I recollect that, when a stripling, my first exploit in squirrel-shooting was in a grove of tall walnut-trees that shades one side of the valley. I had wandered into it at noontime, when all nature is peculiarly quiet, and was startled by the roar of my own gun, as it broke the Sabbath stillness around and was prolonged and reverberated by the angry echoes. If ever I should wish for a retreat whither I might steal from the world and its distractions, and dream quietly away the remnant of a troubled life, I know of none more promising than this little valley.
From the listless repose of the place, and the peculiar character of its inhabitants, who are descendants from the original Dutch settlers, this sequestered glen has long been known by the name of Sleepy Hollow, and its rustic lads are called the Sleepy Hollow Boys throughout all the neighboring country. A drowsy, dreamy influence seems to hang over the land, and to pervade the very atmosphere. Some say that the place was bewitched by a High German doctor, during the early days of the settlement; others, that an old Indian chief, the prophet or wizard of his tribe, held his powwows there before the country was discovered by Master Hendrick Hudson. Certain it is, the place still continues under the sway of some witching power, that holds a spell over the minds of the good people, causing them to walk in a continual reverie. They are given to all kinds of marvelous beliefs; are subject to trances and visions, and frequently see strange sights, and hear music and voices in the air. The whole neighborhood abounds with local tales, haunted spots, and twilight superstitions; stars shoot and meteors glare oftener across the valley than in any other part of the country, and the nightmare, with her whole ninefold, seems to make it the favorite scene of her gambols.
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Sweek – A Dead Sleeping Forest [00:00]
Giranice – Banako Zen [10:06]
Frank Booth – How To Breathe Fire [19:15]
Amp – Souvenir [26:40]
Marriages – Ten Tiny Fingers [34:00]
Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra – Mountains Made Of Steam [39:30]
Red Room Cinema – White Arrows [48:46]
Canyons of Static – Drift [57:48]
Appellative – Keys [65:03]
The Nest Itself – From Peaks To Pittance [70:07]
Ontario Plates – Gonzo [73:30]
This Will Destroy You – I Believe In Your Victory [78:25]
Washington Irving, “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” Published in The Sketch Book of Geoffrey Crayon, 1820 [public domain]