Since the beginning of popular music one particular sound seems to hijack the radio stations and take over popular culture to the point of deluge. It’s the type of song that gets stuck in your head so deeply that it takes a team of hypnotists to purge it from your psyche. I’m talking about cheesy [...]
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Of all the Christmas miracles bestowed upon mankind, perhaps none has showcased the sheer majesty of divine power more than when David Bowie and Bing Crosby came together for one fateful night to perform the best, and most unlikely, Christmas duet of the last 2000 years. The song in question is, of course, “Little Drummer [...]
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It’s that time of year, ladies and gentlemen. Stop being a dick and get into the mood. You hate the commercialism, you hate the obligatory gift-giving, and you hate the greed; but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy some really good Christmas music.
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![Post image for Sexual healing: Jesús Ángel García’s badbadbad [Booklist]](http://hipstermonk.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/badbadbad.jpg)
badbadbad Jesús Ángel García New Pulp Press (2011) The future is here, kids. A novel is no longer limited to printed words on paper. We have the technology! In addition to the old-fashioned book, a novel can include rock and roll music, film, and even a youtube playlist. Almost like a Sunday service at your [...]
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![Post image for Worshipping at the Altar of Rock [Booklist]](http://hipstermonk.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/rock-and-roll-cover.jpeg)
Rock and Roll Will Save Your Life Steve Almond Random House (2010) Everyone likes music. Some more than others. But for an unfortunate minority, music is life. It ceases to be merely pleasant background noise and invades every aspect of daily existence. It defines the clothes they wear, influences speech and thought patterns, dictates who [...]
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![Post image for Muhammad entering from the rear [Booklist]](http://hipstermonk.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/osama.jpeg)
Osama Van Halen Michael Muhammad Knight Soft Skull Press (2009) If punk rock songs are short, loud, offensive, and give a big F.U. to the mainstream, then Michael Muhammad Knight’s new novel, Osama Van Halen is very punk rock. The barely there, comic book plot of Osama Van Halen is sketchy at best: Rabeya, a [...]
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I think a misconception a lot of us in the west have about Islam is that it is one-dimensional; that it’s a rigid set of beliefs and practices with no wiggle room for personal interpretation. 1.5 billion Muslims moving in strict unison. The Taqwacores, a movie based on Michael Muhammad Knight’s modern cult classic novel [...]
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If Daniel Johnston were born in a different time and place, he might have been burned as a heretic or confined forever to an insane asylum. But in this age, the self-taught singer-songwriter, given to paranoid delusions about Satan and violent outbursts, has become a revered figure in the underground art and music world. The [...]
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