Mayhem

this just in, from a friend of mine, Dr Hermie Saludes:

hi folks,,,

project mayhem will play
on
january 20, 2007
at the
conspiracy bar, visayas ave
across shell
8pm onwards

along with

love suicide
script kiddie
star castle and
aroma

hope to see you there !!!

thanks

> drs saludes/delarosa/florendo/lao

just so you know, this isn't them.

if the name sounds familiar, it may be that a) Fight Club made an impression on you; b) you participated in this initiative; c) you've been keeping up with this blog and read about them here:

Dr. Hermi Saludes of Project Mayhem describes their sound as "Fusion.. Like, Razorback with U2 and RHCP undertones with a black Francis M on vocals." the band consists completely of MDs. you can find them on the web at project_mayhem_md@yahoo.com.ph.

*

Meanwhile, Jeff Vandermeer makes these observations over on his blog:

Perhaps more depressingly, there have been whole issues of publications which feel like dead weight, where the stories are inert and lifeless. Going through the motions. Writing from a plot spine and just draping papermache over the skeleton and hoping no one will notice the creature isn't alive.When there is nothing personal or at stake for the writer in the story, there often is nothing personal or at stake for the reader. But this is not just the responsibility of the writer. It's the responsibility of the editor. The fact is, there are few enough stories in any year that really needed to be published, needed to be read, and will survive in the public imagination for more than a few hours or months.

i don't read even a small fraction of the number of anthologies i should, though i recently read the entire first issue of the Digest of Philippine Genre Stories in one go. while i like some stories more than others (as can only be expected), am uncertain about which of these stories 'really needed to be published'--particularly in this digest--and there is a definite drift towards horror in this particular issue that seems a disservice to the other subgenres (this may be more a reflection of the kind of writing going on hereabouts than Kenneth's editing and direction for the digest), i think Kenneth Yu is in the right headspace for all this, despite what others may say, and wish him luck with the publication.

yes, i do have a bit of a stake in this as Kenneth will be publishing one of my stories in the next issue, but it's more than that, as i personally find my own future with the digest a bit iffy.

read the digest, get a feel for the stories, what they may or may not say about genres and *the* genres, and let Kenneth know what you think.