The GAUNTLET: Paul Christian Glenn

I asked a bunch of my friends to answer the questions in the Gauntlet and discuss their thoughts on the music that means the most to them; here’s one of the responses…

I’ve known Paul since our Freshman year at Logan View Jr/Sr High (it has since expanded to something of an amorphous blob absorbing several rural districts like a hungry alien gastropod, but I digress); somehow, we’ve remained friends, having a mutual respect for our different views on music tastes and the like. He’s a filmmaker who you should definitely check out, with a couple of shorts gaining no small measure of acclaim. It’s my pleasure to have him be the first to respond to my Gauntlet list:

THE ALBUM THAT CHANGED MY LIFE WAS:

Chase The Kangaroo (The Choir)

I bought this record solely because the cover was cool, and it blew my 14-year-old mind. I’d never encountered songs that left me with existential questions. The psychedelic arrangements were unlike anything I’d heard before, and it became my gateway to a whole world beyond the jingoistic pop rock I grew up with. Standout track: Chase the Kangaroo.

THE FIRST ALBUM I BOUGHT WAS:

Perfect Timing (Sweet Comfort Band)

First cassette I ever bought and the first CD I ever bought. Standout track: Don’t Bother Me Now.

THE ALBUM I BREAK THE SPEED LIMIT TO IS:

Souvlaki (Slowdive)

These songs make me feel like I’m flying. Standout track: Alison.

THE ALBUM THAT SHOULD NOT BE IS:

Astro Lounge (Smashmouth)

I mean, screw Smashmouth in general, but I never, ever want to hear All Star again. Ever.

THE ALBUM I NEVER THOUGHT I’D LOVE IS:

Cigarettes After Sex (Cigarettes After Sex)

First of all, what an obnoxious band name. Second, there a faint ASMR quality to this band that’s usually a huge turn-off for me. But the songs are just so damn good, it’s an irresistible album. Standout track: Each Time You Fall in Love.

SOMEONE ASKS ME WHAT MY FAVORITE MUSIC IS, I GIVE THEM A COPY OF:

1965 (The Afghan Whigs)

This is my favorite band, so it’s hard to pick one album, but I choose this one because it includes “John the Baptist,” which is the best rock song ever written. Put it on, turn it all the way up! Standout track: John the Baptist.

THE ALBUM I WOULD WANT WITH ME ON A DESERT ISLAND IS:

Disintegration (The Cure)

It’s got everything I love: lush arrangements, brazen romanticism, unforgettable melodies, poetic lyrics. From start to finish, this album creates its own dreamy, creepy, melancholy world, and I never get tired of visiting. Standout track: Disintegration.

NO ONE WILL BELIEVE I OWN A COPY OF:

Happy Man (B.J. Thomas)

70’s “adult contemporary” at its purest, complete with sappy arrangements and maudlin lyrics. But goodness, do I love that man’s voice. Standout track: Happy Man.

THE SOUNDTRACK TO MY LIFE IS:

Black Celebration (Depeche Mode)

This album hasn’t left my regular rotation since 1989. Standout track: A Question of Lust.

THE BEST SOUNDTRACK ALBUM IS:

Beautiful Girls Soundtrack

Every song is a banger. Standout track: Can’t Get Enough of Your Love by The Afghan Whigs.

::END TRANSMISSION::

The Gauntlet

You can tell a lot about a person by what they listen to. To the average person who just knows me on the surface level, I am an unashamed \,,/METALHEAD\,,/. However, to those who are within my circle of friends that I have allowed to know me on a more personal level, understand that it’s a bit more nuanced than just “I listen to metal only”.

So, in an effort to be a bit more, shall we say, vulnerable–because music is as intimate as anything physical–I have taken the questions posed to musicians in a regular article featured in the Metal Hammer magazine, and answered them myself, with a bit of modification because I am not, in fact, a musician. I call this bunch of questions The Gauntlet. I may ask my own friends to answer these questions as well, whether they be musicians or not, because I am always interested in discussing the personal power of music in someone’s life. Here we go, then…

THE ALBUM THAT CHANGED MY LIFE WAS:

Highway To Hell (AC/DC)

To Hell With The Devil (Stryper)

Okay, we’re beginning this with a tie: AC/DC’s classic Highway To Hell, because it was my first actual taste of hard rock and metal back when I was the tender age of 11; and Stryper’s To Hell With The Devil, because it introduced me to my Lord Jesus utilizing really, really good metal.

THE FIRST ALBUM I BOUGHT WAS:

Rio (Duran Duran)

Again, I was 11, and I had been slowly using the birthday, Christmas and allowance money I saved up on music instead of toys; I was really into Duran Duran, so I bought their 2nd album at the K-Mart while accompanying my grandparents there one evening. I chose that one, because it had “Hungry Like The Wolf” on it, but the entire album is a front-to-back banger, to this day.

THE ALBUM I BREAK THE SPEED LIMIT TO IS:

Rust In Peace (Megadeth)

This was also my first Megadeth album, back when I thought Metallica was the be-all, end-all of thrash metal. This album is just pure speed, and whenever I play it in the car, I always unconsciously want to go as fast as the music.

THE ALBUM THAT SHOULD NOT BE IS:

St. Anger (Metallica)

I usually can find something good about every post-Black Album release (I don’t count Lulu as an actual Metallica release, change my mind), every one except St. Anger. There is absolutely nothing redeeming about this release, whatsoever. It’s badly produced, badly written, the lyrics just suck, and it’s evident that the band that once were the trendsetters were now following the trends themselves.

THE ALBUM I NEVER THOUGHT I’D LOVE IS:

The Sound Of White Noise (Anthrax)

I still maintain that Joey Belladonna was the voice of Anthrax. Back in 1992, when this album was released, I wanted nothing to do with it, because not only did it not feature Belladonna on vocals, but I knew about how he was let go from the band, and wasn’t happy about it. However, about a decade or so ago, I decided to give it at least one listen, and…it’s much, much better than I thought it would be. It’s now not only one of my Top Five favorite Anthrax albums to date, I have a better appreciation for the “John Bush Years” as well.

SOMEONE ASKS ME WHAT METAL IS, I GIVE THEM A COPY OF:

Painkiller (Judas Priest)

Okay, sure, I understand that most would say, “Why not British Steel? Or Screaming For Vengeance? Or Keeping The Faith?” And I’m not arguing with those, as they’re fine representative albums. But for me, from the opening bombast drum solo of the title track, all the way through to the album ender “One Shot At Glory”, this thing is just pure, unadulterated \,,/METAL\,,/.

THE ALBUM I WOULD WANT WITH ME ON A DESERT ISLAND IS:

The Wall (Pink Floyd)

I initially bought this album because of the song “Another Brick In The Wall, Part II” (the “We don’t need no education” song from the radio), but soon the entire album grew on me. This was my first introduction to what is a concept album, and even after all these decades, listening to this thing not only never gets old, I always manage to get something new out of it with every listen. So yeah, if I found myself on an island and this was the only thing I had to listen to for the rest of my days, I would be just fine.

NO ONE WILL BELIEVE I OWN A COPY OF:

First Class (The Boones)

Look, there’s a lot of music in my collection that many who know me well won’t even blink an eye at, simply because they know that my taste in music beyond \,,/METAL\,,/ is incredibly varied and nuanced. However, I have to admit I have no idea how this album found its way into my collection. So, you might say that even I can’t believe I own a copy of an album put out by Pat Boone’s daughters from the 70s.

THE SOUNDTRACK TO MY LIFE IS:

The Last Temptation (Alice Cooper)

When it comes to my Christian faith, it’s not what you would call your normal American Evangelical variety, and this concept album by the undisputed king of dark theater for the mind is eerily uncanny at how close the storyline parallels my own journey through the valley of the shadow of death. The final song still sends chills down my spine to this day.

THE BEST SOUNDTRACK ALBUM IS:

The Crow

Last Action Hero

We opened this with a tie, and it’s fitting that we’re going to end this with a tie: The soundtrack to the 1994 movie The Crow is the perfect collection of music to brood to, as well as having perhaps the most perfect song from The Cure in existence (again, change my mind). The soundtrack to the 1993 movie Last Action Hero, though, is near perfect in that it has songs from varied hard rock and metal sources, like AC/DC, Alice In Chains, Megadeth, Fishbone, Cypress Hill, as well as a freshly John Bush-fronted Anthrax, all on the same disc.

Whelp, there we have it. How would you answer these questions yourself? Even if you don’t like metal (for whatever reason), what are the albums that mean the most to you? Let me know.

::END TRANSMISSION::

It’s Thirteen O’Clock Somewhere…

Yesterday morning, I started my day by going to one of the blogs I check out on a daily basis, to see about updates. There was one that began the new article with a quote taken from the George Orwell classic 1984. It’s a book that, in my not-so-humble opinion, should be read by everyone, everywhere, at least once in their lives, and for obvious reasons. But, I digress.

After reading the quote, I decided to gather together a handful of my favorite quotes from the book, and post them here. I would urge you, tender reader, to seek out the book and read it for the entire context to all of these quotes; in the meantime, here they are, along with some of the more striking book cover artwork over the decades:

It was a bright cold day in April, and the clocks were striking thirteen.

What can you do, thought Winston, against the lunatic who is more intelligent than yourself; who gives your argument a fair hearing and simply persists in his lunacy?

The horrible thing about the Two Minute Hate was not that one was obliged to act the part, but that it was impossible to avoid joining in.

Winston woke up with the word ‘Shakespeare’ on his lips.

The heresy of heresies was common sense.

“I enjoy talking to you. Your mind appeals to me. It resembles my own mind except that you happen to be insane.”

History has stopped. Nothing exists except an endless present in which the Party is always right.

But it was all right, everything was all right, the struggle was finished. He had won the victory over himself. He loved Big Brother.

::END TRANSMISSION::

REHAB, Day 21: 9/23/2022

Fuck this day. No, seriously: Fuck. This. Day. With a spiked metal gauntlet and no consent. I am still recovering from the massive anxiety-ridden breakdown that was this day. Let’s review, shall we?

The day began by waking up at 5am, needing to use the restroom. Then, after checking out a blog that started with a quote from the book 1984 by George Orwell–the quote being What can you do, thought Winston, against the lunatic who is more intelligent than yourself; who gives your arguments a fair hearing and simply persists in his lunacy?–I decided, as a larf, to share a few of my favorite little nuggets from that particular literary classic on my social pages. So, I gathered together a couple of handfuls of quotes, grabbed a bunch of vintage book cover art from past publications of the book to go with each quote, and uploaded them to my Facebook and Twitter accounts, with the aim to do a full post on them on this blog later in the day.

After breakfast, though, I was visited by the resident social worker and one of her aides to inform me that the decision was that I was to be discharged; as to when, they were meeting to determine the date. Since they were rather vague–stating “it could be tomorrow, it could be some time next week”–and knowing that my sister and mother didn’t want me back at the farm, leaving only the Victorian to go back to despite it being the last place to be for healing up my wound, the anxiety-fueled breakdown commenced for the next few hours, well into the afternoon. I was overwhelmed by feelings of abandonment by my family. Angry because no one seemed to be listening to me.

Then came OT. I wanted to get out and do something that would get my mind off of that. Only thing is, that was when my sister decided to text me, further fueling my breakdown. They aren’t coming this weekend to talk. Suddenly there’s something more important to do than this. I get it. Fine.

Decided to try and numb the pain by way of the pain meds. Have been taking them every four hours or so. Napping every so often, not really getting a straight 8 hours during the day. Still trying to process having to be back on the second floor, trying to figure out how I’m going to best get up and down those steps. No place to put the wheelchair, or use it effectively. Back at square one. Mother suggesting the Towers in Fremont. Problem is, there is no income for me at the moment. Not until I’m able to get onto disability; and as my dear person pointed out, it takes a while to get that kind of housing. You can’t just snap your fingers and *poof* better accommodations. As my sister oh so glibly put it a few days ago, I have to work with the cards I am dealt. And really, I’m fine with the Haunted Victorian, it’s just that the biggest hurdle are the stairs. I can work with those. Everything else…I’ll cross those bridges when I come to them.

And as symbolic to how this day went, late tonight, I hopped into my wheelchair to take a quick jaunt to the vending machines down the hall, as I had a craving for some Cheetos. I get to the vending machine, and it was out of Cheetos. Well, they had alternate Cheetos: the Puffy and the hot varieties. But, I am strictly a Crunchy Cheetos guy. Of course they would be out of the one thing that would bring me a modicum of joy during what I was now referring to as “Black Friday”. So, I just grabbed a bag of regular Fritos and the Honey BBQ Fritos Spirals as consolation prizes. They still went great with the last bottle of Mountain Dew.

::END TRANSMISSION::

2 Timothy 1:7-8

For the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us power, love and self-discipline. So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me his prisoner. Rather, join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God.

Scripture promises those that preach the Gospel to expect suffering and persecution. Here, the Apostle Paul tells his young protégé Timothy to expect suffering, but also promised him that God would give him strength and that he would be ready when it was his turn to suffer.

In his time, Christians were being persecuted, jailed and put to death loving and following Jesus and spreading the Gospel. In modern times today, while there is no outward persecution of Christians like that of the First Century, sharing our faith, the Gospel of Christ Jesus, can be difficult. Fortunately, the promise that Paul gave Timothy all the way back in the First Century CE¹ applies to us now: we can rely on the Holy Spirit–Who was imparted to all believers the moment we repented and trusted in Jesus’ atonement–to give us courage, whenever we need it.

This courage I need…on a daily basis…I praise You, Lord Jesus…have mercy on Your unworthy servant…

::END TRANSMISSION::

¹or “AD”, if you’re old school like myself

REHAB, Day 20: 9/22/2022

Today hasn’t been as big of a depression triggering existential quandary as it was yesterday. Went unconscious at around 11pm, didn’t wake up until 5pm. Boy, did I need to pee.

Watched Minions 2: The Rise Of Gru, then Kung Fu Panda 3 in the morning. Wound vac change. Due to the one CNA that clearly has an issue with my natural way of talking–deep, deliberately and commanding–I almost missed out on lunch. Again. I can understand how my way of talking can be taken as as off-putting, especially with what I tern is resting grumpy face. But, come on. If that’s what sets you off, perhaps this isn’t the profession for you. I refuse to show anyone disrespect by acting differently from how I am with everyone else. You’re welcome.

Picked up by Brian and taken to the pub. It was a much-needed outing. Really missed the Exalted Geeks. I don’t know when I’m going to be able to do this again. Many of the Exalted Geeks showed up; we had to commandeer a couple of extra tables besides the two which are normally reserved for us. The chicken strips were delish.

::END TRANSMISSION::

A Quick Word About The Podcasts…

Hey, so, it’s been a while, here’s what’s been happening with the podcasts, both NECRO SHOCK RADIO and the Movies + Beer Podcast…

Because of recent health events in my life, I had to cut my Soundcloud account back down to the basic free account, which means that I am very limited in what I can post there. As such, I had to make the hard decision to essentially delete all the past shows, and going forward, when I get back to doing NSR, the episodes will be limited run, depending on how many I can fit on the platform. I hope this will be temporary, but these are the cards I have to work with. As to when the shows will be coming back…I don’t know.

As far as the Movies + Beer Podcast, all the shows there will eventually be moved over from Soundcloud to Anchor. That means that the episodes will be available on both Anchor and Spotify, and possibly more in the future when I have the time to figure out how to set them up. I’ve been talking with Brian and the other Exalted Geeks about current episodes, but like with NSR, right now I am mostly focusing on the (temporary) setbacks with my health issues, while any future episodes are a bit more spaced out than usual.

So until then, I’ll be working hard to get back up to producing more content. I’ve been getting back to writing out reviews on my perpetually backlogged archives, as well as always viewing new movies to get to, so there’s not a lack of material to work with. To both of you who actually follow all of this, I will be back. Thanks for watching.

–James “Uncle NecRo” Case

REHAB, Day 19: 9/21/2022

Started the day by being informed by the social worker here that they were meeting today to discuss possible discharge by Tuesday, due to the insurance company once again not giving a shit about anything but numbers. Seems no matter how many times I try and explain why I was there in the first place, it doesn’t matter. Even with talking with my sister, I don’t think that I have very long here.

Due to my mom’s own condition, going back to the farm is no longer an option. That was made quite clear by my sister. With going back to the Haunted Victorian not quite the option, my sister suggested to just move into a ground floor apartment. Like I could just do that. I can’t. I have no options.

Things look really bleak right now. The one person who I hoped would be there with me, as I am with them, isn’t. They haven’t even so much as called after I arrived here. Things are stressful…but their friendship is what I so desperately need…

I want to be numb, now. I don’t want to exist now. Please, let me die. Please.

::END TRANSMISSION::

Dream Journal

This all came to me in my dreams last night:

She sneered at me as I was lead into her chamber. “Well,” she said, not even attempting to hide the contempt in her voice, “it looks like the enemy of my enemy has become my friend. For now.”

“I still don’t understand why we’re enemies,” I said. The guard on my right drew her knife faster than I could see, and held it up to my throat in the unmistakable universal warning to not speak the their leader again.

But then…what was this? There, but for a split second, there was a crack in her façade, and a look of sorrow and regret betrayed her hard exterior shell, the mask she had to wear for the benefit of leadership during this war. That was quickly gone, however, and the hardness returned.

“Put that away,” she said to the guard that held the dagger to my throat. Then to both of my consorts, “Undo his bonds, and leave us.” They complied, and soon we were left alone.

I believe I can work with this bit of whatever my brain concocted while I was unconscious…

::END TRANSMISSION::

REHAB Day 18: 9/20/2022

I woke up. I had breakfast. I wrote. Vitals were taken. I ate lunch. My Aunt Joyce arrived, and decorated my room with Spooky Season things. Eyeball garnish. Skeleton wall hangings. A sparkly witch and her kitty. A bottle of magical soap. It’s the most wonderful time of the year.

PT workout, the almost immediately afterwards (and after being told I wasn’t on the schedule), OT showed up for their pound of flesh. Brian then arrived, took me to the pub for what was supposed to be podcast recording time, only to discover the Zoom mic may not work as an external USB mic anymore. Will have to test it with batteries.

Consumed the pork tenderloin that one can only find in Dunlap that was smuggled into the rehab center. That and the pub chippies were probably the reason my blood sugar was so high tonight. Worth it.

::END TRANSMISSION::