: ::]|[e . r a d e r . m e d i a]|[:: :

2011-09-01T07:55:00.000-07:00

love is wild like the coyote running fearlessly in front of my truck his lope measured his shoulders straight undaunted by what is behind him, unmoved by what is before completely at ease in a mastery of motion undriven, unjustified well-fed part of the mysterious nocturnal business of nature raising voice to sing at the moon

In The Works: Unfinished Novels

2011-08-31T11:29:00.000-07:00

I currently have an embarrassment of unfinished stories/story ideas in the works, some hundreds of pages into the writing process. Mainly what happens for me is that I stop getting feedback and/or my readership seems to lose interest, and so I lose interest. I feel like there's a chance I could finish at least one of these before the end of the year though, at least a first draft (although

Album Review: "Isolation Drills" by Guided By Voices

2011-08-29T19:36:00.000-07:00

Guided By Voices http://www.guidedbyvoices.com Isolation Drills TVT, 2001 rating: 9.0 reviewer: rather ripped [NOTE: This article previously appeared at Epinions] From the super-cool fighter jet collage cover with lyric foldout to the no-BS production wizardry of Rob Schnapf (who knew a "real" producer could actually bottle up the magic that is Bob Pollard and sell it??!) this is a

Album Review: "Kid A" by Radiohead

2011-08-29T19:27:00.000-07:00

Radiohead: Way Deep-A** Down Coal Miners of Classic Rock Dec 12 '00 (Updated Apr 19 '01) [NOTE: This review originally appeared at Epinions] Author's Product Rating Product Rating: 4.0 Pros A Disturbing, Unsettling High Art Piece, Drenched In Irony Cons Won't Bring Up Your Mood Much I'm Afraid The Bottom Line The sound of HAL from 2001 slowly dying...and that's a good thing. Full Review

Album Review: "Still" by Joy Division

2011-08-29T19:21:00.000-07:00

ian curtis' tombstone Apr 25 '05 (Updated May 11 '05) [NOTE: This article originally appeared at Epinions] Author's Product Rating Product Rating: 5.0 Pros The closest thing to a last will and testament of Manchester's Finest. Cons buy it in vinyl - live version of "24 hours" is missing from the CD. The Bottom Line If you do not already own a record player, buy one to listen to this on

Album Review: "Boston" by Boston [Debut]

2011-08-29T19:09:00.000-07:00

NOTE: This article originally appeared in Tiny Mixtapes Gone to Heaven Boston self-titled CBS/EPIC, 1976 rating: 7.2 reviewer: rather ripped Listening to Boston's eponymous first album makes my mind rocket through a million pathways, a million different selves. Like other period pieces like The Beatles' Abbey Road or U2's Boy, it has the power to instantly propel me back to a once

Album Review: Be Bop Deluxe "Modern Music"

2011-08-25T09:44:00.000-07:00

[NOTE: This review originally appeared at Epinions] the future was then Jul 08 '05 Author's Product Rating Pros percy b. shelley with a gibson GS hollowbody Cons so sweet it might make your teeth hurt The Bottom Line there is truly nothing like this music, even if you think there is. it bears a very close listen very well, better than many other

Music Writing

2011-08-25T09:40:00.000-07:00

I'm going to post some of my other Music Writing here, assuming I can find it amongst my files. Watch out! Most of it is pretty old. Hoping it will prime the pump for some fresh stuff.

scrubbing one's internet history

2011-08-25T08:53:00.000-07:00

the conventional wisdom is that if you are trying to get hired, don't leave anything embarrassing lying around on the internet to incriminate you -- amateur porn, rants against capitalism or evil bosses, drunk-o-logues, etc. this was brought to mind for me by the news that CmdrTaco is leaving Slashdot. people like him built their entire careers on "potentially embarrassing things posted on the

Episode XIII: Embrace Your Inner Weirdo

2011-08-22T21:45:00.000-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAR - Episode XIII: Embrace Your Inner Weirdo! Point one: Rumors of my untimely death have been greatly exaggerated. Point two: I have been remiss in reporting to you on schedule due to the invasion of “real life” issues, which make a life of the mind (as they would have called it in the 19th century) something of a folly (those things 19th century gentlemen had built

Episode XII: You Kids Get Off My Lawn!

2011-08-22T20:54:00.001-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAR - EPISODE XII: NEVER TRUST A MAN IN A BLUE TRENCHCOAT Or, You Kids Get Off My Lawn Imagination creates reality. -- Wagner Now look at them yo-yo's that's the way you do it /You play the guitar on the MTV /That ain't workin' that's the way you do it /Money for nothin' and your

Episode XI:

2011-08-22T20:51:00.000-07:00

[insert photo] Diary of a Fading Rockstar, Episode XI: If 6 Was 9, or Recycling The Map For study: Current music of moral and aesthetic urgency Examples: Bloc Party, The Gossip, Saul Williams, Joan As Police Woman, Tim Armstrong, Dr. Israel, Les Savy Fav, Quasi Opening sequence: “Maps” by The Yeah

Episode X: An Rock And Roll Odyssey

2011-08-22T16:57:00.000-07:00

Diary of a Fading Rockstar - Episode X: A Rock and Roll Odyssey If I could stick a knife in my heart Suicide right on stage Would it be enough for your teenage lust Would it help to ease the pain? Ease your brain? – Mick Jagger, "It's Only Rock And Roll" When you’re an artist - any kind of artist - you

Episode IX:

2011-08-22T16:54:00.000-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAR EPISODE IX: ‘They were the heroes of old, men of renown’ We’re lookin’ for a plan of action, lookin’ for a plan of action - U.K. Subs A friend I hadn’t seen in years came through town recently, and while we were hanging out said with a wistful tone: “I miss the old Erik, the one

Episode VIII: The Geek Who Knew Too Much

2011-08-22T16:50:00.000-07:00

Diary of a Fading Rockstar - Episode VIII: Fin de Siecle Musings on Rock Scene Incestuousness, or The Geek Who Knew Too Much By Erik Rader This one’s not over yet, but if past decades are any indication, we are in for a suffocating avalanche of retrospectives, best-of lists, top 10’

Episode VII: How The Real World Ruined My Breakfast

2011-08-22T16:46:00.000-07:00

Diary of a Fading Rockstar Episode VII: When Did The Midnight-To-Six Become Six-To-Midnight? Or: How The Real World Ruined My Breakfast by Erik Rader There’s a cliche I think we’re all familiar with that a rockstar’s alarm clock is usually set for noon, but he/she tends to like sleeping in a little

Episode VI: Long Gone Lonesome Blues

2011-08-22T16:29:00.000-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAR PART VI: Long Gone Lonesome Blues “Sometimes, you don’t know what you have until you walk away from it.” ______________________________________ The number of projects - musical, literary or otherwise - that I’ve embarked upon with an initial burst of

Episode V: Teenage vs. Middle-Aged Love Stories

2011-08-22T16:11:00.000-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAR PART V:Teenage vs. Middle-Aged Love Stories Last week, after more than a quarter century of songwriting, I managed somehow to write a love song. Not a tortured angst-ridden love-in-flames song, not a “Love is a dodgy premise at best if not impossible”

Episode IV: Jimmy Is A Punk Rocker

2011-08-22T15:46:00.000-07:00

Diary of a Fading Rockstar, Part IV:Jimmy Is A Punk Rocker When I was a child (and already formulating my career plans as a future rockstar) I enjoyed my Sunday clothes so much I wanted to wear them all week. Regardless of the unpleasant actuality of the little old church ladies pinching my cheeks while

Episode III: The Pros and Cons of Time Travel

2011-08-22T15:40:00.000-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAREpisode III: The Pros and Cons of Time Travel By Erik Rader This is probably going to turn out to be an embarrassing admission, but here goes nothing: About two years ago I started dressing like I did in high school. Last year I did some digital remixes of songs I wrote back then on my

Episode II: The Doors of Self-Deception

2011-08-22T15:34:00.000-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAR Episode II: The Doors of Self-Deception Every time I find myself watching Oliver Stone’s psychedelic hagiography of Jim Morrison (The Doors, 1991), in between fits of giggling at its sometimes stunning flights of pretentiousness (Who is the bald naked man on a white horse that

Episode I: What It Is, and What It Was

2011-08-22T14:37:00.000-07:00

DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAR Episode I: What It Is, and What It Was [note: this was originally written as an anonymous blog entry some time ago.] i know that my endless and repetitive rantings about the same old subjects may be tiresome to some, but i reserve the right to indulge in them, as this is above

re-posting the "fading rockstar" articles

2011-08-22T13:02:00.000-07:00

since my articles from the "fading rockstar" series seem to be difficult to access online at the moment, i'm going to repost them here shortly.

New post up at Serious Grounds

2010-04-22T14:00:00.001-07:00

Percolator Coffee: Not Just For Grandma Any More

Episode XII of "Diary of a Fading Rockstar" Now Online

2010-04-20T14:08:00.000-07:00

Diary of A Fading Rockstar — Episode XII: NEVER TRUST A MAN IN A BLUE TRENCHCOAT Or, You Kids Get Off My Lawn[Excerpt:]Really, this whole Rock and Roll business — it’s got very little to do with the fantasy. When all of the dross is removed, it is simply The Work. Laboring under the illusion that The Work interferes with Life, or that Life interferes with The Work, is like driving with your eyes

Writers Rising

2009-11-30T11:17:00.000-08:00

I've just been invited by my friend Katherine Jenkins to contribute to "Witers Rising", which is here:Writers Rising. Whenever possible I will be crosspsotng all articles at E. Rader Media, as well as my Faceook page.Drop on by!

Three new articles at CWG

2009-08-04T19:40:00.001-07:00

Here are links to my most recent work: Articles on my own personal collisions with rock and roll subculture and the wreckage that ensued, published at Chicks With Guns.DIARY OF A FADING ROCKSTAREpisode I: What It Is, and What It WasEpisode II: The Doors of Self-DeceptionEpisode III: The Pros and Cons of Time TravelALSO, please check out my coffee lover's blog, SERIOUS GROUNDS:http://

My First Article At CWG

2009-07-25T14:28:00.000-07:00

Some followers of my other blogs may recognize elements of this piece as being somewhat recycled. Others may take some things said herein personally. All that I can say is: (1) I am a firm believer in recycling.(2) Never take me seriously. Unless I tell you to.Enjoy, and feel free to comment."What It Is, and What It Was"

writing sample: liner notes to 'Depresso' [a mix CD]

2009-06-13T21:43:00.000-07:00

Depresso: Track Notes for a mix CD©2009 Erik Rader. All rights reserved.***Starting in 2005 and continuing intermittently through 2009, during a time in which I struggled against the dissolution of my hopes and dreams, my career, and my mind, I became obsessed with the idea of compiling a mix CD of the most depressing popular songs ever recorded. I realized that such a thematic compilation

Staying current

2009-06-09T10:53:00.000-07:00

Blogging, they say, is a harsh mistress. I've been informally (okay - read that as "in cowardly anonymity") blogging for most of this decade, and reading blogs voraciously during that time. What I have found is that blogging is not a hobby, nor a pastime, nor a sideline. If you're going to do it and do it to the hilt, it's a full-time job. It's the pinnacle of self-employment as a writer:

Some random thoughts on writing for the web

2009-06-02T10:42:00.000-07:00

For creative writers like me who are old enough to remember manual typewriters, positioning oneself as a "creator of web content" can be a somewhat daunting task. Especially those of us who didn't get a degree in Journalism and who don't keep an APA style manual on their nightstand [not that it isn't somewhere on my shelf!] might find what we are asked to do a little nebulous. "Snappy!

about me

2009-04-17T12:52:00.000-07:00

Thank you for visiting my writer's portfolio web site. I have been writing fiction, poetry, plays, essays, criticism and other types of creative written work since early childhood. My earliest memories growing up include drawing my own graphic novels and comic strips, as well as writing numerous stories and poems. I completed my first novel at the age of 11.In my teens I became a professional

"Switch" - Chapter 11

2009-04-16T14:31:00.000-07:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 11The walkie-talkie crackled in my hand and I lifted it, flicking the call switch.“0-1 here, let’s have the perimeter check, over.”“0-2. South perimeter is secure, over.”“0-3 here, West is secure, over.”“0-4, East looks good, over.”“0-5, North is all clear, over.” I looked over at Jerome on his corner of the property and gave him a nod. He held up a thumb

"Switch" - Chapter 10

2009-04-16T14:25:00.000-07:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 10So let’s go down the list here. Before the age of 16, I had:1. Made friends with the son of millionaire socialites who lived in a huge mansion;2. Played peeping tom through a telescope and jerked off in my new friend’s bedroom, with his unspoken consent;3. Smoked and drank like a Vegas card player;4. Helped my rich friend beat a pervert in a public restroom

"Switch" - Chapter 9

2009-02-18T14:49:00.002-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 9Candy was the type of girl who looked flawless, not just like a girl but like the pure Platonic ideal of a girl. Her blonde curls, her movie star features, her full pouting lips, her cow-like eyes, her knockout figure – she was the same kind of pretty as Farrah, the perfect unattainable masturbatory fantasy of a billion hopeless teenage boys. She wore

"Switch" - Chapter 8

2009-02-18T14:49:00.001-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 8It was a night in November, and it was cold as a bitch. Rain was flying sideways into my face like little bullets made of ice, it was pitch black, the wind was blowing, and I couldn’t see a thing. I had to navigate by the occasional flash of lightning and the very faint glow of the city lights reflected off of the bottom of the clouds, which would have been

"Switch" - Chapter 7

2009-02-18T14:44:00.000-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 7Getting close to Peter got a lot harder over the next few weeks. Damn him, but it was like he knew what I was planning. He always seemed to be throwing a party or having girls over or doing this or that in public. We never spent any time alone any more. He would every now and then say something like, “I’m sorry we haven’t hung out together lately. You

"Switch" - Chapter 6

2009-02-10T22:45:00.000-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 6 Well, I bet you can guess what happened. Just because I was suspicious Peter had actually murdered Jamie – in fact, I was dead certain of it – there was no proof, for one thing; Peter was way too smart for that. And for another thing, his father was one of the wealthiest and most influential people in town – they were going to name the new wing of the

"Switch" - Chapter 5

2009-02-02T16:45:00.000-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 5 I stayed away from Peter and just buried myself in schoolwork and books. On Sundays mom and I would sit and just read all day. On Saturdays I would go to the library. I didn’t want to watch TV or listen to my classical records or do much of anything. One time mom wanted to take me to see some movie and I told her to just go on without me, and the whole

"Switch" - Chapter 4

2009-01-31T22:30:00.000-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 4Jamie wasn’t originally from here – she was from Lake Oswego, which could have been Mars for all I knew about it. 13 year olds can be pretty provincial, even if they are hyper-intelligent bookworm freaks. Anyway, because she was new in school, she didn’t have any friends either, other than Candy [and she wasn’t really what one would call a “friend” – they

writing sample no. 3 - business

2009-01-28T13:50:00.001-08:00

[Research piece/review for educational information site] _____ College is a multi-state educational institution for people interested in entering the healthcare professions, with 20 accredited campuses nationwide, including 13 in California, 5 in Washington, and two recently added campuses in New Orleans and Saint Louis. Part of _____ Colleges Incorporated, _____ offers state-of-the-art training

writing sample no. 2 - business

2009-01-28T13:48:00.000-08:00

[Recruitment piece]Washington State Employment Security Department’s Labor Market and Economic Analysis database states that as of 2005, the position of Radiological Technologist/ Technician in Washington State offered an hourly mean wage of $25, on a scale between an hourly entry-level wage of $19, and an hourly experience-level wage of $28. With only a 2-year AAS required to certify, this

writing sample no. 1 - business

2009-01-28T13:46:00.000-08:00

[Excerpted from a Usability Analysis conducted for a consulting firm]Example 1Designers and focus groups agree – the Yahoo.com style web portal with absolutely everything linked on the front page is unfriendly. Users attempting to access the site are overwhelmed by all the information presented up front; what people tend to prefer is to have presented to them a short list of major categories to

ed. note no. 1

2009-01-28T13:28:00.000-08:00

the sacto kings did not exist as a franchise until the 80's. changed to the sonics. i could see the 70's blazers beating the sonics with no problem.caught some typos.billy squier is also 80's - replaced with lynyrd skynyrd which is more stylistically appropriate anyway.always appreciate a heads up if you catch things like this. thanks.

Switch - Chapter 3

2009-01-26T15:40:00.000-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 3Mom and I used to sleep in this thing called a Murphy bed that closed up into the wall of the apartment so you had more space during the day. It was a thing from grandma and grandpa’s generation, mom said, and you would find it in these studio apartments that were mainly designed for businessmen without families. The bed was comfortable enough but it had

Writing Sample - Grant Proposal Synopsis

2009-01-18T15:30:00.000-08:00

Synopsis: Creating a Language of Widgets[redacted for confidentiality]In this project I plan to use the traditional form of Postmodern Widget Making in a series of collaborative workshops employing trained widgeteers in the co-creation of widgets with customers. In these groups the customers will be encouraged to share their experience of what it means to deal with being a widget user– things

Writing Sample - Grant Proposal Marketing Plan

2009-01-18T15:00:00.000-08:00

Marketing Plan[Redacted for confidentiality]I. Present live demonstration followed by documentary film on site to internal staff and board members, in 2 – 3 shows with panel discussion afterwards. Advertising: Company intranet, bi-weekly newsletter, and poster campaign.II. Present live performance and film to public-facing staff and clients (including agencies) and their families. Advertising:

"Switch" - Chapter 2

2009-01-02T20:20:00.000-08:00

[WARNING: Some adult content]Chapter 2The next day at school was really weird. First of all, all the penny ante pissants who used to call me fag or throw dogshit at me or whatever seemed to have all packed up and moved to a different school, because not one of them came anywhere near me and I never even saw any of them from a distance. Really weird. And then, what was even more weird was that

"Switch" - Chapter 1

2008-12-27T13:35:00.000-08:00

this is the novel i started for NaNoWriMo 2008. [WARNING: Some adult content] *** SWITCH A work of fiction created for NaNoWriMo 2008 ©2008 erik rader. you may copy and distribute but not alter, edit, add to, sell, or exchange without the author's express written permission. Chapter 1 I was late for third period again, but it wasn't my fault - Roger Korby was punching me like he always did