HIGHLY RECOMMENDED W/ IKSRE
* Providing the A's to the 5 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Q's today is IKSRE — a music-maker out of Melbourne who recently dropped another headphone escape called ‘August’ (and you can catch the track on the HI54 Mix CD ‘NOT LOST / NOT FOUND’).
#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”?
Easy. Caribou's new album, "Suddenly". It's IN.sane.
The first time I listened to it, I was on my way home from a gig. Late at night, on my own, empty road - you know the deal. Anyway it had come out that day so I put it on, loud, and within the first few minutes I remember thinking "this is already one of my favourite albums of all time". How can that even happen? I hadn't even heard the second song, I just knew! And I was right. It's incredible. Every single song is perfect, and unexpected (see: Sunny's Time) and just beautiful. I love Dan Snaith and everything he's ever done. He's a genius.
#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)?
Jojo Rabbit. All of Taika Waititi's movies are amazing and I feel like with every one of them, he just gets better. The way he balances humour with pathos is unmatched by anyone else making movies and this one is on another level.
And I just can't get my head around how he even got funding for it - can you imagine the pitch? "Yeah this movie is about a kid who's a Nazi and his imaginary friend is a slapstick version of Hitler". I would love to know how many studios said no to it before he heard a yes. And being a huge Bowie fan, the use of "Heroes" killed me.
#3. I (AND BY “I” I MEAN “THE PERSON THAT IS READING THIS”) AM GOING TO THE LOCAL BOOK STORE (OK, MAYBE THE LOCAL LIBRARY FIRST) 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)?
The book I wish I could wipe my memory and re-read - "Boy Swallows Universe" by Trent Dalton. My god. It's incredible. Like a good bottle of wine, I got halfway through it and was already lamenting that it would end. I grew up in Australia at a similar-ish time to when the book is set, so all the cultural references are just so incredibly spot on. it made me feel like a kid again.
Sure, most of those will be lost on an international audience and I almost hesitated putting this as my recommendation, but the fact it's now an "international bestseller" according to my super quick Google, I'm pretty confident that the incredible story stands up despite maybe some readers being from another country. Oh yeah, and I had no idea it was semi autobiographical until I finished the book either. Wow. Just wow.
#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?
Definitely Spotify. I cannot even comprehend the world without access to ALL the music. It's just... nope.
#5 - AND FINALLY… PLEASE GIVE ONE COMPLETELY UNAIDED RECOMMENDATION THAT YOU THINK EVERYONE SHOULD START DOING / USING / WATCHING / EATING / THINKING / QUITTING / ETC-ING TO MAKE THEIR LIVES A LITTLE BIT MORE BETTER AND/OR BEARABLE.
Taking notice of nature. And I don't mean going into the bush or forest for a walk, you can engage with nature anywhere! There are birds in every town (as far as I know anyway!). Spend a few minutes every day just watching them and what they do, how they interact with their surroundings.
Or (my favourite), every morning I make a concerted effort to look at a tree and touch its trunk, touch its leaves. And if I'm feeling unsettled and too in my head, I go outside and put my feet on the grass, even if it's cold, it helps. We are part of nature, we aren't separate to it, and the more we can engage with it, the better we feel on the inside.
