", but that week's print run never got printed thanks to a printer's strike, so nobody was any the wiser. The "Skreeming" was dropped from their name, lead singer Rocksy Inflected changed his name (6th time!) to Foxy Selected, they all started to use make-up and Foxy bought a synthesiser (his dad, the Right Reverend, taught him how to play keyboard).
But they still hated rodents:
"Murderous as mice! Murderous as mice!
Yes we wear make-up -
But we're still not very nice!
Murderous as mice! Murderous as mice!"
They are running out of rodents to insult. How long till they reach the Capybarya?
| The Capybarya. Faithful and loyal but a pain in the lap. |
Conrad hadn't seen this film for an age, and was only pondering upon the final climactic shoot-out today. Joe, our titular hero, and a man with a ruthless streak, sneaks up on the baddies lying in wait by the novel method of driving a train off the tracks and - literally - into town.
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| Joe. Gate-crasher. Gate, wall, bar, window and table-crasher, if it comes to that. |
Answers in the Comments, please.
* Another rather naughty ancient city,
** Yes, a Shakespeare quote. Sorry <hangs head and looks sad>
*** This is where they live and perform. Conrad didn't just choose an island at random.
^ His mum and dad are Victoria and David Beckham, who are - I dunno - competitors on X Factor or something?
^^ I know they aren't real and never existed but Conrad feels an inexplicable fondness for these imaginary friends.
^^^ This is sneaky! You'd expect a train to burst out of the gents - but the ladies .....
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