25 things to enjoy (after you eat those beans)
I miss EVERYTHING.
I miss my friends! I miss live music! I miss restaurants and hair salons and staring at people's crazy workwear/clubwear on the subway!
Thankfully, we still have ART. So let's make it, enjoy it and rub it all over us, because times like these are what art helps us get through.
A few recommendations/distractions:
1. I'm all caught up on BETTER CALL SAUL, and it doesn't disappoint. The cast blows me away every week.
2. Quentin Tarantino appears on the latest PURE CINEMA podcast, and it's fantastic, because the hosts just let him talk about whatever he wants for THREE HOURS. Have some paper handy when you listen, because he's gonna name about 20 obscure films you'll want to track down afterward.
3. Speaking of good film, Filmatique is doing a cool promotion where they're posting one free arthouse movie every day. (BARBARA looks pretty great.)
4. I adore TOAST OF LONDON, and I highly recommend a Netflix binge if you haven't already. This week Matt Berry recorded a new audio vignette as Steven Toast.
5. Masked crooner Orville Peck picked the perfect time to release a new song/video.
6. YouTube never picked up an offbeat comedy pilot called THE WORST IDEA OF ALL TIME, but the creators have posted it anyway ... on YouTube. The first episode features the "hosts" trying to spend a week living like Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles.
7. Drakulas are an Austin punk band that wanna blast us with two-minute raunch, and I love 'em for it. Hear "Pretty Tommy," buy the new record, then delve back into other songs like "VHS," which takes us back to the days of recording fuzzy, sexy scenes onto videotape.
8. Please Kill Me has been on fire lately with stuff like this "Riot Grrrl Primer."
9. Artist Wayne White makes me happy on Instagram, particularly when he noodles around on the banjo. And hey, it looks like he's about to launch a puppet show.
10. My attention span is terrible right now, but I have been dipping into this TREASURY OF MINI COMICS, which has 700+ pages of comix inspiration.
11. Longtime reader Chad points out that Jeff Tweedy and his family have been doing livestreams on Instagram every night around 10:15 p.m. where they sing some songs, including several covers. He also recommends Low Cut Connie's live performances on Instagram/Facebook Thursdays and Saturdays at 6 p.m. ET (though he says they're not kid-friendly). He says his favorite might be been from David Wax Museum, which streams Tuesday nights and Friday afternoons. "They're sort of like a Mister Rogers-type calming, positive presence, with gorgeous music and a variety of instruments," he says. Thanks, Chad!
12. On a related note, longtime reader Amy P. has taken it upon herself to compile tons of upcoming social-media musical performances in one handy email newsletter. Subscribe at amysshowslist@gmail.com. Tell her I sent you--she puts a ton of time into this list, and it's fantastic.
13. Our pal Josh Kantor has been performing daily "7th-Inning Stretch" organ concerts on Facebook. (Josh is the organist for the Boston Red Sox.) Tune in every day at 3 p.m. ET. He takes requests, and he has impeccable taste!
14. A GoFundMe has been set up to help save the independent movie theaters that have been forced to close. So far the Art-House America Campaign has received more than $300,000 in donations.
15. Our friend Dean says we gotta see ANNA, a sexy Luc Besson thriller that somehow escaped me upon its release. HBO subscribers can stream it for free. And here's Dean's , in which he talks about how strange it is that, for the first time in his life, no new comics were in shops this week.
16. Donita Sparks from L7 has launched an "absurdist variety show." Here's the first episode, which features karaoke, Lydia Lunch and much more.
17. Longtime reader Adam reached out to tell me about his stationery-/notebook-themed podcast and newsletter, so clearly he gets me. I love some pen-and-paper talk!
18. Does the world need an insane horror-comedy called BUTT BOY right now? You bet. See the trailer now; stream it starting April 14.
19. Kristin recommends STORY PIRATES, a family-friendly podcast that just launched a Radio Hour every day at 11 a.m. ET where they take requests.
20. This week our friend George O'Connor is teaching a three-day kids' Zoom class on how to make comics. It costs $30, with proceeds benefiting WORD bookstores. Young comics fans may also appreciate that the wonderful book COMICS: AS EASY AS ABC by Ivan Brunetti is now available for free online. Toon Books has lots of online resources for kids, so check it out.
21.The Museum of Natural History has been posting great video on Instagram and YouTube that you can watch with kids without losing your mind.
22. Alamo Drafthouse is doing virtual "Terror Tuesday" and "Weird Wednesday" screenings. I can't wait for the day when their Brooklyn theater reopens.
23. Alyssa Limperis and Eva Victor continue to make me laugh. Check out Alyssa's latest "Mom" video, "Mom Stuck Inside."
24. This week I made my "PUNCH JOURNAL" short story available for free. I hope it puts a smile on your face.
25. And finally, we lost Adam Schlesinger this week, which is so sad I can't think about it too much. Conan O'Brien shares a Fountains of Wayne performance in this video. Rob Tannenbaum listed 30 great songs he wrote. One of my all-time favorite FoW songs is "Denise," which is two-and-a-half minutes of pop perfection.
I'd also like to give a shout-out to my friends at Operation Feed Brooklyn, which is delivering meals from local restaurants to Brooklyn hospital workers. There may be a similar effort in your town--and if there isn't, now's a great time to start one.
Chin up, shoulders back!
Thanks for reading this; if you like it, pass it on. As for my health, I'm happy to report I'm getting a little better each day and was able to work last week. Several of you have asked for hangouts, live videos at the like, and I hope to do 'em when I get my full strength back!
What are you into right now? How are you doing? Reach out at whitmath@gmail.com. I'm also on Twitter and Instagram.
Shut up, kiss me & hold me tight (from a distance),
Large Marge
“Everybody's got a hold on hope / It's the last thing that's holding me.”
— "Hold on Hope," Guided by Voices
“Everything changes every day.” — Harry Dean Stanton