Feralia.net blog. episode 112: Focusing on the positives of 2020

Posted on May 18, 2021 by feraliabooks

I wanted to quickly move on to this entry since the last one was a lot of gloom and doom. Most of us would agree that 2020 sucked. But we got through it. Were there things that helped get you through? These are the things that were bright spots in a dark time for me…

Family First and foremost, with a world that felt like it was spiraling around me, I’ve been able to have more family time, which has been amazing, drawing us even closer together than ever while making it even more plain to see that this is what’s most important.

Friends This one is very important too, going right along with family. Over the past year I’ve been able to see which people are truly kind, loving and supportive not only among friends but to all those around them as well, while weeding out any who are not. There’s a lot of talk of cutting toxic elements out of your life, and I’ll agree that it’s healthy to do so! My friends are amazing and I’m lucky to have them.

Music I’ll leave this mostly to a future entry, because it’ll be a fun feature on its own, but there was some really great music that lifted my spirits released over 2020, helping me stay distracted from the awful things in the world.

Video games I think this was true for a ton of other people as well, Animal Crossing alone helped many of us have something fun to do and connect with friends while in quarantine.

Traveling and vacationing safely After we were sure we could do so safely, we were able to get out of the house a few times and safely enjoy nature and family, making some of the best memories in my life!

Movies One thing I did a lot of was watch a bunch of movies I’d been wanting to see, both new and old. This is probably a good one for another entry as well, but it was great to focus on things fun, fantastic and weird rather than reality during 2020.

Good people There were some wonderful people who spoke out for what was right and called out what wasn’t in 2020, using their audience for the positive! I won’t name names at the moment, but they were a blessing.

So, while I didn’t have a creative 2020, I did have positive aspects, which made the year memorable not only for the bad, but for the unique and happy parts.

Let me know what good there was for you in the comments here or on Facebook!

-Clint

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Feralia.net blog. episode 111: The first post in five months!

Posted on May 18, 2021 by feraliabooks

Hey everyone! Sorry it’s been so long since my last update! Things are well personally, as the pandemic has allowed me to spend more time at home with my family, which I’ve cherished.

On the creative side, things haven’t been so good. Outside of home, 2020 was awful, and parts of this year haven’t been so great either. Honestly, it’s taken the wind out of my sails creatively.

Early 2020, of course, saw the onset of the covid-19 pandemic. Though it was first identified in 2019, 2020 was when we really began to be affected greatly by it.

On a personal note, in April 2020 came news of the tragic death of a close friend. I’ve had a year to grieve, but that hole will always be there.

As the year went on, all of us were affected by the coronavirus, whether through jobs closing down, the loss of loved ones to the disease, and other negative effects on daily life.

For me, and many of you, one of the worst parts of the year was the division in the US. Note: this is not a political statement, rather my own feelings on the world around me. As the covid-19 related death toll rose (as of this writing it stands at 586,545 in the United States and 3,392,840 worldwide), so did the unkindness to people who took the disease seriously. Many people called the scientifically backed crisis as some conspiracy, criticizing and belittling others for following health guidelines such as social distancing and wearing a mask.

In general, it seemed to me that unkindness on the internet continued to grow worse, as people while safe behind a screen spewed more and more hate. It was not only for those following health guidelines, but for people of different colors and races, different genders or lifestyles, and more.

I was brought to tears at the events that led up to the Black Lives Matter movement, and more so at the backlash against it. To see people on my own friends lists (now formerly) making awful comments at a time when we should be loving, was truly disheartening.

For a number of years I felt like there was a good vibe here in the US, that being kind to and accepting of everyone was thought of by the majority as the acceptable way to be. Events over recent years, especially 2020, however, have revealed a deep-seated rift that was present all along. Now it merely has a voice. To see people who proudly claim to love God not only turning a blind eye to major issues (even insisting they themselves are the ones being mistreated despite their obvious privilege), embracing violence, and being intolerant to anyone unlike themselves has been more cause for depression than inspiration.

So, what should have been months with plenty of time for creation proved unproductive over all, for me at least. I have gotten a few important and challenging chapters finished over this time though, which is something, and recently I’ve been able to come out of it a bit, for reasons I’ll get into in my next entry (since this one has grown so long), focusing on finding the good parts of the previous year and getting inspired to create!

-Clint

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Feralia.net blog. episode 110: John the Swamp Dude – The Last Outpost #1 – Review

Posted on December 14, 2020 by feraliabooks

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John the Swamp Dude: The Last Outpost #1 ©2020 PLB Comics

Last December I did a review of a comic I really enjoyed, John the Swamp Dude: Who Killed Mobie Graye? (Has it really been a year already??) This time I was lucky enough to get an advance copy of the first issue in the next storyline, The Last Outpost, by Josh Shockley (story, pencils & inks) and James Dufendach (letters and edits) once again. This is the twenty-first release by PLB Comics. 

Once again I enjoyed the artwork. I always love getting to read a black and white comic. It’s a refreshing change. The character design is great, and I’d say even improved upon the work in the previous release. Another thing I always like are the Shockley’s backgrounds. Some of the shading and lines are so great, providing a perfect backdrop for the characters and story.

Speaking of the story (I’ll stay spoiler-free as usual), this was probably my favorite thing about the issue. In particular, the world-building is super deep and well thought out. Things in this world aren’t spelled out for you – rather, bits and pieces fit together over the course of the story to gradually paint a picture of the fantastic environment.

The Last Outpost is a 4 part story that you can jump right into, although having read Who Killed Mobie Graye? beforehand will definitely set the tone. Also there are some refences to it in The Last Outpost which I was glad to known ahead of time, since they tie things together nicely. The comic has some strong content (language & fighting) meant for a mature audience, so keep that in case you’re shopping for younger readers. The issue is available now.

5/5

Check out PLB Comics here.

-Clint

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Feralia.net blog. episode 109: my Stabbing Westward collection

Posted on December 11, 2020 by feraliabooks

In keeping with the music theme, I decided to do a feature on my favorite band of all-time, Stabbing Westward. This one won’t be a review (though their music is amazing), but will focus on all the SW related stuff I’ve collected over the years. I’ve been wanting to do this for forever and it’s been really fun putting everything together!

I thought it would be appropriate to start with the music…

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Iwo Jesus EP Rerelease on vinyl
This is actually one of the newer releases, but since it’s a reissue of the original EP (which came out before any of the albums) I decided to list it first chronologically. I was super excited about having this since I’d always wanted to own Iwo Jesus but could never find a copy.

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Ungod (1994)
The album that started it all for me. I’d never heard anything quite like it and it’s been an inspiration creatively for me since I first discovered it.

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Wither Blister Burn + Peel (Advance CD, 1996)
I was super lucky to find this one. This was one instance when it paid to be a good customer at a local small record store and spend lots of time chatting with the owner.

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Wither Blister Burn + Peel (1996)
I don’t know if I’d ever been more excited for a record release after dicovering the band with Ungod. And it didn’t disappoint!

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Darkest Days (Advance CD)
Another perk of being friends with awesome people at my favorite local record shop back in the day!

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Darkest Days (1998) – Signed
I was lucky enough to get this one signed at a SW show.

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Self Titled Album (2001)
Little did we know that this would be the last release for some time!

Dead and Gone

Dead and Gone (2020) – Digital
The one glaring flaw in my collection is that I missed out on both the first and second printing of this release! I got too caught up with work and other stuff and wasn’t paying close attention enough to social media. I hope to eventually purchase one. I do have the digital release, however, which is so great! It was so exciting to have new music from SW!

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Hallowed Hymns (2020) – CD with signed Burn card
After missing out on the physical release of Dead and Gone there was no way I was going to miss this one. The signed card was such a nice inclusion and very thoughtful of the guys! This was a suprise release that came at such a great time during an awful year and really lifted my spirits.

Up next are some posters and art…

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Ungod album flat
I always called these ‘album flats’ but I have no idea if that’s official. They are square posters on nice, thick and glossy card stock. I forgot to measure them when I pulled them out today, but I’m guessing they’re around 14″ or so square. (I’ll try to remember to get a measurement.)

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Wither Blister Burn + Peel album flat
Like the previous item, this is a square, double-sided poster for hanging in record stores.

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Large poster from Wither Blister Burn + Peel era
This hung on my wall for a long time and is patiently awaiting the day I have room for a devoted area to display it once again. Thankfully I’ve managed to keep it in decent shape.

On to concert stuff!

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Set list, signed, from my first SW show – Pittsburgh, 1996
After an amazing show (still one of my favorites to this day), I was able to get a set list used on stage and was also able to get it signed. That was the first time I got to meet a band member and each one I’ve had the opportunity to meet has been down to earth and incredibly kind. This was on the tour supporting Wither Blister Burn + Peel.

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Club poster, signed, also from my first SW show – Pittsburgh. 1998
Also managed to get this and have it signed at the same show as the above set list. The perfect end to an amazing experience. There’s a little bit of damage from the tape which was used to tape it to the wall of the club, but that gives it character. 😉

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Ticket from that same SW show – April 1996
If I remember right, it was actually the band Rust who opened. I remember grabbing their album on my next trip to the record store.

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Ticket from the New Rock Revolt, signed – Pittsburgh, April 1996
Got to talk with 3 band members after their set, again, all were super nice and so appreciative of us fans. …As for this legendary concert itself, SW was as great as usual, but the show was absolutely insane, with a ton of bands and a crazy story to go with it! I really need to do a blog entry on this show!

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Ticket from Pittsburgh show, September 1998
Another fantastic show, this one supporting Darkest Days.

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Ticket from next Pittsburgh show, February, 1999
Super cold night and went by myself, but it was so worth it!!

I also have a couple tickets from other shows which I couldn’t find for this entry. Hopefully I’ll find them later and be able to add them here.

Lastly are my few items of SW clothing…

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Shirt from the anniversary of Darkest Days
I haven’t worn it yet so I can keep it in perfect shape, but I probably would for a special occasion.

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SW logo shirt
Like the above shirt, this one is unworn and in perfect shape.

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SW logo patch
Part of me wants to keep this one as it is, in good condition. But I recently got a vest for all my band patches, where I will wear it proudly. 🙂

Update – added 12/30/20

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Postcard from the band.
Can’t believe I forgot this one! Got this in the mail after sending a letter to the band… Yes, I was that nerd who wrote to bands, lol. This was such a great surprise and the first news I’d heard about the release of Darkest Days!

Update – 2 items added 9/30/21

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Lies, CD Single (1994)
I’m normally not into collecting singles if I have the entire album, but for this one I had to make an exception, as it was the first SW song I heard.

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Promotional Magazine Ad for Ungod
I couldn’t pass this one up either. I like how it’s a black and white version of the cover art with a red font and border. Also, the UK show listings are cool!

That’s everything for now, but I hope to continue to add to it, especially with the new album coming in 2021! I can’t wait to hear it!

-Clint

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Feralia.net blog. episode 108: Featured Band: Sylvan Esso

Posted on September 25, 2020 by feraliabooks


I’ve been meaning to do a feature on this band for forever, so I figured what better day to stop procrastinating and do it than their album release day? Sylvan Esso is a duo from Durham, North Carolina whose music I fell in love with a couple years back when I came across their 2014 titled album on Amazon Music. Their electronic music is sometimes dancey, often quirky and always dreamy. Shortly after discovering them, they released the 2017 album, What Now, which for me was just as catchy as the first album. They’ve been two of my favorite recent albums and have made SE one of my favorite bands, up there with my all-time groups already.
se Sylvanessowhatnow
One of the things I love so much is Nick Sanborn’s electronic instrumentals and production combined with singer Amelia Meath’s cool vocals, which have an almost folk quality. It might sound like an odd combination, but it works wonderfully.free love
Today is really special to me because it’s the release day for the duo’s third album, Free Love. 2020 has been a pretty crappy year, so it’s nice to have something new to be excited about despite that. They released the song Ferris Wheel over the summer, which is already one of their best, capturing what their unique sound. They even released an Animal Crossing version of the video recently! (Check them both out below, along with a pick from each of the first two albums.) 

If you’re looking for something dreamy, something to dance to, you need to check out Sylvan Esso. They’re a bright spot in a dark year an just an amazing band in general.

Enjoy, and check the band out HERE.

-Clint

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Feralia.net blog. episode 107: X-Men Reading Project update

Posted on August 18, 2020 by feraliabooks

Back in October of 2019 I started my X-Men Reading Project and it’s been a blast! As I’ve made my way through many stories I’ve been putting together. It can be really tough to know where to start, so as I read I try to make a list of collections to make it a little easier to read in chronological order and get up to date quickly.

It’s definitely still a work in progress. I have most of the main stories from 1975 (the beginning of the Chris Claremont Era and Giant Sized X-Men #1) through 2012 (Avengers vs. X-Men).

2012 through 2019 has been the trickiest era so far, and I’m just starting into reading everything.

I was able to list the stories from 2019 to current easily with the House of X/Powers of X event and into the current Dawn of X era. I decided to go ahead and skip up to these stories to finally be current with the X-books and avoid spoilers. I’m really enjoying them, and I’d say they’re a great place to jump in and catch up on the current era very easily.

More to come!

-Clint

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Feralia.net blog. episode 106: Double album review/recommendation – Bonnie Piesse – Bittersweet EP & Found EP

Posted on August 12, 2020 by feraliabooks

Bittersweet Found
For my first foray into music here on the blog I wanted to take a look at both EPs by Bonnie Piesse. I got to meet Bonnie at a convention a while back and she was super nice and cool. So I decided to give her music a listen, and I wasn’t disappointed. I was actually surprised how much I enjoyed venturing into music outside my usual genres. I’m not really great at classifying music, but if I had to describe Bonnie’s music, I’d say that it definitely has a folk sound, but is so much more. For example, I was immediately drawn into the opening song and title track Bittersweet on the first EP. I’ve always thought of it as haunting, yet sweet – a mood which carries into the rest of the album. The music is great and well done, with some of the guitars having a sort of poignant edge which reminded me of parts of Akira Yamaoka’s guitar work on the Silent Hill soundtracks (which are also among my favorites). The EP definitely has a a strong emotion, but never enough to weigh down its free and inspiring spirit (listen to the closing track, Fly, and you’ll see exactly what I mean). All the while, the wonderful resonance of the vocals compliment the instruments perfectly.

Those vocals carry over into Bonnie’s 2019 EP, Found, perhaps even stronger this time around. The songwriting and performance is again top notch, this time moving slightly away from the sometimes haunting sound of the previous EP into a bit of a softer, even sweeter sound, yet manages to carry the same strength.

Both EPs are are short and sweet, just four songs each, and I can’t recommend them highly enough.

Check out Bonnie’s website HERE.

You can also find both EPs on Amazon and Spotify.

-Clint

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Feralia.net blog. episode 105: Zelda: Breath of the Wild – why my second play through has been even better

Posted on August 10, 2020 by feraliabooks

desktop-5 Link and Zelda
As a long time Zelda fan, I was super excited when Breath of the Wild was released back in March 2017. While it was a departure in some ways from previous entries in the series, it brought Hyrule to life in a vast, sprawling way like none before it. It was one of the most immersive and beautiful experiences I’ve had in any game. I played it for many hours, and even then there is so much to do that I never got around to doing everything. After finishing the main quest I moved on to other games in my backlog.

There years later, however, my daughter got really, really into it. (You can imagine how happy I was!) We played through the entire game together. I was surprised at how good she did, usually only needing help with bosses and some other tougher enemies and puzzles. Watching her play and explore was really special, and we bonded over it. I couldn’t help but be reminded of my experience as a youth, being drawn into the first few titles on NES and Super NES. Watching her enjoy it was even better than my amazing experience the first time through.

One major thing we did differently in our playthrough together – which I didn’t complete on my own game – was discovering all of the hidden memories throughout the game. As much as I loved the game, I didn’t really get attached to Zelda’s character in particular, as I only found a few of the memories. This time, we made it a goal to collect them all, so that we could see the extended ending. (I’d only seen the short ending when I beat the game.)
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I was amazed at how much these memories (in the form of movie scenes) added to the story. Not only do you get to see much more of Link and Zelda together, but the four champions as well. This time around I got to know the princess a lot better, and liked her much more. That plus the longer ending made it well worth the time to complete the memories. There really is so much more to the story to be told.

One thing to note, is that you’ll be given a “final” memory to find in addition to the ones in your Sheika Slate. Thanks to IGN for their great Captured Memories quest guide, which we used for not only the final memory, but some of the other harder to find ones as well.

In conclusion, I’m so glad to have returned to this amazing game with my daughter. Even after beating it, we’re still running around discovering countless secrets before we move on to the Link’s Awakening remake!

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Korok plush by Shlii Kawaii.

-Clint

 

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Convention Update for August 2020

Posted on August 3, 2020 by feraliabooks

As many of you know, I travel with our business, Alicia’s Anime to a bunch of conventions and festivals (normally around 35 or so per year). It’s a great opportunity to sell books and meet and talk with readers and I really enjoy it!

Unfortunately with the Covid-19 pandemic happening, many of the shows we were scheduled have had to cancel. Of the 27 shows we had scheduled so far for 2020, we were able to attend 5 before the pandemic. Out of the remaining 22 shows, 17 have canceled (or officially postponed to next year). This leaves us with 5 remaining shows for 2020, but realistically it’s not likely that many of those will happen.

It’s sad – many volunteers spend hundreds of hours putting these events together every year, and of course it’s rough on small businesses as well as artists and writers who make a living on sales from the events. Despite that, however, I agree that those who run the events are definitely doing the right thing in keeping the safety of everyone involved first. They have my full support, and I look forward to working with them all again as soon as it’s safe to do so. In the meantime, lets all do our best to get through this safely together by heeding the advice given by health officials. Practice social distancing. Wear a mask (and remember that you wearing a mask is just as important for those around you as it is yourself – even if you are asymptomatic). Be considerate. Love your neighbor. Choose kindness in everything. If we’re lucky we’ll all be able to get back to normal sooner rather than later.

Until then, stay safe!

-Clint

Check out the Conventions page for updates.

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Site Update

Posted on August 3, 2020 by feraliabooks

Just a small update for Feralia.net. We’ve added the Contact Page and updated our list of Conventions. I’ll have a more detailed post regarding cons soon.

Thanks!

-Clint

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