Welcome Distractions
New music, book reviews, short stories and more from blog this week
Plus lots of links to other good stuff that didn’t (yet)Too much? Not enough? Let me know what you think.
Hello! You’re here! Thank you.
CW: Cheeziness
I’m feeling lucky this week and I want to share. It’s a bit saccharine, but you can always hit that unsubscribe button. (please don’t)
Most mornings I walk with my creative, artistic, weird teenager to school. I’m so lucky: my kid doesn’t just tolerate me — they ask me to come with them on days when I look a little sluggish. Once we part ways I take a long walk in the woods listening to music. Again, lucky me.
Another reason I’m lucky: I took them to the Grad Expo at the Ontario College of Art and Design, and seeing my kid be inspired and hanging out with these brilliant young thinkers is just amazing. If you’re able to go to that show, it’s a day you won’t forget.
More lucky me! Almost every day I get to talk to musicians, writers and other people doing things I wish I could do. I get to learn about what makes them tick, and I’m always inspired by their enthusiasm and willingness to share.
I know a lot of the people that get this newsletter are those things and I want to be sincere and dorky for a second: Thank you. As long as you can keep going, keep going. It matters, and it’s important to people even if you don’t hear about it.
This week the only thing I wanted to listen to on these walks was the new Soot Sprite record, Wield Your Hope Like a Weapon. You have to give this record a chance, it’s easily top five of 2025 for me. I’m lucky that the band shared it with me before it came out!
What has you feeling lucky today?
Off the blog: links you shouldn’t miss
An Open Letter to Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Who Thinks My Daughter Is a Tragedy McSweeney’s breaks character for this one and it’s an astonishing piece of writing.
Can you run a company as a perfect free market? If you’re looking for a dystopian setting for a story, there are probably 5 in here.
How the Hell Has Danielle Steel Managed to Write 179 Books? This profile is fantastic:
The author has written 179 books, which have been translated into 43 languages. Twenty-two of them have been adapted for television, and two of those adaptations have received Golden Globe nominations. Steel releases seven new novels a year
AI-Powered Coca-Cola Ad Celebrating Authors Gets Basic Facts Wrong. This is funny and dumb in equal measure. Coca-Cola’s third AI bedwetting so far (at least!)
Margaret Atwood says she cannot remember another time ‘when words themselves have felt under such threat’ I love many of her books but I’d probably get deported for voicing my true thoughts on Atwood as a person. She’s not wrong here though.
“Political and religious polarisation, which appeared to be on the wane for parts of the 20th century, has increased alarmingly in the past decade…The world feels to me more like the 1930s and 40s at present than it has in the intervening 80 years.
The Limitations of AI Music, and Why It Must Be Regulated - Dan Mangan is a bit precious here but he’s not wrong. And who am I to talk about precious? Look what I wrote at the top of this thing!
How Live Nation is Devouring the Live Music Industry: the lefty rag known as the Wall Street Journal gives a great explainer about why Ticketmaster is more evil than ever:
What got your attention this week? Got a hot take on something? Hit reply and let me know.
On the Blog
Reading:
Blood on the Forge by William Attaway deserves a lot more attention. Written 80 years ago and set during the Great Migration, it should be a classic that’s studied in Universities. (plus he’s the guy that wrote “Day-O”
Later by Stephen King is the best King book I’ve read in a long time.
My Documents by Kevin Nguyen was a pretty big disappointment. It’s a dystopia about America rounding up people and putting them in internment camps, but it didn’t really work for me.
The Shortlist: Five stories this week, three nonfiction ones including the one in McSweeneys that you must read.
Got a short story? Send it my way
Listening:
Soot Sprite’s new record, holy cow. Listen to it. It’s one of the best of 2025. Elise Cook can write.
Anna Justen’s indie-folk/hyperpop concept album about a dream journal by her childhood cat is excellent, despite the words that I used to describe it
Farmer’s Wife makes music like Tool channeling Angela Carter. It was this close to being too heavy for me, but I dig it.
Bestfriend’s new EP is something I shouldn’t like, but seriously, hit play and you’ll be hooked too:
The Setlist: standout tracks from Festiva, Tuxis Giant and Swallow the Rat. It’s 26 songs, 90ish minutes.
Listen on Apple Music or Spotify
What’s on your playlist? Send me your faves
Next week: I have the Parable of the Sower graphic novel (it took longer than expected to order), some wildly fun #dutchindie, a new record from blog faves Virgin Orchestra, and Kathy Katouzi, and more.
Thanks for being here.
-hugh
Copyright (C) " target="_blank">unsubscribe