Music

• Flaming Lips
  • It’s the 20 year anniversary of Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots. Give it a listen if you haven’t before!
  • Flaming Lips were the first band I ever saw live, and they put on a show more than they do a gig. It’s an absolute sensation of a performance. Props, glitter, balloons, and inflatables left, right, and center. We saw them on opening night at Troxy, London for the 20th Anniversary tour, and it was just as insane as the first show of theirs I saw. 10/10.
• Cat Burns
  • My year began with Jools Hollands’ Hootenany, as it does every year. This year’s standout act was Cat Burns; she sang Go and People Pleaser, and both have been staples of our playlists since.
• LCD Soundsystem
  • I feel like I rediscover LCD Soundsystem every year. 2023 is no different.
• Public Service Broadcasting
  • Space keeps coming up for me this year, somehow. Public Service Broadcasting’s The Race For Space is fantastic; it’s worth listening to end-to-end, rather than dipping through it.
  • My recommendation: go for a walk near sunset with an hour to spare, in the mood for something nostalgic, electronic, and space-y. What a treat!
• Lake Street Dive’s Fun Machine: The Sequel
• Thumpasaurus
  • Struttin’
  • Basically all of Thumpaverse, a superb album from beginning to end
• Wet Leg — Wet Leg
  • I was late to the scene with their first album. If you are too, it’s not too late!

TV

• For All Mankind
• The Gold
• Ted Lasso
• Slow Horses
• Killing Eve

Podcasts

Almost all of the podcasts I’ve been listening to so far this year have been produced by Tortoise Media. I love their approach to news reporting and journalism writ large. Fantastically edited, killer storytelling, these guys do good stuff.

• Sweet Bobby
• Inside the Tavistock
• Hoaxed
• Pig Iron
• Sensemaker
• The News Meeting
• Articles of Interest
• Regular Features

Reading

I’ve titled this “Reading”, not “Books”, because most of the reading I do these days is some kind of essay / short story rather than novels.

• LRB
  • “Chip War” review
• Why You Should Read Childrens’ Books, Even Though You Are So Old And Wise