Friday Five: February 20, 2026
- 3 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Side A:
Side B:
"Drunk After Psych Ward 1 (and Hopefully Last) • Santiago Aguado for Rejection Letters
Friday Fav:
"El Bueno y El Malo" • Hermanos Gutiérrez It's strange, the things that stick with you. I listened to this album in the midst of a life crisis a few years ago, along with Dizzy's self-titled
and Bon Iver's 22, a Million. I remember the time very sharply, and these albums exist with me in that moment, and carry with me the best of it. And while the time was bad, the albums were not. They're a great comfort to me, even now. I hope you find them much the same.
Feb 20, 2026
Friday Five exists as a little challenge to me: five new albums, five new stories per week. They're here for you to enjoy (or not!) No summaries or in-depth criticism. But here are a few notes:
W. Todd Kaneko's piece "Say It For Sour Patch Kids" was published in 2020, and feels more relevant than ever. Please give it a read.
Ted Chiang's brilliant piece "The Great Silence" is a recent favourite, and recommended for anyone who, like me, loves to overwhelm yourself thinking about the universe, alien life, and the barriers of extraterrestrial communication—especially considering that we can't even seem to get it right here on Earth.
This week's albums remind me, for better or worse, that the clock is ticking on my mortality, and that there are only so many hours left in my life to spend on albums and books and films and art of all kinds.
Watching Blue Velvet, and The Godfather. (Long overdue, mea culpa; did I mention I am woefully understudied in film?) Reading Nathan Hill's Wellness.
xo,
Kirsti