Today’s song is Ta Fardah, by PAINT, a Farsi-language tale of falling in love with the airport security agent by LA-based Pedrum Siadatian.
PAINT is just one of a perhaps-surprising number of bands revisiting the surf/garage/psychedelia vibe these days, with what may or may be greater depth than the first time around. I’m especially fond of Habibi, which mixes Farsi influences with punk and 1960s girl groups to produce catchy jams that veer from covering a fun night of dancing (I Got the Moves) to upsetting and unfulfillng sex (Siin). Another great pick is La Luz, which has a more lush and less punky sound but still carries the banner for what you might call woman-group rather than girl-group garage rock. Highly recommended.
Bad news
- Platformer: Scenes from a dying web.
- NBC: Libs of TikTok posts consistently lead to bomb threats. They claim it’s not their problem.
- AP News: Guardian Angels commit an apparent hate crime on live TV, seem to get away with it.
- The Atlantic: The Indian supreme court ain’t doing so hot either.
- Axios: Utah high school student faces death threats after state education official claims she’s not feminine enough.
- Foreign Affairs: We’re probably not prepared to defend Taiwan.
Big Ideas
The Ink: Future Shock. Progress is good, but how do we help people adapt to it?
Consider that we have completely changed the meaning of being a man and what you can do and not do as a man in the last 20, 30, 40 years. Thank god. But let’s be honest: We have done a better job of dismantling some of the old stories and practices and structures of masculinity that needed dismantling than we have of teaching men new ways to be men. The result is a vacuum, and certain podcast charlatans are very deft at getting in there and pied-piping men into new misogynistic visions to fill the void.
Dynomight: Taste Games. Yeah, I’ll drink Budweiser or a local craft beer but not Heineken because, wait, am I just falling into the Pierre Bourdieu trap again? Yes, we have YET MORE ruminations on Bourdieu, conspicuous consumption, beer, status, taste, travel, high-end sneakers, and the Correct Way to Pour Wine:
Something about how people talk about travel has long made me uneasy. After all, travel is expensive. No one in my circles would dream of going to a party and showing off their new Rolex. But somehow, travel is this unusual form of conspicuous consumption that isn’t subject to conspicuous consumption taboos. Why? … A deeper conspiracy theory is that Travel is popular because it allows people who aren’t socially permitted to play Fancy Cars a way to do that while pretending that they’re only playing a normal, respectable game of Glass Beads.
Secretly Ironic 