The Gargoyle

I just finished Andrew Davidson's The Gargoyle. Right away I loved it! I loved the cynicism of the narrator, the biblical immagery, the constant mention of Dante's Divine Comdey and the rich descriptions. The first half of the book is amazing, untouchable. The narrator/protagonist is never named but he describes his difficult childhood, his rise in the porn industry, and his accident/rehabilitation in full detail. I loved how he was a complete asshole even though he was burnt to a crisp. I loved how Davidson would drop little hints here and there that maybe just maybe Marianne Engel's story was true. However, I feel that the story turned from Amazing to Good when he came home from the hospital, and Good to Average towards the end.

As much as I want to love this book in its entirety...I can like it but I can't say that I love it. The beginning I absolutely love. The middle with Marianne's story of how they first met in 14th century Germany I really enjoyed, but towards the end when Marianne was going nuts with the stone carving, it kind of lost steam, and then you just hit this brick wall and you say to yourself "did that just happen? wait let me read that again...Oh, ok." An event that should have been more dramatic, more significant, more memorable, well it was kind of a let down on Davidson's part.

He started off so well, he had this amazing idea, of a love story lasting for over 700 years and towards the end it fell flat. As Marianne Engel became more and more eccentric I found it harder and harder to believe in her character. Plus I think I was more enamoured with the idea of their everlasting love than what was presented in the book. Its just my personal opinion in that if you're going to reveal the mysteries you've been building up in your book then reveal them, don't half ass it, and then have your character hang up on uncovering an amazing piece of human history. Reveal it or leave it a mystery.

Don't get me wrong, this was an enjoyable read, and I cannot belive that this is Davidson's first novel, because, he seems like a seasoned veteran but there's a point in the book where you start to notice that the author had a deadline to make, and while the beginning is completely mezmerizing and original, the end feels a bit rushed, and I do feel a bit cheated, since I feel the things that were promised by the beginning were not delivered at the end.

3/4

Fever Ray

'If I had a heart'


My first purchase off of iTunes. It was only $7.99, and boy was it ever worth it. Fever Ray is the solo effort from The Knife's Karin Dreijer Andersson. It jumps to sounding how The Knife's cousin would sound, to Oriental Surrealism, to Flamenco dancing on acid, to African tribal music, to something that could only come out of Scandinavia.

I don't know. This is my interpretation. Its a wonderful album. Every song is so different and yet so very much the same. Karin's vocals are so bizzare, so crazy, and so beautiful. If you're a fan of The Knife or of Sigur Ros then you'll love Fever Ray!

4/4

1) If I had a heart
2) When I grow up
3) Dry and Dusty
4) Seven
5) Triangle Walls
6) Concrete Walls
7) Now is the Only Time I Know
8) I'm not Done
9) Keep the Streets Empty For me
10) Coconut

*Bolded are my personal favourites

Everytime I try to break free something comes along to intervene

*sigh*

No matter what has happened between us, between them, I will always cherish New York, and this remains my favourite photo of us.

I miss them like some people would miss high school: You had good times, wouldn't change them for the world but you wouldn't go back, never go back.

...adulthood rears its ugly head once again.

FINALLY!!!!!!

I am trying to break your hear - Wilco

Its been two years, TWO YEARS, since I could listen to Wilco's I am trying to break your heart, because before today, every time I've tried to listen to it, it has reminded me of lame fucked up shit that eventually ended a chapter in my life. I love this song guys, and it pained me that [seemingly] it was forever tainted by something that was stupid, shitty, and wasted my time. I could never listen to it because when I did, I would say to my self 'aw man, not this shit again'. So I stopped listening to it, which sucked because it is such a great heartbreaking love song.

BUT

Today, TODAY, I listened to it without thinking back on 'that time', I fell in love with it all over again, just as beautiful as the first time I heard it. Oh Wilco, how I've missed thee, I'll never abandon you again, never leave you!

The Gargoyle

I've been working so much lately that I haven't even touched Andrew Davidson's The Gargoyle in like a week. I miss Marianne Engel and nameless narrator/protagonist. The book is so rich with imagery, and it makes me want to read Dante's Inferno...which I will since I think it will help me understand this book better. The Gargoyle has also made me rethink Christian ritual and immagery and what it really means to be a Christian.

...oh Christianity why won't you just let me go?

That's 2009!

See the ruins of the old world below, that's what our ancestors left us
Our robot masters will know how to clean this mess up and build a better world
For man and machine alike. For the boys and the girls who were slaves building space ships at night
in the florescent light.
Thats 2009.

No we can't! No we won't! No we can't! No!

On cold frosty Martian mornings the chill on my breath is red redder than my mother's blood
when she turned to me and said "This is not how we planned it but we've gotten ahead of ourselves computers rule the planet and the moon and mars as well. We lost the fight!"
That's 2009.

I have a micro chip implanted in my heart, so if I try to escape the robots will blow me apart
and my limbs will go flying and land before the ones that I love, who would wail and would weep
but the robots would keep them at bay, while I shut my eyes for the very last time.
Citizens of Tomorrow be forewarned!