Author Topic: Pseudopod 100: The Music of Erich Zann  (Read 21019 times)

Fenrix

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Reply #25 on: October 15, 2009, 05:00:57 AM
I'm a Lovecraft fan, but hadn't really considered this story in my favorites. The reading of it made significant strides in my appreciation of the work. I think I could develop a real appreciation for the drier sections of the Dream Cycle if it was read to me...

All cat stories start with this statement: “My mother, who was the first cat, told me this...”


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Reply #26 on: October 23, 2009, 05:13:31 PM
I've never read or listened to a Lovecraft story before, so I didn't know what to expect.  I have come across a lot of stories that people describe as Lovecraftian, though.  I was expecting tentacled Elder Gods, but I was happy with the more subtle unseen horror here.

Excellent reading--more of him please!

The beginning was slow... very slow.  But that's not so much a criticism of the story as a comment on the changing writing styles over the century.  In these media-saturated times, people expect some sort of instant gratification in the form of a solid hook.  Knowing that this was an older story, and knowing this was HP Lovecraft--I wanted to listen to the whole thing so that I could more fully comment on whether I like Lovecraft's writing or not.  Like I said, I hadn't read any Lovecraft stories, but I have enjoyed many older works by other authors like H.G. Wells and Edgar Allen Poe.

I thought this was a great story.  The use of music as both antagonist and savior was excellent, and the image of the old man playing feverishly for the sake of humanity was such an amazing image.  This was a great example of the use of the word "Lovecraftian" I've often seen where it describes something that makes humanity pale in magnitude, not necessarily malicious but just so much bigger than us that we are as insects.

It did get a little old with the oft-mentioned descriptions "too horrible to describe", but again I think that's a sign of the times.  That was very effective back then, but by this day and age it's been over-used.

The one complaint I have about the whole thing that isn't attributable to the time period is this:
The protagonist sat there for an hour or more while the old man wrote out his story, stacking up sheets and sheets and sheets.  Why wouldn't the protag start reading the first sheets as the old man is writing the later sheets?  Rather than just twiddling his thumbs.  I realize it was probably done this way so that the sheets could disappear out the window, but as written it just didn't make sense.

Anyway, good show!  I can now say I enjoy Lovecraft's writing (at least what I've heard of it).



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Reply #27 on: October 23, 2009, 11:52:46 PM
Lovecraft didn't really do lots of tentacles.  I think a lot of stuff gets called "Lovecraftian" just because it features nigh-omnipotent otherworldly beings who would destroy the universe if allowed inside.  Lovecraft himself rarely showed "monsters," and when they did appear, the stories spent about an 80/20 split in buildup versus actual monstrosities.  He also didn't like describing specifics, throwing out a few details and leaving the rest "indescribable."  (Lovecraft really is big on that, mos' def.)




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Reply #28 on: August 21, 2014, 01:18:43 PM
I named this my #8 favorite Pseudopod episode:
http://www.sfsignal.com/archives/2014/08/podcast-spotlight-pseudopod/