Dramatic. The perfect word to describe Justin Alexander’s reading of the H.P. Lovecraft classic “The Call of Cthulhu.” Justin’s narration invokes the style of an old-timey radio drama.
After a brief historical introduction to the story itself, Justin begins with a quote from Algernon Blackwood (?). Read in a strong, theatrical, voice, the Blackwood passage is indicative of the rest of the narration. This excitement and energy makes the Legrasse expedition into the dark forests of Louisiana all the more terrifying. Although non-canonical, Justin’s pronunciation of that unutterable phrase “Ph'nglui mglw'nafh Cthulhu R'lyeh wgah'nagl fhtagn” is crisp and clear and sounds as though it were almost meant to be pronounced and shouted by human tongues.
While this melodramatic tone works quite well for the introductory quote and many passages of the story, there are some moments when I would have preferred the hushed whisper and feeble voice of a man faced with unspeakable horrors. The introduction, in which Lovecraft describes how merciful it is that we can not piece together all the knowledge in the world, would create a much greater tension if read in the subdued tone of one who is truly grateful for such a blessing.
The price tag of $6.50 for an mp3 download is reasonable. Although it is only one story, it is nearly an hour of audio enjoyment. The editing is well done; it sounds like Justin Alexander did it all in one take. There really is no hint of where sections were rerecorded and pieced together. However, the current method of download at DriveThruRPG.com is a bit cumbersome and curious.
The H.P. Lovecraft story is divided into three parts. Justin’s retelling is divided into ten audio tracks of about seven minutes each. It would make sense for a CD to be broken into tracks, not a downloadable mp3, but the divisions are odd and arbitrary. They do not start and stop at logical points like at the beginning of a new part. Instead they occur in between paragraphs that would be better linked together.
Fans who want a good dose of Lovecraft on the go will probably enjoy this reading. However, it is only one story and without any sort of sound effects or background music, listeners looking for an immersive audio storytelling experience may be left wanting more.
