Welcome to The Weekender, where I gather up the records, movies, shows, books, and assorted internet detours I think are worth carrying into the next couple of days. Consider your weekend sorted.
Included in this issue:
my favorite song of 2025 gets a seven-minute remix I can’t stop playing
a top-five Album of the Year contender gets a fun second life
a sweaty new punk record with zero seconds wasted
80 minutes of spiritual jazz from a guy who can fucking jam
a legendary live performance finally makes it to vinyl; watch it now
an electrifying new concert video from a band that rarely tours
late-’90s video game nostalgia never sounded so good
the buzzy new documentary I expected to love, but very much did not
and a longread on what gets missed when everyone obsesses over the AI apocalypse
The Weekender drops every Friday exclusively for paid subscribers. Your $5 a month or $50 a year gets you one of these every week, plus the full archive and $10 off in the Gift Shop. More importantly, it gives me an excuse to spend an unreasonable amount of time digging for things worth recommending to you.
Thank you for supporting human curation. Now let’s get into it.
The Listening Room
Records, songs, and other sounds for your weekend.
Wednesday - Bleeds (Deluxe Edition)
Stream: Bandcamp
One of my favorite 2025 records from the can’t-miss Wednesday crew got beefed up today with six remixes and a few demos. “June 2” is one hell of a B-side, but the highlight of this collection, and maybe my week, maybe my month, is DJ Sabrina the Teenage DJ’s seven-minute remix of “Elderberry Wine.” Holy cow.
Sabrina has now remixed my favorite song of 2025 and my favorite song of 2023, Hotline TNT’s “I Thought You’d Change.” Damn she’s good.
And while we’re bouncing around: I also have to shout out Karly Hartzman’s monthly NTS show Prison Divorce Bombshell, which is dedicated to music from North Carolina. The show may be on hiatus for now, but there are six episodes from this year sitting there waiting for you, and they make for a fun binge through the Tar Heel State.
