It’s a great day to be a Hobbyist subscriber because I caught up with @lipcritic ’s Brett Kraser. We talked about the band’s BONKERS new @partisanrecords LP ‘Theft World,’ the identity theft that inspired the album, and obsessive dedication to board games. A real pleasure of a chat. Lip Critic rules. Happy Friday.
Really cool new Hobbyist! Dalkey Archive (@dalkeyarchive ) did a tremendous job with the brilliant new reissue of William Gass’ ‘The Tunnel,’ particularly with the creation of ‘The Tunnel’ Reader. I spoke with Sarah McEachern from Dalkey/Deep Vellum (@deepvellum ) about recruiting writers like John Darnielle (@mountaingoatsmusic ) and Katherine Packert Burke (@vegetasackvillewest ) for the Reader, marketing “old” books to new readers, and the beauty of Midwest literature. Give it a read!
Our latest "Breaking" artist: @aprilandvista .
April George and Matthew Thompson share how leaning into community, easing the pressure, and picking up a few new instruments led to the release of their debut album, 'Traditional Noise.'
Read the feature at the link in our bio.
✍️ by @will_schube
📷 by @jadaimanim and @fkwhite_
#aprilandvista #floodbreaking #floodmagazine
New interview up on THE HOBBYIST. I spoke with Lucas Schaefer, the reigning prince of Austin books following the success of his unbelievable and wonderful debut novel ‘The Slip.’ We spoke about the decade+ it took to write the novel, his love for Peloton rides, and being an East Side Pie dude versus a Home Slice king. Where do you land? We got to have this chat IRL, at @firstlightbooks ! Read the interview via the link in m bio, and read ‘The Slip’ TODAY if you haven’t. It’s out now via @simonandschuster .
I had a wonderful conversation with Jason Dungan, the musician behind Blue Lake. I discovered Blue Lake via a wonderful @samsodomsky P4K review in 2023 and have been a huge fan ever since. We spoke about being an artist on Copenhagen versus the US, the release of his new LP, “The Animal,” and punk music. Give it a read over at The Hobbyist.
Up now on ye Hobbyist Substack is an interview with the one-of-one Nora Lange. The occasion? Her wild and wonderful new collection of stories, ‘Day Care’ is out now. We discuss writing in poisonous basements, the preciousness of every moment she gets to write, and the many colleges she attended. The link can be accessed where we all find links.
cc: @nora__lange , @twodollarradiohq , @twodollarradio
Ahead of Dirty Projectors’ concert with the Austin Symphony Orchestra on April 16 at the Long Center, I spoke with the band’s Dave Longstreth. This was truly a “pinch me” interview, a chance to speak with someone whose music was and remains a massive part of who I am as a wither, listener, and person. We discuss climate doom, the idea of what a Dirty Projectors album sounds like, @granada_echopark , and body surfing. The link is located where all links live.
@dirtyprojectors@davidlongstreth@nonesuchrecords@longcenter@austinsymphonyorchestra
For our latest "Breaking" artist profile, West Texas songwriter @solyamusic shares how the loneliness of her upbringing within the state’s conservative traditions helped her find catharsis with her debut album 'Queen of Texas.'
Read the full interview at the link in our bio or at floodmagazine.com.
✍️ by @will_schube
📷 by @abaxley
🎥 by @crossletphotovideo
#solya #floodbreaking #floodneighborhoods #neighborhoods #floodmagazine
Hobbyist book reviews…coming each Wednesday, except this first one, which is live on the site today. I wrote about Vicente Luis Mora’s first novel released in North America, ‘Centroeuropa.’ It’s about grief and war and frozen soldiers. It’s also charming and hysterical. Link in bio.
Hobby boy is back with another HOBBYIST. Spoke to Lauren Rothery, who wrote ‘TELEVISION,’ one of the best novels of 2025. We spoke about a sport called real tennis, how to get good at writing, the sage book whisperer @mollybethyoung , and why movies are really hard to make but also rock. Buy ‘TELEVISION’ RIGHT NOW via @eccobooks . Also, peep slide 2, where Lauren very helpfully compiled all the amazing books mentioned in her novel!
