Category: Products

TBT: Stone Cold Sunday

The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

With the dawn of the Second Trumpian Golden Age, I’ve been reflecting a bit about the First.  Trump’s first administration, in retrospect, was less-focused and more carnival-esque than what his second appears to be.  Trump is a wiser man, and knows who he can—and cannot—trust.

But part of the fun of the first Trump presidency was the cavalcade of grifters, courtiers, and hangers-on who hitched their wagon to Trump’s star.

One of those was Roger Stone, who actually was an important figure while also embodying the kind of naughty, playful, mirthful, bawdy side of the Trump phenomenon.  I wrote a review of his book Stone’s Rules: How to Win at Politics, Business, and Style back in 2019, and it seemed like an appropriate time to revisit it.

Note that the link above is an Amazon Affiliate link; if you purchase anything through that link, I receive a portion of the proceeds, at no additional cost to you.  I’m required to point that out.

With that, here is 10 February 2019’s “Stone Cold Sunday“:

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December 2024 Bandcamp Friday

The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Pickup my newest release: Leftovers III!  Use promo code ziggurat to take an additional 20% off all purchases on Bandcamp!  Code expires at 11:59 PM UTC on Tuesday, 31 December 2024.

Ah, yes, Bandcamp Friday has returned, which means I hope you will consider pitching in a few bucks to buy my music—or my second book!  It’s the most magical Friday of the month!

The first Friday of a bunch of months in 2024 will feature this pro-indie music observance, a day on which Bandcamp waives its usual 15% commission on sales.  Today (Friday, 6 December 2024) is the last Bandcamp Friday of the year.

In other words, when you buy my music, almost 100% of it goes to me, instead of almost 85%.

My full discography is 50% off (and the 20% promo code ziggurat can be used for that, too), so it’s only $59.64 to purchase twenty-three releases.  That’s just $2.59 per release—and dozens of hours of music, not to mention hundreds of megabytes of musical scores, artwork, liner notes, videos, and other goodies that are packed onto nearly every release.

With the 20% promo code ziggurat the total comes down to $47.71, or $2.07 per release.

Thank you for your support, and rock on!

—TPP

Leftovers III Out Today!

The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Pickup my newest release: Leftovers III!  Use promo code ziggurat to take an additional 20% off all purchases on Bandcamp!  Code expires at 11:59 PM UTC on Tuesday, 31 December 2024.

My tenth album of the year is out today, Leftovers III.  Technically, it’s just an EP, but whatever—I’m proud of it, and I think you’ll enjoy it.

It’s just five bucks on Bandcamp, and with promo code ziggurat it’s an additional 20% off (indeed, that 20% off applies to everything on Bandcamp).  My entire discography is $59.64; with 20% off, that’s just $47.71 for twenty-two albums, or about $2.17 per release.  Dang!

Barring some sudden boost of inspirado, Leftovers III will be my last release for 2024.  I set a goal for myself to release ten albums and/or EPs this year, and I’ve achieved it.  I don’t know if 2025 will feature ten albums (probably not), but I’ll definitely be releasing more music at some point next year.

If you’re the streaming type, you can find LIII at the following services:

And pretty much anywhere else where music is streamed.

Here’s hoping everyone had a Happy Thanksgiving!  Enjoy these leftovers.

Happy Listening!

—TPP

October 2024 Bandcamp Friday: Spooky Season III!

The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Pickup my newest release: Spooky Season III!  Use promo code spooky to take an additional 20% off all purchases on Bandcamp!  Code expires at 11:59 PM UTC on Thursday, 31 October 2024.

Ah, yes, Bandcamp Friday has returned, which means I hope you will consider pitching in a few bucks to buy my music—or my second book!  It’s the most magical Friday of the month!

The first Friday of a bunch of months in 2024 will feature this pro-indie music observance, a day on which Bandcamp waives its usual 15% commission on sales.  Today (Friday, 6 September 2024) is one of those days.

In other words, when you buy my music, almost 100% of it goes to me, instead of almost 85%.

Naturally, yours portly has a brand new release, and my longest to date:  Spooky Season III is available now on Bandcamp, Apple Music, YouTube/YouTube Music, Amazon Music, etc., etc.—pretty much anywhere and everywhere digital streaming is available—including, for the first time in nearly a year, Spotify!

Spooky Season III is forty-one (41) minutes of Halloween-ish jams, from the driving opener “Heavy Metal Mummy” to the creaking creepiness of “A Haunted House” to frightful “Flight of the Vampire Bats” and more.   SSIII features pieces in multiple genres:  heavy metal, rock, country-western, classical, Romantic, smooth 70s pop, and, of course, Halloween music!

My full discography is 50% off (and the 20% promo code spooky can be used for that, too), so it’s only $57.14 to purchase twenty-two releases.  That’s just $2.80 per release—and dozens of hours of music, not to mention hundreds of megabytes of musical scores, artwork, liner notes, videos, and other goodies that are packed onto nearly every release.

With the 20% promo code spooky the total comes down to $45.71, or $2.08 per release.

My plan is to release (at least) one more album or EP this year, Leftovers III, which should release Friday, 29 November 2024 (the day after Thanksgiving).  That’ll make ten releases in 2024.

Thank you for your support, and rock on!

—TPP

White Boy Summer Out Today!

The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Yours portly keeps churning out the hits, and I’m pleased to announce my seventh album this year, White Boy Summer.

White Boy Summer is a collection of ten summertime jams spanning multiple genres of instrumental music.  The title track is a driving retro rocker reminiscent of Super Nintendo side-scrollers, and is perfect for jamming to on the open road.  I also rewrote it as a chorale for the album’s finale, “White Boy Summa (Theologica),” a piece for brass trio.

This album heavily favors trombone, and the three major trombone pieces emphasize the chill nature of summertime:  “Mellow,” “Lazy River,” and “Summer Vibes.”

“The Sea Crab” is the most experimental piece; it’s a musical interpretation of an unpublished poem of the same name by Liza Libes.

And, despite the title, White Boy Summer is for all people of all races—and both genders.

You can pick it up on Bandcamp for $7.  I’ll be posting links to the album on other streaming platforms in the comments.

Rock on!

—TPP

P.S.—Here are a couple of the tracks that have already been uploaded to YouTube:

Get 🎸Advanced Funkification🎸!

The Portly Politico12 Comments

As I wrote this morning, my latest album, 🎸Advanced Funkification🎸, is out now on Bandcamp and various streaming platforms. I figured it would be worthwhile to compile the various links into one list for your convenience. I’m really proud of this release, and I think it deserves to be heard—and I think y’all will enjoy it!

Here is the current list of websites/platforms/services where you can listen to the release:

For YouTube users, here’s the full playlist:

Get funky!

—TPP

🎸Advanced Funkification🎸 Out Today!

The Portly Politico4 Comments

Hi Readers,

My latest album, Advanced Funkification, a collection of funk and funk-adjacent tunes, is out today. It’s my grooviest release yet, and it explores the boundaries of funk in intriguing and cool ways.

Pick it up for just $5, and you’ll not only get eight funky tracks, but full scores of each piece; MP4 videos; and original artwork. You can find it here: https://tjcookmusic.bandcamp.com/album/advanced-funkification

Time to enroll in Advanced Funkification!

The album is also out on Apple Music and YouTube, as well as other streaming services (except for Spotify).  I’ll post direct links in the comments as soon as I get them.

I have had a blast releasing tons of instrumental music this year, but I think this release is my best this year.  Let me know what you think!

Funkily Yours,

TPP

TBT^2: Zelda Game & Watch

The Portly Politico8 Comments

Summer is tantalizingly close.  Today is the last day of exams, which means there’s just graduation and a couple of days of work next week until yours portly is basking in the limitless freedom of summer.

As last week’s edition of TBT discussed, my thoughts are increasingly turning to video games.  I don’t have nearly as much time (and, if I am honest, inclination) to play them as I used to, but I am getting the itch to lose myself in some fantasy worlds for a bit.  Even with my workday slowing down, this week has been surprisingly busy, which only increases my yearning for digital realms.

Two years ago I spent an inordinate amount of time playing the Nintendo Game & Watch: The Legend of Zelda handheld console (that’s an affiliate link, by the way, so if you purchase anything through it, I get a portion of the proceeds, at no additional cost to you).  It is a nifty little unit; I ended up landing a scorching deal on it, but even at the inflated current price of $52.60, I’d recommend it—highly!

I cut my teeth playing Zelda games, and this little unit includes three of my favorites:  the original LoZ; the enigmatic sequel; and the Gameboy exclusive Link’s Awakening.  Beating LoZ II is probably the pinnacle of my video gaming achievements.

With that, here is 25 May 2023 “TBT: Zelda Game & Watch“:

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May 2024 Bandcamp Friday

The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Today is Bandcamp Friday!  That means Bandcamp waives their share of any purchases made on my Bandcamp page today (Friday, 3 May 2024), so it’s the best possible time to buy my music if you want to support yours portly.

Yesterday I released my seventeenth Bandcamp album, Four Mages.  It is a collection of ten electronic tracks, all but one of which (“The Blind Prophet“) is color-coded. Each piece explores some facet of fantasy archetypes, weaving and casting a musical spell upon listeners.

Here are some platforms where you can listen:

Four Mages is just $5 on Bandcamp, and most of that goes to me today.

For those looking for the cheapest, easy way to listen, here’s a YouTube playlist:

Happy Listening!

—TPP

🧙‍♂️Four Mages🧙‍♂️ Out Today!

The Portly PoliticoLeave a comment

Today is 2 May 2024, exactly twenty-six weeks to Halloween!  What better day to release my latest collection of compositions, Four Mages?

🧙‍♂️Four Mages🧙‍♂️ is a collection of ten electronic tracks, all but one of which (“The Blind Prophet“) is color-coded. Each piece explores some facet of fantasy archetypes, weaving and casting a musical spell upon listeners.

It’s $5 on Bandcamp, and is also available on all major (and minor) streaming platforms except for Spotify.

I’m quite excited for this release; I hope you enjoy it as much as I enjoyed composing it.

Happy Listening!

—TPP