Poems, pics, & promising starts

Or, I rarely do roundups

I think there’ll be something here for everyone.

Some pub news I haven’t mentioned

• “Ten Cent Beer Night” in The Twin Bill (+ their podcast episode on the undersung Mike Donlin: come for the story, stay to hear me read the poem)

• “stages” in midsummer magazine

• “Preces and Responses #40” (+ interview) in dipity

• “it takes a lot” & “Blindfolded” in The Erozine

• “karen carpenter stan account blues*” in The Broken Teacup

• “DISCORD(ANT)” first in Rough Cut Press (June), then in Poetry Trapper Keeper (today)

• Two poems + a flash in infinite↓scroll

Some pop songs I loved this year, roughly in chronological order

• “Butterfly Net,” Caroline Polachek ft. Weyes Blood

• “supernatural,” Ariana Grande (+ the remix with Troye Sivan)

• “Girl, so confusing,” Charli XCX

• “Pitiful,” Remi Wolf

• “Juno,” Sabrina Carpenter

• “APT.,” ROSÉ & Bruno Mars (+ the rest of the rosie album)

One band I’m following

In 2019, Stephen Colbert channeled his studio’s namesake by modeling BTS’ guest appearance on the Beatles’ Ed Sullivan debut. It was fun and well done, and inspired me to keep tabs on the parallels between the K-pop sensation and the British Invasion.

HOA have gone a step further with their latest singles, “I Don’t Know Why” and “Push Man.” Sonically and visually, they work. And not just for me:

I used to think you could either sound like the Beatles or be like the Beatles, but not both. Safe to say HOA are disproving the theory—with style.

Oh, and while we’re at it:

Who would say that? But then, who would say people don’t deserve bodily autonomy. Sigh.

A few choice screengrabs from 2024’s camera roll

No, you don’t get context.

And, to celebrate surpassing both 100 subscribers and five years online, a handful of hits from the archive

• The Best Song Choruses

• A Brief History of Gouda

• Is Hawkeye Pierce the Perfect Character?

• Every Beatles Reference in “You’ll Be Back”

• The Wilsonian Institute

• Nothing Alike But Very Alike

• A Summer So Long

• The beginning of the Who series

• “Try At No Cost”

• Crush

Man, it’s been a Year.