HIGHLY RECOMMENDED W/ CLARKE (FROM THE WASHBOARD ABS)
* Providing the A's to the 5 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Q's today is Clarke from The Washboard Abs - a sweet music making project from Washington state that continues their streak of gorgeous albums with the freshly released 'Lowlight Visions' (out on the equally consistent Antiquated Future). So go cop that album once you've copped all the recommendations below. // photo credit: Heidi Kleder
#1 - WHAT IS THE ONE ALBUM (OR EP OR SONG) THAT YOU THINK SHOULD BE THE VERY NEXT MUSICAL THING THAT EVERYONE PRESSES PLAY ON THE NEXT TIME THEY FIND THEMSELVES THINKING “WHAT SHOULD I LISTEN TO NOW”?
'Music World’ by Ever Ending Kicks! Music World has been my favorite album for a while now. It’s immediately accessible, but there’s a lot of brilliant layers that come through the more you listen. I think it probably had a big influence on the creation of the new album, and the song ‘Reflective’ really helped me get through a brutal year.
It’s hard for me to just pick one though - I’m also infatuated with this split between Ada Babar & Kasra Kurt. They’re both such original and inspiring artists. I feel really lucky to play in Ada’s backing band these days.
#2 - WHAT IS THE ONE MOVIE OR TV SHOW THAT YOU THINK SHOULD BE NEXT IN EVERYBODY’S NETFLIX QUEUE (OK, DOESN’T HAVE TO BE NETFLIX, WE’RE ALL INTERNET ADULTS HERE AND KNOW HOW TO FIND ANYTHING ONLINE, ONE WAY OR ANOTHER)?
‘A Fantastic Woman’ is the last movie I saw that really took my breath away. I was lucky enough to see the US premiere at a film festival last winter and was in tears most of the way through.
The storytelling handles devastating subject matter with so much grace, plus it’s beautifully acted and shot. It’s amazing that a movie of that nature manages to be so uplifting.
#3. I (AND BY “I” I MEAN “THE PERSON THAT IS READING THIS”) AM GOING TO THE BOOK STORE (OK, PROBABLY AMAZON) TO FIND THE VERY NEXT BOOK THAT I WILL BE PUTTING SOME EXTREMELY VALUABLE ‘ME-TIME' ASIDE FOR. WHICH BOOK WOULD YOU GET, IF YOU WERE ME (AND, I SUPPOSE, YOU HADN’T ALREADY READ WHAT YOU’RE ABOUT TO SUGGEST)?
I’m currently working my way through ‘A Lover’s Discourse’ by Roland Barthes. It’s very dense and emotionally heavy, so I have to take it in small pieces, but it’s really beautiful and insightful.
My favorite writer is CAConrad though, and I’d recommend any of their collections - especially ‘While Standing in Line for Death’.
#4 - WHAT IS THE ONE WEBSITE (OR JUST ANY OLD INTERNET THING: APP, GIF, SERVICE, WHATEVER) THAT YOU WOULD GET REALLY DOWN IN THE DUMPS ABOUT IF IT WERE TO SUDDENLY GO AWAY?
I think if Frasier were to disappear from Netflix, or if the live videos of Pete Drake playing his homemade vocoder pedal steel guitar in the 1960s were to disappear from Youtube I’d be devastated
#5 - AND FINALLY… PLEASE GIVE ONE COMPLETELY UNAIDED RECOMMENDATION THAT YOU THINK EVERYONE SHOULD START DOING / USING / WATCHING / EATING / THINKING / QUITING / ETC-ING TO MAKE THEIR LIVES A LITTLE BIT MORE BETTER AND/OR BEARABLE.
I’m trying my best to internalize and follow Phil Elverum’s advice from 2007; “Don’t Smoke / Get Off The Internet.”I think a lot of people could benefit from that as well.
OK folks, there you have it. Things that Clarke from The Washboard Abs thinks you should consider incorporating into your day/life. Before you log off to go throw your smokes and internet into the bin, make sure to follow Clarke / The Washboard Abs on Facebook & Twitter & Instagram and make sure you grab their new album 'Lowlight Visions' to keep you comforted once you realize you threw out all your smokes and internet (also there's a great back catalogue of WASHBOARD AlBumS to pillage over on their Bandcamp page).
