The Filtered Excellence: April 5, 2021
Bob Geldof once asked us, “Where is the filtered excellence!?” It’s right here. Once a week we take a break from comedy to bring you this week’s picks of the best things to watch, the most interesting things to do, great things to try, the best picks to read, our favorite things to listen to and more.
WATCH THIS
Hysterical. Jessica Kirson executive produced this new FX documentary looking at the current wave of women stand ups who are breaking the comedic glass ceiling. Directed by Andrea Nevis, the doc features Kirson, Nikki Glaser, Judy Gold, Margaret Cho, Rachel Feinstein, Marina Franklin, Kathy Griffin, Lisa Lampanelli, Wendy Libman, Carmen Lynch, Bonnie McFarlane, Sherri Shepherd and Iliza Shlesinger talking about how they overcame sexism, racism, and general indifference, to make their mark in a male dominated stand up comedy field. A remarkable amount of topics get covered within the 90 minute time frame: the continuing double standards that female comics are still confronting when it comes to pay, booking and dealing with controversial material; balancing a life on the road and motherhood; fighting for an equitable balance of male to female comics for shows and much more. We also see how the ladies were able to band together to deal with the personal (Franklin’s cancer diagnosis) to the professional (supporting Griffin when she was blackballed for protesting the President; and backing Kelly Bachman when she confronted Harvey Weinstein during her set). Told with candor, warmth, and, of course, a lot of humor, it’s a wonderful salute to the groundbreaking women who are changing the course of comedy. Hysterical is available now on Hulu.
LISTEN TO THIS
Menneskekollektivet by Lost Girls. The debut album by Lost Girls – a duo comprised of Norwegian avant garde artist Jenny Hval and Havard Volden – blurs and defies all categorization. Largely improvised, they weave in spoken word, along elements of dance and electronic music into expansive, extensive meditations on topics ranging from the creative process itself to the full embracing of all life’s possibilities. There are movements where you are completely caught in a trace and other times, drifting in and out of a conversation. If you are looking to take yourself on a musically transformative album, this is it. One of the year’s best. Menneskekollektivet by Lost Girls is available now through all major streaming services.
Antidote: Deux by Blak Emoji. In March 2020, Blak Emoji released Antidote, which captured the fear and confusion that gripped New York – and the world – as it went into quarantine. Now comes Antidote: Deux, an EP that frontman Kelsey Warren, calls ‘a light at the end of the tunnel sonic painting’. The largely instrumental album seemlessly shifts from midtempo blaktronica and DIY driven electro funk. The closing track, the Nine Inch Nails influenced ‘Back Another Day’, offers a strong hint of what the next Blak Emoji album – due in June – will offer. Played back to back, Blak Emoji has crafted the ultimate headphone journal of life under lockdown. Antidote: Deux by Blak Emoji is available exclusively on Bandcamp.
Promises by Floating Points and Pharoah Sanders (Featuring The London Symphony Orchestra). Despite a 46 year age difference and being from a different sides of the world, Pharoah Sanders found a musical kindred spirit in Sam Shepherd, who works under the name Floating Points. After hearing tracks from Shepherd’s 2015 album Elaenia, Sanders reached out to the British composer to work on some new music. Five years later, the duo have released Promises, an album that marks a new chapter for both artists. Spread out over nine movements, Floating Points and Sanders – with a major assist from the London Symphony Orchestra – present a sweeping suite that fuses the worlds of jazz, electronic and classical that honors and builds on the work that Sanders did with Alice and John Coltrane in the 60s and 70s. Soulful, soothing and seductive, it’s the perfect soundtrack for re-calibrating your brain. Promises by Floating Points and Pharoah Sanders is available now through all major streaming services.
READ THIS
Jazz Covers by Joaquim Paulo. For anyone who bought a classic jazz album, the cover was just as captivating and appealing as the music. Now Joaquim Paulo, a label consultant and avid record collector, had put together this new book featuring some of jazz’s greatest album covers. It covers everything from the classic works from Blue Note, Verve, Savoy and Columbia Records catalogs from the 1940s and 50s, through the genre’s embracing of the youth culture of the 60s and 70s, to the current wave of artists re-discovering of classic jazz in the 80s and 90s. It’s photography and graphic design of the highest order, and a must have for those who missed the full album experience. Jazz Covers by Joaquim Paulo is available exclusively at www.taschen.com
DO THIS
Los Angeles. Rise Up L.A: A Century Of Votes For Women. In 1920, thanks to the ratification of the 19th Amendment, millions of women were finally able to cast their vote for the first time in a national election. In 2020, women played a key role in the election of the first female Vice President, along with ladies holding office in several key positions in local, state and federal positions. The Natural History Museum of Los Angeles County looks back at how the campaign for a woman’s right played out in the L.A. area and how a century later, the road to equal rights for all is still played out. It’s an exhibit that works as a history lesson and a call to get engaged. Rise Up L.A: A Century Of Votes For Women will be at the National History Museum Of Los Angeles County through October 10th. You can also go to www.nhm.org for more information.
Latest posts by Earl Douglas (see all)
- Earl’s World: The Filtered Excellence: September 7, 2021 - September 7, 2021
- Remembering Fez Whatley - August 15, 2021
- Earl’s World: The Filtered Excellence: July 23, 2021 - July 25, 2021
