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Below are 5 journal entries, after skipping by the 20 most recent ones recorded in
The Stranger, Seattle's Only Newspaper's InsaneJournal:
| Wednesday, October 11th, 2017 | |
| 3:04 pm | The Foreigner: Jackie Chan Versus Pierce Brosnan! by Ben Coleman  Heres what The Foreigner looks like: Taken, but with Jackie Chan. But if you walk into the theater expecting either a Taken knockoff or a typical Jackie Chan vehicle, youre going to be disappointed. Which is a shame, because The Foreigner is really interestingjust not for the sort of reasons that fit into a trailer. Lets get the Taken thing out of the way first: Yes, Chan plays Quan, a frumpy dad with secret Special Forces training. And yes, his only daughter (Katie Leung) is immediately blown up by terrorists. But Taken movies operate with a straightforward set of rules (Liam Neeson has a particular set of skills, bad guys have his whatever), while The Foreigner threads Quans quest for vengeance through a complex web of contemporary British counter-terrorism and North Ireland politics. </p> |
| 3:28 pm | Perfume Genius Enters Uncharted Territory on No Shape by Amber Cortes  From the very first song, Perfume Genius's new album, No Shape, feels like getting caught in a thunderstorm. It starts off with just a few drops of delicate piano notes and a shift in the air pressure to a hymn-like hum. Then the sky breaks open for a boundless orchestral downpour. It's the kind of thunderstorm that you want to stand in, arms open to the heavens, without a hint of shame. And the album only gets better from there. |
| 3:40 pm | The Indigenous Family That Found Refuge in an Old Seattle Gay Bar by Emily Pothast  Years ago, there was an underground dance hall in Pioneer Square that catered to lesbian mothers, gay servicemen, drag queens, and achnucekor "Two-Spirits," Native Americans whose identities exist outside the gender binary. At the time, homosexuality was considered a mental illness and a crime punishable by imprisonment. "The Casino was the name but it was about as far from Monte Carlo as you cd ever get," recalls Storme Webber in a poem titled "I Cover the Waterfront" (the idiosyncratic spelling is hers). "Cuban heel boots and sneakers, stilettos and cheap thongs, and watch how you walk downcause those steps are steeply angled." |
| 12:09 pm | Blabbermouth Podcast: White Men Misbehaving, the NFL Pushes Back, and More! by Stranger Staff
Republican Senator Bob Corker says our president lives in an adult daycare. But really, what boomer doesnt these days? Dan Savage, Rich Smith, and Eli Sanders talk about whos to blame for all these aging white men behaving so, so badly. After that, they focus on one particularly bad boomer: Harvey Weinstein. What, exactly, should be done about this problem of old, powerful men (like, ahem, Donald Trump) allegedly using their positions of power to assault women? And finally, if the NFL thinks its gonna change the rules to prevent the ongoing protests against police brutalitywell, Dan, Rich, and Eli have some other ideas. (Also, in a herculean group effort they explain what the NFL actually is!) Plus, as always, the music of Ahamefule J. Oluo! |
| 12:20 pm | Scraping By with Protomartyr Protomartyr’s Joe Casey talks realism and the band’s new album, Relatives in Descent. by Mark Lore Joe Casey has a reputation for being a little surly and fatalistic. This tends to be the focus of articles about his band, Protomartyrtheres even a Tumblr dedicated to Descriptions of Joe Casey. (One entry: Hes like an inverse Bono. ) To be fair, Protomartyr hails from the gritty rock n roll capital of Detroit, and Caseys lyrics can be as direct and raw as a fresh knife wound. Maybe Ive caught him on a good day, but when we speak, Caseys in good spirits and seems genuinely satisfied with the bands success. Unsurprisingly, his approach to touring is still very workmanlike: When youre on the road, youre essentially a traveling salesman, he explains matter-of-factly. Protomartyr just released its fourth LP, Relatives in Descent, which builds heavily on the tangled bark-and-bite of the bands previous work. The production is bigger but not overblown, and the songs snake together as one unified piece of music. Casey points to guitarist Greg Ahees current obsession with soundtracks, particularly the score of the 2013 sci-fi film Under the Skin. That influence is evident on the tense and eerie Windsor Hum and the slow-burning A Private Understanding. From the countrys current political slump to toxic water in Flint, Michigan, theres inspiration for Caseys lyrics at every turn. Its always been that wayhe started playing with guitarist Ahee, drummer Alex Leonard, and Tyvek bassist Kevin Boyer (who was soon replaced by Scott Davidson) shortly after the death of Caseys father. After my dad died, I began thinking more about how life is fleeting, Casey says. Once youre gone, youre gone. His worldview creeps into his lyrics, but he doesnt think hes cynicaljust realistic. What confuses people is that Im writing from a point of resignation, he explains. I have no control over this world. I just want to scrape by. Seems reasonable. Thats how a lot of people in this country are feeling. {{image:1}}What I dont like is constantly saying that were negative, like were a doom band, Casey says with a chuckle. It might be a Midwest thing, or maybe because Im from Detroit or was raised Catholic, that I write about downer topics. Or maybe it comes from his love of Scottish band Country Teasers and its frontman Ben Wallers, whose sardonic and sometimes crude lyrics have been raising eyebrows for two decades. Casey says that prior to recording Relatives in Descent, he was also listening to a lot of Johnny Mathis, which he played for his mother to help ease her Alzheimers. Even as the world seems to be crumbling around him, Caseys more thankful than bitter for the hand hes been dealt. Im not continually bummed out with how the world worksIve come to terms with that, he says. [Protomartyr] started as a group of people who wanted to have a good time. Its kept our egos in check. Were lucky to be playing together. |
