Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer

About Me

I'm married. I met my lovely wife Christiane back in 96 in a now defunct chatroom called The Park. I have a stepson named Francis.
I used to play in a paisley underground band called Lord John, who released one L.P. on Bomp Records back in '86 (isn't that the year most myspacer's were born?). It is out of print, but you may be able to find it in the used bin or on E-bay. I also played in a lo-fi psych band called The Narc Twins with Lord John's lead singer/guitarist.
I am an ABSURDIST author, and have short stories scattered all around this thing we call the internet.
I would like to officially announce the release of my novel, Tales From The Vinegar Wasteland, published by Afterbirth Books. It's available at Amazon.com. Or you could order it from your local bookstore.
"One part surrealist farce, one part psychotic hallucination. The story begins with a visit from his friend Anton, who has been slowly losing his face. We meet Gregory, whose home now includes a non-existing room, and discover the joys of purchasing photographs of events that never happened. Somewhere, within the circle of life and death, confusion and romantic infatuation, where death and the afterlife are as confusing as Earth, and dreams are as real as reality, all of life's mysteries are solved, including the discovery of who, or what God really is. Like a modern day Alice in Wonderland for adults."
"Wow...this is fucking rad...who is this writer...?"
â€”kurt k. heasley, fountainhead of acid rock legends LILYS
"Though Ray Fracalossy's work has an absurdist core reminiscent of the old school, it has a decidedly modern heart that makes you laugh and think at the same time."
â€”Kevin Donihe, author of Shall We Gather at the Garden?, editor of Bare Bone, and author of the soon-to-be-released Grape City
"Ray Fracalossy's ability to seamlessly blur the line between the irreal and real has made him one of the defining writers of the new absurdist movement. He possesses something rarely found in art today, a unique voice. Tales... is a novel that will more than likely outlast us all."
â€”polycarp kusch, author, school marm, cannibal & founder of both oBook.org and the new absurdist website (www.absurdist.cc)
I am currently in the process of rewriting a children's book, after having lost all my notes, and the first two chapters in a fatal computer crash.
For more information about the Bizarro genre, go to:
DeepThoughtsByJackHandey.com
And a video by none other than myself! .. width="425" height="350".. .. ..

My Interests

My wife and son, Absurdism, psychedelia, weird music, writing, surrealism, spirituality, reincarnation, coffee and coffeeshops, pinball, sleeping, drawing, the 1920's, France, old cartoons, Slim Jims, psychic phenomenon, UFO's, psychedelic art, flappers, art noveau, diners, krautrock, playing guitar, chinese food, kava, sub sandwiches, the science of dreams and daydreaming, sushi and raw bars, book stores, David Firth cartoons, lawn gnomes, existentialism, 3-D movies, synchonicity, computer adventure games, minimalism, americana, chocolate, small towns, tarot cards, potato chips, mellowness, intimate summer patio get togethers, decent comic books like Eightball and Hate and the Vertigo line from years back, shots, being lazy, talking animals (talking birds, dogs, and cats), funhouse mirrors, iced tea, cheese dishes, home-made fruit salad, escaping, puns and spoonerisms, interesting people, friends....

I'd like to meet:

I'd like to hook up and network with other Absurdist writers.Oh and maybe Bill Brasky. . . Eddie Izzard, or Bob Pollard. . . maybe Salad Fingers

Music:

Robert Pollard/Guided by Voices, BEATLES, Syd's Floyd in particular and good Floyd in general (I love the lethargic layered vocals coupled with that trippy lazy slide guitar...), Lilys, Animal Collective, Flaming Lips, The Loud Family, Velvet Underground, The Byrds and other 12 string twangers, shoegaze, dreampop, 60's psych, some 80's bands (Bunnymen and Furs, the Bongos and paisley underground. . ), Krautrock, old punk, Television, The Fall, Donovan, WFMU, WPRB, Mission of Burma, Waxwings, The Helio Sequence, Toma, the Sydeways, anything experimental without delving into pure noise

relaxation music,
nature sounds,
silence. . . .sorry, it drives me crazy when people feel they have to name every single band they like in this 'ain't I hip' way. Just name the genre, we get the drift. Cool knows its own!

currently in heavy rotation:

The Helio Sequence

Medicine

The Sydeways

Toma

assorted psych

all the bands in my top friends, so much sweetness

BANDS I'VE HAD THE PLEASURE OF WITNESSING LIVE
Guided by Voices (only twice)
My Bloody Valentine
Ride
Catherine Wheel
Slowdive
Blur (twice, both in support of the 1st l.p.)
Charlatans UK
Pale Saints
Mission of Burma, final tour
The Ramones
Public Image Ltd.
Sunny Day Real Estate
The Cars
The Undertones
The Boomtown Rats
Joe Jackson
Paul McCartney
Brian Wilson, Pet Sounds tour
Rain Parade
The Bongos
XTC
Bow Wow Wow
Joan Jett
Lunachiks
The Neats (we went to see them, ended up opening and having them spend the night)
REM
U2 at the Ritz in support of their 2nd album October
The Clash
Buzzcocks reunion
The Residents
Flesh for Lulu (we opened for them)
Faith No More (we opened for them)
Crossfire Choir
Mod Fun
Secret Syde
Insomniacs
Nude Swirl
Chesire Cats
Monster Magnet
The Sydeways
Principles of Literary Criticism
(lol,. . . .ain't I hip?)

Movies:

MARX BROTHERS, Ghost World, The Jerk, Napoleon Dynamite, Kentucky Fried Movie, Hard Day's Night, Garden State, Head, Easy Rider, Psych-Out, Fear and Loathing, Willy Wonka, Eternal Sunshine, Me and You and Everyone We Know, What Dreams May Come, Lost in Translation, Don't Look Back, Spinal Tap, The Appointments of Dennis Jennings, Groundhogs Day, Splendor in the Grass, Lilith, and a ton of weird older movies I only managed to catch a part of on late night t.v. that I may never find out the names of

Television:

COMEDY
MR. SHOW!!!,....Green Acres, Gilligan's Island, Andy Griffith Show, ZOOM, The Brady Bunch, Get a Life, SCTV, Dr. Katz, The Addams Family, Adult Swim cartoons, Sifl and Olly, Tom Green's old canadian cable access show before he went hollywood, Mystery Science Theatre 3000,Simpsons, Family Guy, Reno 911, Stella,

STRANGENESS
Amazing Stories, Great Ghost Tales, Night Gallery, Alfred Hitchcock Presents, The Twilight Zone, Tales From the Darkside, Tales From the Crypt, Outer Limits, One Step Beyond, Tales of Tomorrow, Lights Out, Monsters

Books:

Lewis Carroll, Danill Kharms, C.S. Lewis, Roald Dahl, Barry Yourgrau, Shel Silverstein, Richard Brautigan, Kevin Donihe (not only a great writer, but an all around great guy), Gina Ranalli, Alexander Vvedensky, Polycarp Kusch, D. Harlan Wilson, Bradley Sands, Valery Ronshin, Vincent W. Sakowski, Gina Ranalli, Ernie Bushmiller, Clifford A. Pickover. Assorted outsider writers whose work can only be found online ... Any spiritual book. I love reading prophecy and Near Death Experience books.

Anyone looking to read whacked out fiction, please look into the Bizarro movement. It's new, it's very weird, and it's cutting edge.

It is the new umbrella which many of us strange writers have agreed to stand under, to help unite us, strengthen the scene, and make it easier on you, the book buying public, when it comes to looking for something interesting to read besides music bio books. Bizarro is here!

Check out my groups for more info.

Heroes:

Jesus
Edgar Cayce
Grant Morrison
Bob Pollard
Syd Barrett
Daniel Clowes
Steven Wright
Carl Jung
Emanuel Swedenborg
Rudolf Steiner
Padre Pio
Paul Solomon
Daniil Kharms
Jack Handey
Will Ferrell
Rene Magritte
John Lennon
Harpo Marx
assorted mystics, tortured artists, truth seekers, revolutionaries, spiritual visionaries and madmen

My Blog

Pop Art Poem

This is the poem that isn't a poem, this is the poem that got away, this poem is one of a kind, this is the world's first scratch and sniff poem, this poem glows in the dark, hit the lights, check it ...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Sat, 27 Oct 2007 05:05:00 PST

Tales from the Vinegar Wasteland review

Taken from the latest issue of The Swallow's Tail Click the link to download the issue. It's chock full of freaky fiction and bizarro goodness. TALES FROM THE VINEGAR WASTELAND by Ray Fra...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Sat, 01 Sep 2007 09:04:00 PST

Final performance

They knew it was going to be their last gig. The wheels were in place.Ed had hooked the guitar wiring and effect patch cords up in such a way to give himself a final jolt right at the encore.Ronald ha...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Tue, 12 Jun 2007 08:21:00 PST

The Sailor's Tongue (or why I married the war)

In memory of John Cage. . . Sitting to write, I comb my hair before I can possibly document the following. A testament: At 3 A.M. central king time, the sailor's tongue had fallen into a joy hole. I...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Wed, 04 Apr 2007 12:51:00 PST

mOsbURAnD (pt. 3 The cOncLUsiOn)

Leopold staggered towards the horse. The horse looked away, alarmed by this invasion of personal space. Leopold took the gesture as bashful flirtation on the horse's part. "I demand you take me to my...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Sat, 31 Mar 2007 07:24:00 PST

mOsbURAnD prt. 2 (ThE jOURney)

Leopold began his journey. "Out of my way! I am a father in search of his dead son!" he'd shout out at random intervals. In daylight the shouting was directed at passing pedestrians. At night it was ...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Wed, 21 Mar 2007 07:48:00 PST

mOsbURAnD (Part1 , ThE NEwS)

There was a patch of dead grass in the yard that seemed to control the entire universe. It was rumored a rabbit had died there, the victim of its own cruel self loathing paws. There were other rumors ...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Mon, 19 Mar 2007 07:27:00 PST

The Sandwich and the Dwarf

There was a sandwich of unknown origin. It had the abilities of movement and speech, which was not uncommon of sandwiches during this time. I've often pondered the exact make up of this sandwich, but ...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Tue, 27 Feb 2007 11:13:00 PST

Microscopic Jesus

Dear Microscopic Jesus, I find you very attractive, as any flaws are very hard to see at your minute size. Thanks so much for your lengthy last letter, and the kind words. You are a barely visible dei...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Tue, 27 Feb 2007 10:59:00 PST

Another Two Headed Foot Angel

Damn! There's another one! There. In the corner. It sits like a sinister revolving pastry in hell's kitchen. Another two headed foot angel, like a shadow on my wall. . . get it out of he...
Posted by Ray Fracalossy - Absurdist Writer on Tue, 07 Nov 2006 07:54:00 PST