Shouting Into The Void
Plus: Stuart Heritage is having a moment, Harvard Scholars on Taylor Swift and much more from OneTrackMinds HQ
Hello friends! I trust you’re all well. Writing these newsletters lately has felt a little like an exercise in self-control. There are so many exciting things in the works at OneTrackMinds HQ, and I’m bursting to tell you all about them, but for the time being, I have to keep quiet and bide my time. This is, in a sense, becoming something of an anti-newsletter, in which I don’t tell you all the things that we’re getting up to, and if that’s frustrating for you, believe me I feel you. I am positively bouncing with pent-up energy here… but you have to trust me that it’ll be worth the wait…
In the meantime, some things we can tell you about. Tickets are selling FAST for our show on May 31st, featuring Elf Lyons, Gethin Anthony, Karan Kandhari, Claire Cartwright and Stephanie Singer, and we wouldn’t want you to miss out by not securing your ticket before they all go. Buy yours here, and you can thank me on the night.
Everyone’s a Sellout. Lately, I’ve found myself having a variation of the same conversation with a lot of friends; whether they’re writers, artists, filmmakers or creators of any kind, we’ve all shared the same frustrations about how much of our time needs to be spent on social media, ‘building the brand’, and publicising our work. This terrific article in Vox by Rebecca Jennings expands upon the state of present day art and culture, and asks how this has come to be. It’s a fascinating read, especially to those of us who find the idea of self-promotion horribly naff1 and while it’s somewhat comforting to read that I’m not the only one who hates having to do this, it does feel more and more like an essential part of existing as an artist/creator in the world today. Jennings’s conclusion is pretty bleak: “To achieve the current iteration of the American dream, you’ve got to shout into the digital void and tell everyone how great you are. All that matters is how many people believe you.”
Ugh.
Related: This artist was so worn down by the cost of living in the UK that he moved to Buenos Aires, from where he commutes to London every two months. Amazingly, it’s cheaper for him to do that than to live in Bristol, and the airfare is cheaper than a monthly train pass between there and the capital. Bleak…
One artist who no longer has to worry about self-promotion2 is Taylor Swift, who dropped3 a new album on Friday. The Tortured Poets Department is already breaking records as the most streamed album in one day on Spotify, and has been keeping music writers busy. Here’s Laura Snapes in The Guardian; meanwhile, The New York Times sent a reporter to Harvard to interview students enrolled in an English Literature class called “Taylor Swift and Her World”, entirely dedicated to her work…
Tantrums. After Damon Albarn threw a minor hissy fit during Blur’s underwhelming set at Coachella last weekend, OneTrackMinds alumnus Stuart Heritage compiled this most enjoyable list of the greatest onstage tantrums from musicians in history. Highlights include Elton John yelling ‘fuck off’ at some particularly grabby fans in between verses of Saturday Night’s Alright For Fighting, Kanye West refusing to start a song until everyone in the audience stood up, realising far, far too late that the holdouts in the crowd actually couldn’t stand up because they were in wheelchairs, and this absolutely epically professional meltdown from Billy Joel. A lot of fun.
Stuart Heritage is having a bit of a moment this week! Not only has he got a new book out - Bald: How I Slowly Learned To Not Hate Having No Hair4), but he also revealed in today’s Guardian that he inspired the latest episode of Bluey and got a credit!
Running Tracks. I watched the BBC’s superior coverage of the London Marathon from the comfort of my sofa, but was inspired enough by the exceptionally excellent video montages to sign up to the ballot for a place in next year’s race. If you’ve ever wondered who chooses the music for those amazingly inspiring montages, here’s an interesting piece in Vox about the often unsung work of the music supervisor…
Stalking. Apparently it’s National Stalking Awareness Week this week, which is a fitting reason to point you in the direction of Baby Reindeer on Netflix. It’s been a huge success since its release last week, but if it’s somehow passed you by, let me urge you to prioritise watching it. It’s an astonishing piece of TV, and nothing I’ve ever seen swings so confidently from proper laugh-out-loud comedy to utterly bone-chilling horror. It is masterful. Richard Gadd is a genius. Let’s get him on the show!
Genius! And when you’re done with that, and need something to restore your faith in humanity, let me steer you towards AppleTV+ and their wonderful documentary tribute to the out and out genius who is Steve Martin. Entitled STEVE! (martin) a documentary in 2 pieces, it’s a glorious tribute to one of the funniest men who ever lived, who also - gratefully - seems to be a thoroughly decent human being.
Finally, if you’ve a spare 235 minutes, you could do worse than spending it watching this epic compilation of 60 Songs on BBC Two, aired over the weekend as part of their celebration of the channels 60th Birthday.
Right, that ought to do it! Adam will be here next week with more news from OneTrackMinds HQ. Until then, stay happy and healthy.
KB.
I realise the irony of writing this in a weekly newsletter, which, over the years, I have used to constantly beg you to buy tickets to our show, or books from our bookshop or whatever else we’re trying to hawk at whatever time. Let me just reassure you that this whole self-promotion thing makes me very uncomfortable, and I’m eternally grateful to all of you who put up with it. Substack does feel like the gentlest way I can promote OneTrackMinds, without feeling like I’m walking around, banging a drum, shouting from the rooftops...
I mean, she probably does, but she must have people who do that for her.
“Dropped”. Oh god, listen to me…
Credit, please, for not making a joke here at Adam’s expense. I declined to do so only because the pace with which my own hairline is rapidly receding means I risk being similarly mocked in due course…
totally emphasize with the horror of the shouting and the rooftops! most of us absolutely get, how hard it is. i think on here is probably least horrible, a little bit nice even. i for one am looking forward to these little newsletters every week. thank you for writing!
I love that Andy Leek got a shout out here this week - his story is mad but also very relatable with everything going on atm. I’m also intrigue by the documentary he’s making whilst he’s in BA. Will check out the others recs here too!