Books Of Some Substance

Meet Alfred Brown IV, educator and vocalist of the LA hardcore punk band Dangers. He’s into Amy Hempel. Like, really into Amy Hempel. Listen in for a deep conversation covering everything from the unintended emptiness of slogan-heavy lyrics to Hempel’s short story rhythm to questioning the need to categorize any type of writing — fiction, non-fiction, memoir, et al. — as anything other than just prose. Make sure you check out Alfred Brown IV as well as his work in Dangers and Cultural Materials. Oh, and grab a copy of that Hempel collection and signal to the world that you are most definitely on the correct wavelength.

Dear World, Kōbō Abe sees your absurdity and raises you one box! A box to live in, specifically. And a box to meld with the psyche of the inhabitant. If it’s not clear, we’re talking about Abe’s 1973 novel The Box Man, a how-to guide on how to construct your own box in which to dwell and/or a challenging narrative (or, perhaps, narratives?) on the nature of voyeurism and anonymity in modern society. Don’t worry, it’s not quite clear to Nathan, David, and Nick either. Listen in for another rousing discussion in which the irrational becomes rational, the meaningful becomes meaningless, and the absurd becomes commonplace. Just don't expect to leave knowing who the narrator(s) is (are).

Clarice Lispector’s 1946 novel The Chandelier is the topic of fervent discussion for David, Nathan, and Nick in this latest episode. Not for the faint of heart (but perhaps for those near to wild ones), this modernist work probes a deep abyss of metaphysical questions including, but not limited to: What is anything? etc. etc. Forever dividing a single moment of time into increasingly smaller slices of moments in time, Lispector asymptotically approaches the concept of defining a single instant and leaves the reader dizzy from attempts to tag along.  Life is beautiful, but do we expect a writer to curate this beauty or to hook us up to the firehose and come back a few days later? Even if there isn’t an answer, The Chandelier’s got enough poetic imagery and deep questions to make anyone feel something.  Just exactly what might not be clear.

On this episode of the podcast, David is joined by author and translator João Reis, author of The Translator's Bride, to talk about lovable literary scamp, the warm and cuddly and optimistic Austrian writer Thomas Bernhard's Old Masters: A Comedy. They discuss the common aspects of Bernhard's style in general—a monologic riff rife with musical patterns of recursive invective as dark as it is humorous—and Old Masters in particular, which aims its hatred at, among other things: museum guides and their “art twaddle,” Russian tourists, public bathrooms, reading too much of a book, nature, newspapers, Austrian culture, the ubiquity of music, the idea of a happy childhood, crowds, teachers, housekeepers, politicians, Heidegger, Beethoven, all the old masters, and the failure of art to be nothing better than a survival skill "to cope with this world and its revolting aspects."        

In this episode of the Books of Some Substance podcast, Nick chats with Alexis Marshall, vocalist of the noise rock band Daughters, about Jean Cocteau’s 1929 novel Les Enfants Terribles (or as it is known in its English translation: The Holy Terrors). Topics of discussion include: Marshall's own approach to writing poetry and lyrics, how The Holy Terrors is a direct allegory of Cocteau’s addiction to opium, and how the atmosphere of this book is both nightmarishly dream-like and kinda like the amplified drama of a reality show. Daughters’ latest record, You Won’t Get What You Want, is available via Ipecac Records (editor’s note: It is easily one of my favorites of the 2010s). Alexis Marshall’s new solo single Nature in Three Movements is out now. The Heartworm Reader, Vol. 1 is available today and features a few poems from Marshall (as well as a few from past guest Ross Farrar of Ceremony). Happy reading. Happy listening. Stay surreal out there.

Twenty years ago, Mark Z. Danielewski unleashed the labyrinthine horror novel House of Leaves, a work of fiction that would make both Daedalus and Derrida proud, a sprawling, convoluted, multi-narrative that pushes the bounds of reading and interpretation. But is there a minotaur of meaning lurking somewhere in the halls of the text? Or is it simply the narrative form of Nietzsche's maxim that "there are no truths, only interpretations"? Join David, Eric, and Nathan as they wander the ever-shifting halls of interpretation within the House of Leaves.  

In this episode of the Books of Some Substance Podcast, Nick chats with Brett Campbell of the Arkansas doom metal band Pallbearer about M. John Harrison’s Viriconium. They talk through how the themes of Viriconium made it into the band’s music, how Harrison’s use of shifting time and memory and place subvert expectations of genre fiction, and how it is an endless challenge as a human to try not to continually categorize and simplify complex things. And perhaps most entertainingly, the two embark upon a hero’s journey of attempting to summarize just what exactly happens in these dizzying stories. Listen in and you too can see this quest to the end! Pallbearer’s latest full-length, Forgotten Days, is available now via Nuclear Blast. Grab a copy of the record, a copy of Viriconium, and get ready to transcend any and all genres.

In this episode of the Books of Some Substance podcast, Nick chats with Alex Edkins of the Toronto punk band METZ on the day that their latest record, Atlas Vending, came out. Alex highlighted J.G. Ballard’s High-Rise as a favorite, so we talk through the psychological, inner-space prophecies of the book and relate it back to our current technology-saturated landscape.  Spoiler alert: we are all animals and the internet isn’t exactly helping. METZ’s latest full-length, Atlas Vending, is available now via Sub Pop Records. Listening to it might just provide enough cathartic release to prevent you and your fellow trendsetting urban condo-owners from sliding back into a lawless, primitive existence and reveling in constant acts of hedonism and violence. No promises, though — results may vary.

In this episode of the Books of Some Substance podcast, Nick chats with Michael Berdan from the New York City noise-rock-slash-industrial-metal band Uniform about Hubert Selby Jr.’s The Room.  We talk about the importance of tone and aesthetic in both vocal delivery and fiction’s prose, about Berdan’s deeply personal connection to Selby Jr.’s writing, and, perhaps most importantly, about how art can be coarse while still delivering a message of hope and compassion.   Uniform’s latest full-length, Shame, is available now through Sacred Bones Records and is, truthfully, the absolute perfect musical accompaniment to Hubert Selby Jr.’s writings.  Grating, boundary-pushing perspectives of humanity abound. We might all be isolated, but we're not all alone.

Hey you there, you listener of substance! All full of the choice whether to listen to this podcast and/or the choice to do good or evil. We get you. John Steinbeck gets you too, as proven in his 1952 masterwork East of Eden. One part character epic, one part soap opera, and one part philosophical tract on the merits and challenges of individual agency, this book undeniably occupies a special place in American fiction. But are the characters maybe a little too one dimensional? Is it a little too loaded down by side story after side story? And did the B.O.S.S. team really do any research when theorizing that he wrote a rough caricature of an evil female after his divorce? (Answer: No, we didn’t. Sorry about that, investigatory podcast fans.) Also making a guest appearance is Diana, Nathan’s vocal coach, as she lends her expert guidance on just how to nail a snappy introduction. It’s proof that, with enough 1950s gumption and elbow grease, we all just might be able to choose our own destinies. Maybe.

In this episode of the Books of Some Substance podcast, Nick is joined by Steve Von Till of the seminal metal band Neurosis for a conversation about Ted Hughes’ Crow: From the Life and Songs of the Crow. Von Till’s prolific career now includes his latest solo record, No Wilderness Deep Enough, and his first published book of poems, Harvestman: 23 Untitled Poems and Collected Lyrics, both of which provide ample material for discussing his approach to songwriting, lyrics, poetry, and their endless overlaps. Naturally, references to the film The Crow are made and Nick predictably (and repeatedly) confesses that he likes things with a dark tone.   Grab some Hughes, some Neurosis, Von Till’s new solo record and/or poetry collection, and settle in for a relaxing discussion of language, art, and the subtleties of everything in between.

In this episode of the Books of Some Substance podcast, Nick is joined by Dylan Desmond of the Seattle doom metal band Bell Witch for an in-depth discussion of Leo Tolstoy’s The Death of Ivan Ilyich. Listen in as we discuss what exactly Desmond connects with in Tolstoy’s writing, how this short novel was remarkably ahead of its time in documenting the emptiness of a materialist life, and how unique of a conundrum death is to us all.   Grab some Tolstoy and/or some Bell Witch (Stygian Bough Volume I, their new collaboration record with Aerial Ruin is out now on Profound Lore Records) and get ready for the comfortable pain of the slow burn.

What’s that you say? Didn’t read Steinbeck in high school? Well then welcome to the safe space of Cannery Row, where one is not judged by achievements or accolades, but by the innate goodness found deep within.   Ahhhh, just kidding, this one’s more about having a rollickin’ good time gettin’ into fights with fishermen, getting thrown into (and buying your way out of) jail, and sharing a snort here and there of the best kind of liquor known to man: free.   Join Nick, Nathan, and David as they discuss the joys of this classic romp — as well as its overwhelming sadness and loneliness — and try to figure out just where or when in American history this might have occurred. At the very least, you’ll leave with some of the warmth to be found in the things that make us human and/or some weird ass gastronomical ideas.

What do you call it when a cynical intellectual, a loyal party member, and a Moravian folklorist walk into a bar? A joke! Or rather, The Joke. Milan Kundera’s 1968 debut novel, that is. Join Nathan, David, and Nick for a lengthy — and tricky — discussion on the individual vs. the collective, the tendency of history to turn into myth, and tips for the best way to unassumingly hide a bunch of laxatives. Is this Kundera jam only a political novel, or does it use a political setting as a way to chase a deeper, more broadly applicable truth? Listen in to find out (but check your Trotskyite humor at the door, obviously).

Good luck summarizing this one, nerds! Listen in as we examine William H. Gass’ holy casket of hellfire and judgment, Omensetter’s Luck, a wild stream of preacher prose, suicide and/or murder mystery, and small-town cat gossip. Seemingly intelligent points are made by the B.O.S.S. gang regarding the book’s odd three-part structure, its allusions to original sin, and Gass’ iterative writing process, but in this episode it’s truly just about the words. Cathartic, unhinged, godly (godless?) passages steeped in rhythmic precision and linguistic excess are the focus here, dear listener. Enjoy the wonderful release that comes with reading this gem aloud — it just might get you through our present day IRL reenactment of The Book of Revelation.

Obsessions! Cacophony! Typography! Listen in as we dissect William H. Gass’ post-modern cult classic, Willie Masters’ Lonesome Wife, a bizarre kaleidoscope of killer sentences, 1960s design, and, of course, gratuitous nudity. David argues that the book’s overtly sexual content actually maps to Gass’ love of language. Nathan provides a breakdown of the typefaces and visual strategies at play. And Nick takes a break from musing on the intellectual properties of eroticism to give a shout out to his mom for (theoretically) making it all the way through this episode. Also featuring a guest appearance by Nathan’s cat, which we’re pretty sure Gass would have wholeheartedly supported.

They say that reading Albert Camus’ The Plague in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic is trendy. Well, it’s not so bad being trendy. Join us this month as David, Nathan, and Nick unpack Camus’ classic work and ask all of the questions on everyone’s minds: Is it logical to do good? Are pestilences real or mere abstractions? Is the philosophical novel genre fiction? For the sake of maintaining normalcy in our now chaotic, fully virtual world, the B.O.S.S. hosts have done their best to stay true to their pre-pandemic IRL characters. Listen in as David aptly summarizes the tenets of existentialism and the world’s associated meaninglessness, Nathan yet again brings up questions about his emotional vacancy, and Nick makes sure everyone knows that he is alternative by comparing the novel to ‘90s straight edge hardcore. Together, we will fight this thing. Break! Down! The walls!

What do you get when you create a society with no fixed gender, a whole hell of a lot of snow, a shitload of shifgrethor, and a week off every month for carnal activities? You guessed it: Ursula K. Le Guin’s The Left Hand of Darkness. Listen in as Nathan, Stephanie, and Nick discuss the many flavors of science fiction, Le Guin’s nuanced role as a prominent feminist writer, and how this book seems to deal with so many moving subjects but also lacks an emphatic touch. Also included are flagrant errors by wannabe scholars Nick and Stephanie, because, well, mistakes are simply a lot more fun sometimes. Whether you are co-quarantining at home or on a thousand mile journey across an isolated, icy landscape with the frenemy of your dreams, let’s partake in some good-hearted attempted-intellectualism together.

Pragmatic non-hierarchical structures! Breaking the space time continuum! The sociopolitical and philosophical dualities that exist between two planets — but also inside us all! Join David, Eric, and Nick as they dissect Ursula K. Le Guin’s often revered classic The Dispossessed. They wonder if the book is the left-wing equivalent of The Fountainhead, if the neon color scheme of the mass market paperback version was an agent of pre-bias, and if they are missing some key aspect of the book that makes this such a beloved tome to many a sci-fi reader. And perhaps most predictably, Nick finds another excuse to talk about the Warped Tour (metaphorically speaking, of course).

What’s the deal with how choppy this Nabokov book is? Is the character of Pnin actually the target of a faculty conspiracy? Or is the real conspiracy the fact that David is secretly employed as a salesman for the word-a-day industry? Join Nick, Nathan, and David for another rousing discussion on Vladimir Nabokov, this time on the (sometimes) beloved Pnin. And don’t worry, even if they may be a bit critical, many a failed attempt at reading Nabokov passages out loud proves who the real master is. Dude’s got some killer words in his employ, amirite?