Five Bullets 5.10.24
The Garden of Time, Steve Albini, Stamps & more
Good Morning & Happy Friday!
After some warm weather this week, it’s a cool and wet morning here in New York City.
I’ve been watching a few series based on books: Apple TV series Dark Matter and A Gentleman in Moscow. Still working through Isaacson’s Benjamin Franklin.
The great Steve Albini passed away this week. If you’re a music nerd like me with an interest in recording, Albini is one of the giants, someone whose work is inescapable. I remember really diving into In Utero and being amazed at how Albini captured the raw sound of the band in a room. I read somewhere that Albini put mics on the floor so the drums would have more impact. From interviews and people who worked with him, Albini was creative at problem-solving and keeping things simple and always put the music first.
Bullets this week:
Music: RIP Steve Albini, recording engineer behind Nirvana’s In Utero as well as nearly 1,500 records. Albini embodied the DIY punk philosophy and was an outspoken critic of the music industry, penning the essay The Problem With Music. He believed the recording engineer should not influence the sound of the band but simply capture their natural performance. Read Albini’s letter to Nirvana before working with the band.
NYC: Congestion pricing starts next month and the M.T.A. plans to use the anticipated $15 billion to fund upgrades to aging subway infrastructure. The congestion pricing plan, potentially fraught with conflicts, is currently in litigation after a series of lawsuits.
Short Stories: This year’s Met Gala theme was based on the 1962 short story The Garden of Time by J.G. Ballard. Ballard’s words drift delicately across the page, bringing to life the timelessness the story’s protagonists are searching for. More on J.G. Ballard:
Stamps: If you haven’t used a stamp in ages and are wondering why we still have them check out Why We Still Use Postage Stamps which makes the case that while stamps still serve a crucial function - the sending and receiving of mail - they also track America’s history. (Fun fact: Benjamin Franklin was the first postmaster general appointed by the Second Continental Congress is 1775).
TV: A Gentleman In Moscow follows the life of Count Alexander Ilyich Rostov (Ewan McGregor) while under house arrest in Moscow’s Metropole Hotel. Inside the hotel’s revolving doors, we see the Bolshevik Revolution and Stalin’s rise to power while the former Count adjusts to his new life. The series is based on a 2016 novel by Amor Towles.
