Under a Black Rainbow

JANUARY  (11 books | 2,115 pgs) 01.) This Thing Between Us by Gus Moreno (Novel, 258 pgs) | 5/5 02.) Gateways to Abomination by Matthew M. Bartlett (Stories, 145 pgs) | 2/5 03.) The Strange Thing We Became by Eric Larocca (Stories, 119 pgs) | 4/5  04.) Her Body and Other Parties by Carmen Maria Machado (Stories, 241 pgs) | 5/5 05.)  Anthony Bourdain Remembered (Nonfiction, 208 pgs) | 4/5 06.) Suicide: An Anthology (Nonfiction, 250 pgs) | 5/5 07.)  Bauhaus by Magdalena Droste (Art Book/Nonfiction, 96 pgs) | 4/5 08.)  From the Neck Up and Other Stories by Aliya Whitely (Stories, 320 pgs) | 4/5 09.)  We Can Never Leave This Place by Eric Larocca (Novel, 104 pgs) | 3/5 10.) You've Lost a Lot of Blood by Eric Larocca (Stories, 236 pgs) | 4/5 11.)  Contagion and Other Stories by Brian Evenson (Stories, 138 pgs) | 2.5/5 *     *     * I released my third collection of stories, Under a Black Rainbow , on Christmas Eve.  You can buy a co...

These are the albums that got me through this last year. I've been finding myself getting sucked down a vortex of very sentimental soul and rnb (some purely one or the other, some more electronic or experimental in nature). However, not all of these albums came out this year. In no particular order, these are just the albums I got hip to that made a massive impact on my listening habits.  *     *     * Vacations "Changes" (2018) Part 80s & 90s UK mod sound, part 90s crooner vibes - like The Smiths, but without the pure, and annoying, douchebaggery of Morrissey. This album really hit hard during the last half of the year. So much so, that several tracks became a part of my Winter Soul 2023 playlist this year (along with several other new artists mentioned below). What I dig about these guys is they've got a beautifully musical sound backing some really exceptional, and moving, lyrics.  Standout Tracks: "Anything Could Happen," "On Hold," "M...