Joshua P. Simon's Blog, page 7
December 22, 2014
Top 5 Albums of 2014
It’s that time of the year again. This year has been really good as far as new releases are concerned, making the cut to five more difficult than usual. In fact, the margins between each spot are pretty thin. The deciding factor became which albums I listened to the most since their releases.
5. Overkill – White Devil Armoury
Bitter Pill
4. KXM – KXM
Rescue Me
3. Arch Enemy – War Eternal
Avalanche
2. At the Gates – At War With Reality
Heroes and Tombs
1. Judas Priest – Redeemer of Souls
Hell & Back
What were your top five albums?
5. Overkill – White Devil Armoury
Bitter Pill
4. KXM – KXM
Rescue Me
3. Arch Enemy – War Eternal
Avalanche
2. At the Gates – At War With Reality
Heroes and Tombs
1. Judas Priest – Redeemer of Souls
Hell & Back
What were your top five albums?
December 15, 2014
Forgotten Soldiers OFFICIAL RELEASE
A great war. A changed world. A soldier through it all.
Forgotten Soldiers: The Tyrus Chronicle - Book One is now available for your Kindle! Click here to purchase or borrow if you're a member of Kindle Unlimited.
A paperback version can be found here.
Forgotten Soldiers is the first book in The Tyrus Chronicles. Three more books are planned for this series: Wayward Soldiers, Resurrected Soldiers, and Forever Soldiers. The next two are scheduled for release next year.
Here's the description for Forgotten Soldiers.
The Turine army is on the brink of victory against the Geneshans. Sergeant Tyrus and his unit are tasked to steal an artifact from the enemy that some believe has the power to destroy the world. Taking such power from the Geneshans would end the decade long war.
Upon their success, Tyrus’s unit is among the first wave of soldiers discharged from the army. War has robbed him of time with his wife and children, but now the life he has dreamed of every day for the last ten years is just a long journey away.
Traveling home, Tyrus finds the world he left behind changed in ways he never expected. His own countrymen view returning soldiers as a threat. His own townsmen want to forget he even existed. Danger is everywhere. His dream is in jeopardy.
If you enjoy the story or any of my other works, please consider leaving a rating or review at the site of purchase as well as other places such as Goodreads and Librarything. Like many other indie authors, I do not have a marketing team working for me and a positive review (even if only a couple of sentences long) can go a long way in enticing others to give my works a try.
Thanks for the continued support!
Forgotten Soldiers: The Tyrus Chronicle - Book One is now available for your Kindle! Click here to purchase or borrow if you're a member of Kindle Unlimited.
A paperback version can be found here.
Forgotten Soldiers is the first book in The Tyrus Chronicles. Three more books are planned for this series: Wayward Soldiers, Resurrected Soldiers, and Forever Soldiers. The next two are scheduled for release next year.
Here's the description for Forgotten Soldiers.
The Turine army is on the brink of victory against the Geneshans. Sergeant Tyrus and his unit are tasked to steal an artifact from the enemy that some believe has the power to destroy the world. Taking such power from the Geneshans would end the decade long war.
Upon their success, Tyrus’s unit is among the first wave of soldiers discharged from the army. War has robbed him of time with his wife and children, but now the life he has dreamed of every day for the last ten years is just a long journey away.
Traveling home, Tyrus finds the world he left behind changed in ways he never expected. His own countrymen view returning soldiers as a threat. His own townsmen want to forget he even existed. Danger is everywhere. His dream is in jeopardy.
If you enjoy the story or any of my other works, please consider leaving a rating or review at the site of purchase as well as other places such as Goodreads and Librarything. Like many other indie authors, I do not have a marketing team working for me and a positive review (even if only a couple of sentences long) can go a long way in enticing others to give my works a try.
Thanks for the continued support!
December 8, 2014
Music Monday - The Doors
These are my three favorite songs by The Doors. A great driving tune, a song that makes me wish they had done an entire blues album, and one of the most haunting, dark songs I’ve ever heard.
L.A. Woman
Roadhouse Blues (Live) (NSFW language on the intro)
The End
L.A. Woman
Roadhouse Blues (Live) (NSFW language on the intro)
The End
November 21, 2014
Happy Thanksgiving from the Animaniacs
Though there are more than enough Halloween and Christmas cartoons, there are only a handful related to Thanksgiving that I can think of. Below is a small clip from my favorite Thanksgiving cartoon. I dare you to watch it and not have that gobble at the beginning stuck in your head.
November 14, 2014
Cover Reveal - Forgotten Soldiers, The Tyrus Chronicle, Book 1
I haven't given a new series I've been working on a lot of space here on my blog. That series finally has an official name, The Tyrus Chronicle. The series follows the main character Tyrus through the ending of a long war and adjusting to the world of supposed peace.
The first book, Forgotten Soldiers, will be released some time in December with the second book, Wayward Soldiers coming a few months later.
I plan to work on both this series and The Epic of Andrasta and Rondel over the next year and a half or so.
I’m still working on the official description, but I’m pretty excited about the cover and couldn’t wait any longer to reveal it on my website.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments, and stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks.
The first book, Forgotten Soldiers, will be released some time in December with the second book, Wayward Soldiers coming a few months later.
I plan to work on both this series and The Epic of Andrasta and Rondel over the next year and a half or so.
I’m still working on the official description, but I’m pretty excited about the cover and couldn’t wait any longer to reveal it on my website.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments, and stay tuned for more information in the coming weeks.
November 10, 2014
Live Versions That Are Better Than Album Versions
There are some songs that are just made to be played live. So much so, the live versions are far and away better than the album versions. Below are three examples that come immediately to mind.
Paul McCartney & Wings - Maybe I’m Amazed
Judas Priest - Victim of Changes
AC/DC - Thunderstruck
What other songs do you think fall into this category?
Paul McCartney & Wings - Maybe I’m Amazed
Judas Priest - Victim of Changes
AC/DC - Thunderstruck
What other songs do you think fall into this category?
November 3, 2014
Music Monday - Black Sabbath - Vol. 4
It’s a Black Sabbath kind of day and Volume 4 was on my brain.
Wheels of Confusion/The Straightener
Supernaut
Under The Sun / Every Day Comes And Goes
Wheels of Confusion/The Straightener
Supernaut
Under The Sun / Every Day Comes And Goes
October 27, 2014
Music Monday - Jerry Cantrell - Boggy Depot
Jerry Cantrell’s solo work often gets overlooked which is a shame because it is awesome. The entire album is great, but below are a few of my favorite tracks.
Dickeye
Jesus Hands
Hurt a Long Time
Between
Dickeye
Jesus Hands
Hurt a Long Time
Between
October 23, 2014
My Favorite Podcasts
I listen to a lot of podcasts while at work. Below are my favorites.
GENERAL PODCASTS
TOUCHER & RICH - http://boston.cbslocal.com/category/98-5-the-sportshub-shows/toucher-and-rich/
This podcast is a morning radio show out of Boston and my favorite of all podcasts. I laugh out loud quite often while at work listening to it. The two guys started in rock radio and switched to a sports talk show when the station changed format. The great thing about the show is that it isn’t endless hours of boring analysis. There is some of that stuff, but they still mix it up and talk about other things like music, movies, etc. Obviously, the sports have a Boston area slant, but they do talk about sports on a national level too so you don’t have to necessarily be a fan of New England sports to enjoy. Thankfully, I grew up a huge Celtics fan and actually became a Bruins fan because of the show so I don’t mind most of the Boston sports talk.
TALK IS JERICHO - http://podcastone.com/Talk-Is-Jericho
Wrestling, music (especially heavy metal), the supernatural, movies, and everything in between. Really awesome interviews with a laid back and relaxed format.
FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION
The below podcasts all focus on the sci-fi/fantasy genre whether in book, movie, tv, cartoon, or music form. Besides just some generally good discussions on genre topics, there are a lot of great author interviews as well.
The Functional Nerds - http://functionalnerds.com/
Sword and Laser - http://swordandlaser.com/
Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy - http://geeksguideshow.com/
Adventures in Sci-fi publishing - http://www.adventuresinscifipublishing.com/
WRITING CRAFT
The below podcasts focus more on the craft of writing, so they probably wouldn’t be as interesting to non-writers. Still, I find that there is usually some good information/perspective in each webisode.
Writing Excuses - http://www.writingexcuses.com/
Speculate - http://www.speculatesf.com/
Hide and Create - http://www.writingpodcastonline.com/
There are quite a few other podcasts I listen to with regularity as well, but the above are the ones I download pretty quickly once a new webisode is posted.
What podcasts do you enjoy?
GENERAL PODCASTS
TOUCHER & RICH - http://boston.cbslocal.com/category/98-5-the-sportshub-shows/toucher-and-rich/
This podcast is a morning radio show out of Boston and my favorite of all podcasts. I laugh out loud quite often while at work listening to it. The two guys started in rock radio and switched to a sports talk show when the station changed format. The great thing about the show is that it isn’t endless hours of boring analysis. There is some of that stuff, but they still mix it up and talk about other things like music, movies, etc. Obviously, the sports have a Boston area slant, but they do talk about sports on a national level too so you don’t have to necessarily be a fan of New England sports to enjoy. Thankfully, I grew up a huge Celtics fan and actually became a Bruins fan because of the show so I don’t mind most of the Boston sports talk.
TALK IS JERICHO - http://podcastone.com/Talk-Is-Jericho
Wrestling, music (especially heavy metal), the supernatural, movies, and everything in between. Really awesome interviews with a laid back and relaxed format.
FANTASY AND SCIENCE FICTION
The below podcasts all focus on the sci-fi/fantasy genre whether in book, movie, tv, cartoon, or music form. Besides just some generally good discussions on genre topics, there are a lot of great author interviews as well.
The Functional Nerds - http://functionalnerds.com/
Sword and Laser - http://swordandlaser.com/
Geek’s Guide to the Galaxy - http://geeksguideshow.com/
Adventures in Sci-fi publishing - http://www.adventuresinscifipublishing.com/
WRITING CRAFT
The below podcasts focus more on the craft of writing, so they probably wouldn’t be as interesting to non-writers. Still, I find that there is usually some good information/perspective in each webisode.
Writing Excuses - http://www.writingexcuses.com/
Speculate - http://www.speculatesf.com/
Hide and Create - http://www.writingpodcastonline.com/
There are quite a few other podcasts I listen to with regularity as well, but the above are the ones I download pretty quickly once a new webisode is posted.
What podcasts do you enjoy?
October 20, 2014
Music Monday - 25 or 6 to 4
Easily my favorite Chicago song. A song about how hard it is to write a song.
