While coronavirus threatens our lives and livelihoods, social distancing, isolation, and quarantine have become the new norm. Suddenly, our nation is filled with people asked to stay home and cut off most casual interactions with the world outside. In this environment, the art, hobbies, rituals, and entertainments we love have become ever more vital to our mental wellbeing. As a new, and (hopefully) limited new series on Lewton Bus, Isolation Nation aims to give our editors and contributors space to talk about the things that are giving them a little comfort in this isolated world, for your social distancing entertainment.
David Hoh – Swiss Army Man
I was having some bad days this week, so I treated myself to a movie that works like therapy. It just makes me feel so good. More than good. It’s Swiss Army Man. I think it might be my favorite movie; the story is life-affirming and weird-embracing, the score is angelic, the filmmaking is some of the most passionate I’ve ever seen.
But while I’d recommend it to anybody, I admit that it’s not a movie for everybody. So while I’ll say to see if Swiss Army Man is for you, I’m also gonna recommend that in general, you treat yourself to one of these movies, whatever yours is. The kind that you carry with you in everyday life. It’s like an old friend that you don’t need to see often to feel close to. Maybe you haven’t seen it in a year or two, or more. You don’t need to, really. But give yourself the evening to watch it. Especially if you’re having a rough week. Treat yourself, allow it, feel sublime for two hours.
Ryan Roch – Spinning Vinyl
This has been an absolute hell week. For a number of reasons I don’t want to get into, I’m mentally and emotionally spent. I don’t have the words to talk about any movies or shows. I don’t feel like diving into anything. However, a bright side of this week is that I was able to add a number of new titles to my ever-growing record collection. And when you’re able to set aside the endless chaos of modern existence by stopping for a moment, and just letting a set of tracks play in the sequence the artist intended in order to create the desired effect, things take on a certain order of their own.
I’m spending my time soaking in the sounds of Marvin Gaye, Failure, Pavement, MF Doom, Budos Band, BadBadNotGood, and many others, and I’m letting them dictate the vibe around me. It’s calming, enticing, and comforting. It’s the perfect backdrop by which to work, to clean, or to do nothing but close your eyes and exist.
That’s it for this week’s edition! We hope you enjoyed it and found some new direction to point that endlessly turning cranium of yours. We also hope you’ll check back as we publish new pieces in this regular column, and give some inspiration back to us in the comments!
Stay safe, stay healthy, and stay happy.
