One band, one book, one beer #1

A quick post to kick things off. London Met’s sell-off of its library facilities has been foremost in my mind this week (I’m doing my Info Management MA there) , but that deserves a post all of its own, which is more than I’ve got time for today (meetings, meetings meetings). So, for now, here are three things close to my heart: bands, books and beer.  Apologies to John-Lee Hooker for plagiarising his song:

One band

Orchid – purveyors of fine retro-doom. Yes, it sounds exactly like ’70-72-era Sabbath, but criticising a band for doing that is like criticising Bradley Wiggins for riding a bike. It’s not the tools you use, or the form they take, it’s what you do with them. Orchid pick up the arm-thick fuzzed up riffs and pin-eyed vocals from Master of Reality and run with them. In a field of Sabbath copyists, it’s Orchid wearing the yellow jersey.

One book

The eternal search for love, companionship and acceptance. It’s a hard enough quest when you’re human, even harder when you’re a 5000 year old man-bull with two foot long horns growing out of your head. Steven Sherill’s The Minotaur Takes a Cigarette Break uses a familiar ‘supernatural being at large in the everyday world’ conceit and wrings a sad, painful, often beautiful narrative out of it.

One beer

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. Beerreviews.co.uk says ‘The aromas are spicy and floral with bags of citrusy cascades and hints of pine .’ I just say: yum.