January 5, 2024

a just the one for a new year, always-new-YOU

Did you know that you are basically a whole-ass, new human every day? It might not feel like it if you experience s.a.d. (seasonal affective disorder). Too, we really are, made of stardust. I note that in an "ain't it cool to have that in common" way, not a "we're all celebrity superstars" bullshit way.

To me, we come of age every time we evolve and grow to meet the next version of ourselves. It’s every time we look around at the life we built and realize that some parts of it are a physical expression of our childhood traumas or the stories we tell ourselves. We come of age when those stories no longer work, or we tell a new one. — Tembe Denton-Hurst (from the NY Mag Newsletter "My Week in New York", 10.14.23)

May the connections you make in 2024 be delicious, authentic, and transformative (which can happen in tiny ways). Tell some new stories, especially if the old ones aren't serving you.

I'm consistently momentarily confusion when someone mentioning "apps." Do they mean appetizers or mobile applications? And regardless of whatever they actually meant, now I want nachos. Anywhoosle, if you're looking for an app (not nachos) created by an indie producer (e.g. 1 - 4 people) that solves a simple tech problem, this list of indie apps is full of riches! I ended up with HabitBoard, Reading List: Book Tracker (I'm officially the slowest book-reader in the land so, lolz, wtf am I "tracking?"!), and Expenses: Spend Tracker (again, I am broke so what am I tracking?? I did stop buying coffee out so now I am latte-rich, bitch). In case the indie app list is overwhelming, my app selection criteria were: 1) I can buy the app and not subscribe because clearly my 2023 bugaboo is subscription-based t'ings, even a few reviews with tolerable, if any, nitpicking complains, and checking the data requested or accessed ("get outta my phone" is the new "get off my lawn").

Here's just one way I recommend to catch up on new music, books, tv, etc., especially in the morass of content that's just chucked at us: PopMatters Best of 2023 lists! PopMatters has some good writers who use descriptive adjectives and don't just spout overly familiar, parasocial hottakes gleaned from press releases and social media (I'm looking at you NPR's Popcast and that travesty of a CHAT about Troye Sivan's latest album--whither ARTS CRITICISM?!). The Best 80 albums list is particularly fun to browse since they include a link to a YouTube video or Bandcamp page sample-wise. Low clicking, lots of listening! I generally have neither the will nor the patience to watch videos. It took me three days to get through the list of gems I would've otherwise missed. Dig in!

💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟💎🎶🌟

Just one lasting remnant from the 45-era and that still stands as the next Presidential elections loom: that whole trauma made me believe in witchcraft. I already thought Erykah Badu was a witch in the best sense of the conjuring word, but witchcraft is our only hope if that cataclysm befalls us again.

The U.S. is like a nightclub with a sticky floor, no ceiling sprinklers, and some weirdo in the corner tossing lit matches from the go-go booth--you know you ain't got no business being in there and death is imminent: KNOW YOUR FIRE EXITS. My exit is applying for a teaching fellowship to GTFO.

Sh'mon, Passport Holders!

Let's apply for asylum anywhere else.

"It's no better anywhere else."

Tell it to my CashApp: $archivalunion.

Just one mental health hot-take:

Me: “blah blah blah spiral blah…”

Therapist: “You know what that is, right?”

Me: “*💬🤔*…fascism?”

Therapist: "No, it is not fascism. Okay...it might be. And what else?"

These are my 2023 favorite musicians, artists, exhibitions, and films.

Just one concert, but actually two: it's a tie between Liz Phair and Janelle Monae.

I thoroughly enjoyed Liz Phair's Exile in Guyville 30th album-versary, which is weird because I find the whole "album anniversary" crassly commercial (don't get me started on releasing an album and then a "deluxe" version five minutes later 🙄). But Liz put on a FABULOUS show and it reminded me that she writes funny, sad, wry songs, knows how to put together a great band, and has someone doing outstanding visuals. Most importantly: she gets into a song and gets out QUICK; Sarah A. reminded me that this might be down her known stage fright. Whatever works, sis! Though she played Exile straight through, being reminded that Liz Phair is legitimately good sent me to her recent stuff, especially Soberish! Keep on rockin' in the U.S.A., Liz!

Janelle Monae's Age of Pleasure tour was less theatre kid (fine by me) than her previous iterations (until the heartfelt, hometown encore) and more queer, tits out declaration (more than fine by me). I ain't mad at her and her audience is most definitely embracing her philosophy of feelin' yerself. Age of Pleasure is a multi-seasonal, good time album, if you've not checked it out.

More just ones in music

…band: Periodically former students get in touch to let me know what they're up to and this is hands-down, the BEST part of teaching and learning with them. I'm confident that even if I didn't know vocalist/guitarist/keyboard player/labor organizer Pagona Kytzidis her band, I would be stanning this band. partygirl describes its music as maximalist and feminist and I'm adding EPIC.

“I am by training a historian and the music is my archive of the world. It’s my way of telling these stories and using them to build a world that’s better.” - Pagona Kytzidis interview in Recklass Magazine

For those of us of a certain GenX age who like a reference point, partygirl reminds me of (not necessarily sounds like) 4 Non Blondes fronted by Linda Perry (h/t to j.a.d. for making this connection!)and also Sixousie and the Banshees. It's giving me energy! It's giving vitali-ty! partygirl's EP is available on Bandcamp and the band's debut album will be out sometime this spring.

...runner-up band: Sleaford Mods are loud, bolshy, anti-authoritarian, and able to drop a decent, Pet Shop Boys-authorized West End Girls benefit track.

...musician: Debbii Dawson is so awkward and Midwestern and I love her. She did an acoustic show in NYC recently and while I can't figure out how she escaped America's Got Talent reality show clutches, I'm glad she has room to grow into herself as an artist.

…hopeful song: Coco & Breezy's remix of Shontelle's "Impossible." More likely than not I'm listening to this song on the walk to work.

…album/artist: holy shit...Anna B. Savage is an English singer-song writer who debuted in late 2020 (my "might as well listen to Little Mix and Ariana Grande while stalked by a deadly global virus" phase) so I don't feel bad about not being there from the start. Now Anna's got quite the catalog including a 2023 album in|FLUX.

Just the one(s) in films

MoviePass is back so I'm gonna ride that cinema wagon until the wheels fall off again; hmu with your email address for a free month. Because I'm MoviePassin' I saw more great movies than bad ones this year. I did a mitzvah seeing The Color Purple, now don't ask me for shit else for the next 12 months, ya hear me, The CULTURE?. In order from LOVED (the actING, cinematography, narrative) to worth seeing:

All of Us Strangers (Why is Andrew Scott like this, i.e. perfect?)

Bottoms (Be perfectly content to not look up things you don't generationally understand so you don't end up in some nether-searchworld of depravity. This film about queer-lesbian-nerds trying to get laid was everything+ that previous at high school hornyness tried and failed to achieve. Go, Tischies! "Have you seen Bottoms?" also quickly became my favorite, provocative question for a while.

[No spoiler TV sidenote: Ayo Edebiri staring in Bottoms finally got me to watch The Bear. No one warned me about The Bear's season two, episode six ("Fishes") so consider yourself warned: it's as traumatizing as The Succession election episode. If you have no idea what this sidenote was about, ENJOY YOUR STABLE MENTAL HEALTH.]

Scrapper (I do enjoy a survivor tearaway story.)

American Fiction (Felt a bit restrained in understanding race x class x education, but watched alongside the latest Nicholas Cage film, Dream Scenario, and lolz I CANNOT with men who didn't make patriarchy work for them--it's RIGHT THERE.)

M3GAN (Saw M3GAN and Barbie twice; tech-nihilism and existential doll-dread? Yes, please!)

It Lives Inside (A contemporary horror film that uniquely and adeptly deals with first-gen immigrant kid pressures to assimilate and retain cultural heritage.)

Just a couple of ones in art

There were many more trips to the movies than to museum this year as tourists come back to NYC in COVID-y droves. But these artists delighted my eyes and imagination: Barclay Henricks at The Frick Madison through Jan. 7th...

... and Tracey Emin at the new White Cube NYC (shout-out to security guard, Pete, who prefers landscapes).

I also learned about Jaye Schlesinger who photographed and then painted 380 decluttered items from her home.

Go have a boogie at yur mum's house. The semester for wbar has concluded. I may switch to the substitute list and return to my "I love Friday night in pajamas by 4:30pm" routine. TBD. Thanks to Maddy and Michael for guest-curating, and Public Safety officer Joy for writing a poem about the studio key that was always getting lost.