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I went to a Crywank show last month but I had an anxiety attack and had to leave before they actually came on. Iāve been doing this kind of a lot lately ā leaving shows before the headliner plays is actually a bonus recommendation from me. It helps you really appreciate the openers. Luckily for me, the opener at the Crywank show was this Toronto artist called COMMUTED and he totally rocked my world. He makes kind of surreal dance-pop that sounds sort of like if LCD Soundsystem was more manic and also covering the Barenaked Ladies. Iāve been listening to this song literally every single day since I first heard it.
May 24, 2022
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It was 4AM and I was in the home of two complete strangers, a French Canadian couple Iād met at a bar earlier that night. Initially I thought maybe they were angling for some sick sex experiment to spice up their marriage but it turns out they just wanted someone to do cocaine and talk Israel-Palestine with. I was only interested in one of those things though. I was about to go home but made one request before I left. I asked kindly if the man in capri pants, drinking a red stripe with his feet up and playing edm from a Bluetooth speaker connected to his phone would put on one song for me, Madonnaās āWhat It Feels Like for a Girl.ā He shrugged and put it on and they went back to talking about how Israel was actually super fun or whatever and I quietly got up and started dancing. This must have surprised them because pretty soon they stopped talking and watched with horror forming on their faces. The song ended and I asked for a cigarette for the road. As far as I was concerned these people hadnāt done enough for me. Free cocaine and cigarettes were the least they could do considering the show Iād just put on for them. I donāt remember exactly how I got home, no train route from that neighborhood to mine that would make sense and no record of an Uber, but I made it home nonetheless and awoke the next day in my bed feeling pretty stupid about the whole ordeal. Nights like that make me sad, make me feel irresponsible and reckless, like I need to value my life more. I was feeling regretful and somber, I had a slight headache and if I wanted to I could cry on command, so I was in the ideal state to be seeing Mark Kozelek (red house painters, sun kil moon), one of my absolute heroes, that night at the Roxy.
Jan 15, 2024
The energy palpably shifted as soon as Hamilton Leithauser started playing āA 1000 Timesā last night. And what a thing it is, to share space with a bunch of people you donāt know being moved by the same perfect piece of music.
The last time I heard this song live, I went alone to see him play in DC. It was 2017, I was very single, and feeling a bit despondent about the state of the world (living in DC during that period was just hard). What a wild form of time travel it is to see him so many years later in Chicago with my husband sitting next to me! Little lonesome heartbroken Sandy would have loved to know that everything was going to be okay. And that, my friends, is the magic of music. It transports us, unlocks portals, connects us to people we donāt know, moves us, tells stories, and creates a mood.
If youāre looking for a good entry to Hamilton Leithauser, I highly recommend his album with Rostam Batmanglij titled āI Had A Dream That You Were Mineā. Not a single song is worth skipping.
Mar 2, 2025
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caught them during the deceiver tour back in 2019. I remember thinking they were good, but nothing crazy. Their current tour has shown so much improvement itās insane. i always love seeing the same band perform a number of times over the years because you get to watch them evolve in real time. i donāt know how to describe the difference other than imagine if there was a āsickāā knob on the audio equipment that they had turned up medium back in the day & now had fully cranked up. Played incredibly tight & integrated a really involved visual element (a lot of experimental video stuff).
TBH the video was cool but kind of detracted from the experience of watching them perform. I felt like the story they were trying to tell was drenched in this above it all every-direction critique of American empire via this post-ironic rendition of conspiracy-culture. donāt get me wrong, it was cool and funny at points. But sometimes you can have something thatās funny and cool & still have it subtract from the overall intended effect. Like I get it youāre very smart and very funny and youāre really showing off right now, but youāre distracting me! Youāre overloading me! Being even more honest, I should probably take my own advice on this issue LOL. I wouldnāt even necessarily recommend that they change anything about the show. I guess itās better to be doing a lot and err on the side of maximalism while saying something unique and cool than to play it safe! Sorry if this is rambling, Iām just trying to collect my thoughts.
But yeah they played great nontheless. Had a great time, theyāre a really good band. wholeheartedly recommend. Favorite songs were: Like before you were born, horsehead, Blankenship (guess which diiv album is my favorite), brown paper bag (riff ripped straight from MBV and I loved it), raining on your pillow, doused(!)
I didnāt take any pictures because I was living in the moment :^)
Feb 24, 2025
Top Recs from @rayne-fisher-quann
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often when something noteworthy happens to me -- a negative sexual experience, an awkward date, a weird subway encounter -- i'll have the impulse to post about it on twitter. but then i think, what if i texted this to my friend instead? and then you can text it to your friend, maybe even one you haven't texted in a while, and they will probably be happy to hear from you directly and you will have strengthened a beautiful relationship. all tweets are spiritually corrosive and the spirit of your new interpersonal bond will persevere long after platforms are dead
Jan 26, 2024
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turns the whole day around
Jan 30, 2024
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my job is being a writer which means i have a lot of free time and it also means that fun group events within my industry are rare. this opens up the wonderful world of being a GROUPIE -- a quasi-professional fan of the talents of others. i am not a comedian but through being a comedy groupie i have reaped the greatest benefit of the trade (funny friends) without ever having to set foot on an improv stage. i am not a musician but through being a music groupie i get to listen to my friends play beautiful songs and sometimes play with them for fun. i am not in fashion but being a fashion groupie means i get to hang out with impossibly stylish and knowledgeable women and sometimes try on beautiful clothes. being a master of none means you get to hang out with the masters of everything and it rocks. and all that is demanded of you is that you love and appreciate wonderful art -- DONT MIND IF I DO !
Feb 2, 2024