Mnemonica Archives - Bicycle Cards

Patrick Redford – Temporarily Out of Order – review

Phil Sweeting — Fri, 27 Oct 2017 23:01:06 +0000

I have often observed that there appear to be trends in magic, and Temporarily Out of Order is the latest of a series of books to have been published in recent years on the Memorized Deck. We recently read and enjoyed Woody Aragon’s excellent Memorandum. And we will be doing a review of Atlas Brookings fine release The Solution any day now. I will try and make some comparisons between these works as we go (and if you are serious about getting into memorized deck work then you really need to consult the classic work of Tamariz and Aronson too).

Never judge a book by its cover

The old adage about judging a book on its appearance is true, and nowhere more so than with Temporarily Out of Order. I found the front cover unimaginative and the back cover rather stark, nor do I like the glossy paper on which the book is printed or the font used. Sorry! But don’t let this put you off – because the content is brilliant and more than makes up for these assaults to my aesthetic sensibilities! And in its favour it is well illustrated throughout.

Do we need another stack?

Many readers will already be familiar with either the Tamariz or Aronson stack and so this question is inevitable. The Redford Stack has been built from the ground up to enable a number of features not so obviously present in other stacks. It is loosely based on the well-known Si Stebbins stack, but this has been in altered in various ways to hide some of its more obvious features.

The design means it is very easy to get into the stack from new deck order (and back again), or from Si Stebbins order. There are multiple spelling and poker effects built in, and also numerous other features which make it a very powerful tool indeed.

The tricks

There are plenty of tricks – far too many to describe in detail. They are gathered in collections – spelling/location effects, gambling demonstrations/deals, faro effects (requiring perfect faros), and a couple of chapters of more general effects. One chapter includes five effects which are not stack-dependent – so you could use with an alternative stack you’ve already learned.

The title-routine, Temporarily Out of Order, is a very strong five phase effect in which a series of more and more incredible coincidences take place and the deck ends up being in full deck order. He even teaches a version which can be done without memorising the stack and is therefore more or less self-working.

Another chapter includes three ‘story’ effects – where a story is told as you deal through the deck. I like the way that he includes some magical effects to add further interest to the story, though one of the routines is sufficiently ‘adult’ that I wouldn’t use it in performance myself.

And there’s more

A short chapter explores combining the stack with other principles – notably the idea of end strippers. Then we hit some really useful ‘utilities’ chapters. The first teaches a brilliant false overhand shuffle and series of different false cuts. Another contains several deck switches – which are also very deceptive.

In a very generous idea, the final chapter which shows how to get into the setups for a ranger of effects by other people. It doesn’t teach the effects, but does give full references which you may well want to chase up on the strength of Redford’s recommendation!

On the subject of references – everything contains highly detailed references which I appreciate and enjoy reading. There is also a very helpful online ‘toolbox’ – with videos of some of the effects and techniques.

Final Thoughts

A good number of the effects can be performed without actually memorizing the deck. But for those who are going to put in the hard work, there is plenty of help in teaching memorization techniques and mnemonics.

There are also loads of great performance tips and wisdom buried away in the descriptions – so even if you don’t perform any of these effects you will still learn some useful stuff.

We often like to comment on the skill level of items we review but that is difficult in the case of a book like this. Some of the effects are essentially self-working and others require a high degree of proficiency with a deck of cards. And the process of memorization itself – if you decide to go down that route – will be harder for some people than others.

Comparisons are difficult, but my sense from a distance is that Memorandum contained more effects, but the effects in Temporarily Out of Order were of a more consistently strong character. I also felt that some of the extra techniques and ideas in this volume would be relevant whichever stack you choose to use – indeed even if you don’t perform mem deck work yourself.

For this reason I would strongly encourage you to add this volume to your library, in spite of the cover…

Temporarily Out of Order is available from MagicShop.co.uk for £45.50

Review copy kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

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Woody Aragon – Memorandum – review

Phil Sweeting — Thu, 27 Jul 2017 14:34:59 +0000

Memorandum is a big book (not too far off 400 pages) which covers dozens of effects and ideas and concepts with Woody’s memorized deck (hereafter mem deck). So this Memorandum review can only begin to scrape the surface of the book – and my aim is to give you enough information to decide whether or not the book is worth your investment of time and money.

Woody (or his translators) write well in a very conversational style which makes the book a joy to read. He is a real enthusiast and that enthusiasm is infectious as a reader. However, don’t expect to sit down and read this book in a sitting. This is a book which will repay careful study over time.

I am increasingly convinced that mem deck magic is amongst the most fooling that you can perform – and there is also some satisfaction in the brute achievement of having memorized a whole deck! But beware. Although a few routines in this book will work without having put in the hard work of memorization, this is a serious work for serious magicians who are prepared to invest time and effort for their art.

Before I forget

Woody is very well read and I really appreciate the way he carefully attributes inspirations and techniques in the different routines. In any field of magic we are all standing on the shoulders of giants, but nowhere is this more true than for the mem deck. Juan Tamariz is clearly a huge influence on Woody Aragon and Woody himself encourages you to buy and familiarise yourself with Juan’s magnum opus – Mnemonica – if you really want to appreciate some of the subtleties and techniques which really make mem deck work fly. He also refers to Simon Aronson’s collection Bound to Please as another invaluable resource.

The first thing the book covers is the development of Woody’s stack. A LOT of thought has gone into this. The book is the result of years of study, experimentation and performance. And this is very reassuring – if you’re going to make the investment of time to learn the stack you want the reassurance that the material actually works!

As well as being a joy to read, throughout the book amusing illustrations help you to learn the stack pictorially – although they do not (if I have counted correctly) cover all of them. Perhaps they will be finished in the project volume 2! Plenty of other line and photographic illustrations make sure everything you need to understand is very clear.

Another early chapter describes the method (he calls it a game!) he uses to teach the stack to classes. If you’re familiar with memory techniques, there’s probably nothing new here – but it is a helpful summary nonetheless. He also gives some tips to help revise stack etc.

A plethora of effects

He starts by teaching tricks which don’t require the stack to be memorized – simply to be in order – as a way to help you learn the stack. He then moves on to the idea of the half stack – an incredibly powerful idea. It is easier to learn than the full stack – and the first half of Aragon’s stack has all sorts of clever attributes which open up many strong effects. These include spelling effects, gambling effects, weighing the cards, matching the cards etc.

There are then plenty more effects using the full stack – including more poker effects, some very clever prediction and ‘fishing techniques’ and other more original ideas.

He has a section on effects which aren’t dependent on the stack you use – so even if you already use a different stack there are ideas here for you. And in another chapter he specifically explores how to move between the Memorandum stack and the Tamariz or Aronson stacks. Unless you are a very competent handler of cards (and audiences) I would suggest this might be overkill – though if you have a particular favourite tricks you perform with different stacks I can see why you might want to do this.

For me, one of the most brilliant and exciting concepts in the book is the Siamese deck. I don’t want to give away the details here – but to my mind it opens up some amazing possibilities. I would like to devote some time thinking this principle through in relation to non-memorized deck work too since I think there is a lot of scope with this idea.

In addition to teaching the effects he also teaches how to reset the deck (and some intriguing rules about ‘undoing’ the effect of dealing various hands of poker etc.) – there is something verging on the fanatical in the depth of understanding he has of the mechanics of both his deck and the effect of various shuffles and combinations on a deck order.

There is also a chapter covering some false shuffles and cuts and the explanation of a clever little device you can make yourself with fairly simple craft skills which will help you to switch half a deck for another.

So who is this book for?

Potentially several different people. If you are already a user of mem deck material, then this book is well worth a look. Even if you don’t want to learn a new stack, there are ideas for routines and techniques which you may be able to develop or add to your existing stack and effects.

If you’ve not yet memorised a deck then Woody’s stack would be well worth the investment of time. You may wish to consult some of the other standard works referenced above in order to gain more ideas and techniques, but the Memorandum stack itself is a very powerful tool all on its own. And the book covers all you need to know to get started.

You may never want to memorise a deck but simply (like me) enjoy reading widely in magic to broaden your repertoire of techniques and influences. If that’s you, there is much to commend about this book. As I have mentioned, it has opened up a load of ideas and possibilities in my mind – if I ever get round to spending some more time on them. (To that end, it would also be worth looking at this book in relation to the Marksman Deck we reviewed recently.)

In fact, Memorandum would be well worth a read for anyone who shares my passion for good quality card magic. Don’t bother if you’re a hobbyist who just wants to perform tricks which require no effort, but if you’re prepared to make an investment in your art, then this comes highly recommended.

You can pick up a copy of Memorandum from magicshop.co.uk for £46.50 (at the time of writing)

Review copy kindly provided by Murphys Magic to whom dealer enquiries should be directed.

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Trick of the Month – July 2016 – sports, butterflies and applesauce!

Phil Sweeting — Thu, 30 Jun 2016 23:01:04 +0000

In honour of the summer of sports (well, at least the Euro 2016 and Wimbledon) I thought we’d start by re-visiting an older trick, but still a nice close up routine.

Dean Dill’s Sports is a neat little close up effect. You show five cards with pictures of different sports balls on them. One is chosen by the spectator and you ‘snap’ the ball out of the card leaving a regular ball and a blank card. The picture probably gives you a clue about which ball is ‘chosen’! A cute trick. £39.99

Next up is a new release from the ever-inventive Peter Nardi. It is a little difficult to get a description of the actual effect – but the Butterfly Effect appears to be a very clever impromptu prediction effect, playing with the ideas of chaos and fate, which is virtually self-working. We’ll try and get a copy in to review, but it looks worth a punt – Peter’s material is always strong and Titanas (who granted, may be biased) describes it as his “favourite ever impromptu effect” – which is quite a claim! £21.99

If you’re mainly here for the playing cards, then here are a couple of decks worth a peek. The Victoria Deck has some striking design work with custom pips, jokers and court cards. It also has a subtle one-way feature – handy for magicians, as is the unusual order of the deck which means it is only one faro away from the Mnemonica stack. £8.99 Another very different, but very beautiful, release is the Verana Deck by Alex Chin. £14.50.

A quick mention for quirky little release we spotted. Riveted Monte is yet another take on the Monte effect – but this time, inspired by an Angelo Carbone idea, the cards are all riveted together in the corner – but still the odd one out moves around the selection in a mysterious way. £13.50.

If, like me, there’s nothing you’d rather do in the summer than curl up in the sun with a good magic book, the intriguingly titled Applesauce by Patrick Redford looks well worth a look. It’s a good-looking book, and is named after his special take on the ACAAN plot. 13 routines, 156 pages, hours of fun. £42.50.

That’s all for now. Let us know if you’ve seen anything interesting in the magic world…

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Latest Bicycle cards

Phil Sweeting — Sat, 15 Aug 2015 23:01:57 +0000

As promised, here’s our monthly round up of some of the latest Bicycle cards available in the UK.

The first one is a little unusual – in that it is a pack raising money for charity. Mail Chimp have partnered with Theory 11 to produce these attractive cards – with simian elements creeping in all over the place – to raise money for a charity helping child survivors of war in Atlanta. We think it’s a great cause and really like the smart back design (in red and black editions) and the fun monkey elements. Why not splash out? £9.99

Theory 11 are also behind the beautiful Medallion Signature Playing Cards. An already elegant design has been improved by some beautiful embossing on the tuck case.

In contrast to some of the rather more elaborate back designs, the Whispering Imps have a minimal approach featuring a ‘WI’ logo on anotherwise plain back. These seem to have been designed with game players in mind slightly more than magicians, and have an interesting approach to the indices.

The Chameleons Playing Cards on the other hand have clearly been produced with magicians in mind (also available in Red and in Blue). They come in Mnemonica order (I’m always surprised that more card manufacturers don’t do this) which means you can perform some great effects from a new and sealed deck (if you’re familiar with the Mnemonica stack, that is!).

The Expert Card Co who print these have used top quality stock which should mean they handle beautifully for faros and more advanced card manipulation. Currently waiting on more stock but well worth a look.

The first thing that struck be about the gorgeous Number 17 Playing cards was the effect of their elegant back design in a fan. And the more you look the more interesting they become. The classics geek in me loves that there is Latin text around the (extraordinary) court cards. They come in Bicycle branded and unbranded versions and I think they are absolutely fabulous! Check them out!

That’s all from us for now. Let us know which of the latest Bicycle Cards available is your favourite and why – perhaps there are some we’ve not yet seen. Let us know!

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