Albums
Not new to everyone, but I didn't really start following Low's career until after they had signed with Sub Pop around the middle of last decade. I since went back to check out their highly regarded final two Kranky releases (Things We Lost in the Fire, Trust), but I'd always neglected the earlier part of the career. The Curtain Hits the Cast was the big revelation for me, epitomizing the trio's starkly beautiful slowcore roots.
Blue Oyster Cult - The Symbol Remains (2020)
The long running cult classic returns for their first new studio album in nearly two decades and, honestly, it has no right to be as good as it is. Long time BOC fans will instantly find something to love, with all of the band's trademarks in full supply - horror and sci-fi derived lyrics aided by notable authors, killer hooks and blistering guitar playing. They even make a song called "Florida Man", a twisted tale in the vein of Butthole Surfers' "Pepper" and Jim Carroll's "People Who Died" that ties the titular screw-up from our daily news reports to the curse of the conquistadors, work, and exceptionally well at that. Such a conceit would fall flat as gimmickry in lesser hands, it's a testament to these lifers that it works so well here. And it's only one of the half dozen or more truly great songs on this record.
Books
Machineries of Empire Trilogy (Ninefox Gambit / Raven Stratagem / Revenant Gun) - Yoon Ha Lee
This is a sci-fi trilogy that drops you, in a rather disorienting manner, into the middle of a universe filled with maneuvering political factions, heretics and space battle controlled by belief in the calendar imposed on them by leaders and math, lots and lots of math. It's dizzying, to start, but Yoon Ha Lee compels you forward with exceptional set-pieces, epic battles and intrigue, all while very slowly unveiling the world they have built to fill in the pieces you didn't have from the start. It is gripping and, quite rarely for a sci-fi series, it sticks the landing in spectacular fashion, tying up the loose ends in a most satisfying and consistent way. I cannot recommend this series highly enough and I can't wait to see where Yoon Ha Lee's imagination goes next.
Televsion
Lovecraft Country (HBO)
I was a big fan of Matt Ruff's novel when I read it a few years ago, so I was ecstatic to see that it was picked up to become a series on HBO. I've also really enjoyed the work I've read by H.P. Lovecraft, though acknowledging that his massive talent in crafting deeply unsettling work is balanced out by his horrific views on race, so it was a thrill to see Ruff twist the two threads into the highly original story of Atticus Turner and his family. The series ups the ante in spectacular fashion, expanding on Ruff's stories in fascinating and horrifying new ways while striking a balance between a horror anthology series that tackles different themes (the haunted house episode, the demonic possession episode, the time travel episode, etc) while weaving together an even more satisfying overarching story. The acting is superb throughout, especially Jonathan Majors' Atticus, Aunjanue Ellis' Hippolyta and Michael K. Williams' Montrose. I'm not sure I will ever completely expunge the horrifying image of Diana's pursuers in Episode 8.
Succession (HBO)
We were rather late to this one but in a way I'm really glad, since it allowed us to binge both seasons rather quickly instead of having to wait a week for each new episode. There's been a lot of digital ink spilled already about how great this is and I'm not sure I have anything of significance to add, other than to add another voice in the chorus confirming that it really is as good as you've been hearing. Individually and collectively, the entire Logan clan is as despicable and disgusting as you might expect a bunch loosely based on the Murdoch clan may be, but this is never less gripping for them being so. Kieran Culkin is a revelation as Roman Roy and Brian Cox is never less than wonderful, but it's the ensemble that makes this a show worth watching.
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