Things we watched, read, listened to and streamed while taking a break from our responsibilities over the weekend
"LOVE STREAMS"
TIM HECKER
Hecker is a sound artist from Montreal and a professor at McGill University. "Love Streams" is his eighth studio album. He's been referred to as an "ambient sculptor." However, "Love Streams" is punctuated by clear, abrasive uses of technical instruments and complex programming. Hecker reportedly took 15th century monastic music (music sung by monks) and transposed it into digital software before making manipulations of the resulting scores. His previous works were steeped in atmosphere and obscured by white noise, distortion and short-circuiting amplifiers, but "Love Streams" turned to a jovial, playful sound. It's rewarding to see one of his past works, "Dropped Pianos," a series of sketches on piano from 2011, turned into a full-bodied track in "Bijie Dream." Following the course of an artist's development yields litle "Easter eggs" like this, making the artist-listener relationship more personal. - Kyle Hayden, Design Editor
"FEAR AND LOATHING IN LAS VEGAS"
HUNTER S. THOMPSON
On the surface, Hunter S. Thompson's semi-autobiographical novel is a crazy celebration of party culture. Two men, a journalist and his lawyer, embark on a roller coaster of a journey to Las Vegas, armed with an extensive assortment of drugs and alcohol - beer, tequila, pot, cocaine, acid, peyote, ether, you name it. However, a critical eye will see this story as more than just tales from a wild weekend in Sin City. As they descend deeper and deeper into their drug-addled states, the men find themselves riddled with anxiety and paranoia, and they end up in increasingly dangerous situations. Filled with brilliantly lurid descriptions of their narcotic-fueled escapades, this brilliant piece of Gonzo journalism acts as a nuanced critique of the American Dream and the never-ending drive for excess that defines it. - Devon Shuman, Culture Editor