Back in June I posted some photos of the local shops that lost a few bricks in a storm.
Some plastic covering was put up as a short term fix, but the brickwork has now been replaced in full.
In the meantime, the end of the facade that wasn’t torn off was exposed, and it appears that establishment may have been a chemist a long time ago.
To the lower right of the name there are the initials – so far as I could make out – M.P.S and Ph.C. The Kodak logo supports that. I don’t know about anywhere else, but chemists were for a long time the place you took your film to be developed.
Back forty or fifty years ago, when this little shopping strip was built, it would have been the main retail point for much of this neighbourhood. To the north now, which is basically behind the shops, the area was not much developed before the 1960s. This road was more or less the border of civilisation.
Awkward moment at work today when VERY STRANGE heavy breathing sounds were heard coming from the office of one of the senior bods. He came out and explained that he was following the breathing exercises in the mindfulness video mandated by HR. But by then we were well into the debate about whether to call the ambulance or the Vice Squad.
As remarkable as the music I presented in my last post is the fact that I received it at all. Living in one of the world’s most isolated cities does have its disadvantages when buying online, especially in these days of coronavirus when nothing is quite normal. And that includes the tracking services that are supposed to provide you reassurance that your order is securely on its way to your front door, and isn’t sitting beneath a pile of other stuff in a remote back corner of a warehouse somewhere.
Yeah, right.
The Heavy Horses CDs came from Canada. Canada Post advised me that the estimated delivery date was September 10 – which didn’t give me any reason for optimism, since I was checking – and their own website acknowledged this – on September 13.
My experience with the Angry Johnny CDs took tracking tension to another level. USPS provided information up to the arrival of the package in Australia, but obviously that’s where their jurisdiction ends. Unfortunately, Australia Post was no help. The last time I checked, they still didn’t have the tracking number in their system. And that was
(ahem)
TWO DAYS after they’d delivered it.
I didn’t bother trying to track the Robert Rich discs. I just crossed my fingers and hoped they wouldn’t wind up in Siberia.
Good to know I’m bucking at least one trend as I age: most people stop discovering new music by the time they’re 30. I’m still discovering new bands and performers – although, to clarify, they’re usually new only to moi. The musicians whose CDs I recently purchased have all been around for at least a decade. Or two. Or three.
I discovered Angry Johnny And The Kilbillies through one of the Dark Western compilations on youtube. They caught my attention with this tale of crime gone really badly wrong.
Side note: points to Mr Johnny and his distributor, Kunaki, for using plastic CD cases. Cardboard is the preferred option now for containing the physical product, and some of those cardboard covers are works of art in their own right. (As you’ll see later. Stay tuned.) But I prefer the plastic shell, which should last as long as the disc it protects. The silverfish and other vermin that reside under my roof don’t nibble plastic.
But I digress. It was in another Dark Western compilation that I was introduced to the Heavy Horses.
If you love cheerful songs about cowboys roaming the prairie and dreaming about their best gal, you should add some Heavy Horses to your playlist – just for balance. Get some tragedy into your musical diet with these songs about killers and vagabonds.
I came to the music of Robert Rich by a less direct route. Some years ago our national broadcaster took a brief interest in ambient music, through which I discovered the Kranky label. Somewhere along the way I must have seen Robert in one of those ‘If You Like X, You Might Also Like’ lists. I was already listening to medieval chant such as Spem in Alium. Electronic and ambient struck me as the natural progression of that style.
Robert works in the visual as well as aural media. He creates the cover art for most of his releases, and the booklet in the Tactile Ground package features images that might have come from Dave Bowman’s wild ride through the Star Gate. Scorched landscapes. Glowing blue lakes.
Robert’s music is best enjoyed late at night with the lights out. I’ve often fallen asleep while listening, which is probably okay with the man who pioneered sleep concerts.
That line comes from the end of the articlle. Before you get there, you will encounter Joe’s decades-long record of fibbing, misspeaking, and generally treating fact as if it’s a treat to be saved for special occasions.
Speaking of special occasions… here’s Joe at his most eloquent, from 1:58 to 2:13.
That should be in every Democrat campaign ad.
What else would boost Joe’s chances against Donald Trump? Well, it might show signs of actual brain function if he went full African Grey.
And since this is a post devoted to rage-fueled outbursts, may I just send a big Thank You And Fuck You to WordPress management for taking away the old Classic Editor. It worked fine for me and, you know, if it aint’ broke…
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