by Mike Errico | Jul 23, 2018 | Books, Minor Fits, Stories
Backstory: As part of the Minor Fits crowdfunding campaign, I offered a four-issue special edition of Tallboy magazine, and now the offer is available to you, too. Wait…what is it? It’s hand-crafted, artisanal literature in the old-school punk ‘zine tradition. (That’s fancy-talk for “stories I’ve told on stage, scans of lyrics directly from my notebooks, the history behind the songs, and more.”) If you want in, you will receive FOUR issues by end of 2018 (two are already out, but we’ll catch you up), plus a free download of AC/DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long,” from the Minor Fits sessions. That URL again: https://mikeerrico.bandcamp.com/merch/subscription-to-tallboy-magazine-quarterly AND OF COURSE, THE MUSIC KEEPS COMING (FYI: The largest selection of my work on ANY platform is on Bandcamp. This includes deluxe editions, unreleased live tracks, podcasts, singles, and all of that. That’s the motherlode.)and of course, you can:STREAM ON SPOTIFY (check out playlists, too) STREAM ON APPLE MUSIC (if you can figure it out, that...
by Mike Errico | Oct 30, 2015 | Books, Stories
New: A seasonal piece of anatomical theater. I put it on Medium, but it’s here in its entirety, too. I will be handing it out to the urchins who knock on my door thinking I might give them my Crunch bars. They never learn. Happy Halloween. Autodidactic Asphyxiation A terminal diagnosis The Anatomical Theater of the Archiginnasio at the University of Bologna. The room is an elegant Renaissance box: varnished spruce floors, walls, and ceiling, with rows of straight-backed benches, now empty of students and spectators. Statues of men stripped of skin stand sinewed and elemental on either side of a central, empty throne. Overhead, wooden angels gift thighbones to allegories of truth and beauty. A peep door near the rafters is provided for the clergy to inspect the autopsies for religious impropriety. The door is shut. In the center of the theater, a white-coated doctor and doctor’s assistant stand over a marble slab, upon which lays a cadaver so dissembled it’s barely recognizable as human. It looks more like an oozing pile of body parts. The doctor’s assistant, also in a white coat, holds a clipboard with a facing page that reads: Initial diagnosis: Autodidactic asphyxiation. DOCTOR: There’s no piecing the examined life together. ASSISTANT (unnerved): Doctor? DOCTOR: Perhaps the unexamined life is the more ‘lived’ because whoever lived it never lathered him or herself up enough to arrive at the futility of post-examination findings. ASSISTANT: What are the findings, doctor? You have dismembered the patient, and so what are your conclusions? DOCTOR: Life is a mess. ASSISTANT (flips nervously through the papers clamped to the clipboard): I’m sorry, doctor? DOCTOR: Life...
by Mike Errico | Jul 15, 2015 | audio, Books, Press, Video
Book writers, readers, adorers, check it out, consider a contribution: Design Observer has launched a Kickstarter to fund an exhibition and catalog of the winners of this year’s 50 Books I 50 Covers design competition. [I’m honored to have contributed music to the campaign.] “Established in 1923 by the American Institute of Graphic Arts as “Fifty Books,” the 50 Books | 50 Covers competition is now the longest continually running design competition in the United States. Since 2011, Design Observer has hosted it. And in 2015, for the first time, we are publishing a book and mounting an exhibition to commemorate the competition winners of 2014, narrowed down from a field of 500 entries from fourteen countries. Dave Eggers, a previous 50 Books | 50 Covers recipient, will introduce this “book of books.” Photographer George Baier, who has photographed countless authors and book jacket projects himself, has thoughtfully taken pictures of every book and cover winner. Mohawk has generously donated the finest paper. And with Blurb, we will be printing our book, locally, here in the United States. We have judged the competition (SEE THE WINNERS HERE), photographed all the books, designed our catalog, printed test pages, and have begun to design the exhibit in New Orleans. More info:...
by Mike Errico | Dec 5, 2014 | Books, The Solo Show
The second installment of “The Solo Show,” my essay collection on Cuepoint, is up: “Consenting Adults at the Interstate Sex Shop.” If you’ve ever been to my live show, you know that that’s where this collection was born. In fact, it’s you who have given me the courage to take this step forward. You’ve requested stories, asked me to speak, to lecture, and even to teach. I’ve been so grateful, and this is an exciting step forward. Already, I’ve received emails back from early readers asking when I’ll be podcasting the series. Soooo…..I guess the answer is pretty soon…and thanks for asking. OK, so: If you like where this is going, PLEASE do what you can to push it out to others – share it, tweet it, Tumblr it, Pinterest it, email the link around to friends. Thanks, and enjoy – M The Solo Show: Consenting Adults at the Interstate Sex...
by Mike Errico | Nov 24, 2014 | Books, Stories, The Solo Show, Uncategorized
OK. This is big. The first installment of my essay collection, “The Solo Show,” just went live. They’ll be coming out bi-weekly, and there are many more to follow. The topics are pretty varied, but they always revolve, orbit and return to music, which is where we met. Good ol’ music. Yeah. Many of the stories will have embedded playlists that will enhance the story. Some of the songs will be mine, and some won’t. The idea is that you’ll click on them and listen as you read. It’ll be a full experience. A talking – or, singing – book. If you’ve ever been to my live show, you know that that’s where all this has stemmed from. In fact, it’s you who have given me the courage to take this step forward. You’ve requested stories, asked me to speak, to lecture, and even to teach. I’ve been so grateful, and this is an exciting step forward. Already, I’ve received emails back from early readers asking when I’ll be podcasting the series. Soooo…..I guess the answer is pretty soon…and thanks for asking. OK, so: If you like where this is going, PLEASE do what you can to push it out to others – share it, tweet it, Tumblr it, Pinterest it, email the link around to friends the way your crazy aunt does. You know the one. HERE GOES: The Solo Show: Musical Success, A...
by Mike Errico | Jul 9, 2013 | audio, Books
Sales of this song have spiked in Germany. Turns out, it’s featured in the novel “The Survival Kit” by Donna Freitas, which has just been translated into German. All In [Deluxe Edition] by Mike Errico “The Survival Kit” is available on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/The-Survival-Kit-Donna-Freitas/dp/0374399174 Short synopsis (also from Amazon): When Rose’s mom dies, she leaves behind a brown paper bag labeled Rose’s Survival Kit. Inside the bag, Rose finds an iPod, with a to-be-determined playlist; a picture of peonies, for growing; a crystal heart, for loving; a paper star, for making a wish; and a paper kite, for letting...