Other People's Words
not exactly an update
A few weeks ago, my friend and current host* DS of Silverstream (of Funerals & Snakes fame) asked if I’d given up my Substack. A not unfair assumption, given how rarely I post.
Long story short: I keep wanting to leave this platform and start somewhere else for multiple reasons (the Nazi thing, sure, but also just the lack of ease in posts from remote devices, and the blurriness of the ecosystem that means I never know who sees notes vs posts vs whatever the hell else there is here), but haven’t been able to settle on anything that makes me happy**, and perhaps I just need to re-think my whole web presence and build a site, and then that all gets too hard and I have things to do.
So, in lieu of reading my thoughts - although I couldn’t help but append a few at the end - here are some other people’s words: on music, film, culture, and life. Tabs that have been open for weeks or months, waiting for me to share them somewhere. For today, at least, somewhere is here.
A celebration of jazz saxophonist Tim Berne
A fantastic and thorough profile of John Darnielle of The Mountain Goats
An interview with David Bartner, the editor of Mr. Scorsese
A deep dive into what it means to start a blu-ray label
A meditation on changing culture, provocatively titled “The death of fiction”
“It turns out boredom is the Cadillac of feelings.” A cri-du-coeur/celebration of “touching grass”, as the kids call it, from the recently deceased Kaleb Horton
And finally, a testament to the passing of Tom Stoppard, in his own words:
As many of you know, I’m a Godzilla fan, and I don’t assume that the phrase “in a world of Gigans, be a Mothra”, coined by my friend and co-podcaster Steve Skeet, necessarily translates. Suffice it to say that while Godzilla has fiercer adversaries, none is a bigger asshole than Gigan, and while Godzilla has allies, none are more chill and eager to help than Mothra.
There may be people for whom 2025 was an easy year. I haven’t met them. There have been other positive qualities to this year for some - I know of at least one person for whom it was literally life-changing (and saving), and others who achieved major accomplishments - but never without a giant effort.
My hope is simple: that 2026 is easier. That the ambient hostility in our culture dials down. That assholes are ignored and left to stew in their own juices. That people suffer less. That we can all, myself included, be a bit more kind.
I am not ignorant of what is going on in the world and especially in my home countries and I know for many people in very real ways things are going to get worse before they get better.
But there’s the world problems, and then there’s the domestic problems of those close to you, where you can make a difference. And I think the main thing I learned in 2025 is that the more you put into those, the more you feel like you’ve done something worthwhile.
In a world of Gigans, be a Mothra.
Happy New Year, y’all.
*Well, mostly current. I’ve been living in Wellington the last couple of months, editing a feature film, am back in Auckland for the holiday, and will return to Wellington on Sunday for seven weeks to finish editing said feature film. Then I’m looking for work in Auckland.
**Everyone recommends Ghost, but there’s a cost to it that puts me off doing it. But maybe better that I just own my home, so to speak.