Welcome to Blackbird Spyplane.
Our interviews with André 3000, Nathan Fielder, Jerry Seinfeld, Tyler, The Creator, Emily Bode, Online Ceramics, Matty Matheson, Lorde, John Mayer, Danielle Haim, Ebon Moss-Bachrach, The Kid Mero, Daniel Arnold, Thomas Mars from Phoenix, Phoebe Bridgers, 100 gecs, Evan Kinori, Michael Stipe, Sandy Liang, Héctor Bellerín, John Wilson, Mike Mills, Ezra Koenig, Action Bronson, Seth Rogen and more are HERE.
— Jonah & Erin
January — wow. If you ask us, the year doesn’t get much newer than this. So much uncertainty looms before us… so much potential joy… and so much potential horror??
But this much is certain, joyous, and not horrible: Blackbird Spyplane will be earth’s greatest sletter for another unbroken 12 months!!
In today’s sletter we’ve got a classic Spyblend of dope unisex clothes (many of which are on sale)… a ‘xclusie Spycode for 15% off at one of our favorite shops … a recon-rich travelogue with intel on ART, BOOKS, VINTAGE SLAPPERS and even vibey mansions …
But FIRST —
Calendars: They are, like books, much iller to encounter in physical form than on a screen. A handsome spiral-bound “day visualizer,” tacked above yr desk? A saddle-stitched beauty affixed to the front of the d*mn fridge, scribbled with reminders of UPCOMING FUNCTIONS and EVENTS, the promise of which awaits you every time you set foot in the kitchen and reminds you that good things are coming?? A good calendar’s effect on your spirits is powerful: You might see a bunch of empty days on the near horizon and feel compelled to fill them with plans! You might even put big Sharpied Xs over days that have passed, like in old cartoons, as an ongoing metaphorical interment of time / acknowledgment of “life’s inexorable forward march,” baby.
But what calendar is … Mach 3+? There’s no shortage of “funny” joints on the market festooned with like, Hot Firefighters or Curious Kittens — fine if that’s your thing, but a bit kitsch for our taste. And yes, some canonical gift-store s**t like “The Far Side Off the Wall Calendar” or a “Masterpieces of George Seurat” joint can be pretty tight — but you already know what A Sunday Afternoon on La Grande Jatte looks like, pimp!! Let’s bring some fresh ideas, not to mention some coolness, to the analog experience of knowing what day tomorrow is. Case in point:
Erin & I are on-the-record fans of the artist Tauba Auerbach, who not only seems to understand advanced mathematical principles & formulae but also knows how to deploy this knowledge in the creation of ill sculptures, paintings and other “mixed media” bangers.
Auerbach’s practice includes not just fine art but goods-making — we’ve shouted out their excellent pins, socks & wall hangings before in the newsletter. And their interest in compelling geometries also makes them a Hella Vibey Typeface Crafter, all of which brings us to the fact that you can cop Auerbach’s new 2023 calendar, pics from which are above, for $26 here.
MEANWHILE —