Quarantine Creations
Tough times seem to be incubators for innovation. That’s not to say that everyone HAS to be doing something productive with their down time, although I do believe there are subsets of people that find a way to thrive or turn this into art. And I’m not talking about pandemic themed creations specifically, I don’t believe those will stand out and if they find a way to ride this wave, it’ll be short lived. No, I’m talking about digging into a creative space to further develop a creation.
Some people are discovering video games, others are exploring new literature, many are tapping in to their inner home cook & baker - one of my personal favorites, and musicians who live off touring are diving back in to new tracks. One example of the latter is a personal favorite of mine, Wage War, teasing some new jams via their twitter account.
From both a creator & consumer perspective, I am loving this side of things. Not because my favorite artists and creators will likely have new work on the way, although yea that’s going to be dope, but because I am seeing my friends dive into a level of creativity I haven’t had the pleasure of observing in the past. Maybe some of them always had it in them and I simply wasn’t paying attention, or maybe some of them are exploring and discovering. Either way, I’m grateful that they’re sharing their journeys. I said it in another post, personal connections with each other move us forward. Even people who are struggling are finding a way to tap into their inner creative. It’s that resilience that inspires me, and inspires others.
So, with that, I want to share some cool stuff that were either shared by friends or created directly by them.
Not like she needs what little traffic my site currently receives to grow her exposure, Victoria Sanders is not only one of the raddest people I know, but an incredible photographer that has worked with an all star lineup of musicians & creators. The sneaker game is always on point, has dope prints available for purchase, and to boot, co-founded a community of female photographers known as The Photo Ladies. Go grab you a print, and at the very least a follow on IG.
On the sports & foodie side of the world, my guy Jay Quiles runs an NBA podcast along with his brother Nicky & buddy Tad, NBYAY. They also do food content with Eat Yay Love with our mutual friend Matt, who then also runs a Twitch stream. These guys are everywhere, and I’m obligated to say they are funny as hell. Pick your flavor and give them a follow, you know you’ll enjoy one of these.
I don’t know how he does it, but my friend Stefan always seems to be on top of up & coming punk bands. There aren’t a ton of people in our mutual circle that get into this deep a cut of artists, but he’s always sharing. Two bands in particular that he put me on now in my regular rotation are Dogleg and Greet Death. We’ve been trying to hit up some concerts for a while but there doesn’t seem to be a chance to do so anytime soon. Unfortunately, I’m not holding on to much hope that Pitchfork will still happen in Chicago this July, which is a bummer because that lineup is sick, including the aforementioned Dogleg, Run The Jewels, Yaeji, Deafheaven (another Stefan recommendation), The National, & Danny Brown to name a few. Not to mention that live shows are the best way to discover new artists, in my humble opinion.
Other than that, I know it’s edgy on Twitter to make fun of all the baking going on, but honestly, it’s great. Keep it coming, I’ve always loved cooking (and am personally a bad baker), so seeing everyone get into some form of cooking is very dope to see.
Oh, and yea, play video games with me, hit me up on Twitch.tv/soxmandan, been playing through the new Final Fantasy 7 Remake and of course a ton of Animal Crossing New Horizons as well.
