"Those Breakdown Days Are Done": Growing Up With the Bands We Grew Up With (The Nostalgia Trap, Part 3.)

That line hits me like a ton of bricks every time. I have cited it to therapists in outlining my goals. And it seems to be a theme of some of the music I’ve enjoyed the most recently, and about which I have complicated thoughts. (Content Warning: Discussion of Eating Disorders.)

The Nostalgia Trap: On Watching Neon Genesis Evangelion in 2019

Notice: this piece includes spoilers for an anime series that’s nearly 25 years old, but is only experiencing a broader pop-cultural moment now due to its release on a streaming service (Netflix). If you are the sort of person who thinks that spoilers ruin a series, you are warned now.

It also includes discussion of depression and adolescent sexual development, because it’s Evangelion and that’s what the whole show is about.

Rise Like the Fenix [sic]: On Seeing Refused in Lawrence, Kansas

On the 22nd of May this year, Edgar and I went with a friend (Erik, who played the Sheriff in the Crooked Man) to see the Refused play with Bleached and the Hives; while there we met with Alex (who is hard at work on the next episode,) and his fiancee. We hadn't even known that Bleached was there, much to Erik's delight, and I've never really listened to the Hives. The sole draw for me, in short, was Refused.