#19: fiesta forever
Welcome to issue #19 of THIS NEWSLETTER CANNOT SAVE YOU. If you'd asked me at the outset if I thought I'd reach issue #19, I'd have politely scoffed as I puffed my cigar and said, "Don't be ridiculous. Issue #17, certainly. Issue #18, doubtful. But issue #19? What an outlandish suggestion. You'd best scurry back to your hovel and leave the important work of newslettering to the gentry." Of course, no one asked me any such thing at the outset; anyway, I don't smoke cigars.
Highlights from Scottoworld
The big news is that Tordotcom revealed the cover to my next novel, WILD MASSIVE, which is due out in February 2023. The headline they used was "Prepare for the Multidimensional Ride of Your Life," which I mean, YEAH, PREPARE AND STUFF. The marketing description in the Tordotcom newsletter reads:
Scotto Moore’s Wild Massive is a glorious web of lies, secrets, and humor in a breakneck, nitrous-boosted saga of the small rejecting the will of the mighty.
Please stay seated and keep your arms and legs inside your own dimension.
When the Architects of the Multiverse were in their infancy and the cosmos was but a seed in the minds of gods, they called together their Artists and their Muses to construct The Building. A grand experiment in trial and error, The Building would serve as a safe space for the experimental crafting of worlds, honing their skills with each successive attempt—wars, and civilizations recorded in spreadsheets for later analysis.
Carissa loves her elevator. Up and down she goes, content with the sometimes chewy food her fabricator spits out, as long as it means she doesn't have to speak to another living person.
But when a mysterious shapeshifter from an ambiguous world lands on top of her elevator, intent on stopping a plot to annihilate hundreds of floors, Carissa finds herself stepping out of her elevator—and her comfort zone—risking her life and the secrets of her past in order to preserve the future.
Because if not her, then who?
Now I didn't write this description, so the bit about "nitrous-boosted" is not referring to laughing gas, just to clarify. I do particularly like the line about "the small rejecting the will of the mighty," though. The description they put up on their web site, meanwhile, is slightly different, concluding with a line they nicked from my pitch doc:
Carissa is forced to flee into the Wild Massive network of theme parks in the Building, where technology, sorcery, and elaborate media tie-ins combine to form impossible ride experiences, where every guest is a VIP, the roller coasters are frequently safe, and if you don’t have a valid day pass, the automated defense lasers will escort you from being alive.
I'm proud of this book in so many ways and I can't wait for you to experience the "multidimensional ride" as it were. You can preorder through the links on Tordotcom. And remember, when you preorder a book, a baby cherub gets its wings! (Fortunately, the corollary "when you fail to preorder, an adult seraphim is mutilated" is merely apocryphal.)
Scottovision
But enough about the things I write. Let's move on to the things I watch!
"Baby, We're Ascending" (2022) - The track here is a collaboration between electronic producer HAAi and Jon Hopkins, featuring on HAAi's debut album, and the music video is a surreal collaboration between live action dancers, animators, and AI, to create a uniquely organic visual style in contrast to some of the more commonly seen GAN-inspired videos. Factmag has a much better description of how the video was made than I can squeeze in here.
"Good Times / Problemz" (2022) - The electronic/neo-soul duo Jungle is back with a new pair of singles, combined into a dynamic dance film that builds on their impressive visual album Loving In Stereo from last year. Jungle's videos always feature dance in some capacity, and this one features the Ghetto Funk Collective, with some of the sharpest choreography and moves you're likely to see this year.
"Internet Guardian Angel" (2022) - A little PSA by animator Maddie Brewer about how trolling people on the internet could get you sent straight the fuck to hell.
"Safety First: 599 Days of the Invisible Wall" (2021) - Created in isolation during lockdown, this 3D animated short film directed by John Robson is an impressionistic, somewhat erotic, and highly psychedelic attempt to interpret and explore the strain imposed by social distance.
"I Can't Tell (feat. Laurel)" and "Jasper's Song" (2022) - Electronic artist Flume released a music video for every track on his new album, Palaces. Taken together, they form an immersive Lynchian experience; these two videos out of context also provide a Lynchian experience, except it's much shorter. You will "spoil" no "narrative" by watching the videos out of sequence; hopefully this gives you enough of a taste to explore further.
"All For You" (2021) - This music video by the dance artist Welshy is possibly the most well-executed "sparks fly when two strangers meet each other's gaze" sequence you'll ever see. Nominated for Best Concept in this year's Berlin Music Video Awards and Best Dance/Electronic Video (Newcomer) in last year's UK Music Video Awards.
"Squirrel" (2022) - A vicious comedy about a man who attempts a performative apology for bad behavior, but the cruel hand of fate isn't ready to let him off the hook. The description says this short film was a "Sundance and Fantastic Fest crowd pleaser." I wouldn't say I was pleased exactly; it's squirmy. But the deadpan timing and delivery of the performers is supernaturally good, and the script is perfectly relentless. Directed by Alex Kavutskiy.
"Little Miss Fate" (2020) - In this animated short film produced by YK Animation, a janitor with access to the control panel of destiny attempts to save the lives of star-crossed lovers, but the cruel hand of fate - a literal supporting character in this one - is required to step in and clean up the resulting mess. Nominee and winner of multiple festival awards, this blazingly original and hilarious film is a total win.
"Woke Up Looking" (2019) - A marvelous one-shot music video by Gideon Irving, a performer who describes himself as "passionately dedicated to the art of being unreasonable," in which you'll marvel at the magical tale of a man who spends a bit too much time on his phone despite increasing mania all around him, told without the benefit of CGI or green screen. Then you'll want to watch the behind the scenes video, in which you'll marvel again at the ingenuity and creativity of this mad crew.
"How Traditional French Butter Is Made In Brittany" (2020) - There are few things more calming and delightful than watching "butter artisan" Jean-Yves Bordier churning butter by hand. (Via Susie.)
Lightning Round
As a special treat to celebrate reaching the arbitrary milestone of issue #19, here's a lightning round of delightful stuff you shouldn't miss! Your life will be enriched! At minimum, you will likely forget these videos soon after watching them, so why not!
Okay, let's see how you scored! If you watched all ten videos, CONGRATULATIONS, you scored a perfect 10! Everyone else, I mean, look we don't give out participation trophies around here. But yeah, you did "great."
Exit Music
Sending you out this week with an old school classic delivered in a strange new fashion: I've recently become enamored of the subculture of vinyl aficionados on YouTube who point cameras at their fancy turntables, run the sound through their computers, and make "vinyl rip" videos showcasing selected tracks from their record collections. In these videos, the warm, rich sound of vinyl music reproduction battles for survival against the cold, uncaring YouTube compression algorithm. One thing's for sure: the only true winner in this battle is you, the enthusiastic music consumer.
Anyway, direct from the crates of DJ Sergio Gilles, we've got a 2016 remix by The Reflex of a 1983 hit by Lionel Richie, "All Night Long (All Night)." The Reflex is a renowned remix artist who is trusted by elite musicians across genres to craft "Reflex Revisions" of their hits, and this one is subtle but sweet, showcasing the strings in the arrangement, pulling the vocals forward where they belong, restoring some emotion to the ending. It's a close second on the list of all-time best remixes of this song, right behind the nine-hour extended remix by DJ Arkmay (via Kathleen). (Note: I am not familiar with any other remixes of this song.)
Meanwhile, in case you need it, here's my playlist of favorite tracks on vinyl, cleverly entitled "tracks on vinyl." Put it on your TV and it's kind of like those fireplace videos, except it's a fancy turntable playing records you didn't have to pay for. And not to be outdone, I've launched my own series of "tiny vintage stereo rips" because it cracks me up.
Here is the YouTube playlist featuring almost all the recommendations from this issue; a links to the missing item is provided in the description. If you like this newsletter, [TBD think of something persuasive and peppy here, don't sound desperate this time for god's sake].
Until next time, I remain your friendly correspondent, thinking of you,
Scotto
Scotto Moore is the author of BATTLE OF THE LINGUIST MAGES and YOUR FAVORITE BAND CANNOT SAVE YOU.