Hello from Strange Attractor - we hope that you are keeping well during these uncertain times. While our distribution chain is disrupted and book shops are closed, to those who have settled into lockdown with the desire to read we offer a hearty catalogue of digital material to see you through.
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The Influencing Machine
by Mike Jay
'One of the greatest books you’ve never read' - William Gibson
Confined in Bedlam in 1797 as an incurable lunatic, James Tilly Matthews’ case is one of the most bizarre in the annals of psychiatry. He was the first person to insist that his mind was being controlled by a machine: the Air Loom, a terrifying secret weapon whose mesmeric rays and mysterious gases were brainwashing politicians and plunging Europe into revolution, terror and war.
But Matthews’ case was even stranger than his doctors realised: many of the incredible conspiracies in which he claimed to be involved were entirely real. Caught up in high-level diplomatic intrigues in the chaos of the French revolution, he found himself betrayed by both sides, and in possession of a secret that no-one would believe…
Infleuncing Machine for Kindle - available HERE
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Welcome to Mars
by Ken Hollings
'A remarkable book… quite simply, essential reading.' - Fortean Times
A story of weird science, strange events and even stranger beliefs, set in an age when the possibilities for human development seemed almost limitless. Welcome to Mars offers a fascinating, detailed chronology of where it all went wrong. In his own inimitable style, Ken Hollings draws upon newspaper accounts, advertising campaigns, declassified government archives, old movies and newsreels from the period to depict an unsettled time in which the layout of suburbia reflected atomic bombing strategies, bankers tried hallucinogens and brainwashing was all around.
Welcome to Mars for Kindle - available HERE
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Our Fatal Magic
by Tai Shani
‘Tai Shani’s writing is both oracular and forensic. We each know the power of the first cut and in Our Fatal Magic the cut becomes a sybil, answering each riddle by posing another. Mesmeric and enlightening.’ – Linder Sterling
Our Fatal Magic is a collection of feminist science fiction vignettes by contemporary artist Tai Shani, co-winner of the 2019 Turner Prize alongside her three other nominees. Drawing on the speculative narrative strategies pioneered by writers like Marge Piercy, Octavia Butler and others, Our Fatal Magic metabolizes new and necessary fictions from feminist and queer theory to propose an erotic, often violent space of critique in which gender constructs are destabilized, alternative histories imagined, and post-patriarchal futures proposed.
Our Fatal Magic for Kindle - available HERE
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Divine Rascal
by Andy Roberts
Of all the figures associated with the history of LSD there is none more enigmatic than Michael Hollingshead. Appearing as if from nowhere, he turned Timothy Leary on to LSD in 1962, and was influential in Leary’s years at Harvard, Millbrook and beyond. A Zelig-like character, Hollingshead became a key player in London’s early LSD scene, where he established the World Psychedelic Centre in swinging Chelsea. Following a spell in prison, where he dosed KGB spy George Blake, he continued to pursue adventures with the Brotherhood of Eternal Love, established a psychedelic commune on a remote Scottish island, created the first electronic I Ching installation, published an underground magazine, and spent time in Nepal, before dying a mysterious death in Bolivia in the 1980s. Divine Rascal tells his improbable story for the first time.
Divine Rascal for Kindle - available HERE
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Foreground Music
by Graham Duff
'Foreground Music is an absolute gem. Charming, very funny and often achingly melancholy, Graham Duff’s memoir is suffused with a genuine passion for live music and its (occasionally eccentric) power.' —Mark Gatiss
Foreground Music describes music performances that range from a Cliff Richard gospel concert, attended by Duff at the age of 10, to the 14-year-old Duff's first rock show, where the Jam played so loudly he blacks out, to a Joy Division gig that erupted into a full-scale riot. Duff goes on pub crawls with Mark E. Smith of the Fall, convinces Paul Weller to undertake his first acting role, and attempts to interview Genesis P. Orridge of Throbbing Gristle while tripping on LSD. Foreground Music captures the energy and power of life-changing gigs, while tracing the evolution of 40 years of musical movements and subcultures. But more than that, it's an honest, touching, and very funny story of friendship, love, creativity, and mortality, and a testimony to music's ability to inspire and heal.
Foreground Music for Kindle - available HERE
AND
Foreground Music AUDIOBOOK - available HERE
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Our Bandcamp also has three fantastic recordings:
• Of Mud & Flame: Penda's Fen and The World Beyond
• Critical Magic
• Is A Progressive Magick Even Possible?
All of which are free to listen to, and if you wish to show your support by buying a track, Bandcamp encourages listeners to name their own prices!
That's all for now, we hope to upload more items to Bandcamp in the coming weeks, and we hope you'll stay safe, follow lockdown advice, and take care.