Fresh writing

smell

 

With the new year comes my annual update (they really ought to be semi-annual but hey, I got stuff going on) of links to recent writing. Much of the work that I’m proudest of (e.g., big retrospective pieces on Leonard Cohen, Siouxsie & The Banshees, the New York Dolls, Sly Stone and more) is in the print version of Uncut magazine and its Ultimate Music Guide series. I like my recent reviews in Sight & Sound too. So find them on your nearest newsstand, should your city happen to still have one of those!

Also be pleased to get a great meaty piece in Variety about the TIFF Short Cuts program that occupies much of my focus these days.

FILM WRITING

On the occasion of Sid & Nancy playing TIFF Bell Lightbox.

On Alex Ross Perry’s Her Smell.

On The Man from Mo’Wax.

MUSCI WRITING

On Dead Can Dance’s Dionysus.

On Cocteau Twins’ underrated final years.

On the golden age of indie disco, complete with playlist.

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An Actual Update

steely-dan-essential-songs-2017-listen-23e00365-05ec-4359-ab0a-f89c092213bcWith 2018 beginning, it seemed like high time to get a few fresh links up here, even though much of my written output of late has been print-only, like my reviews of Pretzel Logic and Donald Fagen’s Sunken Condos for Uncut’s Steely Dan special issue (see above demonstration of withering sarcasm), plus a long review of the very fine new album by H.C. Entire for the February 2018 issue and recent features on King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard and The Weather Station. I also review Blade Runner 2049 for the winter 2018 issue of Cinema Scope. And there’s a review of Roman J. Israel for the February 2018 issue of Sight & Sound.

Nevertheless, here are some recent long reviews for Uncut that I’m happy to see in the world.

The Clientele – Music for the Age of Miracles

Broken Social Scene – Hug of Thunder

Feist – Pleasure

And I very much enjoyed getting to write a short history of shilling foreign films to American audiences on the basis of their smut content.

 

Recent writings

Tons of stuff of late. Proudest of my first cover story for Uncut:

Uncut April 2016

Been working as a writer and script consultant on The VICE Guide to Film — after a year of being not especially secretive about the whole thing, it’s now on the air and can be seen here at VICELAND.

Image result for werner herzog vice

 

Another big new one is my primer on VR storytelling, the first of a new batch of stories for the Canadian Film Centre.

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And a story on Steve Mann’s Hydraulophone for Red Bull Music Academy.

Here’s a smattering of links to reviews of recent-ish discs by Deerhunter, Tame Impala and Sunn 0))).

 

 

A fresh start to a slow decline

2015 means way more consistent habits in regards to keeping up the blog and maintaining a one-stop-shopping-slash-digital-store-front-slash-whatsit for those in search of my writings (or musings, since I’m only allowed to use that word until tomorrow and then have to retire it for the rest of 2015).

More refinements to come but for starters, here are some links to fresh film writings.

Enemy: Film of the week in the January 2015 issue of Sight & Sound

A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence: In the January 2015 issue of Cinema Scope

Reviews of The Imitation Game, Big Eyes and Exodus for FFWD in Calgary

Feature on the strange case of Serena and other movies sucked into post-production/pre-release limbo for Postmedia.