HIGHLY RECOMMENDED W/ PICKLE DARLING
* Providing the A's to the 5 HIGHLY RECOMMENDED Q's today is Pickle Darling — a bedroom singer-songer from New Zealand who kicked 2019 off big with the very charming ‘Bigness’ (an album that recently got the ‘IAMSEB REVIEWS’ treatment + you’ll find the lead off track in this collection of DOWNUNDER & OVER artists). Photo by Katie Blows.
#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”?
I've been listening a lot to the 'Where The Wild Things Are' Soundtrack by Karen O and the Kids. I love children's music, it can be very joyous and very scary. I'd love to give it a go one day.
Also I wanna recommend Richard Dada's '001'. It kinda went under the radar but it's one of the most beautiful albums I've ever heard.
#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)?
Guy Maddin's 'Brand Upon The Brain!' I could have put any of his films here, they're all great. Someone once asked him how he came up with his distinct style and he basically said he just tried to make commercial blockbuster films and failed and people decided to call his failure art. That's how I feel about my stuff haha.
This is a really lovely film and it's one of his more blatantly personal ones. He tells stories about his life but stitches them together with fantasy and melodrama, and it is really freeing, to be able to toy with truth like that.
#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)?
George Saunders - 'Lincoln In The Bardo.' I'm gonna steal a lot of quotes from this for lyrics on my next album I think. I've always liked his essays (his one in the liner notes for the Jeff Tweedy album is especially nice) and short stories and his writing always leaves me feeling optimistic and present and ready to laugh.
#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?
Bandcamp is the obvious one.
It takes the place of social media in my life. As someone who never really felt like they could fit into the local music scene, Bandcamp pulled me into a whole new community which felt bright and kind and inclusive and inspiring. My favourite musicians are also now my friends. Shout out to Skirts and Fuvk.
#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.
If you make art, pay more attention to your emotional/creative milestones and less to your financial ones. I'm never gonna 'make it big,' whatever that means, but I'm gonna get better and better as a songwriter.
OK folks, there you have it. Things that Pickle Darling thinks you should consider incorporating into your day/life. Before you log off and go re-look at how you’ve been looking at your milestones, make sure to follow Pickle Darling on the Facebook + the Twitter + the Instagram — and if you haven’t already, you really should go check out that ‘Bigness’ album over on Bandcamp.
