One of the first novels ever published, Gulliver's Travels is a sharply written satire of 18th Century society and of the folly of human endeavor. Unfortunately, due to the abstractions of size in the text, with the minute Lilliputians and giant Brobdingnagians, the text is often mistakenly read as fantasy and thus tends to be presented to children. This is a shame because Gulliver's Travels is probably the finest example of literary satire ever written. The story should be familiar to most, Lemuel Gulliver is a traveler and ship's surgeon that is repeatedly shipwrecked on alien shores, learning the culture, language and customs of wherever he finds himself.
To go too much into the detail of this text would be to ruin many of the delightful surprises that await the reader, such as when politicians start, literally, jumping through hoops to get elected and scientists attempt to return feces to its component foodstuffs. Although it was Swift's aim to "vex the world" of the Age of Reason, the text remains relevant to contemporary society as humans continue to be unpredictable, foul, political and argumentative and far inferior to the noble Houyhnhnms, a race of pacifist, equine philosophers.
One of the hardest parts of reading Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels will be finding a copy of the text that is not adapted for children, a Penguin Classic or similar is about the only way to find the original in its entirety. If that can be managed, prepare yourself for dense 18th Century English ripe with metaphor and allusion, an annotated version (Norton) may be of some help here. For most, Gulliver's Travels is a novel to challenge, but the rewards can be great, if you haven't encountered this text since childhood, it is well worth revisiting.
Hat Guy
Tuesday, October 23, 2012
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
BAYNH Special: Australian Bands
Well, actually Australian bands that never got the success they deserved overseas. Australian music is a strange beast, some weird stuff has come out of our island nation over the years, it may have something to do with our isolation and proximity to Asia, but it does make life interesting. Sadly, the bizarre beauty of Australian music doesn't always translate internationally and some brilliant acts never really hit outside of native shores. So this is my little effort for my handful of international readers so that they can hear some great music that they may otherwise never come across.
TISM (This Is Serious Mum)
Ok, so the song "Everyone Else Has Had More Sex Than Me" did go viral back in the day, but aside from that blip, TISM have never really had much international fame. That's a shame, because the band's lyrical work is stunning and needs closer scrutiny. I'm a little guilty of not paying them as much attention as I should and I aim to fix that once I'm done here.
Regurgitator
Yeah, I chose Polyester Girl, this song ruled my life for a good six months in school. Regurgitator was an odd little band that I'd have to call "College Indy", a little like an Australian, Gen X, REM if that makes any sense; weird lyrics, incomprehensible videos and the kind of craziness that can only come from a University background. Once, the band locked themselves in a bubble in Melbourne for a month and made an album; they deserve your confused respect.
Radio Birdman
Little known fact, one of the first Punk bands started in Brisbane. Radio Birdman is one of those bands that only beardy music types talk about, the kind with 8 track cartridges who roll their eyes when you don't know who Marc Bolan was. Despite this, Radio Birdman are a fantastic act that have influenced generations of music makers both in Australia and overseas. This song (about Hawaii 5-0) makes great use of traditional rock riffs and the frantic vocals of the infant Punk movement.
These are just some of my picks for underappreciated Australian acts, if you have one or two you want to throw in the comments, I'd love to hear them.
Hat Guy - Steve, I wanted to thank you...
TISM (This Is Serious Mum)
Ok, so the song "Everyone Else Has Had More Sex Than Me" did go viral back in the day, but aside from that blip, TISM have never really had much international fame. That's a shame, because the band's lyrical work is stunning and needs closer scrutiny. I'm a little guilty of not paying them as much attention as I should and I aim to fix that once I'm done here.
Regurgitator
Yeah, I chose Polyester Girl, this song ruled my life for a good six months in school. Regurgitator was an odd little band that I'd have to call "College Indy", a little like an Australian, Gen X, REM if that makes any sense; weird lyrics, incomprehensible videos and the kind of craziness that can only come from a University background. Once, the band locked themselves in a bubble in Melbourne for a month and made an album; they deserve your confused respect.
Radio Birdman
Little known fact, one of the first Punk bands started in Brisbane. Radio Birdman is one of those bands that only beardy music types talk about, the kind with 8 track cartridges who roll their eyes when you don't know who Marc Bolan was. Despite this, Radio Birdman are a fantastic act that have influenced generations of music makers both in Australia and overseas. This song (about Hawaii 5-0) makes great use of traditional rock riffs and the frantic vocals of the infant Punk movement.
These are just some of my picks for underappreciated Australian acts, if you have one or two you want to throw in the comments, I'd love to hear them.
Hat Guy - Steve, I wanted to thank you...
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
Essential Listening: Bad Religion
Bad Religion (or BR) are one of the oldest and most respected Punk acts still recording. Based out of California in the United States, BR is possibly the most politically active band on the planet; organizing lobby groups and raising awareness of even the smallest government misdeeds. I'm not going to go too much into the politics of Bad Religion, as this is a blog about music, but should you be interested in the social justice side, check out http://www.badreligion.com/ for more information.
Bad Religion's name and logo (The Crossbuster [above]), mistakenly leads many to believe that the band is wholly anti-religion, however, BR typically promotes an anti-organized-religion attitude as well as promoting the separation of Church and State.
Musically, a little bit of BR can go a long way; several members of the band past and present have admitted that there is a distinct "BR" sound, as they use the same chord progressions in almost every song. BR's 2011 album "The Dissent of Man" did feature some minor experimentation, but it was overshadowed by the typical BR songs on side one of the record. Despite this, Bad Religion remains one of my favorite bands; their fast rhythm lines and harmonic vocals combine in a unique way that some have tried to emulate, but remains distinctly BR.
Against the Grain (1990)
Aside from having fantastic cover art, this album was BR's first really "big" album, insofar as a Punk album about American Fascism can be "big". The song "21st Century (Digital Boy) charted well in Australia and the UK, partially thanks to its pretty damn cool video. Instead of that, here's a song about religious groups trying to hold back science and advancement in the name of tradition.
The Gray Race (1996)
The concept of a "Grey Race" is not, as it may first appear, about interbreeding to eliminate racial barriers, but instead about the loss of individuality in a postmodern society. "Punk Rock Song" is about the futility of attempting to change the world by making music. However, the act of dissenting is better than doing nothing and hoping things get better.
The Empire Strikes First (2004)
Not actually about forest fires, but rather about the film industry, "Los Angeles is Burning" is my favorite BR song hands down. The bass line is fantastic and great fun to play. Seeing BR do this live was fantastic, the whole venue roared along, way out of tune.
Hat Guy - Missing you is like kissing cyanide.
Musically, a little bit of BR can go a long way; several members of the band past and present have admitted that there is a distinct "BR" sound, as they use the same chord progressions in almost every song. BR's 2011 album "The Dissent of Man" did feature some minor experimentation, but it was overshadowed by the typical BR songs on side one of the record. Despite this, Bad Religion remains one of my favorite bands; their fast rhythm lines and harmonic vocals combine in a unique way that some have tried to emulate, but remains distinctly BR.
Against the Grain (1990)
Aside from having fantastic cover art, this album was BR's first really "big" album, insofar as a Punk album about American Fascism can be "big". The song "21st Century (Digital Boy) charted well in Australia and the UK, partially thanks to its pretty damn cool video. Instead of that, here's a song about religious groups trying to hold back science and advancement in the name of tradition.
The Gray Race (1996)
The concept of a "Grey Race" is not, as it may first appear, about interbreeding to eliminate racial barriers, but instead about the loss of individuality in a postmodern society. "Punk Rock Song" is about the futility of attempting to change the world by making music. However, the act of dissenting is better than doing nothing and hoping things get better.
The Empire Strikes First (2004)
Not actually about forest fires, but rather about the film industry, "Los Angeles is Burning" is my favorite BR song hands down. The bass line is fantastic and great fun to play. Seeing BR do this live was fantastic, the whole venue roared along, way out of tune.
Hat Guy - Missing you is like kissing cyanide.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)