Quarantine Music
What do you do when your tour is canceled due to the virus? You work on the next album!
Here is the first of several news songs/videos from Devon Townsend - Quarantine:
Movie Release Changes
With the world in crisis, one of the many things affected by the virus is the release dates of movies.
Many have been pushed back or taken off the table entirely.
“In response to the severity of the situation in France, we are temporarily closing our Illumination Mac Guff studio in Paris. With this decision we are abiding by the French Government’s guidelines and doing everything possible to slow the spread of the virus as we care for our artists and their families,” Chris Meledandri, founder and CEO of Illumination, said in a statement. “This means we will be unable to finish ‘Minions: The Rise of Gru’ in time for our planned global releases in late June and early July. While we all grapple with the enormity of this crisis, we must put the safety and protection of our employees above all. We look forward to finding a new release date for the return of Gru and the Minions.”
That might seem a lot, but considering the price of movie theater tickets, that’s a steal for a family and even a couple. I’ll be supporting and watching it when it comes available.
Onward is also available for $20 to watch now.
In two weeks, it will be free on Disney+.
Bummed your favorite con has been cancelled? Steven Arellano Rose, Jr. at A Far Out Fantastic Site lists several online cons you can attend both science fiction/comic book and genre writing related. Check it out!
Music Review: Novena – Eleventh Hour
So when I heard that Ross Jennings had a side project band named Novena, I was instantly intrigued. (For those that don’t know, and I’m assuming that’s all of you, Ross is the lead singer of Haken.)
A few weeks ago, Novena released their first full length album titled Eleventh Hour and it is everything a prog fan loves. With Ross singing lead vocals, it sounds like a Haken album (how can it not with his unique voice) but at the same time seems fresh and adventurous. Elements of jazz, Latin, rock, and death metal are interwoven to create a wildly entertaining record. Ross’s clean singing and incredible harmonies are interwoven with death metal growls placed at just the right moments to keep you wondering what direction each song will take.
One of the stand out tracks “Corazon” is a Latin infused prog masterpiece with salsa, death metal, and a way cool hand clap sequence. (It sounds super weird but it actually works.)
I’m so happy to see bands like Haken and Novena ushering prog metal into the 21st century and I’m excited to see what’s to come. This is a must buy for prog fans.
New Releases
This one is from a fellow Dancing Lemur Press author!
Gabe never asked for an angel…
Gabe Montana’s clumsy. He’s overweight, and he’s dyslexic. Worse yet, the bullies make his fifteen-year-old life even more miserable—so miserable he wants to die.
Charley, his guardian angel, says no to that idea, and comes up with a different plan. He’ll give Gabe self-confidence so he can solve his problems, not run away from them. But Gabe wonders why the angel doesn’t just help with the bullies. What’s with this self-confidence stuff?
Can Charley help Gabe stand on his own two feet? Will Gabe give up hope life can improve for him? Or will he finally listen to the angel’s advice?
Young Adult Fiction: Boys & Men / Loners & Outcasts / Bullying
Print ISBN 9781939844668 $15.95
EBook ISBN 9781939844675 $4.99
Find it on Barnes and Noble, Amazon, ITunes, Kobo, and Goodreads
Find it at Amazon
Find it on Amazon
Ready for some new music? Got some new movies to watch at home? Picking up some new books? What have you been doing while the world is put on hold?
Be back April 1 for Insecure Writer’s Support Group post day – and we’ll be announcing the genre and judges for this year’s annual anthology contest!
72 comments:
Lots of books here while the world is in hiatus. And I doubt I will make much of a dent in my unread towers.
Stay well, stay safe.
Yeah, everything in Hollywierd is on hold. At first I scoffed at 19.99 but then I thought about it, and yeah, about the price or a little cheaper for a couple to go to the theater, so not bad indeed.
Hi, Alex!
Bands that mix clean vocals with death metal growls always interest me, and I am excited to learn about Novena's Eleventh Hour. I went to YT and listened to several sections of the 8:30 song Corazón including the part with nearly a full minute of nothing but hand clapping. I envisioned a large room filled with people playing ping pong. It's awesomely different. I like bands that take an experimental approach to rock music, and that's why a few years ago I bought several CDs released by Iwrestledabearonce.
Have a safe and happy week, good buddy Alex!
I actually came up with a coronavirus playlist for my treadmill walks, haha! Yes, new music is a good idea.
I've been trying to keep my mind focused while my empty nest has filled up again (college kid back home now). :)
plenty to read,listening to some old cds, netflix shows still amuse, and my work is open - we are "essential" to our nation's defense. Just have to stay healthy- keep washing those hands.
take care and prog rock on, dude.
Now, the real trick is if fans will be arguing forever if the Valiant Cinematic Universe was torpedoed because of COVID-19, or if there was ever going to be enough fans to wonder about it in the first place...For what it's worth, Valiant's comics in the past decade or so have been among the best superhero comics on the market. Seek out Matt Kindt's Divinity trilogy, for starters (it was followed up by a fourth comic called Eternity, if you're really interested), and then seek out Jan Van Meter's The Death-Defying Dr. Mirage, and then Jeff Lemire's Bloodshot (where you'll meet the adorable Bloodsquirt!). The company's best "event comic" is conveniently entitled The Valiant, meanwhile...
Pat, and the popcorn at home is much cheaper!
Shady, thanks for checking it out. They definitely took some chances.
Joanne, apparently my job is essential as well...
everyone is effected. thank goodness we can get info and entertainment and connect with the internet!
i feel so sci fi right now!
fave memes of the moment are the ones with
"this is what I thought I'd be wearing for an apocalypse" (trinity from matrix) vs "what I'm really wearing" (robe and slippers)
see you next week!
I have been reading more lately and watching Disney movies. I noticed some musicians are sharing music on line at no charge. Just popping in with a song or two. We need music more than ever. A big thank you to those sharing their artistic talents. Music soothes the soul and with so many out of work a song or two free goes a long way. If, you can lighten someone’s day with the gift of song, bless you...
Stay safe and healthy everyone!
Congrats to all the new releases!!
While I'm not alone in the house, my daughter, a teacher, and 18mos. grandson live with us. I do try to get some writing accomplished during this time of self-distancing, but it's not as productive as people might think.
We finished watching Locke & Key, and are looking for another good series. Have any suggestions?
Finally some peace and quiet, imposed but necessary. The alternatives are to utilize time for those not taken up before. Stay safe Alex!
Hank
We dropped most of our streaming services awhile back. I get that 20 bucks isn't bad for a family, but I'm cheap. We pay a fiver each to get in, when we go. So 20 is a bit too much right now. Though I could make the exception for Wonder Woman, though even that, I'd want to own on DVD. So we'll see how it goes. Stay safe and have fun, Alex.
The only prog rock I've listened to is Porcupine Tree (love) so maybe I should check that out :)
Stay well!
I have more than enough to watch on Netflix and Prime so am not worried about the movies not being released. I hope this doesn't start affecting book release dates too. Stay healthy, Alex and everyone else here.
Congratulations to those with new releases. Books are a good way to reduce some of the stress we’re feeling right now. Stay safe.
I’m so grateful that we have wifi and I can receive posts from people like you, Alex. More so it’s a relief knowing you’re okay. I love Rush too! Congratulations to the new books here and everywhere. Blessings.
Thanks for featuring Beverly's book.
I am SO bummed the Minion movie has been delayed.
I am getting a bit antsy over here in California. Part of it's staying inside. Part of it's attitudes. Sigh.
I do want to see Bloodshot.
I hope it does well and the prices of the comics go up.
I should find those comics...
Tony, thanks - I will!
Tara, funny!
Truedessa, very true!
Cathrina, have you been watching The Rookie?
Marcy, you should!!
Andrew, so should I...
Patricia, think how differently it would've been thirty years ago. Then again, would there have been as much panic?
I am not into Prog Rock or heavy Metal...for the most part although I do like Yes. We have many movies to watch! I am trying to get them all organized because we probably have over 1,000 movies. Today is my last day here at the work place and i will be working from home come tomorrow. I have been making cards, organizing, watching movies and going for walks.
Hi Alex - I rather liked Quarantine ... and I'll look forward to more films to see once we're out of this crisis. I have rather more than enough to keep me occupied at the moment ... and I might actually get books to read - so good for those new authors ... hope to get to some of them. Take care of you and yours - Hilary
Quarantine! LOL Good one. The world is on hold but the stocks have crashed. Wish they were on hold because of my retirement account.
I'm doing some reading and practicing my hyperventilating technique and phoning up overseas family members to check on their hourly hand washing rate. And charging round the home with the spray sanitiser at top speed.
Enjoyed the music video - very cool!
Stay safe and well, Alex.
Well that's sad about Gru. Of course, though, Disney is unstoppable - especially now that they closed the park.
Stay well and healthy, Alex.
Yes, the virus has certainly changed our world. But we will survive.
Thank you, thank you for posting about Gabe. I'm so excited about his story. Looking forward to the new anthology, too. Busy times.
My life is actually fairly normal right now. It's everyone else I'm worried about.
Alex,
I enjoyed the mewsic. This song has a real peaceful vibe. I think I'll check out more of Devon Townsend stuff on YT. Thanks for sharing and please join the 4M gang on the dance floor. Have a safe and boogietastic week!
The song was very relaxing. Enjoyed listening. Congrats authors with all the new releases.
Hi, Alex! I always enjoy hearing about your latest progressive rock and metal finds. I've been listening to Ayreon's "The Source," although I realize that blasting my home with "Run! Apocalypse! Run!" might not be the best choice right now. LOL I tried my first FaceTime workout with my trainer today. She knows everything I have to work out with at home because she worked out here with me when our gym was closed for renovations part of last year. Today was brutal, and she asked me if I wanted to add a third session a week on Fridays. Oh joy! Just what I want: another brutal work out. Of course I said, "Yes, woo hoo!" Well, maybe not "Woo hoo," but I can't turn into a marshmallow. Take care, my friend!
New music is good right about now. As for movies, HBO and Showtime just had free preview weekends. Considering how little I go to the theater usually, I recorded a bunch of new-to-me movies, and I should be good for a couple weeks. We'll see how things shake out after that.
Most of my musician friends have had all their income disappear right now because of months of canceled gigs. And most of them are making the best of it by releasing things for free, or sharing live video on FB, or just taking the time to write.
I haven't actually had much down time yet, since most of my work is from home anyway. And we're recording each worship service to release on Sundays, so as long as we stay away from each other and keep our team to under ten people, that's how I'm spending my Thursdays: playing good worship music, separately while together. Other than that one day a week, we're pretty much hunkering down and being sensible and safe.
I am more with the Woodstock musicians, altho a good number of them have died. We went to see John Fogerty a week or so ago. that is where my music is. That and Lynard Skynard, Disturbed, Led Zepplin, Johnny Cash, and Willie Nelson.
We watch most of our movies on Netflix or Disney+ already, so theater release dates don't affect us. But I'm already feeling the pinch of library closures. I'm still a solid "paper" reader, not into e-books at all :(
Hope you are all staying safe, I think we've a way to go yet before we see light at the end of the tunnel.
No more chemistry tutoring sessions for me now that the schools have basically closed. That means I have a lot more time for writing.
I was really glad I got to see Emma before the theaters closed. I've been reading and writing a lot. It hasn't changed my day to day much since I work from home. I really miss church, the library, and seeing people in person. But this isn't forever.
I like the idea of letting the movies come to digital sooner rather than later. We're enjoying our time at home. I started training this week for online teaching next week, and my son and I have been going through the Math he's been struggling with all year. I dare say he's pretty much got it nailed now, and I'm really proud of his hard work.
Stay safe and we'll hope this all gets a solid handle on it soon.
We definitely have different tastes in music, but there are some new albums from the bands I like that I'd like to get. And once we can travel again, I'll probably get them (I don't listen to music at home so much, especially since Hubby is home all the time now). Right now, I'm buying books. Lots and lots of books. And I'm reading them, too! Shocker!
It's tough being in the entertainment business! I've lost a lot of money from canceled concerts!
Birgit, working from home sounds safer.
Hilary, glad you listened to it.
Nila, that made me chuckle.
Beverly, you're welcome!
Fundy, keep working out and enjoying the Ayreon.
Lynda, that's smart to record your music for Sundays.
Susan, Fogerty is still playing? Wow.
Jenni, no, it's not!
Sherry, I'm sorry!
Whatever movies I watch will be On Demand so I can just stay home.
Whoops. That's gonna be tough on Diane having the Minion movie canceled.
Glad to see the word's getting spread on Beverly's book. It's a keeper.
I've been getting a lot of reading done. The local library system closed on St. Patrick's Day and extended all checkouts to three weeks past their original due dates, even the materials which normally are one- or two-week loans.
I love Townsend's music! And love that he's producing new work for us.
I've been busy finishing my new novel. Easy to fill up the time with that and household chores. I hope to watch the new season of Kingdom on Netflix this week.
My writing conference in Chicago was cancelled (we are sheltered in place in Illinois), but they put some of the presentations on line, which was pretty cool. I re-upped with Netflix for hubs, and have been spending time watching The Crown and Victoria (Amazon Prime). And, as idle hands are tools of the Devil, I revamped my website. Something I'd been meaning to do for awhile anyway, and now that we may be facing the End of Times, went ahead and did it.
My daughter's friend is in the new Mulan movie that was supposed to release this past weekend. She was even going to the premiere. Like everything else, it was postponed.
Been working at home for the past week. No writing to speak of since my writing area is covered with work related crap. However, three c.d.'s that I had ordered earlier in March came in, so I might give those a listen. One band in particular is called Jinjer (which I found on YouTube), which is a metal band that features a female lead signer that can switch from beautiful melodic singing to guttural growl singing at the drop of a hat. And got a couple of movies that I had ordering months ago that I may finally got a watch too as well.
As you know, I have been raving about Jonathan Antoine who sings popular and classical music. I was surprised to discover he is into Heavy Metal so I think you will probably be seeing him in that scene in the not too distant future.
Aren't movie theatres closed? I'm pretty sure they are here.
Congrats to Charles and Doreen.
YOU stay safe and stay healthy.
John, you rock!
Lee, I'll have to check out your new design.
Rhonda, both very cool and sad.
GB, I'll check out Jinger.
Jo, they are - that's why so many movies are hitting on-demand services now.
Sandra, staying safe!
Congratulations to all the authors on their books!
We rented Invisible Man last weekend and we'll be renting The Hunt (I think that's what it is) this weekend. I'm a big fan of watching new movies this way. Not only is cost-effective, but we can pause it when someone needs to use the restroom or wants to make popcorn, plus, we get to talk - "Did you see that?" "No, what?" "Look on the kitchen counter!" Rewind. "Oh my gosh! I missed it!"
Elsie
Music is definitely helping me find joy in each day and I can't imagine doing this full on stay at home lock down without it.
Congratulations to all the musicians and authors getting their work out there!
The Quarantine music was rather relaxing. I felt like I was on the dark side of the moon.
Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out
I haven't yet gotten or picked out new movies to watch, but I ordered a stack of books. I also have a new show to binge: Schitt's Creek.
Our older son told us a lot of new-release movies will be offered online, and he's psyched up about it. With his family of six... all of whom want big containers of popcorn and sodas... watching the movies at home will be a LOT cheaper for them. It typically costs him a hundred bucks or more, so this'll be a real savings.
We're still making regular trips to the cancer center, but other than that, we pretty much stay hunkered down in the house as much as possible. Lots of books to read, lots of cleaning and cooking to do, and lots of pool balls to sink. For us, actually, it isn't that much of a change... :) Take care.
Thanks for posting the link to my list of online cons, Alex!
During this time of sheltering in place, I've been trying to get my schedule and so extra time together to get my writing projects done more efficiently. Too much sleeping in.
I was going to try to rent Color Out of Space from Red Box but I got a late start today and started writing my blog post late so by the time I finished the first draft it was already too late to go anywhere. Maybe during the week sometime.
Take care and stay healthy!
Elsie, exactly!
Tyrean, me neither.
Susan, wow, that will be cheaper for him!
Steven, you're welcome.
You're right, Captain! Novena's "Corazon" is outstanding ;-) Love the cover pic too.
there are so many cancellations and postponements due to COVID. It's going to be interesting to see how the world puts itself back together!
I'm honestly surprised that things haven't changed much on TV. No real specials, like runs of movies or old shows. Maybe they just have to get caught up. But no one can really afford to add more, the price is too high when you're out of work.
Must be difficult for you, no movies? Are you doing more reading?
There's a lot of creativity coming from all this social distancing.
Making new films available for digital is a smart move, don't ya think?
Stay safe. Stay healthy.
Making new films available for digital is a smart move, don't ya think?
Stay safe. Stay healthy.
All sectors of the community have been impacted by the coronavirus, but music and movies are up there. I'm enjoying how we can now watch opera free online from the best operas of the world and I'm sure there's other wonderful things happening if I had the time to search! What with tutoring via Skype, my days are pretty packed even though not allowed to leave the house.
Stay safe and well.
I hadn't thought about the effect on movies!
Our quarantine music has been a lot of rock n roll (hmm, I don't think DH's daily cover versions are public on FB). Plus Neil Finn does a radio session every night!
So excited for Beverly! Wishing her much success!
I have been working from home and listening to more music than I get to at work- or maybe it's just now I get to pick the music. :)
Have a great day and stay safe!
~Jess
Alex- it's been a few years since I played A to Z .Is there anything else I have to do besides sign up and build my posts?
I cannot remember if I had to other stuff? Thanks! and thanks for comments over these many years!
See you tomorrow:)
We rented several of the early access releases (Bloodshot, Birds of Prey, Invisible Man, and The Hunt. It was definitely cheaper than paying to go to the movie theater. And no one was texting in front of me. I'd keep paying to view these early access movies if any of them continue, but I have no idea what the numbers looked like for them and whether they'll find it worth continuing.
I have a short list of movies I want to watch while stuck at home. But mostly I've been re-watching. I'm spending more time reading and writing rather than watching.
Thanks for the music! Let us know what you think about Bloodshot! Congrats on all the book releases! Stay safe Alex!
I have no idea how I missed this:( Thank you so much Alex, you are the best!
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