The Weekender #5: Your Must Hear, Watch, & Read Guide
The Weekender #5: Your Must Hear, Watch, & Read Guide
This weekend, let's listen to STRFKR and Glitterer, watch Air's Boiler Room set and a rap lyrics documentary, and read about Aaron Bushnell's bravery.
The Weekender is a curated listening, watching, and reading experience to give your weekend a sensory upgrade. Subscribe to get The Weekender in your inbox free every Friday.
What to Listen to This Weekend
STRFKR - Parallel Realms
Get Vinyl: Kelly Green, Cobalt Blue Cornetto, Pink Splatter | Violet & Cobalt Blue
Stream: Spotify | Bandcamp | Apple Music | YouTube
STRFKR has long flown under the radar, not receiving the recognition they richly deserve. No longer, I say! With the release of their eighth album, Parallel Realms, out today through Polyvinyl, there's a strong chance they'll finally break through to become more of a (vulgar) household name.
The 17-track album (five interludes) puts you in a dream-state and wraps you up in a warm blanket with a cool pillow. You can zone out to this album just as easily as you can pay attention to what you’re hearing and get a pleasurable experience either way.
The record captures the essence of '80s synth-pop bliss, complete with robust rhythm sections and pristine hooks. I was reminded of Phoenix listening to this one, yet with a more psychedelic edge, and it even takes a delightful detour into French with the song “Chizzlers.”
Lastly a shoutout to Chris Coady (Beach House, Yeah Yeah Yeahs) who handled the mixing, elevating the album from an "indie" sound to a series of tracks that feel impressive in scope. It’s certainly STRFKR’s most engaging album since 2016's Being No One, Going Nowhere and likely will grow further in esteem upon more listens.
Glitterer - Rationale
Get Vinyl: Orange | Black
Stream: Spotify | Bandcamp | Apple Music | YouTube
Ned Russin, previously of Title Fight fame, recently unveiled his fourth album under the Glitterer moniker, Rationale, released last week via ANTI- Records. Unlike his earlier works, which featured Russin as a solo act handling every instrument, this latest project introduces a complete band setup, bringing a richer and more immersive sound to the forefront.
Fans of last year's standout from Hotline TNT will find much to appreciate in Glitterer's distinctive sonic blend, which combines elements of '90s grunge with the ethereal qualities of fuzzed-out noise pop. The lyrics are simple yet profoundly vulnerable, setting Glitterer apart from similar fare. Additionally, the band offers deeper insights into their work here on Substack with
, enhancing the listening experience with valuable context.My only critique would be for these tracks to extend their embrace a bit longer. With only four out of the twelve tracks surpassing the two-minute mark, their brevity leaves you craving more. I guess the silver lining is it fits perfectly into my morning commute, an experience I foresee becoming a regular part of my routine this year.
What to Watch This Weekend
Air’s 2017 Boiler Room Live Set
Stream: YouTube
This week, French duo Air is back touring for the first time since 2017. They are performing their 1998 debut lounge-jazz masterpiece Moon Safari in full for the first time ever. Unfortunately for us here in the states, they are hitting up just seven venues around Europe.
So I present to you the next best thing. During their last tour, Air performed at the iconic Sydney Opera House and the show is available to watch in stunning quality (both audio and video) on YouTube via Boiler Room. The set is an all-timer, and they finish the show with the one-two Moon Safari punch of “Sexy Boy” and “La femme d’argent.” This is one I return to again and again.
As We Speak: Rap Music on Trial
Watch: Paramount +
As We Speak: Rap Music on Trial is a compelling new documentary that highlights the misuse of rap lyrics in criminal prosecutions within the U.S. and internationally, showcasing how the justice system has long exploited artists' expressions to put black individuals behind bars.
One case in particular that’s stuck with me was No Limit Records rapper Mac Phipps, who was wrongly convicted of manslaughter for the 2000 shooting of a 19-year old in a Louisiana nightclub, despite another man confessing to the crime. During the trial, prosecutors took out of context lyrics from two different songs and spliced them together to make a statement. Phipps explains:
"One song was 'Murda, Murda, Kill, Kill,' which was, like, a straight battle rap. The other one was a song called 'Shell Shocked,' and the line that they referred to was actually a line about my father [fighting in Vietnam]. They said, 'This young man said, Murder, murder, kill, kill.. if you fuck with me, I'll put a bullet in your brain.'"
Without witnesses and a gun tied to Phipps, the jury still sentenced him to thirty years in prison. He was released in 2021, after serving twenty years.
This case underscores the documentary's critical message on the dangerous intersection of art and law, and it’s an urgent call to reevaluate the fairness of using artistic expression as criminal evidence.
What to Read This Weekend
The Words That Burned Through His Throat by
This week, Air Force serviceman Aaron Bushnell took to Twitch, broadcasting live as he walked down the street in his uniform. He made a profound statement:
“I’m about to engage in an extreme act of protest. But compared to what people have been experiencing in Palestine at the hands of their colonizers, it’s not extreme at all. This is what our ruling class has decided will be normal.”
Following these words, he set the camera aside, retrieved a water bottle, drenched himself in a fuel accelerant, and self-immolated outside the Israeli embassy in Washington D.C. He repeatedly screamed “Free Palestine” until he left this world.
The media coverage of this was abhorrent. CNN and NPR called Bushnell’s motives unclear. Time Magazine’s write-up told readers to contact mental health providers if they are experiencing a crisis; this was parroted by many pundits on Twitter and cable news.
It’s clear this was more sacrifice than suicide, someone who saw Gaza as more important than their own life, something most in the West can’t comprehend.
gets to the ugly truth of it all:Conviction does not exist to the American. To be willing to die in a selfless act for what they believe in only exists for those outside America's sphere of influence. Many will recall reporting on those who self-immolated in protest in Iran and in Russia for instance where this sort of approach, unwilling to engage with the root of its cause, would not even be entertained, let alone written and published with sincerity. The Arab Spring began with a self-immolation. The self-immolation of Buddhist monks in protest of South Vietnam’s persecution became defining images of the war and its corruption. Within America’s walls however, there is a belief, unspoken and ingrained from birth, that democracy allows for everyone’s voices to be heard and that its representatives are inherently inclined to respond to the people and their widespread wishes. […]
America benefits from its place on Earth. Wars, interventions, operations, all have the benefit of happening far away, much of the time in the Middle East where Americans rarely tread and where even fewer desire to understand its motivations, its fears, and its desires. Actions undertaken that one opposes are to be waited through and tolerated with silence in the hopes that what will come soon will be better. Many refuse to engage in this cycle any longer.
Hey thanks for reading! What are you excited to dive into this weekend? We’ll be back next week with the long awaited return of the vinyl giveaways, as well as big updates to Album of the Year leaderboard. Until then, happy collecting and rock on!
Good stuff. And if you want to go deeper into the Mac Phipps story, check out the three-episode arc on Louder Than A Riot a few years ago: https://www.npr.org/transcripts/921124609