In Science Fiction we often discuss how the best writing turns a mirror on society to show its aberrations. What if the mirror was right before you in the story all along?
As a new generation of female SF writers, Joanna Russ rose quietly through the ranks with a set of stories about her time-traveling "warrior-princess" Alyx. Alyx is a recreation of the past who will never fit into current society. However, by comparing her to the women of her childhood and even her present, Russ illustrates society's mores as leaving dents in this warrior's armor.
Born to a Jewish family in the Bronx, Russ spent much of her childhood creating her world via stories, poems, and illustrations that she bound together in volumes. A star student in high school, Russ studied writing at Cornell under Vladimir Nabokov (as did Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. and Thomas Pynchon) before finishing her MFA in Drama at Yale.
The Alyx series opens with 1967's "The Adventuress" and I Thought She Was Afeard Till She Stroked My Beard." We learn of Alyx's Phoenician past as she rescues an heiress from Ourdh ("this city, this paradise -- swamp!") and duels with Blackbeard on the high seas. Alyx is one of the first female heroines in SF and the symbolism of Russ carving her path into a male-dominated world is not lost on the reader. "Beard" goes back further to Alyx, the younger. She is trapped in an abusive marriage and her daydreams of fighting her way out of it parallel what comes in "The Adventuress." The most important aspect of both stories remains that our heroine is not only resourceful and a brutal fighter -- she is alone.
1968's "The Barbarian" and "Picnic in Paradise" chart Russ/Alyx's transition to hard SF. In "The Barbarian," Alyx opens the story in a vicious battle with a wizard, however, to escape her growing list of enemies she ventures into the future where technology is not necessarily friendly either. "Picnic" is where Alyx becomes the ultimate outsider/heroine due to her ability to stay on the task of rescuing a group of tourists who wandered into a mysterious "planetary war." Russ' writing is changing as she purposefully bends her stories away from the previous narratives to the point that they can reasonably be read out of sequence.
In "Picnic," the travelers are a real mess. A bald boy with his eyes, ears, and nose bound experiencing "station nirvana" who calls himself "Machine." An artist, of course. A "conamon," or politician which she defines as an "influence(r)?" And two meek nuns reacting as a small Greek chorus. Immediately, Russ introduces doubt about any of them getting along, while implying to us that they must in order to survive on the treacherous "Paradise" during this "commercial war."
This giant planet has a net around it and to protect its pristine environment, the war is being fought with soundwaves. So, Alyx has to give up her metal and fight with weapons manufactured of less-detectable alloys while they all crawl on the ground. With Russ' vivid imagination in overdrive, the traveler’s memories of this future world continue to point out problems in the present. All while Alyx, duty-bound to Russ' overarching Trans-Temporal Authority must guide, coax, distract, and console them over the 240km from point A to point B. Russ' vision of the future often overwhelms you with the number of choices offered even though viewing the main task at a much higher level of abstraction seems so simple.
Russ as Alyx struggles with an inner dialogue not necessarily to fit in, but to understand her counterparts who are consumed with "talking about themselves." She is a definitive leader, but self-doubt creeps into her mind not about the journey but about the impact it could have ("where she could dwindle into a memory, an anecdote, a party conversation.") The underlying message of "Picnic" seems to be that one cannot live life to its fullest when self-consumed and experience, not the "infrared transferred" overflow of data, is still the best teacher.
The final sequence in Russ's "Alyx" series is 1970's "The Second Inquisition." Poignant and Russ at her most human, we experience a great-granddaughter of Alyx in America in 1925. "The Second Inquisition" is far more meditative and experimental. An argument can even be made that this is the sought-after "origin story" (not the dynamic turn in "The Barbarian.") Deep within the story of a teenage girl fixed on a mysterious time traveler, Russ leaves behind details of her childhood. Within its idyllic 20s American glow, the challenges of women in the modern world are drawn into the small square of light Russ continues to mention. An alien enhancing small-town life may resemble a Hollywood trope, but here it is largely about capturing and using the imagination as a time-travel device to see a future world that is far better for all parties involved. If only for one night, that "freedom" exists. However, much like the now proverbial theory of violating the space-time continuum, Newton's law governs that the equal and opposite reactions must follow. With that, our narrator puts away the silvery costume of time travel for the smart blouse and skirt of 1925. Finally, for the first time in her tales, Russ declares "No more stories."
NEW MUSIC THIS WEEK
MUMFORD & SONS - Rushmere [BLOODSHOT RED LP/CD/CS](Glassnote)
When a band reaches a little far outside of their expectations, they return to their roots. For Grammy-winners Mumford & Sons, "Rushmere" takes its name from the pond where they first found their similar interests and uncommon harmony. With banjos blaring majestic strains ("Malibu") and the emotional pull of the release of an anthemic chorus (the "Sigh No More"-esque stomping title track,) they are back.
ALISON KRAUSS & UNION STATION - Arcadia (LP/CD](Down The Road/Redeye)
Discovered at 14, singer/fiddler Alison Krauss has long held audiences entranced by her pure voice. All these years later, Krauss reunites Union Station for another album (the first since 2011's "Paper Airplane.") With Dobro legend Jerry Douglas returning, the pieces are all back in place (including new addition Russell Moore of highly decorated Bluegrassers IIrd Tyme Out.)
DEAFHEAVEN - Lonely People With Power [BLUE LP/CD](Roadrunner/Warner)
UNDERØATH - The Place After This One [RUBY LP/CD](MNRK Heavy)
ARCH ENEMY - Blood Dynasty [WHITE LP/CD](Century Media)
After several masterful albums dating back to 2013's "Sunbather," Deafheaven has achieved a balanced attack of their brand of Deathgaze on "Lonely People With Power." Where Death Metal needs that screaming, growling peak, on tracks like the massive building "Heathen," Deafheaven stays relentless matching the energy of the twists of the song. On the post-HC/post-Rock masterpiece "Magnolia," they stay true to their Death-ly drive while speeding through the hectic changes and highly melodic breaks. When they bash away at their frustration and anguish, it remains more empowering than exhausting.
From their early years, Florida's Hardcore/Screamo band Underøath have been looking for a chance to stretch out in different directions. With producer Danen Rector, "The Place After This One" seems designed to incorporate the essence of Nu-Metal ("Generation No Surrender") with some Industrial/Noise elements (the striking single "All The Love is Gone.")
Swedish Extreme/Death metallers Arch Enemy turn 30 with several bold flourishes on "Blood Dynasty." More melodious than ever, they are at their best when tackling a NWOBHM-style gallop on "Paper Tiger" and the atmospheric Metallica-esque crunch of the single-ready title track. The radio may say it's not prepared for the growl of Alissa White-Gluz, but the blinding guitar solo could change minds.
PERFUME GENIUS - Glory [LP/CD](Matador/Beggars/Redeye)
Mike Hadreas and his angelic voice continue their push into knotty roots Pop on the seventh Perfume Genius album. Aided by heavyweights Blake Mills, Jim Keltner, and Greg Uhlmann, "Glory" is the closest to a Seventies singer/songwriter album Hadreas has been. His writing continues to bend at different angles (the Tim Buckley-esque duet with Aldous Harding on "No Front Teeth") but there is no way to deny his knack for sweeping hooks ("It's A Mirror.")
LUCY DACUS - Forever Is a Feeling [LIQUID GOLD LP/CD/CS](Geffen)
Forget everything you know about Boygenius - a band that is three fantastic singer/songwriters joining together to sing in one voice. Lucy Dacus has been making high quality records on her own since 2016. "The Historian" boasts the amazing epic "Night Shift" (as an opener, no less) and 2021's "Home Video" should have delivered a hit or two with "Brando" and "Hot & Heavy." The point is, Dacus has always had range. Thanks to the success of the aforementioned group (where she sings on the incredible "True Blue,") "Forever" leaps to Geffen. "Ankles" is already the frontrunner for song of the year. Like "Hot & Heavy" (from "The Historian,") Dacus can be overwhelmingly romantic and realistic. Elsewhere, Dacus can now bring in the big guns (Hozier, Madison Cunningham, Blake Mills, and Bartees Strange) to make a "true love" record that rings out from the rooftops. Oh, and of course, Phoebe and Julien are there.
DESTROYER - Dan's Boogie [SPLATTER LP/CD](Merge/AMPED)
Dan Bejar has always been an incredible songwriter. However, his devil-may-care delivery tends to push people out of the nest. Years after his triumphant "Destroyer's Rubies," Bejar swings back into his best travelogue/Beatnik journey style-jumping here. "Bologna" with Fiver helping out is a joyous, almost Francophone-ish escape from the daily world. "Dan's Boogie" collects a lot of Bejar's visions of himself as a singer/leader/man about town. However, he is not bringing attitude as much as brimming over with spirit. "Cataract Time" is the closest to an old-style Destroyer track as we have seen in years. The fact that after all this time, Bejar knows that the song should sparkle more than he does is a testament to his devotion to the craft.
SPELLLING - Portrait of My Heart [GREEN LP/CD](Sacred Bones/Secretly/AMPED)
The Bay Area's Chrystal Cabral has been making some enchanting music over her first three albums. "Heart" puts her writing and encapsulated emotion together and moves her into the Pop world thanks to producers from SZA, Yves Tumor, and Toro Y Moi. When Cabral cranks "Alibi" up to riffing speed, you know we are a long way from the still brilliant "The Turning Wheel."
FLEETWOOD MAC - 1975 to 1987 [6 CLEAR LP BOX/6 CD BOX](Warner)
In short, this Buckingham/Nicks/McVie/McVie/Fleetwood box should give you the whole story about how a group recovers from a truly terrible set of circumstances to make some of the best Pop music of the Seventies. As Fleetwood smartly turns the production over to Buckingham, you can chart the development of their meticulous sound as easily as the dissolution of their relationships. Even when the members find solo success, listening to them rebuild on the underrated "Mirage" from 1982 and embrace new production techniques on 1987's "Tango In The Night" is a testament to their ongoing importance.
