Postcard 01: 22/01/2024.
Welcome and stuff.
Hello! Thanks for signing up to these silly emails. My primary aim is continuing the long standing tradition of attempting a weekly serialisation of ‘postcards’: playlists of 10 assorted tracks that fit some sort of theme. Notice the word attempting doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence. Anyone who knows me knows that these attempts have historically quite often failed, and badly. I infamously tried to do a drawing every day one year whilst at university and I think made it until March? Shameful. But I’m hoping some sense of public accountability might kick me into gear and keep this going, at least for a little while.
More broadly though, It feels like a positive thing to do at the moment. I was pretty bummed out at the recent announcement that Pitchfork is being folded under GQ by the overlords at Condé Nast. Whilst I’ve definitely not been averse to having some strong opinions about Pitchfork over the years, this seems a sad way to go for what was once a juggernaut in music culture, and a clear line in the sand for the viability of large, public facing online spaces for music criticism. Combined with a general malaise about my own recent music listening habits (or there lackof), I’ve decided to take a small modicum of action. Making a weekly playlist gives me the dedicated space to actively hunt out new music, and hopefully provide some other folks with something they might enjoy too. It beats the algorithm, eh?
I’m also going to use this space to highlight other art/films/things I’ve found interesting recently that others might like. The image at the top of this email is my favourite piece that I saw at the Nicole Eisenman exhibition `What Happened` at Whitechapel Gallery recently. Whilst the painting is obviously incredible, a particular highlight is that one of the files on the macbook is called ‘batinbed.jpeg’ and the thumbnail is exactly what you’d expect. Genius. The exhibition is sadly finished now, so I can’t recommend that you go and see it, but if you’ve not seen her works before I’d advise you give her a google.
You can find your first postcard below. This week, it’s a bunch of songs that fit the mid-January slump we currently find ourselves in. Bill Ryder Jones is an old fav who’s returned after a few years away with a Mercury Rev-esque album that’s simultaneously intimate and grand. I adore the opening track with its little sample of Gal Costa's ‘Baby’ and its oddly gentle lurch between time signatures, and I’ve also used it to open the playlist as I have little originality. Elsewhere I’ve been spinning my bloody valentine’s 2013 album m b v again recently as someone mentioned it’s almost been the same length of time between loveless and m b v as it has been between m b v and now. It’s like that fact about T. rex being closer in time to us than Stegosaurus, except more terrifying (where has the time gone?!). Anyway I remember comparing the opening track ‘she found now’ unfavourably to loveless at the time, feeling like it missed the intensity and fuck-you attitude of ‘only shallow’. In coming back to the album I’ve got a newfound appreciation for the understated way that it leads you into the record (and in particular, a my bloody valentine record) with its its unabrashed warmth and melancholy. I also love the little guitar chimes that kinda sound like animals calling to one another. As a final song to point out, I’ve really been enjoying Edsel Axle’s record Variable Happiness which came out on the excellent record label Worried Songs last year. I don’t normally splurge in the January sales, but I couldn’t resist splashing out on their 50% off 2023 release bundle, which amongst other things included this album (also included: a cassette tape box set of fake baseball radio play-by-plays. No I’m not kidding, read about it here). It’s a gorgeous take on improv’d guitar work that sounds unfettered and unconcerned with doing too much thinking or worrying about imperfections. The title track is a particular stunner, with guitars that sound like shimmers over a summer lake. I’ve used it to close out the playlist in a way that’s hopefully contemplative but uplifting, reminding us of the better weather to come.
Anyway, enough of my rambling. I promise I won’t do the online recipe here’s-5000-words-before-the-point-of-this-thing every week. Enjoy! And hopefully see you next week.
Postcard 01: 22/01/2024
Bill Ryder Jones - I Know That It’s Like This (Baby)
Brendan Eder Ensemble/Edward Blankman - Cape Cod Cottage
Wednesday - Formula One
my bloody valentine - she found now
Runnner - eleven
The Durutti Column - Future Perfect
William Doyle - Theme from Muddy Time
Adrianne Lenker - Sadness as a Gift
Resavoir - Sunset
Edsel Axle - Variable Happiness
Any chance you could link it on tidal?