**Season’s Greetings**
I sprinkled a lil snow here for you, no shovel required… 😛

Quick catch up: we’ve firmed up book release/a big push for In Praise of Men for Fall 2017!  In the meantime, I’ve done something slightly cheeky that might “jeopardize a sales segment”, but for which I can’t apologize.  In life, one must stand for what they believe in, and so it is with firmly planted feet that I type these words.

Without a bunch of fancy rhetoric, I stand with Standing Rock.  All of the cultures that commingle in my blood- especially the Mi’kmaq in me- scream: NO MORE.  WE’VE ABUSED THIS COUNTRY’S NATIVE PEOPLE AND LAND LONG ENOUGH!  And clearly, I am FAR from alone- have you seen this yet(?): Veterans At Standing Rock.

I am also deeply disturbed by the racist, unpatriotic acts that birthed BLM, and to put it plainly: Donald Trump is #notmypresident.  If revealing these sentiments somehow seems inappropriate, I understand.  You’re entitled to your opinion, as well as a refund of your pre-order, which I shall courteously return should you request it.

Now, the big reveal.  On election day, after anxiously casting my vote, I rushed off to see Suzanne Vega at a local record shop.  With her was Bowie guitarist Gerry Leonard.  I thought he seemed familiar (had last seen him on the Reality tour, but from nosebleed seats in a stadium), but couldn’t place from where.  When it hit me hours later, I thought about how much had happened since I last saw Gerry; of how I no longer made music; and of course about how that other bright soul on stage (Bowie) was no longer with us.

Around midnight, final polls arriving, a group of us decided we needed a stiff drink.  We wandered into legendary M/SP dive bar The CC Club, and just after clinking our glasses hopefully, I looked up and caught “Clinton Calls Trump To Concede…” silently scrolling across CNN.  At that exact moment, Heresy by NIN randomly came on the overhead.  During the first chorus, a drunk blonde climbed on top of a table and began screaming about our reproductive rights, and all across the bar, heads shook in disbelief.  Was this our future?  Had THIS happened?  We were all terrified.

By the final chorus of Heresy, I knew what I had to do.  I began silently humming the ONLY song I’d ever heard that could convey our mood at that moment, then messaged several of my former TC Electropunk compatriots and a few ex-band mates.  In less than a week, we assembled en masse to cover the Bowie/NIN collab I’m Afraid of Americans.  By week two, we’d organized a video; on week three, we shot and began editing, then recruited a handful remixers from different countries (Britain, France, Africa, Russia, etc.).  Now, one month out…  Gentlemen and Ladies, meet A*O*A:

Cover Art by Robertson, Whitlatch & Calder

Listen FREE (and if you dig it- own it FOREVER, with a portion of profits benefiting #NODAPL) here: a-o-a.bandcamp.com

Last, am pleased to announce that I just wrapped an on-air with Joe Kelley at WVOF, and while it was music-focused, we most certainly discussed the book and its’ forthcoming release.  Will post the archive here soon, and hope you approve.

With Holiday Cheer,
Brooke