how’s everyone’s january going? i’ve had an insular start, watching films and listening to a bunch of music, some of which i’ll be sharing here. firstly, rip david lynch! an icon, a genius and one of the biggest influences on me and my taste for film and eye for the weird and experimental. twin peaks (especially the return in 2017) remains one of my favourite tv series of all time, as i’ve lauded here. he had this unique ability to create these colourful and striking scenes that explored themes of loneliness, loss and the abstractions about life in a way that was not only visually striking and unusual, but at least to me, quite relatable. whether it’s dougie jones dale cooper (dougie jones) spending the most of twin peaks season 3 feeling lost and alienated, or harvey spencer’s anxiety-ridden life in eraserhead, there’s something transfixing about the characters he creates, and i think it’s the fact that he can make them ridiculous and idiosyncratic caricatures of ourselves. his ideas are unique, his worlds are vast and deep with meaning and analysis of the human psyche. mulholand drive, blue velvet, eraserhead and lost highway are all special films to me, though i’ve still got more to explore! and so, with it being quite a quiet start to the year, i’ll share some of my letterboxd reviews of films i’ve seen thus far in 2025.

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dream scenario (2023)

nic cage playing anxiety-ridden characters has to be my fav genre these days. farts and giggles with a splash of surrealism. (4/5⭐)

bird (2024)

fav soundtrack to a film i’ve heard in a while, beautiful and immersive cinematography and a touching coming of age story, loved it from start to finish. (4.5/5⭐)

the last year of darkness (2023)

colourful portrait of chengdu, queer nightclub spaces in china. super raw and immersive (4/5⭐)

occupied city (2023)

demolished. so powerful (4.5/5⭐)

nosferatu (2024)

what pussy does to a mf (4.5/5⭐)

rewind & play (2022)

immersive and awkward doc about a genius who just wants to play his music (4/5⭐)

frances ha (2012)

i like things that look like mistakes. i like this film too (4/5⭐)

aftersun (2024)

melancholic film with a real raw beauty in it’s cinematography as well as real, relatable depth to both main characters (4/5⭐)

babygirl (2024)

harris dickinside me pls (yes, he’s that hot!) (4/5⭐)

la chimera (2024)

could have done with more homoerotic chemistry between the arthur’s friends tbh, really thought they were queer icons of their village rather than money-driven tomb thieves (4/5⭐)

asparagus (1979)

absolutely stunning (5/5⭐)

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music-wise, quite a lot of new electronic music has been on rotation, as well as a few jazz and rock releases that have grabbed my attention. i will be slowly but surely reviewing more music and covering things for the blog, but for the time being i will just share a few bandcamp releases i’ve been digging.

daniel maunick – quebrada (2019)

dj python – derretirse (2019)

cs + kreme – snoopy (2020)

niontay – dontay’s inferno (2023)

sockethead – drenched worlds fall apart (2023)

maruja – connla’s well (2024)

teqmun – organic oscillations (2023)

iko niche – babyblu3 (2024)

roots manuva – run come save me (2001)

mia koden – decode ep (2023)

jeff parker eta ivtet – the way out of easy (2024)

moor mother – the great bailout (deluxe) (2024)

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in other music-related personal news, i’ll be doing the rhythm, race and revolution course, something i would highly recommend to anyone with a keen interest on music history and how it has been used in the context of revolutionary movements against oppressors / colonisers, past and present. and in terms of trips abroad, will be discovering istanbul in a few weeks so will document some of my experiences. take care, folks!