To cap our first Author Of The Month month SFFaudio is proud to offer our first ever audio (MP3) interview with an SFWA Grandmaster. In this FREE downloadable interview, Harlan Ellison discusses his career in both audiobooks and audio drama with SFFaudio editor Scott Danielson. The interview was recorded on May 23, 2006.

Download the MP3 HERE!

posted by Jesse 7:45 PM -- (0) comments

 


Put on your seatbelt and prepare for highs, lows and plenty of twists and turns. BMW, in conjunction with Random House, brings you BMW Audio Books, a unique series of specially-commissioned short stories showcasing the work of some of the finest contemporary writing talent. Each gripping audio book is yours to download for free. Listen to them on your MP3 player, your laptop or ideally, in the car. So sit back, hit play and enjoy the ride.

BMW does Audiobooks! That's right, Bavarian Motor Works, the German guys who make cars, have released a batch of excellent podcast short stories (in English). This is a promotion like their BMW Films promotion from a few years back. Solid name authors have been hired to create short stories with a specific model of BMW automobile at the center of the action. I've listened to all four of the released stories and I've liked each, only one is speculative fiction related, it's a story in the tradition of The Twilight Zone - well written and well read. The BMW product placement is blantant and oddly pornographic, it makes you feel dirty, but kind of in a good way.

The only Speculative Fiction story runs about an hour and was written exclusively for BMW Audiobooks. It can only be found in audio format, and hasn't been released as a hard copy anywhere else. This is download only folks. Here's the complete skinny...

Master Of The Storm
By James Flint; Read by Forbes Masson
1 MP3 File - Approx. 60 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Podcaster: BMW Audiobooks
Podcast: 02/28/2006
"You"? are the central character in James Flint's Master Of The Storm, a gripping tale of new business success followed by familiar encounters - all too familiar. And just when you think you are out of the storm, you find yourself pulled deeper and deeper into the mystery which seemingly has no exit."

If you find yourself enthralled by this tale, there are three others, I classify as "crime fiction" - details for which can be found on SFFaudio's sister site AuralNoir.com. AuralNoir.com, by the way, does for Mystery, Crime and Noir Audio what SFFaudio does for Science Fiction and Fantasy Audio.

Now how to get it, you can download Master Of The Storm directly from the BMW-Audiobooks website (but a free registration is required) or you can just do a search on iTunes using the search term "BMW."

posted by Jesse 10:24 AM -- (0) comments

 


Editor's note: Our newest reviewer, a mysterious gent from the future known only as The Time Traveler, debuts on SFFaudio with this review of Stephen King's latest. Be sure to sit down and read it before you pick up your cell phone.

Cell
By Stephen King; Read by Campbell Scott
8 Cassettes or 12 CDs - 12.5 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio / Recorded Books
Published: 2006
ISBN: 0743554329 (Cassette), 0743554337 (CD)
Themes: / Horror / Science Fiction / Apocalypse / Zombies/ Journey /
Survivors / Terrorism

There's a reason why cell rhymes with hell.

Stephen King's latest book is a return to form for this master of horror. In it, everyone with a cell phone goes stark raving mad after they receive some kind of pulse through their cell. The pulse, likely sent by terrorists, wipes the victims' minds clean. This story takes no time to get started. Within the first few minutes, you are drawn into this nightmare scenario, steeped in gore and horror.

The main character, Clayton Riddell, finds himself in Boston when the pulse drives the majority of people biting, scratching, and murderously mad. He is joined by a band of likable characters as they set off to get out of Boston. Meanwhile the victims of the pulse start behaving more like Zombies and start flocking together and evolving with even more unexpected behavior.

Much of this material is familiar ground for King. But the narrative drive is strong, and it doesn't drag with shear verbosity as King's writing sometimes does. Campbell Scott reads the audiobook. Scott is a very competent narrator who's also a film actor and has appeared in movies like The Exorcism of Emily Rose. His narration is restrained and subdued which works well with the apocalyptic horror being described. His Boston accents are excellent without being overdone. He's also the son of the late George C. Scott.

I've got two qualms with the audiobook. If it's unabridged, shouldn't it contain the dedication? I picked up the hardcover edition at the store and found it was dedicated to George Romero and Richard Matheson. George Romero was the director and writer of the Night of the Living Dead and it's sequels. Richard Matheson wrote the seminal post-apocalyptic vampire novel, I am Legend, in 1954. There is no dedication on the audiobook. Doesn't unabridged mean word for word? The dedication definitely foreshadows what kind of novel Cell is to be.

Also there are places in the second half of the book where the narrative voice totally changes. It sounds as if they needed some pick-ups done, to fix small mistakes, and Mr. Scott was not available so they plugged someone else in. Overall these are small distractions, and the audiobook is a hard to turn-off listen.

posted by The Time Traveler 8:28 PM -- (0) comments

 


The Voice from the Edge: Midnight in the Sunken Cathedral
By Harlan Ellison; Read by Harlan Ellison
5 CDs - 5 Hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Fantastic Audio
Published: 2001
ISBN: 1574534157
Themes: / Science Fiction / Fantasy / Horror / The Mob / Dreams /

Harlan Ellison will talk your ear off. After listening to the man perform 11 of his stories over the better part of five hours, I’ve come to the conclusion that he is not the type of guy that you’re going to be able to get away from easily; not once he’s started talking. But would you want to? Ellison is like the guy you sit down next in a bar only because it’s the only seat open, praying that he’ll leave you alone, but, sure enough, he turns to you and immediately begins to regale you with that "Car Talk" voice of his about his latest exploit. "Terminator? My idea. That sumbitch James Cameron tried to pass it off as his own, but I wasn’t having it." Or, "I tell you I never met anybody more uptight than those guys over at Disney. I make one little joke… it was stupid, yeah, but just a joke! Of course nobody would really ever draw Tinkerbell doing that, but try telling those guys that you were only joking. Nope; there’s ol’ Harlan, out on his ass the same day he was hired." Ellison seems to be one of those guys that are vastly entertaining to listen to, and to watch in action, but only as long as his perpetual low-level rage is never directed at you.

Which is what makes this collection perfect. You get to sit in your car, office, wherever, and hear Ellison tell you some of his best stories without ever worrying that you’re going to get more involved than you want to be. But, maybe you should be worried, just a little. While there are a few stories in this collection that are pretty light-hearted from beginning to end, most of them begin innocently enough, but then slowly become more and more disturbing until it’s almost impossible not to feel some sense of unease and trepidation, and then, when they end, almost palpable relief. "S.R.O.," for example; what starts out as a cheery little tale of off-center entrepreneurship, read in Ellison’s best 1920’s gangster voice, begins to drift into a much more solemn treatment of beauty and the lengths to which people will go to experience it.

Then there are the stories which begin creepy and stay that way. "The Function of Dream Sleep" begins with the image a mouth opening in a man’s side, which is disturbing enough, but Ellison keeps on turning the “dread” knob up until even driving along an interstate in broad daylight seems somehow sinister and unreal. I’d be interested in reading these stories in text form to see how much of this sensation comes from the actual writing and how much comes from the sheer desperation Ellison puts into his performances. I wasn’t surprised to see that Ellison has a few acting credits to his name, (most awesomely, "man at orgy" in Godson); the range of character and emotion that are present in these readings rivals that of any "professional" reader. At times it’s apparent that Ellison’s familiarity with the stories allows him to enhance his performances by adding laughter, stutters, and other little bits of paralanguage that only he would be able to get away with. The postscript to "The Function of Dream Sleep," in which Ellison explains some of the elements of his most autobiographical story, is also told in this extemporaneous manner. It’s like the old guy at the bar has finally started to wind down and is going casually toss off one last bit of terror that will keep you up for weeks before he empties his drink, slaps you too hard on the back, and starts shuffling for home.

posted by Cory 5:48 PM -- (0) comments

 


This looks interesting, BBC Radio 7 is serializing The Coma a novel by Alex Garland (he was the screenwriter for the film 28 Days Later). The five part unabridged reading begins tommorow (Monday May 22nd) and the five segments air once a night til Friday.





The Coma
By Alex Garland; Read by Tom Goodman-Hill
5 RADIO BROADCASTS - Minutes Approx 150 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Broadcaster: BBC7 / The 7th Dimension
Broadcast: May 22nd to May 26th 10th at 6:30pm and 12:30am UK TIME.
"[A] surreal fantasy which delves into the mysterious workings of the subconscious mind."

NOTE: Those outside the UK can use the BBC7 Listen Again service to catch it for 6 days following the broadcasts.

posted by Jesse 9:11 PM -- (0) comments

 


This just in - The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Tertiary Phase was named the Audiobook of the Year by the Audio Publisher's Association at this weekend's Audie Awards! Congratulations to adapter/director Dirk Maggs and everyone involved with it. It's fantastic to see a science fiction audio drama win this award. See the SFFaudio review of this title here.

In a tough Science Fiction category, the winner was Market Forces by Richard K. Morgan. Find the SFFaudio review here.

Genre winners in other categories:

Classic
Around the World in 80 Days by Jules Verne, read by Jim Dale, Listening Library

Children's Titles for Ages 8+
The Star of Kazan by Eva Ibbotson, read by Patricia Conolly, Recorded Books

Solo Narration - Female
Davina Porter for A Breath of Snow and Ashes by Diana Gabaldon

Audio Drama
The Sherlock Holmes Theatre by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, performed by a cast, produced by Yuri Rasovsky, Blackstone Audio
ed - OK, this may not technically be a genre title, but most SF fans like Holmes, and Yuri Rasovsky has genre ties, including the excellent 2000X series.

Achievement in Production
At the Back of the North Wind by George MacDonald, performed by a cast, Focus on the Family

Not a bad genre showing! Find the complete list of winners and nominees at www.theaudies.com. Unfortunately, the website is a little cryptic as of this writing - to see the winners and nominees, you've got to download a 6Mb PDF file that is titled "The Audies Sampler". If I can find a clean HTML list, I'll let you know.

posted by Scott 6:33 PM -- (0) comments

 


ABC Radio National (Australia's public radio broadcaster) has finally got into podcasting. This is a very good thing, especially for those outside of Australia - just think, no more calculating what time a show is on at what time tommorow or yesterday! And now The Philosopher's Zone, a show all about philosophy, has a cool program available for download...

"The great Polish science-fiction writer Stanislaw Lem—author of the novel, Solaris, on which two movies have been based—died last month. This week, The Philosopher's Zone explores the philosophy underlying his visionary work."

Check out the MP3 of it HERE.

Or susbscribe to the feed:

http://abc.net.au/rn/podcast/feeds/pze.xml

posted by Jesse 3:56 PM -- (0) comments

 


The RSS-only readers of SFFaudio might not be aware that we are more than just a daily news and reviews source. So for your edu-musement we present...

The Top 5 Things SFFaudio's RSS-only Subscribers Miss:

1. Review Archives - We archive reviews for all-time. Just because it didn't come out last week doesn't mean it isn't worth reading about today.

2. Features Section - Read archived interviews, publisher information and author profiles, and other features. One particularily useful feature is to browse audio editions of Hugo award winning fiction.

3. Online Audio Page - Check out our page of easily navigable links to Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror related podcasts, online radio shows, podcast novels, and more online audio goodness.

4. Browse Archived News - SFFaudio has posted more than 500 entires since 2003!

5. Post Comments - Every post we make is commentable. Got any snappy comebacks? Think we're off our rockers? Let us know.

Check out the site for yourself right HERE.

posted by Jesse 10:09 AM -- (0) comments

 


The story this week over on Escape Pod, the superior podcast SF magazine, is "Tk'tk'tk'" by David D. Levine. The story is a current Hugo nominee! Escape Pod just gets better and better.






posted by Scott 7:23 AM -- (0) comments

 


Interested in reviewing for SFFaudio? We're looking for two more reviewers to add to our stable! Contact Scott or Jesse for more details.






posted by Scott 11:08 AM -- (0) comments

 


On The Road With Ellison, Volume 1
Live performance by Harlan Ellison
1 CD - 60 minutes
Publisher: Deep Shag Records
Published: 2001 (reissue from 1983)
UPC: 809879000322
Themes : / Non-fiction / Writing / Politics / Publishing /

On the Road with Ellison, Volume 1 is a collection of live lecture/performances by Harlan Ellison in 1981, 1982, and 1983 in front of three different university corwds. When he talks of mailing a dead gopher to an editor (er... comptroller) he's hilarious, and when he reads an essay he wrote ("An Edge in My Voice: Installment #54") he rattles our collective cage, making us look at a man who threatened to blow up the Washington Monument in a whole new way.

From the very first track, where he warns audience members to leave if words offend them, Ellison is abrasive yet totally engaging. Or perhaps he's totally engaging because he's so abrasive. Either way, the tracks are thoroughly enjoyable, and the album is worth grabbing.

And yes, there's a Volume 2, also available from Deep Shag.

posted by Scott 5:54 AM -- (0) comments

 


The Answer
By Philip Wylie; Read by Joel Grey
1 Cassette - Approx. 90 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Dove Audio
Published: 1996
ISBN: 0787105139
Themes: / Science Fiction / Fantasy / Angels / Science / Politics / Nuclear Weapons /

"What egotism, what stupid vanity, to suppose that a thing could not happen because you could not conceive it!"
- Philip Wylie & Edwin Balmer from When Worlds Collide

This audiobook of The Answer (subtitled A Parable For Our Times), was produced by Stefan Rudnicki. You should care because whenever Rudnicki gets involved with a project you're pretty much guaranteed of two things: 1. A quality story. 2. A quality production. Rudnicki is himself a talented narrator, he's been involved with some of the best short story collections on audio, won two big fistfuls of Audie awards and even a Grammy. Most impresive of all he was the mastermind behind the SFFaudio essential audiobook edition of Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card! I was only vaguely familiar with Philip Wylie's work prior to this novellette, I'd heard his dystopian novel The End Of The Dream and known that he had co-written the novel that became the feature film When Worlds Collide. So I did some research, The Answer was originally published in "The Saturday Evening Post" in 1955, adapted to television the same year and then republished several times in paper-book form since. The story was written in the shadow of the cold war the context for which the unstated question is asked - with that shadow faded the story still has power, but I suspect that it has been somewhat diminished.

Aboard a United States aircraft carrier in the South Pacific a distinguished team of nuclear scientists, politicians, naval and air-force officers await the impending test of an atomic bomb. The test, code named Operation Bugaboo, makes one officer question the very fabric of his belief, or rather his lack thereof. Major General Marcus Scott is an agnostic and skeptic, a veteran of WWII with a long and distinguished career behind him. But after the test is conducted and a single unforseen casualty is reported Scott's entire worldview is shaken to its foundations. Discovered, as an apparent casualty of the tremendous hydrogen bomb blast is a winged figure, one even his ubelieving eyes can only describe as an angel.

While at first very satisfing on a level of sheer storytelling I noticed upon repeated listening Wylie's writing scaffolding, the somehat forced structure upon which the story relies for power. For believability's sake there are really too many coincidences. The scientifically testable circumstances, which are what you are buying when you listening to science fiction - are flushed away into circumstances no easier to swallow than 'historical' reports of angels, as the subtitle suggests "a parable for our times?". Is it really meant to be a parrallel with historical reports of angels? Or is the structure simply in place to give narrative meaning to the story? I don't know. But no matter how it was made, the story is only going to be offering comforting evidence to a believer, and however well meaning the point of the story, "the answer" of the title is at very best, in my opinion, only a wishful maxim. Flavour me unconvinced while still having been emotionaly involved by the tale.

An added music consists of a pipe organ, woodwind and stringed instruments. These are used to subtly underscore the emotions of the two viewpoints shown. Varied music gives ethereal holiness, timelessness or thoughtful reflection to specific scenes and to underscore others with their absence. Though generally I prefer unaccompanied readings it isn't overwhelming here. Reader Joel Grey shines, by packing an emotional wallop witout doing much in the way of characterization. He's able to confer the general mood of frustrated sadness that the story requires given the limited role the characters have. This audiobook is now out of print but you can still get it through Audible.com.

posted by Jesse 8:56 PM -- (0) comments

 


ed. - Here's another audiobook narrated by, but not written by, Harlan Ellison

A Wizard of Earthsea
By Ursula K. LeGuin; Read by Harlan Ellison and Ursula K. LeGuin
Audio Download - 6 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Fantastic Audio (downloaded from Audible.com)
Published: 2003
ISBN: 1574535587 (Audio CD version)
Themes: / Fantasy / Series / Magic / Dragons / Wizards /

Just minutes into this audio book, the Kargs are attacking the village of Ten Alders, confused by a fog a young wizard has woven into an impenetrable shield, harried by invisible weapons and diaphanous shapes in the mist, and headed for certain destruction. You realize, as Harlan Ellison’s already non-standard voice rises in pitch and his words pile up against one another as he charges faster and faster through the narrative, pausing only to slurp back the fevered spittle he has worked up, that this is not your average narrator. His voice doesn’t resound with the Stradivarius polish of most professional performers, and his characterizations are neither entirely distinct nor consistent, but you can’t help yourself. He has you spellbound. And why? Because his is the authentic voice of a reader, one so caught up in the story that you can’t resist being pulled along with him on his journey.

And what a journey it is! A Wizard of Earthsea is brilliant, a notable gem even among the manifold wonders of such an accomplished author as LeGuin. It is the origin story of Ged, one of the most famous sorcerers in the world of Earthsea and a lesson in both the imprisoning power of our own dark deeds and the redemption that comes through facing them. It follows Ged from his home village of Ten Alders to the City of Gont, from there on to the great school for wizards on the central island of Roke, and then on a fearful, bold chase across the whole of Earthsea. Most island settings fairly drip with the damp richness of the Pacific Northwest, and the characters span a veritable rainbow of colors and cultures. This is epic fantasy in the European tradition, but with a distinctively American flavor.

As in so many of LeGuin’s works, truth is of paramount importance on Earthsea. The old language of Earthsea, like the psychic language that unites the planets in her science fictional Hainish universe, is a language in which men cannot lie. It is also the language in which the true names of all things are recorded, which makes it the basis of all magic on Earthsea. But this latter property also gives the old language of Earthsea Platonic overtones of ideal forms lurking behind every imperfect manifestation in nature, and lends A Wizard of Earthsea a palpable sense of great truth buried just below the surface of what we see. Thus, LeGuin subtly exhorts us to explore beyond the level of the richly imagined fantasy action. And what she has placed there is well worth spending the time to think about.

There are only two off-key notes in this work and its production. The first is that, though LeGuin is given co-narration credits, she only reads a very brief poetic prologue and an only slightly less brief prose epilogue. If you’re looking to experience the author interpreting a major work with her own voice, you’re not going to find that here. The second is that, though LeGuin is noted for her progressive, feminist opinions, some of what we see in this story seems almost misogynistic. There is only one female character who seems not to harbor outright selfishness, evil, or temptation; and female magic is given an unrepentant indictment in several places. I’m new to the series, so maybe these issues are redeemed in the later books. I certainly hope so.

In any case, this production of Ursula K. LeGuin’s A Wizard of Earthsea offers a dark, compelling glimpse at the forces behind the turning of the world as told in the raw, earnest voice of Harlan Ellison. My recommendation: Skip the TV miniseries—which LeGuin apparently hated—and spend your time marveling at the wonders of this quirky, enthralling audio book.

posted by Kurt 6:55 AM -- (0) comments

 


Variant Frequencies is a podcast that bounds the entire spectrum of genre fiction, but they give special emphasis to the fantastic. With a dozen shows under its variably sized belt we can say that Variant Frequencies is well worth checking out. You'll find elements of gothic horror, space adventure, dark fantasy and the "reality-bending vibes of The Twilight Zone" all available free of charge. You can subscribe to the show by pasting either the MP3 or the M4a feeds into your podcatcher...

MP3 RSS Feed:

http://feeds.feedburner.com/VariantFrequencies

M4A RSS Feed:

http://www.variantfrequencies.com/podcast.html

posted by Jesse 11:19 AM -- (0) comments

 


Saturn's Race
By Larry Niven and Steve Barnes; Read by Scott Brick
10 Cassettes or 12 CDs - 13 Hours 54 Minutes [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Books On Tape, Inc.
Published: 2000
ISBN: 0736659374 (cassette), 0736671366 (CD)
Themes: / Science Fiction / Artifical Intelligence / Consciousness Uploading / Cyborgs / Politics / Population Control / Life Extension /

Chaz Koto is a citizen of Xanadu, a near future perfect society hosting the wealthiest men and women on Earth. Along with his fellow citizens, he bears the burden of a dark secret that the outside world would be shocked to hear. Lenore Myles is a student who travels to Xanadu and becomes involved with Koto. When Koto unwittingly lends her his access codes, Lenore stumbles upon the grisly truth behind Xanadu's glittering facade.

The title is deceptive. The planet Saturn plays no role in the plot and nobody in the book is racing anywhere. This is an earth-bound adventure set in the near future. I figured out what the title meant near the end of the book, but the rest of the novel was relatively predictable. For instance, there is a revelation that happens within the first couple of chapters but it was so broadly telegraphed in the first scene the involved character shows up in that I was bored by the revelation rather than surprised by it. Ultimately Saturn's Race is one of those novels that just fails to gel. There's a plot, plenty of interesting ideas and a resolution, but frankly the plot is mediocre, the ideas relatively minor, and the resolution comes through only on the most basic level.

For me, the most memorable concept used in Saturn's Race is that of "metaphors." Basically Niven and Barnes illustrate that metaphors, like computer languages or a computer graphic interface, are used as handy tools to leverage work. It's why poetry can say so much with so few words - the words are densely packed, brimming with meaning. It is also why a little pointer dragging a few color pixels across a screen can unmake or move a file in ways far quciker and easier than by command line interface. In other words computer programs are really elaborate metaphors for the manipulation of data. This is brought to life in the novel when a character runs an artifical intelligence program that simulates Rex Stout's corpulent detective Nero Wolfe. It's a neat idea. But ultimately the novel didn't move me as I had hoped it might. Overall, this is passable faire, but I doubt I'd need to listen to it again anytime soon.

The cover art for Saturn's Race is almost incomprehensible. Is that a seahorse on there? I can't tell. The paperback version has a painting of two genetically-modified sharks on the cover. That would have been more apropos. Reading the book is the ubiquitous Scott Brick. Scott does his very best to bring energy to the lackadaisical pace. For the most part it works, since the novel doesn't bore in the listening, though I'm sure I'd have stopped reading were I experiencing the paper edition. Saturn's Race is still available to be purchased from the Books On Tape website. But who knows how long that will be for? BOT was forced to dump a good chunk of its older science fiction titles when it got purchased by the aptly titled Random House a couple years ago and this fact has made many of its excellent unabridged titles quite valuable on the secondary market. The same loss may happen again soon to the remaining BOT library. I don't think out of print copies of Saturn's Race will be selling for thousands any time soon, but if you think you ever might want a copy acting sooner rather than later may save you some money.

posted by Jesse 4:43 PM -- (0) comments

 


CBC Radio producer Joe Mahoney has just posted some interesting radio drama related tid-bits about two upcoming CBC Radio One series:

"Last Friday we finished whipping the J. Michael Strazcynski (JMS) piece The Adventures of Apocalypse Al into shape. Greg DeClute and I spent the entire week with JMS and Samm Barnes fine tuning the edit and the sound effects assembly. We’ll actually mix it next week some time. Apparently it will air over the summer, but I don’t know exactly when yet."

Joe also writes about a follow up to the two successful Matt Watts' series Steve, The First and Steve, The Second. It will be called Canadia. Cast details can be found in the same post which you can find on Joe's blog.

posted by Jesse 3:50 PM -- (0) comments

 


ed. - Here is a fine example of Harlan Ellison as narrator.


City of Darkness
By Ben Bova; Read by Harlan Ellison
2 Cassettes - 3 hours [UNABRIDGED]
Publisher: Dove Audio
Published: 1998
ISBN: 0787117269
Themes: / Science Fiction / City / Gangs / Environment /

This is a story about a teenager who feels New York City calling to him - "live here, live here, whatever it is, it's here, and nowhere else". No, this isn't Fame. In fact, it's much closer to John Carpenter's Escape from New York, because Ben Bova's Manhattan has been covered by a dome, and only opens for tourists in the summer, because of several issues, including the quality of the environment (not fit for people) and the mood of the citizens (you can't move around in the city without being shot at).

The teenager, Ron Morgan, receives his results on tests that determine his entire future. He scores very well (extremely well), but New York beckons. His father be damned, he sneaks off to get in one last visit before giving his life to the machine. Mayhem ensues, and when the gates close for the summer, Ron finds himself locked on the wrong side. He finds the city sparsely populated by interesting characters, many of whom are young people who have split up in a way that would have made William Golding nod. Gangs rule the day, and Ron finds himself in an extremely difficult spot, with nothing to rely on other than his mechanical aptitude.

This may be my favorite Ben Bova work. He crams many of his recurring themes into this story, but social and environmental concerns rule the day here. His picture of future New York is dismal, and very much an if-this-goes-on warning. The citizens who decide to stay in the city choose to because they don't see life in mainstream society (i.e., a lifetime in pursuit of dollars) as a better option - another thing Bova makes us consider.

Now, the story is quite good. But, what makes the audiobook great (and it is great) is the way it was read. Harlan Ellison performs the novel, and won an Audie Award for it. Ellison's style of narration is unique in my experience. He can keep up with the best narrators in the business when it comes to accents and character creation, and then adds a story-telling touch that makes it all the more personal. His emotion isn't limited to dialogue. He stammers when a character stammers. He's excited when the action is intense. He is fully present while he's narrating, and he lets himself feel and convey those feelings without waiting for dialogue to do it. It spills over, right out the earphones, and makes the story much more vivid and intense. This is a superior piece of narration - one that professionals should hear.

posted by Scott 6:08 AM -- (3) comments

 


The right proper fellows at Yog-Radio have recorded their second creepy H.P. Lovecraft tale and released it as a FREE mp3. Nice of them to prov... hey, wait a second, why would these guys be releasing such good stuff for free? Is this some lure to make me join their unspeakable cult? Well, mayhaps it is, but I'm happy to join if only they keep releasing such eldritch richness for my aural delight...


The Nameless City
By H.P. Lovecraft; Read by Michael Scott
1 MP3 file - 27 Minutes 46 Seconds [UNABRIDGED]
Podcaster: Yog Radio
Podcast: May 7th 2006

"That is not dead which can eternal lie,
And with strange æons death may die."
-From the Necronomicon



posted by Jesse 8:33 PM -- (0) comments

 


The Gripping Hand
By Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle; Read by Jay O. Sanders
2 Cassettes - Approx. 3 Hours [ABRIDGED]
Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
Published: 1993
ISBN: 0671791109
Themes: / Science Fiction / Hard SF / Biology / Politics / Economics /Galactic Civilization / Galactic Empire / Mormonism /

Twenty-five years have passed since the second Empire of man quarantined the mysterious aliens known only as Moties within the confines of their own solar system - afraid of the threat these aliens may pose to man kind. But the wall seperating man from the Moties is beginning to crumble...

The Gripping Hand is set in a the "CoDominium" universe originated by Jerry Pournelle. This is the sequel to their first novel together, The Mote In God's Eye (not available on audio). The setting is that of a future interstellar empire in which humanity has only one major rival for complete dominance. The so-called "Moties" are an intelligent species that is so war-like, so very dangerous, that an enitre human naval task force sits blockading the Motie system's only exit. The Moties are a species divided into distinct biological forms, each serving a different function. Master. Mediator. Engineer. Warrior. Each type is supremely adapted to its task, and only constant civil war has kept their population in check. Combined with the specialization is a terrible burden; if Moties don't breed they die agonzing deaths.

For those who haven't already read The Mote In God's Eye, you may want to stop reading now as spoilers must follow. At the end of The Mote In God's Eye, Sir Kevin Renner and His Excellency Horace Bury were secretly enlisted into Imperial Naval Intelligence. For the twenty-five years since then, they've acted as unpaid spies, keeping a watchful eye for "outies" (human raiders) in order that the empire might focus its meager resources on the overwhelming Motie threat. Bury is a merchant prince whose dealings allow him access to the underworld of many border worlds. Renner, a former naval officer, now acts as a field agent in the employ of Bury. When a botched Mormon kidnapping plot appears to involve a Motie phrase "the gripping hand", Bury demands to inspect the fleet blockading the Motie system. His journey leads him to several surprises.

There's a bit of bad news about this audiobook. If the abridgement had been longer there would still be some question as to whether or not we'd know what is going on in this book. I've listened about three times now and I'm pretty impressed at how much sense I've managed to make of it in spite of what little of the novel is there. It almost works. It has the barest framework of the plot left, lots of interesting characters, some very good dialogue, and a few simply brilliant SF ideas - but the final feeling I was left with at the end is great disappointment. We would really could have had a special audiobook here, if Simon & Schuster hadn't knocked out so much in their drive to release 2-cassette abridgments as they did back in the early 1990s. This all is especially upseting because narrator Jay O. Sanders does a fantastic job with the accents and character voices. I think it is safe to say that the fad of abridging the snot out of every novel that comes down the pipe is over. That's a good thing. It came to late for this audiobook. Some publisher out there should get a hold of The Mote In God's Eye and record it, complete and unabridged, and while they're at it they should get Jay O. Sanders to do the reading. We know he'll do a good job.

posted by Jesse 8:36 PM -- (0) comments

 


The Fall Of The City
Based on the script by Archibald MacLeish; Perfomed by a full cast
1 CD - 32 Minutes 11 Seconds [RADIO DRAMA]
Producer / Publisher: Willamette Radio Workshop / LodestoneCatalog.com
Produced / Published: 2004 / 2006
Themes: / Fantasy / Allegory / Prophecy / Utopia / Dystopia / Totalitarianism /

"- In a time like ours seemings and portents signify -"

What few of the pre-WWII fantasy radio dramas produced tended to be allegorical, The Fall Of The City is no different in that respect. This one however has a unique feature - it was written as an extended dramatized poem "verse for radio" as they called it. The original production starred the then ubiquitous Orson Welles and a number of other Hollywood stars. This is the modern re-recording of the original 1937 radio drama. The folks at Willamette Radio Workshop have put the results to CD, but it was actually broadcast on WMNF 88.5 FM in Tampa, Florida in the fall of 2004. The production asks several questions appopriate for totalitarian times: 'What freedom is worth?' 'What is freedom?' And most importantly, "freedom from what?"

As Fall Of The City begins, a ghostly almost prophetic figure has appeared in city's cemetary for three days running. When she finally speaks to the gathered mob she fortells the arrival of a conqueror, warning “The city of masterless men will take a master, there will be shouting then, blood after.” The citizenry, shocked that their advanced state may be under dire threat are agitated into a debate about the possible actions they might take to ensure their continued freedom. I found it an experience not unlike that of a staged Greek tragedy, thus it is all three high-browed, reflective and wise. To say more might be to reveal to much. What I can say without fear of spoiling the experience for you is that this is an artful production, sound design and music are beautifully rendered with voice acting in absolute top form. I'd be interested to hear if the team at Willamette will be taking on MacLeish's 1938 follow up Air Raid another of his poetry dramas.

posted by Jesse 5:12 PM -- (1) comments

 


Audio Renaissance's recently released Perfect Dark: Condition Zero may have been just the first of a new trend, the video game tie-in novel coming to audio. But it now it looks like that trend may never really materialize. See, there were plans afoot to release three audiobooks based around the incredibly popular XBox game called Halo but those plans have now been scrubbed. Apparently the rights-holder a small but feisty computer company called Microsoft, based out of Redmond, WA, has pulled the three slated audiobooks from the publication schedule! Here's the kicker, the recordings for all three were already completed at the time of the pull! The narrator for all three was reportedly the talented Todd McLaren (who performed the first two Richard K. Morgan novels for Tantor Media). If you're a Halo fan you're probably bunny-hopping mad right now. To vent this frustration I suggest you either load up your fuel rod rifle or write your congressman.

posted by Jesse 1:21 PM -- (0) comments

 


The Voice from the Edge Vol. 1: I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream
By Harlan Ellison, read by Harlan Ellison
5 CD’s – 6 hours [UNABRIDGED stories]
Publisher: Fantastic Audio
Published: 2002
ISBN: 1574535374
Themes: / Science fiction / Collection / Series / Post-Apocalypse /Artificial intelligence / Utopia / Dystopia / Magic Realism / Love / Hell

ed. - This is one of two Harlan Ellison collections that were released by Fantastic Audio. The second is called The Voice from the Edge: Midnight at the Sunken Cathedral.

There are two basic reasons to invest in a short story collection by a single author. The first is to experience first hand the stylistic, thematic, and technical contributions the author has made to his genre and to literature in general; the second is to sample the dynamic range the author covers, to gauge the extent of his palette.

This audio book delivers the first in spades. With Harlan Ellison’s friendly, yet curmudgeonly introduction, we are thrust immediately into the gritty rawness he helped bring to science fiction. Such stories as the harrowing, lurid, complex title story, the gleefully offensive misogyny and sociopathy of "A Boy and His Dog", the pop-cultural, pejorative ranting of "Laugh Track", and the sophomoric sexual preoccupation of "The Very Last Day of a Good Woman" clearly delineate the dark, adult-oriented themes he introduced, as well as his predilection for unlikable anti-heroes who often leave us feeling a bit less comfortable about ourselves. And on such material, his distinctive narrative style shines. He curses with conviction, and his voice handles guilt, revenge, and damnation with seeming familiarity.

In the overall story choice, we also have a remarkable demonstration of the range of Ellison’s writing. Compare the patient, redemptive power of "Paladin of the Lost Hour" to any of the stories mentioned above, and you’ll see what I mean. Throw in the sly, haunted twist of "The Time of the Eye", the overwrought post-modernism and tedious beatnik vamping in "’Repent Harlequin!’ said the Tick-Tock Man", the sublime, hellish search for love in "Grail", and the puzzling juxtaposition of the truly horrific and the trivial in "The Lingering Scent of Woodsmoke", and you cover quite a swath of not only the science-fiction spectrum, but the fiction spectrum in general.

Unfortunately, the use of a single narrator for all these stories blurs their uniqueness, especially since that narrator is Harlan Ellison. His delivery style can be enjoyable, but it is so raw, so exaggerated, and so pervasive that it tends to flatten the relief of the work itself. I can’t say that I question the wisdom of having Ellison narrate, for on any single story his voice adds the confident insight that only an author can bring to his own work. But this is a collection, and the diverse stories deserve a wider range of vocal performance to truly showcase their differences. My advice is to make the best of this paradox by taking the collection slowly. The quality of the material, the exceptionally crisp sound and the fine, user-friendly packaging make this an audio book you should not miss. Just make sure to pace yourself.

posted by Kurt 5:00 AM -- (0) comments

 


What's a powerhouse podcast magazine like Escape Pod going to do to celebrate a full 52 continous weeks of Science Fiction goodness? Rumor has it that another Paul Di Filippo story is in the offing (possibly even on this week's anniversary show)! Sometime after that there's a good chance we'll see a few, most or even all five of this year's Hugo award short story nominees too! That's right boys and girls it's entirely possible that all five of the Hugo nominated stories will be gracing your MP3 player in the coming months:

Seventy-Five Years by Michael A. Burstein (Analog January/February 2005)
The Clockwork Atom Bomb by Dominic Green (Interzone May/June 2005)
Singing My Sister Down by Margo Lanagan (Black Juice, Allen & Unwin; Eos)
Tk'tk'tk by David D. Levine (Asimov's March 2005)
Down Memory Lane by Mike Resnick (Asimov's April/May 2005)

posted by Jesse 2:22 PM -- (0) comments

 


We're going to try something new this month at SFFaudio. On May 6, Harlan Ellison will be receiving the SFWA Grand Master award at the Nebula Award Banquet in Phoenix. Besides the multiple awards he's received for his writing, he's an Audie award-winning narrator who reads both his own material and material written by others, including stories by Ursula K. LeGuin and Ben Bova. He's the host of the finest modern SF audio drama series 2000X. He's even got a couple of live albums.

SFFaudio will focus on all this audio work as we name Harlan Ellison our first Author of the Month! 5:32 AM -- (0) comments