review roundup July 2024

Worked: Writing a Blog
This has been a fun experience so far. I know that eventually, I'll have to scale back my trend of posting every day, or I'll try tweaking the formula in other ways. Since no one else is reading this (for now), I'm just throwing spaghetti at the wall without even checking to see what sticks.

Played: The Quarry
A gory, formulaic horror movie, converted into a computer game format where you can save or kill all of the major characters. Thoroughly enjoyed it! The plot is a little overstuffed, like three different 'Cabin in the Woods' scenarios are mashed together, but everything is satisfyingly tied together at the latest possible moment. The best jokes happen when someone stubs a toe; the camp counselors have clearly had to censor themselves while surrounded by kids the past couple of months.

Of the actors I recognized, Grace Zabriskie is the only one who gets much to do. That's fine though; slasher movies are one of the few genres that can put unknown actors at the center of the action. The importance of celebrities in film financing seems inevitable now, but as productions move away from Hollywood and costs drop, it would be cool to get away from this trend.

Listened: Chappell Roan
I don't know how people listen to new music these days. As much as I love streaming services like Spotify, they are usually content to feed you what you have been listening to all your life. There's no huge omnipresent media empire dishing out new music, the way radio or MTV once did. But if you go out of your way to find new acts, you might notice that Chappell Roan is dominating attention spans.

I have a theory for why. Outside of her obvious creativity, talent, catchy production, and the like.

Her music is upbeat synthpop that echoes the 1980s without retreading the styles. Her fashion style is ostentatious, influenced by the drag queen scene. Her lyrics evoke a young, sex-positive, optimistic worldview.

She's like, the exact opposite of the bad vibes the culture has been mired in for years.

Visited: Red Dwarf (Las Vegas)
I have fun every time I visit this bar. It's sort of halfway between a punk dive and tiki bar. They have a giant twenty-sided die if you want to try a random beer and shot. And as a friend pointed out last night, the lack of gaming machines means that everyone is forced to socialize.