Break the Bubble

We spent New Year’s Day in Cold Spring, NY, a small village about an hour and a half by train from the city. There, we headed to Little Stony Point for some casual birdwatching – nothing makes you appreciate the beauty of the world more than little songbirds fluttering around feeders. Then we walked back to Main Street, which is lined with cute little shops, including the independent bookstore Split Rock Books.

Right around our corner, we also delight in an independent bookstore, yet every shop is different. They all display the current bestsellers front and center (Elke loved the Ina Garten memoir, btw.), but when you veer to the sides, the selection depends very much on the character of the people who work in these bookstores. I almost always find something that I want to read. However, while paper books are not necessarily more expensive than eBooks, they are heavier and take up shelf space, so I have to compromise when supporting an independent bookstore or downloading an eBook.

We brought two books home from Cold Spring, including a Kraftwerk biography, which felt fitting after this newsletter issue , and a set of beautiful greeting cards we want to send out this year. We thought we set the right tone for 2025 by choosing the inconvenient analog way over the efficiency of digital solutions.

For us music lovers, the inevitable post-holiday hangover is partially offset by the restart of the music industry. January is a popular month for album releases, and the run-up for the spring festivals kicks into higher gear.

We will attend the New Colossus Festival (March 4-9) here in NYC and The Great Escape in Brighton, England. Also, we pay close attention to what is happening at SXSW in Austin. All festivals have announced hundreds of artists, and – like every year – we are baffled at how few of them we have heard of before. We do listen to new music every day, probably more than most people. There are two reasons why we know only about a fraction of the music out there.

For one, making music is still a dream for countless artists despite the industry’s perpetual sorry state and the small chances of ever making a living from it. 

Second, we apparently operate in a bubble created by emails and music submissions sent to us.

So here is a glamglare goal for 2025: break out of that bubble and actively look out for new artists. The festivals will provide us with a good opportunity for that.

glamglare favorites

Listen to glamglare favorites on Spotify, Apple Music, or below on YouTube.

After a two-week break, we pick up our glamglare favorites playlist again. As a reminder, this is an everything goes playlist that changes weekly: five songs in, five songs out, and twenty songs in total. Sometimes we have a theme, sometimes not. Give it a try on Spotify, Apple Music, or YouTube.

This week, our focus is on anticipating upcoming albums. Three are by women who are killing it in the electronic music space: Ela Minus (DIA), FKA twigs (Eusexua), and Oklou (choke enough). Between them we put two palate cleansers by The Weather Station (Humanhood) and Ten Fé (Still In Love) to help you catch your breath.

Song Pick of the Day

Listen to/watch all seven songs on YouTube. Follow our daily updated playlists on YouTube and Spotify for the 50 latest Song Pick of the Day features, or subscribe here to receive them in your mailbox in real time. Thank you for following us and sharing the excitement.

Here we go: the first full Song Pick of the Day playlist of 2025! Let’s start with the Californian singer/songwriter Vanessa J. Moore, who has the right message of unity for this new year in her debut song, "Morning Light." Danish singer/songwriter Emily Bowen follows with “Agnes” about those fleeting encounters that change your life, from her brand new album Hate Me For This. Your Smith is back with the first new song in almost 6 years. “Change of Heart” is about a breakup, but the Indianapolis singer/songwriter BAYEM sings about a “healthy and stable” relationship in “Wreck.” The second single, “Chaiyo!” of Helen Ganya’s new album, is an absolute banger. "I love the idea of something being so romantic that it almost hurts,” says C Duncan about his latest song, "Think About It." Don’t miss it! Lastly, Spellling is back with a stunning new track, "Portrait of My Heart.“ She says about her new songs: "I want them to have this sense of timelessness." And she nailed it.

Nine Photos of our First Weekend in 2025

Still in vacay-spirit, we visited The Met last Friday to see “The Rise of Painting” (through January 26.) The exhibit focuses on a handful of artists who created art for religious and civic buildings while also producing small-scale paintings that were collected and admired far beyond Sienna in Tuscany. It all forcefully ended when the plague in 1348 wiped out over half the city, including its many artists.

This is the first exhibit outside of Europe that looks closely at the achievements of these creatives. While not usually a time period I’d seek out, I did study medieval languages and literature and was curious. I find it essential to go beyond my comfort zone, particularly in arts, because you never know what you’ll see (or hear!). 

One painting in particular took my breath away because it was so different from the rest in the exhibit, in its style but more so in its bold subject matter. Here’s an excerpt from the description:

AMBROGIO LORENZETTI (Italian, active 1319-47): “The artist's only extant painting on the theme of the Virgin Lactans, or Nursing Virgin, this important panel reveals a humanity that is both arresting in its directness and theologically profound. Its scale makes its function difficult to assess. It seems oversized for personal devotion yet there is no indication that it was part of a larger altarpiece ensemble.” [Photos 1 to 4]

Different countries and cultures have different rituals between December 25 and January 6, and Oliver and I are following a custom that’s being celebrated in the Alps around Bavaria and Austria. It’s about letting the old year go and preparing for the new year ahead. One wish, one month, one additional candle, and one spirit animal per day. [Photos 7 and 8]

While not among the Rauhnacht-Krafttiere (twelve days of Christmas spirit animals,) this seagull couldn’t get enough of hanging out with the people visiting the East River Waterfront. It modeled for more than 15 minutes, and when nobody offered anything to eat, the seagull decided to take off. [Photo 9]

It’s lovely to kick off the first Saturday of the New Year not only at the Tin Building but with a lovely friend, and great conversation! [Photo 5 and 6]

We’d love to meet YOU too! Cheers.