It’s 2025 and your only resolutions are ‘stop soft launching boys on instagram’ and ‘set a timer on my Zillow time’? Maybe call the wolf chat hotline and commit to howling with Silas and Nikai1. Dial 915-97-LOBOS. Here’s last week’s recording; the hotline is back to its regular programming now.
If you’re too overwhelmed by Circle Back Season, follow Dad’s advice: delete all of your emails! “If it was important, they’ll email again.” You can delete this email, too! I’ll email again next week.
ALERT!!!: 31 May – Ricardo for Resolute – TBD if he bails for Saudi money again!
Tonight, 20:00: there is a special screening of one of my favorite 90s political comedies, Wag the Dog, at Sarah S.’s place. Here's the trailer.
Friday, 15:00: Mr. PLO Man is at BSR. He’s on NTS this week with our good friend Roadkill Tarpey.
I meant to post this slice through the MFG restaurants here like two weeks ago.
I really enjoyed Chal Ravens on ABBA for LRB (archive.is link).
Heartbreaking!: Kapital was acquired by LVMH investment wing L Catterton.
The is a new Claire Denis film coming, Le Cri des Gardes, with Matt Dillon, Riley Keough, and Isaach de Bankolé. Adapting a 1980 play by Bernard-Marie Koltès, it begins filming this month in Senegal. The play was originally staged here at La MaMa(?). Claire: “It’s a play written by a friend of mine a long time ago and directed by Patrice Chéreau on stage in the 80s.” The two writers adapting it for Claire don’t seem to have a big resume; I wonder where Jean-Pol Fargeau is? One of the writers, if you google him, he comes up in a 2014 Times article about subtitling. I guess we might see it at NYFF this year?
Other French cinema news: long time Rivette collaborator Pascal Bonitzer is directing a Maigret adaptation starring Hanna Schygulla and Irène Jacob. Maybe more people will read Maigret…. hmm…..
And can somebody find me a file of this Rivette L'amour fou documentary?
Reminder: the Drawing Center’s show of KAWS’s collection closes January 19th (some reviews: one neutral, one mildly critical, and a thorough review from Schwabsky). The Met’s Siena painting show closes January 26th.
Re: Golden Globes: (all of the looks are here) – Salma Hayek’s PR making sure we know she’s a Pinault… we know! You know when I sent Mom a picture of Matty Matheson’s look she just replied “nobody does rick rack like her! This is too much!”
MoMA’s annual “To Save and Project” series begins Thursday. I asked our wolf chat film correspondent, Sarah, for a comment: “A great way to discover a wide variety of films and celebrate the true heroes of the film world – preservationists. Forget Sundance, this is the essential film event of January.” (!!!) I agree!
On resolutions: You know I take my resolutions seriously. They offer a simple, clearly framed way to shape part of my life. The best resolution I ever made was “make more friends!” It’s still a resolution.
Also, if you want to go to the gym with me at any point this year, let me know!! I don’t care if you’re just visiting town, if you never work out, or if you work out all the time. I can bring a friend for free, I go six times a week, and I’m nonjudgmental about working out. It’s nice to work out with a friend at the gym, and it’s always great to hear someone say, “Good set.” On New Year’s Eve, I was at the gym and started talking to a guy while we were using the same machine. He had to work that night loading trucks at an alcohol distribution center, and he was jacked as hell. At the end of one of my sets, this total stranger just said, “Nice set,” and I was stoked for the rest of the day.
Vis-a-vis 2025 reading goals »» some books that I’m looking forward to in 2025:
January: October Files: David Hammons edited by Kellie Jones – MIT Press / October
February: THING magazine reissue – Primary Information
February: Those Passions by TJ Clark – Thames & Hudson
February: Fail Better by Hal Foster – MIT Press
March: Volcanic Tongue by David Keenan – White Rabbit
April: Erik Satie Three Piece Suite by Ian Penman – Fitzcarraldo / Semiotext(e)
April: Pathemata, Or, The Story of My Mouth by Maggie Nelson – Wave Books
April: The Honditsch Cross by Ingeborg Bachmann – New Directions
May: I Regret Almost Everything by Keith McNally – Gallery Books
May: The Golden Book of Words by Bernadette Mayer – New Directions
May: Such Times by Christopher Coe – Archway Editions
June: Chris Marker: Immemory – Exact Change; see also: Marker’s Eternal Current Events: Early Writings out in April.
June: Lili Is Crying by Hélène Bessette (translated by Kate Briggs(!!)) – New Directions
July: Idiocy by Pierre Guyotat – NYRB.
July: Killing Stella by Marlen Haushofer – New Directions
August: Six Moral Tales by Eric Rohmer – The Song Cave (ty Lindsey, !!)
September: YOUR NAME HERE by Helen DeWitt and Ilya Gridneff – Deep Vellum
The three I’m anticipating the most: 1. the new Guyotat translation, 2. Keith McNally's memoir, 3. the new T.J. Clark. Cautiously awaiting this new Penman—his Fassbinder book really was terrible.
Other lists try to give you some selling points. I’ll only offer the following: Pierre Guyotat is Jean Genet if Genet worshipped Faulkner instead of the Bible (of course, Parker and I love him); we all love T. J. Clark; and who isn’t curious about the Keith McNally memoir? Re: David Keenan: I discovered so much music through the Volcanic Tongue mail order. Loath to link to RYM: here’s a list of all the Volcanic Tongue weekly recommendations—really rewarding. Also, I’m really excited about new Hammons scholarship.
Additionally: Why is there a Women In Trees (??) book » New Directions is finally publishing Naguib Mahfouz » our friend Naomi has a book out in March » the McNally Editions catalogue looks cool » the Astra House catalogue looks good » honorable mention: Gertrude Abercrombie catalogue.
Wolf chat nanog is now two years old. Blame Tom! This was his idea.
For those who have never dialed, Silas and Nikai are two wolves who live upstate at the Wolf Conservation Center. Their voices are featured every week on the hotline.