Columnists

This album is a masterpiece, beautiful and surprising

Reviewed by Craig Hoffman
Such Pretty Forks in the Road is the ninth studio album by Canadian-American singer, songwriter, and actress Alanis Morissette. It is Morissette’s first studio album in eight years. Morissette had been working on the album since at least mid-2017. But it was worth the wait.

Morissette was scheduled to embark on a world tour for the 25th anniversary of her 1995 album Jagged Little Pill in 2020, during which she would perform songs from her entire career, including songs from Such Pretty Forks in the Road. 

You've walked past this door and probably never gave it much thought

You’ve walked past this door and never gave it much thought.  It’s one of the oldest pieces remaining from the original 1887 town hall construction. What do you suppose is behind the door?

The answer today is a brick wall. The original answer was the town jail.

As you can see, there’s plenty you don’t know about the Bluffton town hall. And, we’ll get to much of that in future columns.

This week, let’s talk about the jail, which until now, you may have never known existed in the first place. 

If you are looking for something out of the norm, this beautiful meditation on love and memory will satisfy

Reviewed by Wilson
Oscar-winning oddball screenwriter Charlie Kaufman is set to debut his newest film I’M THINKING OF ENDING THINGS on Netflix in September, so I thought now would be as good a time as any to revisit what I believe is his best work: ETERNAL SUNSHINE OF THE SPOTLESS MIND (also streaming on Netflix).

Tobias Buckell's Arctic Rising, and Hurricane Fever

Local author speculates dire nightmares.

Review by Robert McCool
It's Monday in a sunny August blur where the world is in full bloom, the weather fine. During the past two days, and in addition to my regular weekend chores, I managed to read two speculative fiction novels where the weather is most definitively not fine.

Those books, Arctic Rising (Tor, ISBN 978-0-7653-1921-0), and Hurricane Fever (Tor, ISBN 978-0-7653-1922-7) byTobias S. Buckell take place in a space where global warming is transforming our world with an undesirable outcome.

While unlikely to go down as the artist’s best album, there is more than enough creativity, artistry, and variety to keep the Swifties happy

Folklore-Taylor Swift
Reviewed by Craig Hoffman

Country and pop-crossover megastar Taylor Swift dropped Folklore her eighth studio album in July. The indie-folk style record was written and recorded by Swift while in quarantine. The artist did her best to stay productive in 2020 despite chaos in the world.

“Most of the things I had planned this summer didn’t end up happening, but there is something I hadn’t planned on that DID happen…” Swift wrote. “And that thing is my 8th studio album, folklore [sic]. Surprise.”  

You can see its outline between Harmon Field and Steinmetz Field

Several photos accompany this story -
By Fred Steiner

This is part of the Icon’s new series on “Forgotten Bluffton” – Swimming in Riley Creek is no doubt something that never interested you.

But, in the 1920’s the village had a designated swimming area constructed in Big Riley Creek for youth in the community.

If you stand near the entrance to Steinmetz Field, turn toward Harmon Field, and take about a dozen steps toward the creek you will see the remnants of a dam. That dam backed up the creek and made a nice sized pool for swimming

Pages