All The Names

Throughout his research into memory theory, Nelson Dellis found existing memory improvement guides to be wanting—overcomplicated, dry, and stodgy. So he decided to write a book that is approachable and fun, centered on what people actually need to remember. In Remember It!, Dellis teaches us how to make the most of our memory, using his competition-winning techniques.

This is a very nice CD in the Modern Celtic genre.
Those of you who enjoy Renaissance festivals or the SCA (Society of Creative Anachronisms) events will most likely be drawn to it as well. Heather's alter-ego within the SCA is Lady (or Mistress) Marian of Heatherdale, a fabled Bard of Ealdormere (pronounced EL-dore-MEER). Ealdormere is a Northern land whose people use the wolf as one of their symbols.

Call the Names consists of 20 songs describing the inhabitants of Ealdormere, as well as how the kingdom came to be and crowned its first king and queen.

The two key songs, "The History of Ealdormere, Part I & II," open and close the CD with just under 10 minutes of storytelling that lay a base for the remaining selections. The air of these two is rather solemn, forcing the audience to take note and listen to the tale being told. The remaining songs focus individually on different segments of the population – royalty, fighters, smiths, bards, servers, tradesmen and cooks.

Vampire Weekend bassist Chris Baio’s side project isn’t altogether different from his day job: Eclectic, light-hearted, plenty smart and just a little weird. Showcasing a flair for cheeky romanticism and airy, Balearic-style dance production a la Hot Chip, The Names takes listeners on trips through London’s Tate Modern (“Endless Rhythm”), Roxy Music homages (“Sister of Pearl”) and whimsical memoir (“I Was Born in a Marathon”) in a way that feels as personal as it does cosmopolitan.

Bahia Benmahmoud, a free-spirited young woman, has a particular way of seeing political engagement, as she doesn't hesitate to sleep with those who don't agree with her to convert them to her cause - which is a lot of people, as all right-leaning people are concerned. Generally, it works pretty well. Until the day she meets Arthur Martin, a discreet forty-something who doesn't like taking risks. She imagines that with a name like that, he's got to be slightly fascist. But names are deceitful and appearances deceiving…

A young, extroverted left-wing activist who sleeps with her political opponents to convert them to her cause is successful until she meets her match.