The best thing about break is a lack of colleagues or students in dept. Blasting this new release today and revisiting the back catalog as well. Bandcamp fugazi.bandcamp.com Albini Sessions (Benefit for Letters Charity) - Fugazi - Bandcamp

Crappy day, dreich weather so escaping and heading to the cinema tocatch opening showing of The Bride.

It's nice to be able to upgrade and pick up Deluxe versions of some favorite series. Yesterday's bookmail was the latest 2 Malazan from @subpress.bsky.social now joining volumes 1 - 4 on a rapidly running out of room bookcase

Getting back into groove and avoiding the news with my regular Saturday cinema trip. This week, a wee bit of gonzo time-travel stuff with Sam Rockwell who plays bathing crazy so well.

So Dan Simmons died. To be honest, after hearing about his descent into more than a wee bit extremist views, it's good nothing came out in the last decade or so as separating the artist from their work would be tough. Obviously Hyperion and the Terror are great but he also wrote two other standouts

Grading music for the night. All of a Sudden I Miss Everyone by Explosions in the Sky. While the original album is great, the bonus disc of remixes especially Fourtet's Catastrophe and yhe Cure raises the standard even higher..

First 8 of 23 group research papers graded so taking a break and hitting the cinema. Whatever the flick that the line skipping entitles rude ass-hats are going to, it's not Crime101 since im the only one in here...

Also in the mail - @thebrokenbinding.bsky.social Murderbot set which are lovely looking books and begging a reread!

Latest bookmail but it's nothing new. For almost completeness (please redo #2), I picked up the @lividian.bsky.social version of Speaks the Nightbird - i have a signed original HB so this is a reading copy and copies of 3 -10 from both Sub press and Lividian on the shelf.

Wading through the grading of research papers and the soundtrack is cranking up the first 4 Catherine Wheel albums which are an absolute stellar run of releases. Well crafted songs and amazing production and sound quality plus the Talk Talk references on Happy Days are just the cherry on the top!

Today's soundtrack for sorting conference registrations + schedules is 2nd album by Zombi - Surface to Air aka what Rush would sound like if just bass, drums and keyboard or possibly progressive space rock. Great album for just cranking through Googley forms with the odd break for air drumming..

Todays CD is a long time favorite. Weirdly I had never come across them in Glasgow but at Phoenix Festival in 1997, I remember a wee bloke with guitar in a big anorak and an awesome sound. Young Team dropped soon after and been a fan ever since catching them on both sides of the pond.. @mogwai.scot

While I should be watching the sportsball, I'm instead unwrapping and indulging in the excess of 70s progressive rock. This was one of my gateway albums received on double gatefold vinyl with one song on each side as a birthday present in 80s.. This is the reissued 2026 excessive 12 CD box

Avoiding -48 degree C windchill and staying in the house meant plenty of time to finish off the latest puzzle on the table

It is a balmy -27 degrees Celsius out there with feels like -42 from wind so heading home after 2 hrs of science outreach and subsequent tidying up. My 2,000 piece puzzle is calling as tonight, there will be no frolicking in the outsides...

Seen a good few hundred bands over the years and of them one of the greats who I think i got to see 10 or so times was Midnight Oil who were an intense and tight live act powered by an amazing drummer Rob Hirst who just passed away. Cracked open the Tanks tonight and loaded up the CD player....

Taught my 5 x 3 hr labs for the week, all handouts and assignments posted, urgent emails cleared and don't feel bad especially as pulled 3 x 12 hr days this week to cut out early and visit the Bone Temple

Taking a break from setting up course materials and news that is depressing as hell so cinema trip #2026cinema#1

Meant to post on Saturday but ventured out into cold for a trip to local used bookstore. Main purchase was almost all of Realm of the Elderling series by Robin Hobb - missing 2 in Middle trilogy - i read 1st 3 in undergrad, hit grad school when Ship of Magic came out and never got back into it

Picked up the complete series of Fringe at local thriftstore for $3 a season. Kind of watched it off and on when it got started but gave up and never caught up with it on streaming so here goes...

Got home yesterday to a wee bit of nostalgic Blurays in the mail. I grew up watching Blake's 7 so seeing it finally get released here in the US is great. And I saw Dust Devil premiere at the Edinburgh Film Festival back in 1992. @umbrellaent.bsky.social does a truly fantastic job on the reissue

Plan was get all grading done, get grades submitted and catch the new Avatar. When the weather is described as either life-threatening and zero travel advisory then guess no movie for me...

Serious grading time as i make a start on ~50 first year chemistry papers. This year's soundtrack is 5hrs of dark ambient suggested by a rematch of the Incredible movie The Empty Man. So the Playlist is Lustmord: Others and the remix albums OtherDub and The Others - Lustmord Deconstructed..

Long couple of weeks of linked experiments in the teaching lab so lots to bleach/ clean etc blasting Echo Dek by Primal Scream, the dub mixes of Vanishing Point and If They Move Kill Em EP in honor of Mani who is just found out passed away..

Finally got home and a couple of absolute units of gorgeous in the mailbox. Leviathan is from @lividian.bsky.social press by way of @subpress.bsky.social and the final volume in the Matthew Corbett series. Signed boxed, #661 of 750. Embassytown also signed from @thebrokenbinding.bsky.social

Feeling a liitle oppressed by @aptshadow.bsky.social since went to pick up latest order at local bookstore ehich included the new novella and came home to 2 more in the mailbox. Children of Time Reissue is gorgeous

Probably spent more than had hoped but having first seen them back in 1992 at the SECC and many times after coming to the US, I kind of had to plan on Chicago next summer

Today's bookmail. Hit Bucket o' Blood books in Chicago when at Riotfest. Had them shipped as flew in so just got box today. Highlights: Filled a couple of gaps in my @annodracula.bsky.social collection, a hardback Triffids (had a battered paperback) and a folk horror movie guide amongst others

Chunky bookmail today as I got my latest stack from @thebrokenbinding.bsky.social in the form of 4 books and 3 novellas all signed by Ryan Cahill which make up the Bound and the Broken series...

No more concerts as I have to head back to Minnesota but just enough time to stop by Bucket of Blood books, a cool fantasy / horror store and Open Books (a charity store supporting adult and child literacy. No haul pics yet as I get my books shipped so they don't have to fly with me

Not rushing in today to Riotfest, main bands on bill are Bad Religion, Idles, Jawbreaker and Linda Lindas and leaving early to make Aftershocks with Marky Ramone, Buzzcocks and Naked Raygun at the Metro... So getting my punk quotient up at the end..

Riofest day 2 was mind-blowing. The Damned, The Buzzcocks with stand-out 'Why Can't I Touch it it', Gwar and crushing set by Helmet. But winner was James - 9 piece lineup, great setlist (Sound, Sometimes) and Born of Frustration - lose sight of Tim Booth only for him to pop up right in front of me

Riotfest Day 2 and while not as solid as yesterday, my standout band at this year's fest - @wearejames.bsky.social. First saw them way back as an undergrad ~35 years ago in St. Andrews then whenever I can since.. Last few albums are superb (yummy, Extraordinary times) so looking forward to this

Quick chill / food at Riotfest. Most of day at Weird Stage - Shonen Knife, Mac Sabbath and Puddle Pity Party were awesome, Camper Van Beethoven straight down to business and killed it, Hold Steady solid as always and a band crossed off bucket list as finally got to see Sparks Who did not disappoint

Excellent gig tonight by Minus 5 and Baseball Project at Thalia Hall in Chicago. Great songwriting and a fun performance by a very tight band (Mike Mills and Peter Buck of REM, Steve Wynn of Dream Syndicate, Scott McCaughey of Minus 5 and Linda Pitman (Golden Smog and many more)

Day 3 of a 6 day concert run. Last night was Xoth, a cosmic death metal band kicking off their tour in Fargo.. Tuesday was Steven Wilson in Minneapolis and I just landed in Chicago. Tonight is Baseball Project featuring members of Minus 5. Dream Syndicate and 1/2 of REM then 3 days of Riotfest

Well that was a first. Went for my flu shot and the pharmacist is a former student, teaching assistant and student leader for my science outreach. I know students have graduated, gone on to medical / pharmacy school but first time one has been the one wearing the white coat..

Because double-billing these two movies today will in no way mess me up

Got my poster for conference done and sent to printer so cracking open these awesome sets.

Excellent wee show tonight by @davidclowery.bsky.social in Fargo. A wonderful blend of storytelling and solo acoustic songs.. Standouts were Disneyland Jail and Cracker song Big Dipper.. New CD set which he squiggled on for me is excellent and worth checking out..

Today has been working on an Excel data grind - importing and background correcting 200+ spectra of microplastics so what better for working music than weird sci-fi / horror soundtracks

Heading back to US after a wee trip to Scotland via Heathrow. Joy of airport exclusives meant I was able to grab latest in Logan McCrae series along with one last bottle of Irn Bru (not pictured)

Back in Balloch for a wee bit so a walk round local park and that gorgeous view of the Loch

Kid today says I look like the guy in his favorite movie. Would have accepted Tom Cruise or even Gerard Butler in the live Train your Dragon but nope, beard makesI look like Steve from The Minecraft Movie

Decent haul from a day hitting my two favorite bookstores: Uncle Edgar's and Magers and Quinn and now Bob Mould with band at the Palace Theatre

Celebrating Good Friday with a Scottish wall of noise and Mogwai at the Varsity theater in Minneapolis.

Taking a break from grading- averaging 45 min per paper and 21 done so far, 7 to go so plan is a cinema day. Late morning Mickey 7, then slum it with either Captain America or In the Lost Lands and then The Monkey.. haven't done a triple bill for a while

#ratherbegaming. Sometimes you reach for an old friend as these are my original polymerase diceset purchased from the Dragon and George gamestore in Glasgow way back in late 80s. Sadly not gaming as instead using them to randomly select student papers from the folder to grade

New mail today and I was realizing, there's really no other band that feels they have aged and grown old alongside me as much as the Manics. I go back to the early glam chaos, the darkness of the Holy Bible era, transforming through Everything Must Go and then continuing to age disgracefully

Too young to see this in cinema on release but 40th Anniversary release is worth braving the cold for