MALONE-MAIL No. 12: Frizzfest 2k14
Hellooooo, MalonE-Mailers! We've got to come up with a better name for you, dear subscriber(s). Even "Whovians" have a better name than "MalonE-Mailers." Anyway, it's July. Here is a newsletter about what happened in June (and the first week of July, since I break my own rules, because I can), a much less humid/thunderstorm-filled and therefore better month, in and around my little world:
What I've been writing...
June was a bit of a dry month, content-wise: For WIRED, I wrote about the issues that abound in Disney's Maleficent retelling.
For T magazine, I profiled the rising songwriter Laurel.
I wrote one of WIRED's summer binge-watching guide, about shoveling all four seasons of Arrested Development down your gullet in record time, and contributed to this outstanding collection of memories about Fourth-of-July-weekend blockbusters past.
AND I ranked Monty Python's geekiest songs (again for WIRED) and interviewed Eric Idle for GQ, all in celebration of the troupe's final reunion shows this month.
What I've been reading...
Emily Friedlander's great profile of FKA twigs, you new favorite artist.
Dayna Evans destroying me with this Hairpin essay about belonging.
Brittany Spanos on the loveliness of worshipping Betty Davis.
Gerry Canavan got to go through Octavia Butler's archives at the Huntington and I'm so jealous.
Lili Loufbourow on why "prestige television" has such a problem with naked dudes (and the female gaze, etc).
Mah main betch Jill Mapes on how not to write about Melissa McCarthy, idiots.
Katie Baker's fantastic story about what happened to the first black class president of a private school who dared mock her rich-white-boy classmates.
Because everything is terrible, these quotes from Ruth Bader Ginsburg's appropriately blistering dissent with the Hobby Lobby decision were crucial.
The more you know! Jonathan Capeheart eulogized the epically cool Stormé Delarverie, the drag king who threw the first punch at the Stonewall Riots.
Molly Lambert threw down a frighteningly good essay on Dov Charney, Terry Richardson, and the downfall of the shit castle they built in the '00s.
Also, look at all these dumb chairs! God, they're dumb.
What I've been listening to...
FKA twigs' new record LP1 is just dazzling. I can't recommend her stuff hard enough. The album comes out August 12 (first single is here), so if you can't wait (I wouldn't wait), check out her 2013 EP, EP2. There are also videos for every song on the EP, and they're absolutely required viewing.
Other than that, I have to be honest with you, MalonE-Mailer: I've had The Execution of All Things backstopped with Transatlanticism on loop for like the entire month of June, because despite my excitement for the move to L.A., I'm kinda getting all twee-existential about leaving the east coast, and Jenny understands. Good Kid, m.A.A.d. city is also getting significant play, for similar L.A.-related reasons.
That's it for now! The next time we speak, I'll probably be reeling from the cross-country marathon move of my life, so definitely stay tuned for that delightful spectacle. And tell your friends, too!
P.S. (Parting Shot):
Did you see these INCREDIBLE shots of Mish Way and the rest of White Lung from Paper mag? Their new record Deep Fantasy is really excellent, but this photo shoot is giving it a run for its money. The interview with Mish isn't too terrible, either.