3. in praise of "the alternative"

your favorite stuff isn't always the best stuff, and doesn't have to be.

Sometimes weird is more honest than good.

I moved to L.A. a month or two before the pandemic. I gotta be honest - the music out here is great. There’s no ‘music scene’ during a pandemic and I have no idea what’s cool, but the music that plays in grocery stores, gas stations, and on the radio is a huge improvement (at least, in my book) from the fare in North Carolina.  

I don't just mean "oh they play WAP instead of Coldplay at the dollar store," which is true, they do, and it’s great. I mean that I do my shopping at a tiny Armenian grocery store in the Valley and they play an absolutely absurd array of weird 80s pop and alternative British hits. I’ve heard each of these songs more than once, blindsided on a Tuesday in the egg aisle. 

This got me thinking about how so much of the music I've always gravitated toward has that label, "alternative." And my reaction was to sneer at my own predictability. Isn't that the worst sort of thing? Marketing anything as ‘alternative’? Isn’t that just the illusion of choice, but with regard to culture and counter-culture? 

Blech. Was that my taste? Didn't seem right. I mean sure, Hot Topic was a lifeline in junior year, and I'll still pop in there if I need a quick band tee or some knife shaped earrings, but I’ve always been a fan of finding my own options, without suggestions. Like thrift shopping. Used bookstores. Digging through un-curated piles for treasures of my own. 

And that the things I always like charm me despite a lack of presentation - they don’t have to charm anyone else. To me, they have sort of realness that doesn’t come from manufacture. While we live in an era where we can Amazon Prime ourselves a black lace gown in two days, the best ones I’ve ever owned came from diving the bins. We all have our own ‘black lace gown,’ so to speak.

So maybe that’s the meaning of “alternative.” Or should be. Not ‘presented and marketed as an alternative to normal’ but quite the opposite. Something that’s so marvelous and strange that despite it being buried in a bin of crap, or remaining entirely unpromoted, it rises to prominence because it resonates anyway. And on the creator end, isn’t that the dream? Being able to do whatever you want and have people simply find it and respond, even without the rigamorale of marketing and trends? 

Being able to do what I want, even if it ends up in the bargain bin, seems like a gift. To the ‘alternative.’ 

NEW BUSINESS

STORE UPDATE: A few of you suffered the growing pains of the store being a new thing - either getting a package I mixed up, or in one case, some sort of destructive porch-pirate situation. (These books are in high demand, I guess?) 

If you experienced issues with your order, leave me a comment below - the contact email form is giving me issues so I’ve disabled it. I’ll be happy to swap out your order or correct it, no charge, you guys are good to me and I’m happy to be good right back. Some of them will be a slight wait - I have to restock some items to get you all new ones - but it’ll happen. Scout’s honor.

 TODAY is the last day to order X-CORP #1 (my newest X-MEN series from Marvel) from your local comic shop. All this means is that you let them know (on social media, give them a call, an email, whatever works for you) to order you an issue and they can help you out. You’ll still be able to read it digitally when it drops, and hopefully shops will order enough that you can go grab a #1, but you never know - these things sell out fast. 

(And with covers by David Aja? I don’t know about you but I can never leave an Aja-cover on the shelf.) 

What’s it about? You can read this really fun Polygon interview I did here, but here’s the solicit.

“KRAKOA IS FOR CLOSERS!

The deals have been made. Mutantkind is safe on Krakoa. As the Reign of X continues, what are the wants of the mutants who have everything? Leading the charge is X-CORPORATION, headed by CXOs Monet St. Croix and Warren Worthington, a duo as cutthroat and ruthless in the boardroom as they are on a battlefield. But X-Corp needs more than just its figureheads. As Monet sets out to staff their team with some of the brightest and most deviant minds in mutantkind, Warren finds himself in a tense meeting with one of Krakoa’s first allies who wants to know the truth: on Angel’s wings, will X-Corp crash or soar?”

It’s a bit of a love letter to New X-Men and All-New X-Factor, because I love the weird world of 616 corporations and money moves. If you’re like me and you love - Succession, Silicon Valley, VEEP, Boardwalk Empire - anything where it’s just people at one another’s throats to solve escalating disasters - check this one out. 

I promised you guys something secret, didn’t I. Here’s a peek at an X-CORP panel you haven’t seen yet:

I just think their friendship is so important.

OH RIGHT, I WRITE BOOKS

I don’t think I had anything out this week, did I? 

I did finally get to hold a X OF SWORDS hardcover in my hands. We’ll talk about that one soon, but goddamn it is beautiful.

CALL TO ACTION

I didn’t get to do as much reading as I wanted this week - finished Paper Girls and started in on the second of these Bernard Cornwell Arthur books. How do you not pick up a sequel called ‘Enemy of God,’ right? 

I did watch Death Proof for the first time, which was a lot of fun - I’m a big fan of Faster Pussycat, Kill Kill and this had all that energy and then some. Watched any good movies lately? Anything you think I wouldn’t see otherwise?

POTPOURRI

• After watching Death Proof I listened to a Tarantino interview where he talked about how one of the songs that’s used in the film was something he only had a really rare recording of, and was afraid that if he didn’t use it in a film, he’d scratch the record or something and lose it forever. I love that energy. Your favorite things, your secret influences that only you know about - put it in the book/movie/art. Your secret interests aren’t guilty pleasures, they’re what actually make you cool. 

• It was this song, which fucking rules, so I’m glad he did it. 

• I did an Instagram live with my friend Jeremy Holt and it was a blast. You can watch his series ‘Musings from the Minority’ on Instagram. Give Jeremy a follow - he’s a great big brain and his upcoming Image Comics series Made in Korea is sitting in my to-read pile as we speak. (I’ll let you know what I think, I can’t wait to crack it open.) 

• Moon’s waxing. Good time to start stuff, or put work into something you’re trying to build up. Or not! Or you don’t believe in that shit! Fine by me! Live your life.

CLOSING

Stay weird. Look out for each other. Talk soon.

TH

12:44 04.19.21