Recently

Reading

There are a handful of New Yorker writers who I will read whatever they write. I couldn't care less about the world of horse racing but I still found William Finnegan's Can Horse Racing Survive? riveting. In the debate about the future of horse racing, you see a proxy for so many other animal cruelty debates. Also, as a Canadian, it was fascinating to see the Stronach family play such an unexpectedly prominent role.

The Vernon Subutex trilogy got worse with each book but overall I still enjoyed it. Very funny at times and I get the sense that it will stand the test of time as a pretty accurate snapshot of the western world of the 2010's, both the general mood and its politics.

Watching

A Ghost Story is one of my favorite films of the past five or ten years so I don't know why it took me so long to see David Lowery's follow-up, "The Old Man and the Gun". Much more easygoing and straightforward than the former but I loved it almost as much. Robert Redford was excellent and there were so many beautiful moments. Lowery is up there with Wes Anderson and PTA in his attention to detail but maybe less flashy and makes it seem easy.

Listening

An Overview on Phenomenal Nature was my album of the spring and Call Me If You Get Lost is my album of the summer. Tyler is on a roll. Flower Boy was excellent. Igor was great, and the latest is amazing. Endlessly creative. Hilarious, but also extremely sad. Great music videos too. I also really love Superwolves, the new Bonnie Prince Billy and Matt Sweeney record. I don't think it's been getting the appreciation it deserves.