Two Nuns and a Pack Mule by Rapeman - CD (9/10)

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There’s still quite a bit of Big Black’s sound in this Albini follow up project. The guitar (there’s only one this time around) screeches with the same fury as before and, this time around, he’s found a human drummer. As one might expect, the songs have more of a live feel and are less industrial-sounding. I’m not sure how I feel about that. Being the synth-nerd I am, I tend to favor the more mechanized noise of Big Black. That said, most of the tracks on this disc are pretty great. However, looming around the edges are songs like “Budd” which showcases the indy-rock-jam-band self indulgence of those later Shellac records.

The Declaration of Independents by Nick Gillespie and Matt Welch (8/10)

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This was a nice manifesto of sorts that hits all the right marks in terms of what it means to be an “independent” in today’s political climate. The authors are both libertarians, so I mostly agree with much of what they had to say, although I suspect they may be succumbing to a little confirmation bias when they read “independents” as being primarily libertarian. They make their best points when explaining how everything is better today than it was in the past and most of that progress had nothing to do with politics. It’s a nice continuation of the many of the ideas that where developed in the excellent The Future and Its Enemies. There is also plenty on how, once you get past the rhetoric, Republicans and Democrats are more or less the same.

Before They Are Hanged by Joe Abercrombie (8/10)

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Although I was disappointed by The Blade Itself, I decided to continue on with the series to see if all that plodding, plot-less character development was worth the time I invested in the book. As a matter of act, it was. Book two feels more structured and the characters actually have goals that almost relate to one and other. Plot-wise it’s some pretty standard stuff here: there’s the quest for the magic object of ultimate power, the great battle against the foe from afar, and the well-nigh impossible stronghold defense against foe from afar #2. What sets this book apart from other fantasy stories I have read is the general unlikability of most of the main characters. Just when you think there might be a moment of redemption things always seem to go back into the crapper. That said, I am going to continue on to book three expecting a big payoff that will be soured some how.

Remember When…

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Ok, so this is my response to this thing that’s been passed around Facebook for the past few months. The original says, “Remember When Teachers, Public Employees, Planned Parenthood, NPR and PBS Crashed The Stock Market, Wiped Out Half Of Our 401Ks, Took Trillions In Taxpayer Funded Bail Outs, Spilled Oil In The Gulf Of Mexico, Gave Themselves Billions In Bonuses, And Paid No Taxes? Yeah, Me Neither… Pass It On.”

My first response was, “Well yes, as a matter of fact, I do remember when Planned Parenthood, NPR and PBS didn’t pay taxes.” But that sorta misses the point. I suppose the message here is that those nasty teabaggers and other fiscally conservative-types are demonizing these wonderful institutions while corporations are running rampant and ruining the country (nevermind that it was the corporate bailouts and crony capitalism that sparked the whole tea party movement in the first place).

My real issue with the meme is that it is a textbook example of a straw man argument. Nobody on the other side is accusing teachers, etc. of these sorts of awful things. All that is being called for is a little budgetary restraint. Is asking public employees to tighten their belts (like everyone else in the private sector already has) that horrible? Aren’t PBS, NPR and Planned Parenthood valuable enough institutions that they can survive without the small percentage of federal dollars they take in? Geesh. Lighten up lefties.

Oddworld: Stranger’s Wrath on PC (7/10)

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This is the fourth Oddworld game. The first two were great 2-D puzzle platform games of which I was reminded of when I played the excellent Braid. In the X-Box era Oddworld moved into 3-D with Munch’s Oddysee. After having purchased all four games during a Steam sale, I immediately jumped in to Munch’s Oddysee. Oh my god. What a horrible game with horrible controls, animation, and everything. I gave up after about 4 hours of tedium. Fortunately, Stranger’s Wrath takes a completely different turn.

Stranger’s Wrath is a hybrid platformer/FPS game. Unlike its predecessor, this game actually manages to be controllable despite its limited console-inherited customization settings. The FPS parts of the game are nowhere near Half Life FPS game play standards, but they work well. The gimmick here is that you have a single weapon with a variety of ammo that does everything from tie up enemies to lure them into environmental hazards. I think the idea was that you would approach combat as though it were a puzzle with an ideal ammo solution. In reality, it doesn’t really work out like that. I just spent most of the time using the machine gun bees.

The story doesn’t really take shape until the last third of the game. Up until then, much of it seems like a series of samey quests. However, I did like the way the game’s main plot twist played out in that last third so stick with it if you can. If Oddworld Inhabitants ever decides to continue this series, they’d better hire some more voice talent. Having every creature in the game voiced by one dude is just lame.

The Changeling (8/10)

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The film opens with George C. Scott witnessing a horrible car accident. The story then shifts to four months later with George, still distraught over the tragic loss of his station wagon, deciding to move into a big empty mansion in Seattle. What proceeds is a bloodless, yet creepy ghost story that reminded me much of The Ring. As the details of the haunting are revealed the movie loses its creep factor, but the mystery and (as expected) great acting kept me engaged until the climax.

Zeno Clash on PC (8/10)

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Zeno Clash brings brawling and melee combat to the FPS genre and makes it work. Whenever a game has attempted this in the past it has always been kludgey. Mirror Edge is the only game I can think of that came close (that, and maybe the boot from Duke Nukem 3-D). The fights in Zeno Clash work because the action is a little bit slower, more focused and the dodge and block mechanics require timing and skill missing in your typical button masher.

On top of this is a wildly inventive art direction in which your tribal hero meets humanoid bird creatures, giant moles, a squirrel bomber and a number of other truly imaginative enemies. The environments are a bit sparse and the creature animation can be wonky, but these technical shortcomings don’t distract much from the game play or the interesting, flashback-heavy story line.