Musings: The Golden Grass - Life Is Much Stranger

New York’s The Golden Grass are set to release their fourth LP, Life Is Much Stranger, on April 7^th via Italian label Heavy Psych Sounds Records. The trio delivers a perfect concoction of classic rock, boogie, bluesy prog rock, and southern hard rock with this new album. Conceived on the heels of three years of pandemic, this record represents a means of catharsis for the band.

After perusing their discography, it’s easy to see (and hear) that this band knows their stuff when it comes to music. One thing that seems to get lost in the shuffle nowadays is the art of writing catchy lyrics and melodies. Even a lot of bands I love write great songs, but they’re not that catchy, and that’s okay too. But sometimes it’s fun to listen to an album that’s chock-full of catchy choruses that make you wanna sing along or roll the windows of your car down to blast a tune for the whole neighbourhood to hear. The Golden Grass excel at penning catchy songs. Right off the bat, the first single, “Howlin”, has a trademark ‘70s classic rock riff and you know you’re in for a good time. “Springtime on Stanwoods” is a more laid-back, memorable tune that reminded me a lot of Bachman-Turner Overdrive’s style. “Island in Your Head” is comfort food with its chill vibe and great guitar tone. “100 Arrows” is a faster rock number, and quite possibly my favourite track on here, with a super catchy chorus. “Not Without Its Charm” has plenty of charm, a terrific contemplative song that steers us toward a tune to bop your head to with “The Answers Never Know”, a largely instrumental standout track. Song number 7 which ties directly into the album’s title, “A Peculiar Situation”, takes us out. Its infectious riff and lyrical structure come full circle in solidifying the band’s sound.

The Golden Grass does authentic ‘70s style hard rock like no other band does. Fans of Blue Cheer, BTO, Captain Beyond, and Traffic will particularly dig Life Is Much Stranger. Classic rock is alive and well in 2023; Love Gang got things off the ground earlier this year with Meanstreak and The Golden Grass keeps the ball rolling. I’m really enjoying this trend of retro rock that’s been going on for a few years now. More please—it’s a nice change of pace from the hundreds of new stoner rock bands that pop up yearly. Life Is Much Stranger comes highly recommended from your friendly Harbinger of Doom.

Heavy Psych Sounds’ The Golden Grass Bandcamp page: https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/the-golden-grass-life-is-much-stranger

The Golden Grass on Bandcamp: https://thegoldengrass.bandcamp.com/ 

Audiobook Showcase: Dungeons & Dragons - Honor Among Thieves: The Road to Neverwinter

Dungeons & Dragons is a franchise that needs little introduction. Initially, it was a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) back in the early ‘80s with an extended mythology that spans across books/novels, video games, a 1980s Saturday morning cartoon, three crappy (for the most part) live-action movies, and a new one that looks pretty damn good coming out on March 31^st, Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves starring Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez.

D&D - Honor Among Thieves: The Road to Neverwinter serves as a prequel to the afore-mentioned upcoming movie. It’s written by Jaleigh Johnson and was published on February 28^th, 2023 in hardback, on Kindle, and audiobook on Audible. The audiobook is narrated by Fred Berman. Here is the book’s official synopsis: “Discover the thrilling origin stories of the bard Edgin, the barbarian Holga, and their whole adventuring party in this official prequel to Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.

Edgin Darvis’ life is a mess. All that he has left are his lute, his dashing good looks, and... not much else. After a chance encounter with badass bruiser Holga, Edgin is forced to take a hard look at his bad choices. But the road to redemption is long, and paved with unforeseen expenses. Fortunately, the world is full of rich fools begging to be parted from their money.

And so Edgin and Holga do what any sensible entrepreneurs would do—they form a crew.

Joined by a charming rogue, Forge Fitzwilliam, and Simon, a sorcerer with an intense inferiority complex, the team sets out to line their pockets with both well-earned and ill-gotten gold. Together, Edgin’s crew battles monsters across the realms: gnoll raiders, fey witches, and more fall beneath their sharp weapons and sharper wit. But when they encounter a new, more sophisticated villain, keen blades and piercing blue eyes may not be enough.

Their target? Torlinn Shrake, a wealthy eccentric known for abusing his servants and hosting lavish parties.

The plan? Play dress-up, sneak into the Shrake estate, and fill their pockets with as much loot as they can carry.

The catch? Shrake is hiding a terrible secret: one that could endanger the lives of everyone Edgin has come to care for—even if the loot is too good to pass up.”

This was my first real foray into a D&D adventure. I’ve never played the game, only watched a handful of episodes of the cartoon as a kid, and saw the atrocious 2000 film once back when it was released. I’ve been meaning to read some of the books, especially the classic four books in the Dragonlance Chronicles starting with Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman from 1984. I know they have a new series of novels out, Dragons of Deceit, that started last summer, with Book 2 scheduled for this summer. Anyhow, for my introduction to D&D, The Road to Neverwinter was a perfect starting point.

As I said, since I’m not that familiar with D&D, I can’t compare it with the 90 plus books already published, but it strikes me as slightly different than those judging by the book covers alone. For one, this book is definitely light fare with a cast of characters that are less seasoned in their respective craft than what I was expecting, but it made it fun to tag along with them in their sometimes-quirky adventures. The fact that this is a prequel to a film also made it easier to put a name on a face—you just have to go on IMDb and look at which actor plays which character and you’ve got the cast fleshed out in your mind. Watch the movie trailer and you get even more insight, so it made for a cool experience, like reading an established franchise with beloved characters like Star Trek or Star Wars for instance.

We follow the group of companions on a couple of adventures before they embark on their main quest, a daring heist: Edgin is a thief with his young daughter Kyra, Holga the barbarian is the muscle of the group, Forge has charm as a con artist, and Simon is an amateur sorcerer. The story moves at brisk pace, it’s full of humour, and each of the players are developed enough that we care what happens to them. Fred Berman does a terrific job narrating the tale and uses different accents for the various individuals involved. I last heard him as a narrator doing Vince Neil’s part in the Mötley Crüe audiobook bio The Dirt, so this was a nice change of pace for him. While we’re on the subject of other audiobooks, there’s one more D&D: Honor Among Thieves movie tie-in book/audiobook titled The Druid's Call written by E.K. Johnston that was released on the same day which focuses on Doric, a character that wasn’t featured in this story. That book is aimed more towards a teen/young adult audience but it’s worth mentioning for D&D fans out there.

D&D - Honor Among Thieves: The Road to Neverwinter is a lot of fun and does most things right. Will it please hardcore D&D fans/readers? I’m not well-versed enough in the D&D realm to be able to give an opinion, but as far as Fantasy/Sword & Sorcery in general is concerned, it was quite an enjoyable read/listen. As far as movie prequels go, this hit the spot for me and I’m now eagerly anticipating the movie at the end of March. It’ll feel like going to visit some old friends. So, if you’re planning on catching the movie soon, you should get a kick out of this audiobook.

Rating: Four stars out of five

Get your copy on Audible 

Stoner Rock Army Presents HazeHound/AAWKS/Sons of Arrakis

My hometown of Montreal has always been a fantastic city for bands to perform live. This week, on Thursday, March 9^th, Stoner Rock Army will host a special night at Turbo Haus featuring three awesome bands: HazeHound, AAWKS, and Sons of Arrakis.

To open the festivities around 8:30 PM, Montreal’s own HazeHound, will perform their unique brand of psychedelic dad rock. Take their debut EP, High Fever, for a spin and you’ll be in for a hell of a good time.

Second to take the stage around 9:30 PM, the band I look forward to seeing/hearing the most, is Barrie, Ontario’s AAWKS. The psychedelic, fuzzy, heavy rock band whose debut LP, Heavy on the Cosmic, wound up on many year-end lists, including yours truly, are bound to knock your socks off. I had a conversation with them last year and reviewed their album as well.

For the pièce de résistance at about 10:30 PM, Montreal’s Sons of Arrakis will immerse our snow-covered city into Dune-inspired desert rock tunes off of their Volume I album. The band has gathered quite the following in town and will likely attract a lot of fans to this show.

Doors will open at 7 PM and tickets are $15. You can visit Turbo Haus’s Website for more details and you can purchase your tickets in advance right here. I look forward to the experience and I’ll try to snap some quality pics for the blog or to post on my Twitter page the next day. Enjoy the show!

Turbo Haus is located at 2040 Saint-Denis, Montréal, QC, H2X 1E7 

Let’s March on Bandcamp Friday!

It’s back! Bandcamp Friday is here! You know the drill: Bandcamp waives its revenue share and all the money goes directly to the artists and labels for a full 24 hours. Winter will soon be over and it’s one more reason to celebrate. Here are my top five picks for this March edition of BC Friday.

First off, Quebec desert rock quintet extraordinaire Cleõphüzz released their first long play, Mystic Vulture, a couple of weeks ago and it’s an epic sonic journey. Read my musings about it here and purchase it over here.

Second, RidingEasy Records unleashed Westing’s fourth LP, Future, last week and it’s a perfect Zeppelinesque blend of ‘70s classic rock with bluesy vibes. Check it out over here.

Third, last week Dying Victims Productions via their Relics from the Crypt sub-label resurrected a classic gem of heavy metal from 1984 in the form of Belgium’s Buzzard with their LP Gambler. An awesome album on all fronts! You can pick it up here and read my musings on it right here.

Fourth, today sees the release of Heavy Psych Sounds’ Witchthroat Serpent and their Trove of Oddities at the Devil's Driveway record—a doomy, occult, Satan-worshipping bunch of tracks worthy of your time. Take it for a spin over here.

Fifth, the mighty Ripple Music will unleash Morass of Molasses’ third LP, End All We Know, on March 24^th and it’s a terrific mélange of blues, stoner, and heavy rock. If you dug their first two singles, “Naysayer” and “Hellfayre”, then you’ll love the whole thing. Pre-order yours over here.

Another edition of Bandcamp Friday is in the books at good old Harbinger’s headquarters. Show some love, support those hard-working bands and labels, and add some albums and songs to your music library. It’s for a great cause and we all win on Bandcamp Friday. Enjoy and tune in again next month for another edition (and in between for plenty of cool content). 

Musings: Buzzard – Gambler

I always get really excited when I discover a long-lost gem from a band I’ve never heard of. Last week, one of my favourite indie metal labels, Dying Victims Productions, released Belgian ‘80s metal band Buzzard’s Gambler via their Relics from the Crypt sub-label. Gambler initially came out in October 1984 on the heels of the band’s A Strange Gang demo in 1983. Sadly, it would be the quartet’s one and only album. We have Dying Victims Productions to thank for this reissue, a little over 38 years later, to reintroduce this band to a whole new audience, including yours truly. Akin to last year’s RidingEasy Records reissue of ‘70s rock band Sorcery’s Stunt Rock Soundtrack, this is another special album that I’ll have on heavy rotation for the remainder of the year.

We get the double threat of “Stone-Hard and Loud” and “We Are Heavy Rockers” to kick things off with a bang. Two barn-burning tracks that set the tone for the rest of the record with terrific guitar solos. “You and Me” even has some prog vibes, “Save Me” is a rippin’ good tune, and we’re even treated to a cool ballad with “Can’t You See.” “A Strange Gang”, a polished cut taken from their demo, is a fun arena rock song with a scorching guitar solo. One of my favourite tracks, “Nosferatu”, is an ode to the Prince of Darkness. The title track follows; it’s good, but not among my faves on the LP. Songs number 9 and 10, “Midnight Countess” and “Woman of Illusion”, bring the curtain down with panache, ending the party on a high note with a one-two punch as they are two of the very best tracks Gambler has to offer.

Gambler is an album full of highlights that keeps getting better on repeat spins. Brimming with youthful energy, it’s sure to satisfy fans of old school metal, fast hard rock, with a smidgeon of speed metal. It definitely takes inspiration from the NWOBHM movement and has echoes of ‘80s metal from Germany. It’s really a shame tragedy struck and we didn’t get more than one album from Buzzard. I’m sure they’d have broken through had they been given a few years to gather a proper following. That’s the beauty of reissues—we can enjoy this album now for the first time or if you’re already familiar with this band and LP, you can rediscover it all over again. Give it a spin, it’s a ton of fun.

Dying Victims Productions’ Buzzard Bandcamp page: https://dyingvictimsproductions.bandcamp.com/album/gambler 

Audiobook Showcase: Savage Realms Monthly #4 & 5

I first featured the Savage Realms Monthly magazine back in January during my Sword & Sorcery Audiobook Showcase series. I discussed what it was about and how much I enjoyed it, focusing on Books 1, 2, and 3. Since then, Books 4 and 5 have been published on Audible and today I’ll be shining the spotlight on those.

The same formula of three stories from three different writers per issue returns, narrated by the always excellent Moose Matson who really gets into the spirit of things with his infectious gusto and competent voicing of the various characters. One of the things I was most looking forward to was listening to the continuing adventures of Willard Black’s Redgar and Natali. I don’t know about other readers/listeners, but after three issues worth of following Redgar the Hathor, I’m firmly invested into this barbarian and can’t wait to hear about his next quest. It’s a similar feeling to what readers of the original Weird Tales run must’ve experienced waiting for the next issue featuring Robert E. Howard’s Conan, Kull or Solomon Kane, and H.P. Lovecraft’s Cthulhu Mythos stories.

Book 4 starts off with “The Revenant King” by Willard Black and follows Redgar and Natali venturing into a town struggling with a plague. I wonder where Black got the inspiration for that idea! All kidding aside, it’s an engaging tale that gives us a little more insight into Natali. Another terrific Redgar story that only makes me want to see what happens next. “Crawling in the Dark” by Chad Wilson follows, a story about a hero named Brock who must take matters into his own hands and save a village from giant spiders. I really dug this one as a classic creature feature. The third and final story, “Uncertain Treasure” by Victor H. Rodriguez, ends the anthology on a strong note, more about sorcery than swords featuring a thief and a sorceress. I won’t divulge any more not to spoil the intrigue. We also get fun author interviews for two of the three scribes featured.

Book 5 gets the ball rolling with “Tower of Ornelia” by Ben Crawford, a returning author from Book 2, and features a warrior on a quest for a lost prince. This was a fun tale and I look forward to reading more of Crawford’s stories in future issues. Next up is Willard Black’s fifth story in the ongoing Redgar saga titled “The Keshite’s Lover”. Our adventurous duo winds up in a small town victim of racial prejudice. This one has a bit of a social commentary and a very cool brawl as things unfold. Another winning entry in the Redgar series. The last tale, “A Broken Column in the Salt Plains” by Adrian Simmons, grew on me as it went on because I wasn’t into it at first. It deals with an archaeologist, past life/memories from a different era, and Native American imagery. While not exactly S&S, it was a nice change of pace from the other stories and I smiled at the Star Trek references. No author interviews for Book 5 sadly.

Savage Realms Monthly’s fourth and fifth issues continue to showcase solid and engrossing Sword & Sorcery tales from a diverse crop of authors. If you’re just joining the party, no worries, you can pick up any issue and won’t feel lost. The Redgar tales all stand on their own and the other yarns don’t require to be read in any specific order. SRM is the perfect fix for S&S fans eager to discover new talent and be immersed into weird and fantastic worlds. Bring on Book 6!

Rating: Five stars out of five

Get your copy on Audible 

Audiobook Showcase: Star Trek – Harm’s Way

I was really happy to hear last summer that we’d get a new Star Trek: TOS novel titled Harm’s Way in December and that it would also be released as an audiobook. After the Star Trek: Coda trilogy of 2021, I was under the impression that there would be no more TOS, TNG, DS9, or Voyager books in the near future. Star Trek books would continue only for currently ongoing TV series such as Discovery, Picard, and the latest and most excellent Strange New Worlds. Judging by the upcoming publishing schedule for the next six months, I’m thinking this TOS book is a one-off, but either way, I’m glad it exists. Written by David Mack, the audiobook is narrated by Robert Petkoff and was published on December 13^th, 2022.

Here’s the book’s official synopsis: “Captain James T. Kirk and the crew of the Starship Enterprise go in search of a missing Federation scientist--only to become trapped between a Klingon warship and Starfleet's mysterious Operation: Vanguard. In eons long past, alien hegemons known as the Shedai ruled thousands of worlds in the Milky Way Galaxy. They were thought to be dead and gone--but for a Starfleet landing party and a Klingon strike team, the race for the secrets of the Shedai turns into a fight for survival. Can they put aside their conflicts and cooperate, if that is the only way to survive?” 

I’ve been a Star Trek fan as far back as I can remember, growing up watching Kirk and the gang on our black and white TV set on Sunday mornings. One of my fondest Trek memories is of watching Star Trek: The Motion Picture in the middle of a crowded mall in December of 1979 while shoppers walked around. A very unique experience that was a lot of fun for a five-year-old kid. The Original Series remains my favourite crew, followed closely by Voyager. All right, enough trekking down memory lane, let’s talk about this new book. Harm’s Way is penned by Star Trek veteran David Mack who’s given us many great Trek books over the years and is a well-loved writer among Trekkers. This book is supposed to be a new entry of sorts into the Star Trek: Vanguard book series written by Kevin Dilmore, Dayton Ward, and David Mack which ran through eight books from 2005 to 2012 and until now was considered complete. For the record, I’ve never read any of the Vanguard books and wasn’t confused or lost at any point during Harm’s Way. So, they’re not required reading in order to go into Harm’s Way, but I would assume that if you’re familiar with them, you might get some extra enjoyment out of this latest book. Another bit of a tie-in for this book is that it takes place shortly after the events of two classic Season 2 Star Trek episodes: Amok Time, where Spock returns to Vulcan for a wedding ritual pitting him against Kirk, and The Doomsday Machine, where the Enterprise crew battles a mighty planet-killing machine from another galaxy. Again, these episodes aren’t required watching prior to reading/listening to Harm’s Way, though I’m sure most Trekkies are familiar with them. The book refers to them and Mack summarizes the events’ impact on Spock and Kirk more specifically. I’ve seen the episodes so many times (especially Amok Time) that it was a cool tie-in for me.

Harm’s Way moves at a rapid pace and feels like a genuine Star Trek adventure, probably more like a movie than a longer episode. In fact, many parts to me felt reminiscent of Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. I say that in a good way as I have affection for that film, but I know it’s not generally one of the more popular Trek movies. The action in the jungle with the alliance between the crew and the Klingons reminded me of the setting on Planet Genesis in Trek III. My only gripe is that I would’ve loved to see more of Kirk and McCoy. I know we’ve seen plenty of them in other novels, but the book focused more on the away team comprised of Spock, Chekov, and Sulu rather than the squad left back on the Enterprise with Kirk, McCoy, Scotty, and Uhura. The Klingons act a little out of character for Klingons from time to time, but it didn’t detract from the overall enjoyment of the story. It can get pretty gory at times and sometimes feel like a horror novel, so that may not be everyone’s cup of tea, but I had no problem with that. Mack’s characterization of the classic crew is spot-on as usual. A great book can get lost as an audiobook without a competent narrator, but when you have an experienced Trek narrator like Robert Petkoff at the helm, it’s an absolute pleasure to listen to. His portrayal of the various Enterprise cast members is wonderful, especially his voicing of Chekov, and his reading pace is pitch-perfect.

Harm’s Way is a must-have Star Trek novel for fans of all things Trek, TOS, and those younger readers/listeners who might’ve only been introduced to Star Trek in recent years. Go back to the original, as they say. There’s nothing more fun than a classic Star Trek adventure. I look forward to picking up the just released, very first Star Trek: Strange New Worlds novel, The High Country, by John Jackson Miller (also read by Robert Petkoff). Here’s hoping we get more TOS novels and that David Mack continues to write in the Star Trek universe.

Rating: Four stars out of five

Get your copy on Audible 

Alan Draven’s AMOK

As I stated in my post yesterday, I’ve just finished what is the first in a series of Sword & Sorcery short stories featuring the ongoing saga of a Conan-type character. This series of short tales will eventually be collected into a single volume available in print, digital, and audiobook formats. These tales will be episodic in nature, chronicling the adventures of Amok, an adventurer, mercenary for hire, and thief who lived in a distant land long ago. His adventures will be fraught with peril; he will embark on a deeply personal quest, encounter many evil men, battle scary monsters, deal with dark magic, and rescue a few damsels in distress along the way. Amok won’t be alone on his journey; he’ll come across some reliable friends on his path and will ride on the back of his trusty white stallion Melrik.  

The plan is to write about ten tales, ranging between 5,000 and 10,000 words each, and to publish them individually at first on Amazon’s Kindle. In April or May, I will also start recording readings of those tales (as well as a selection of my old Bitternest horror/thriller stories). Those audio files will be available on Bandcamp and on YouTube for your listening pleasure. Once I’m done the first phase of Amok’s adventures, an audiobook comprising the complete saga will be available on Audible as well. I’m also aiming to have an audiobook done for what I consider my best Bitternest short stories written between 2006 and 2018 to release individually on Bandcamp and as a collection on Audible as well by the end of 2023. Ideally, I’d love to have a book’s worth—about ten Amok stories—by the end of 2024. I feel reinvigorated writing in the Sword & Sorcery genre, something I’ve never tackled before. Sometimes all you need is a change of scenery to get the inspiration flowing again and reignite a fading passion for writing fiction.

The first Amok story is titled “Evil Soul, Evil Deed.” It is an introductory tale that sets up Amok’s world and sees a mysterious one-eyed man hiring our hero to seek and retrieve a rare katana from the clutches of a masterless samurai and his ninja acolytes. Deception and bloodshed ensue. Stay tuned to the blog for a release date and more details in the weeks to come. 

Sword & Sorcery Roundup – February 2023

I’d like to introduce a new feature that’ll pop up every three or four months on the blog: Sword & Sorcery Roundup. It’ll be an article on the goings on in the world of S&S literature mainly and the occasional movie talk. I’ll focus for the most part on indie/amateur S&S magazines and audiobooks as well as my own fiction writings.

First off, I’d like to shine the spotlight on my favourite S&S magazine, Savage Realms Monthly. Every issue features three tales from up-and-coming to more established writers in the genre. This is old school S&S done right in the tradition of Robert E. Howard’s Conan and Karl Edward Wagner’s Kane. Every issue is available in print, digital, and Audible audiobook, much to my delight since audiobooks are my preferred way of consuming fiction. I ran an Audiobook Showcase on SRM back in January as part of my Sword & Sorcery Audiobook Mondays columns. You can check it out here. I’ll be reviewing issues 4 and 5 (which came out last week) sometime next weekend. The audio version still has a way to go to catch up to the print version which just saw the release of issue 18 (13 issues left to go). But SRM narrator extraordinaire Moose Matson is hard at work weaving Audible spells so I’m sure they’ll be a plethora of them coming our way. Check it out at the links below.

Savage Realms Monthly’s Website: https://www.literaryrebel.com/savage-submissions/

Savage Realms Monthly on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SRM_Monthly

Second, The Cromcast, a podcast focusing on the works of Robert E. Howard, his pop culture legacy, and other weird fiction puts out a fantastic FREE digital magazine once a year in December titled The Cromcast Chronicle. Their latest issue, number 3, was published last December. The magazine features short stories, articles, and reviews related to the genre of Sword & Sorcery. Check it out and pick up the latest issue at the links below.

The Cromcast’s Website: http://thecromcast.blogspot.com/

The Cromcast on Twitter: https://twitter.com/TheCromcast

Third, Whetstone S&S Mag is a bi-annual FREE digital magazine published in June and December. The latest issue is number 6 from last December. Every issue is chock-full of great fiction short stories from up-and-coming to more seasoned writers. Check it out and pick up the latest issue at the links below.

Whetstone S&S Mag’s Website: https://whetstonemag.blogspot.com/

Whetstone S&S Mag on Twitter: https://twitter.com/SorceryWs

Fourth, New Edge Sword & Sorcery’s magazine features new Sword & Sorcery short stories as well as intriguing non-fiction related to the genre’s past, present, and future. Issue number 0 is available as a FREE digital download, but also in print on Amazon. The magazine’s future issues are funded via Kickstarter and you can visit their Website for all the details if you’d like to support and contribute to the magazine. A crowdfunding campaign is under way for issues 1 and 2 at the moment which will see the light of day in fall/winter 2023. Head over to the links below for all the details and to peruse issue 0.

New Edge Sword & Sorcery’s Website: https://newedgeswordandsorcery.com/

New Edge Sword & Sorcery on Twitter: https://twitter.com/newedgeswordmag

Next up, if you’re into S&S then you’ve most likely heard/seen that there’s a new Dungeons & Dragons theatrical movie coming out March 31^st titled D&D: Honor Among Thieves starring Chris Pine and Michelle Rodriguez among many others. I’m looking forward to it and I’ll have a review of the film upon its release. Also, to get ourselves in the mood for the new movie, there’ll be a couple of books/audiobooks published to tie-in with the release, one of which is titled D&D: The Road to Neverwinter that serves as a prequel to the film. It will be published on Feb. 28^th and I’ll be doing an Audiobook Showcase on it sometime in March, so keep an eye out for that.

As I was looking at the release schedule for upcoming S&S audiobooks on Audible, a novel from a military science-fiction writer by the name of Ryan W. Aslesen caught my attention. It’s a standalone (maybe the first in a new series?) book titled Raknar: The Northman which I’ve seen described as a cross between Conan, Spartacus, and Game of Thrones. That sounds awesome! The print/digital version of the book came out in July 2022, but the audiobook version is set to be released on March 21^st, so you can expect an Audiobook Showcase from me on Raknar sometime in April.

Last but not least, for those who’ve been following the blog, you know that I’ve been a fiction writer for about 17 years now, writing under the pen names Alan Draven/Neal Vandar, mainly in the horror/supernatural thriller genres. I called it a career last October with the release of my final novel, Once Upon a Time in Bitternest, but you know what they say about retiring from anything, right? It usually never lasts for very long. Anyhow, I’m done writing novels, that’s for sure. I’ve climbed Mount Everest enough times already and have no desire to do it again. I’m also done writing horror and dark fiction; I’ve outgrown those genres over the years. BUT I’ve just finished the first draft of my very first Sword & Sorcery tale yesterday and I am stoked about it! It’s roughly 10,000 words in length and features a Conan-type character who will be my focus for at least ten stories. I will create a mythology for him in short stories ranging from 5,000 to 10,000 words. Once I’ll have about ten tales written, I’ll publish a book in print/digital/audiobook collecting all of them. Until then, the stories will be published individually as I write them in PDF and Kindle. I’ll have more details on this new project in another blog post sometime tomorrow. So, stay tuned for that!

Alan Draven’s Writer Blog: http://bitternest.blogspot.com/

And that’s all she wrote, folks! This has been the first edition of Sword & Sorcery Roundup. I hope you’ve enjoyed it and that you find something to your liking in terms of reading material. Subscribe to this blog and follow me on Twitter to keep up with all the cool content about Sword & Sorcery, audiobooks, and all things Metal/Doom music that will be coming your way throughout 2023. 

Musings: Cleõphüzz – Mystic Vulture

I always love stumbling upon a Quebec band I’ve never heard of. Cleõphüzz is a psychedelic desert rock quintet from the far west of Quebec, more specifically Ville-Marie, a town on Lake Temiscaming. For those wondering where it’s located with respect to Montreal—the most well-known city in Quebec—well, it’s about a seven-hour drive from my hometown of Montreal. Mystic Vulture came out last week and is the band’s first full-length following 2018’s excellent Wizard of Phüzz EP.

Let’s start from the beginning with “The End”, a short, mystical instrumental full of western imagery. Makes you feel as if you’re about to watch a Sergio Leone spaghetti western. The apt-titled “Desert Rider” features beautiful cello and female vocals adding extra textures to the proceedings. “Sortilège” (French for “Magic Spell”) is a superb instrumental with the cello making a lovely appearance once again. “Desperado” is the highlight of the album, in my humble opinion—an epic track that builds to a magnificent crescendo. THIS is desert rock! The song was first recorded in 2019 and has evolved into this improved version for the new record. “Sarcophage” (French for “Sarcophagus”) is another standout track. The LP’s third instrumental where evil looms throughout. It’s an unrelenting celebration of desert rock. “When the Siren Blows” is a stellar groovy song with its space rock roots and grungy vibes. The fiery guitars and racing keys take it to the next level. Next up is the title track, a quasi-instrumental, lyric-less piece that is an absolute gem! Gets my vote for my favourite instrumental of the album. “Sundown in the Afterlife” is the last song—time to ride off into the sunset. A catchy tune and my second fave after “Desperado”. The melody and rhythm are full of energy and infectious till the last note.

Cleõphüzz delivers a fantastic album with Mystic Vulture. A largely instrumental affair, it’ll take you on a sun-drenched sonic journey. I swear, you’ll feel the sand between your toes at times! Competent musicianship and catchy tunes galore will put a smile on the faces of those who dig desert rock, stoner rock, and psychedelic rock in all its shapes and sizes. Head over to Bandcamp and treat yourself to some nice warm music from a very cold place in Quebec. And make sure to check out their Wizard of Phüzz EP; it’s just as great.

Cleõphüzz on Bandcamp: https://cleophuzz.bandcamp.com/music