Go Get a Late Pass

[Real Real]

There are things out there that are widely accepted to be great, things that you had been hearing about for months, years...yet, for some reason, stubbornness, laziness, you had never got around to hearing/reading/eating whatever that thing is.

Then, one day, you finally get around to experiencing that thing...and it's just as awesome as everyone said it was.

You're excited about it, you want to talk to people about it, but your excitement is blunted by everybody already having processed that thing already.

-the thing is acknowledged to be great (either by a select group or the populace at large)
-you've known about this thing and its supposed greatness for a while
-for some reason, you've chosen not to experience this thing up until recently
-upon experiencing it, it exceeds whatever expectations you had built up for it.

For example, I've been listening to Eno's Another Green World obsessively for the past couple of weeks. I first heard about it ~10 years ago, have thought about buying/listening to it at multiple times, but never got around to it until recently...and now I wish it hadn't taken me so long to get to it. It's terrific, so good, the sort of thing that probably would have changed my music tastes had I listened to it a decade ago.

This happen to anyone else recently - have you discovered the Beach Boys, or fish tacos? Don't say the Wire (or Cormac McCarthy).

[mass]

actually the first time i ever had fish tacos was in san diego maybe 5 years ago... i haven't had them since but i was there for a couple of days and i pretty much had them every day. oh yeah on the last day i was there i had a breakfast buffet at TGIF and it was the best 10$ i had ever spent.

also i used to really hate mustard, until i had honey mustard. now i love even regular mustard, and i especially love plain mustard sandwiches.

[Fade to Black]

Cormac McCarthy. No really, I bought The Road like 6 months ago and just started reading it yesterday. He's great.

Philip Roth...I've read practically as much as there is to read about the guy except for his BOOKS. lol...there is not much selection around here for 'literature' as opposed to 'general fiction,' I've been hesitant to just pick up a Roth and start reading away because his catalogue is big enough I kinda wanna make sure I start off on the right foot. And right now I am convinced I gotta read the Mickey Sabbath book before I read anything else of his...if an experienced Roth reader here has a better suggestion, I'm all ears.

[Real Real]

I've been hesitant to just pick up a Roth and start reading away because his catalogue is big enough I kinda wanna make sure I start off on the right foot. And right now I am convinced I gotta read the Mickey Sabbath book before I read anything else of his...if an experienced Roth reader here has a better suggestion, I'm all ears.

I read Portnoy's Complaint first, and I think that's the best place to start. It's a particularly good place to start if you're not a Jewish guy.

[Fade to Black]

heh I might as well be part Jewish, however small that part is. My godmother is Jewish, is the reason I'm named Matthew instead of Adrian, and introduced me to circumcision, matzo ball soup and passover dinners that filled up a fondly remembered part of my childhood.

[Faust]

I have to borrow that from a friend, Real_Real. FtB, glad you are loving McCarthy. I get so happy when people love the same things and when my recommendation is good.

For me it's Joy Division. Seriously. I first encountered their music through Nine Inch Nails, (which is how I also coincidentally discovered Leonard Cohen, via a Trent Reznor produced Natural Born Killers soundtrack), but I never got to fully appreciate them, until SZ population made me revisit their music and listen to it more carefully.

[Jon]

I like this thread.

For me right now it's Black Flag. I tried to get into them years ago - had some random MP3's - but last month I got my hands on about 5 of their albums and I wish I had done it a lot sooner. I definitely would have identified with it more when I was younger, but Damaged is undeniably brilliant.

[maldoror]

charles burns's black hole. finally got around to reading it just recently and holy shit is it good. read it in a single seating and honestly haven't had this kind of race to the finish compulsion since seeing twin peaks for the first time years ago.

[Real Real]

I like this thread.

For me right now it's Black Flag. I tried to get into them years ago - had some random MP3's - but last month I got my hands on about 5 of their albums and I wish I had done it a lot sooner. I definitely would have identified with it more when I was younger, but Damaged is undeniably brilliant.

Good one. Black Flag's actually on my list of things that I tried to get into once, didn't like, but expect to like once I give them another shot. I bought Damaged about four years ago, expecting to think it was awesome, and was surprised when it didn't engage me..I think I ended up selling it back to Amoeba before I gave it an honest shot. Generally, anything I like the first time I hear it isn't actually something that's going to hold my attention long term, anyways. The only album I can think of right now that I liked immediately and also liked after listening to the thing a hundred times is Jay Reatard's Blood Visions. So, I figure that once I listen to Black Flag again, I'll get into it.

This isn't really related to my original post, but there are certain things that I expect to like and that are recognized as good that I've intentionally held off on listening so I can later surprise myself with something I know will be good. Great Expectations is probably the best example of that...I kept that one in my back pocket until I wanted a book that I expected could meet the expectations I'd built up for it, and when I read it, it was good as I had hoped.

[maldoror]

if you go back to black flag try my war or slip it in.

and to get you started:

[lowrey]

FtB, glad you are loving McCarthy. I get so happy when people love the same things and when my recommendation is good.

same thing for me, I've heard about him and particularly The Road but didn't pick it up until we talked about it a month or so ago

[Faust]

cool