Media diet for Q3 2026

Music

Music I most enjoyed discovering this quarter:

• Muse: “The Dark Forest” & “Cryogen” (2026)
• Corima: Hunab Ku (2026)
• Madeon: “Pop Culture” (2011)
• Danny Elfman: “Hero’s Theme” (2017), “Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot (Main Title)” (2018), “Train’s a Comin'” & “Soaring Suite” (2019)
• Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros: Up from Below (2009), “Man on Fire” & “That’s What’s Up” (2012)
• Kaleidoscope Orchestra [Steve Pycroft]: “Frantic” (2026)
• Riot Jazz Brass Band: “Slinky” & “Corn on the Cob” (2013)
• Arturo Cardelus: some of Terra Alta (2026)
• Bill Whelan: “Bridge Attack” (1996)
• Nene Royal: “Hysteria” (2026)
• Moon Hooch: Moon Hooch (2013), “No. 6” (2014)
• Aufgang: “Channel 7” (2009), some of Istiklaliya (2013), “Backstabbers” (2016)
• Angine de Poitrine: Vol. II (2026)
• WorldService Project: “Fire in a Pet Shop” & “Barmy Army” (2013), “Go Down Ho’ses” & “Mr. Giggles” (2015), some of Serve (2018), some of Hiding in Plain Sight (2020)
• Everything Everything: “To the Blade” (2015)
• Philip Glass: most of Tao of Glass (2019)
• The Irrepressibles: “In This Shirt” (2010)
• Ludwig Goransson: “Odysseus” (2026)

This quarter, I switched my focus from classical (including contemporary classical) music to jazz, because I hit diminishing returns on finding classical composers I liked. New-to-me jazz artists I “strongly liked” some music from were:

• Phronesis: most of Organic Warfare (2007), some of Green Delay (2009), some of Walking Dark (2012), most of Life to Everything (2014), some of Parallax (2016), some of The Behemoth (2017), “One for Us” & “The Tree Did Not Die” (2018)
• Jasper Hoiby: “Fellow Creatures” (2016), some of Conversations of Hope (2026)
• Gard Nilssen: some of If You Listen Carefully the Music is Yours (2020), “The Space Dance Experiment” & “SP68” (2023), some of Great Intensions (2025)
• Guillaume Perret: most of Guillaume Perret & the Electric Epic (2012), “Doors” & “Shoe Box” (2013), most of Open Me (2014), “She’s Got Rhythm” (2016), some of A Certain Trip (2020)
• Andy Emler: Mega Octet “Part 1” & “Part 7” (1990), Head Games “Part 6” (1992), “Bacteria” (2003), “Urbanhof” & “Minicrobe” (2004), some of West in Peace (2007), most of Crouch, Touch, Engage (2009), some of E Total (2012), “Finally Closing” (2014), most of Obsession 3 (2015), most of A Moment For (2018), some of No Rush! (2021), some of The Useful Report (2022), some of Le Temps est parti pour rester (2025)
  • With these new listens, Emler has crossed the 5-hour mark as one of my favorite musical artists!
• Ola Kvernberg: “Bricks of Stone” (2006), “Roland” (2009), some of Liarbird (2011), most of The Mechanical Fair (2014), some of Northern Tapes (2014), some of Steamdome (2017), most of Steamdome III (2024), “Let’s Go” & “Ludvig Takes Over” (2026)
• Ivo Neame: some of Strata (2015), “The Rise of the Lizard People” & “Strega” (2021)
• Fred Pallem: “Ti seppellirei neil giardino” & “Mustang Pursuit” (2011), some of Le retour! (2015), “Get It In Orbit” & “Bitches en Marbella” (2022), “Poursuivi par des elephants genats” (2022)
• Lukas Kranzelbinder / Shake Stew: “Milking of the Mugwumps” & “Dreams of Sex and Crime” (2012), “Rise of the Black Centipede” & “Hans” (2015), most of The Golden Fang (2017), most of Rise and Rise Again (2018), most of Gris Gris (2019), “Play Mass” (2020), most of Heat (2022), “Lila” & “Shasta Fey” (2023), most of Ten One Two (2026)
  • With these new listens, Kranzelbinder has crossed the 5-hour mark as one of my favorite musical artists!
• Zbigniew Seifert: “Trubulent Plover” & “On the Farm” (rec. 1976), “Impressions” & “Spring on the Farm” (1979), “Passion” & “Pinocchio” (1979)
• Chris Lightcap: some of Deluxe (2010), most of Epicenter (2015)
• LBT: some of Levitation (2016), Way Up in the Blue (2018), most of Stereo (2020), Make Kin (2021), most of Abstrakt (2023), House (2023), “Jabal” (2023)
• Frederic Maurin / Ping Machine: some of Encore (2013)
• Magic Malik: some of 69-96 (2000), “Passage a vide” (2002), “XP 21” (2004)

I also listened to a significant portion of the recorded works by each of the (new-to-me) “classical” composers listed below. My favorites pieces from them (names linked to playlists) were:

• Johan Halvorsen (b. 1864): “Entry March of the Boyars” (1893)
• Geronimo Gimenez (b. 1854): El baile de Luis Alonso “Preludio” & “Intermedio” (1896), La boda de Luis Alonso “Intermedio” (1897)
• Leo Weiner (b. 1885): Hungarian Folk Dances Suite mvts 1, 2, 4 (1931)
• Plus the following composers for which I didn’t “strongly like” any of their pieces I listened to: Jan Novak (b. 1921), Fisher Tull (b. 1943), Ketil Hvoslef (b. 1939), Ma Sicong (b. 1912), Jef Penders (b. 1928), Robert Muczynski (b. 1929), Francisco Esteve Pastor (b. 1915), Manuel Carrascosa García (b. 1911), Antonio Soler (b. 1721), Karl King (b. 1891), Henry Fillmore (b. 1861), Manuel Lopez Farfan (b. 1872), Boris Tchaikovsky (b. 1925), Peter Kleine Schaars (b. 1962)

Rediscovered or revisited, and strongly liked:

• Hidden Orchestra: some of Night Walks (2010), some of Archipelago (2012), some of Dawn Chorus (2017)
• Brandt Brauer Frick: “You Make Me Real” & “Mi Corazon” (2011), “Ocean Drive (Schamane)” & “Skiffle It Up” (2013)
• Ozric Tentacles: some of There Is Nothing (1986), some of Sliding Gliding Worlds (1988), Pungent Effulgent (1989), Erpland (1990), Strangeitude (1991), Jurassic Shift (1993)
• Spring Heel Jack: 68 Million Shades (1996), most of Busy, Curious, Thirsty (1997), most of Treader (1999), Bombscare (2000), Disappeared (2000), “Chorale” & “Chiarascuro” (2001), Amassed (2002), “Lata” & “Autumn” (2004)

And for jazz specifically:

• Esbjorn Svensson / E.S.T.: “Dodge the Dodo” (1999), some of Seven Days of Falling (2003), “The Unstable Table & the Infamous Fable” & “A Picture of Doris Travelling with Boris” (2005), some of Tuesday Wonderland (2006), “Three Falling Free, Pt. II” (2012)
• Hedvig Mollestad: “Antilone” & “Ekhidna” (2020), some of Maternity Beat (2022)
• GoGo Penguin: most of v2.0 (2014), some of Man Made Object (2016), some of A Humdrum Star (2018), some of Ocean in a Drop (2019), most of GoGo Penguin (2020)
• Martin Kuchen / Angles: “By Way of Deception” (2012), “European Boogie” & “Ubabba” (2014), “Equality & Death” & “Ardor” (2017), “The Hidden Balcony” & “Fkk Down, Fkk Off” (2022)
• Snarky Puppy: “Sintra” & “Gretel” (2015), “Trinity” (2022), “Lingus” (2014), “It Stays With You” (2025)
• Wacław Zimpel: “Afterimages” (2013), some of LAM (2016), Zimpel/Ziołek (2017)
• Brad Mehldau: “Luxe” (2014), “The Prophet is a Fool” (2019), “Herr und Knecht” (2022)
• Jaga Jazzist: most of A Living Room Hush (2001), some of The Stix (2003), most of One-Armed Bandit (2010)
• VSOP the Quintet: most of V.S.O.P. The Quintet (1977), most of Tempest in the Colosseum (1977), most of Five Stars (1979), most of Live Under the Sky (1979)
• Isfar Sarabski: most of Planet (2021)
• Jaimie Branch: some of Fly or Die (2017), “Simple Siver Surfer” & “Nuevo Roquero Estereo” (2019), most of Fly or Die Fly or Die Fly or Die (World War) (2023)
• Abercrombie / Holland / DeJohnette: some Gateway (1975), “How’s Never” (1995)
• Larry Coryell: Barefoot Boy (1971)
• Marvin “Hannibal” Peterson: “Song of Life” (1974), some of Hannibal (1975), “Now Stand” (1978), some of The Angels of Atlanta (1981)
• Jane Ira Bloom: “Overstars” (1987), some of Art & Aviation (1992)
• Bobby McFerrin: “He Ran All the Way” (1990), Circlesongs (1997), some of VOCAbuLarieS (2010)
• John McLaughlin & Shakti: “Joy” (1976)
• David Friesen: some of Star Dance (1976), “Waterfall Rainbow” & “Dancing Spirits Before the Lord” (1977)
• Keith Tippett: some of You Are Here… I Am There (1970), some of Dedicated to You, but You Weren’t Listening (1971)
• Ernie Krivda: some of Satanic (1977), some of The Alchemist (1978)
• Wynton Marsalis: “Bullet Train” (1999), Swing Symphony mvts 3, 4 (2019)
• Møster!: “Underworld Risk” (2014), some of When You Cut into the Present (2015), “Unhorsed by Chivalry” (2018), some of Dust Breathing (2020), “The Electric Wood Orchestra / Dreaming Xaxado…” (2024)
• Ponga: Ponga (1999), “Hagro” (2000)
• Ned Rothenberg: some of Overlays (1991), “Hidalgo” (1995), some of Real and Imagined Time (1995)
• Marty Fogel: most of Many Bobbing Heads, at Last (1989)
• David Torn: some of Cloud About Mercury (1987), some of Polytown (1994), some of Tripping Over God (1995), some of What Means Solid, Traveller? (1996)
• Matthew Shipp: some of Nu Bop (2002), “Cohesion” (2003)
• Ben Neill: most of Torchtower (1994), Triptycal (1996), “Tunnel Vision (Spring Heel Jack Holland Tunnel Mix)” (1998)
• James Brandon Lewis: some of The Messthetics and James Brandon Lewis (2024), some of Deface the Currency (2026)
• The Bad Plus: most of These Are the Vistas (2003), most of Give (2004), some of Suspicious Activity? (2005), most of Prog (2007), some of Never Stop (2010), most of Made Possible (2012), some of Inevitable Western (2014), most of The Bad Plus Joshua Redman (2015), some of Never Stop II (2018), most of Activate Infinity (2019), “Sun Wall” (2022), some of Complex Emotions (2024)
  • With these new and old listens, The Bad Plus has crossed the 5-hour mark as one of my favorite musical artists!
• Makaya McCraven: “Gnawa” & “On the Spot” (2015), “Atlantic Black” & “Inner Flight” (2018), “This Place That Place” & “Seventh String” (2022)
• Vienna Art Orchestra / Mathias Ruegg: “Jelly Roll, but Mingus Rolls Better” (1990), some of Art & Fun (2002), “We take Pride…” (2004), “French Alphorn” (2010)
• Miho Hazama: some of Beyond Orbits (2023)
• Toshiko Akiyoshi: “Henpecked Old Man [22m version]” (1976), “Minamata” (1978)
• Paul Winter: “Icarus” (1970), “Whole Earth Chant” (1972), “Kyrie” (1987)
• Dollar Brand (Abdullah Ibrahim): “Hajj (The Journey)” (1978), some African Marketplace (1980)
• Eric Dolphy: “Hat and Beard” (1964)
• Dave Douglas: “Three Beasts” (1997), “Ruckus” and “Witness” (2001), Freak In (2003), Keystone (2005), most of Moonshine (2007), most of Soundtrack (2010), Expand (2010), Burst (2010), High Risk (2015), Dark Territory (2016), “Climate Strike” (2020), most of Transcend (2026)
• Jean-Luc Ponty: “Contact” (1969), “How Would You Like to Have a Head Like That” (1970), Astrorama (1970), some of Sonata Erotica (1976), Upon the Wings of Music (1975), Aurora (1976), Imaginary Voyage (1976), Enigmatic Ocean (1977), most of Cosmic Messenger (1978)

I also listened to a significant portion of the recorded works by each of the (not new-to-me) “classical” composers listed below. My favorites pieces from them (names linked to playlists) were:

• Raimo Kangro (b. 1949): Concerto No. 2 for Two Pianos and Chamber Orchestra mvts 2, 4 (1988), “Display I: Portrait of Steve Reich” (1991), “Display II: Portrait of Mozart” (1991), Display VIII: Portrait of Schubert (1995), Arcus (1998), Piano Concerto No. 2 (1999)
• Johann Strauss I (b. 1804): “Sperl Galopp” (1831), “Cachucha Galopp” (1837), “Versailler Galopp” (1839), “Radetzky March” (1848)
• Scott Joplin (b. 1868): “Maple Leaf Rag” (1899), “The Entertainer” (1902)
• François Couperin (b. 1668): “The Mysterious Barricades” (1717)
• Luigi Boccherini (b. 1743): String Quintet G. 275, mvt 3 (1771), Symphony No. 4 G. 506, mvt 3 (1771)
• Vittorio Monti (b. 1868): “Csardas” (1904), “Coquetterie” (1913)
• Plus the following composers for which I didn’t “strongly like” any of their pieces I listened to: Domenico Scarlatti (b. 1685), Hans Werner Henze (b. 1926)

Movies/TV

Ones I “really liked” (no star), or “loved” (star):

• Barker: Obsession (2026) ★
• Hikari: Rental Family (2025)
• Mollner: Strange Darling (2023)
• Trier: Sentimental Value (2025)
• Johnson: Blackberry (2023)
• Various: Smiling Friends, seasons 1-2 (2022-2024)
• Various: Common Side Effects, season 1 (2025)
• Jones: I Swear (2025)
• Parsons: Backrooms (2026) ★
• Moore: The Outfit (2022)
• Borgli: Sick of Myself (2022)
• Borgli: The Drama (2026)
• Stanton: Toy Story 5 (2026) ★
• Blitz: Review, season 2 (2015) ★
• Blitz: Review, season 3 (2017)
• Johnson: Nirvanna the Band the Show the Movie (2025) ★
• Eggers: Nosferatu (2024)
• Various: The Larry Sanders Show, season 1 (1992)
• Ricky Gervais & Stephen Merchant: Extras, season 2 (2007)
• Brough: Rosehaven, season 1 (2016)
• Wilde: The Invite (2026)
• Various: The Comeback, season 1 (2005)
• Various: The Comeback, season 2 (2014)

Games

All games I finished or decided to stop playing:

• [none]

Standup comedy

• Kelsey Cook: Happy Hour (2026)

Books

I post book ratings and reviews to my Goodreads account instead of here.

1. The pieces I listened to for each composer were: Novak, Tull, Hvoslef, Ma, Penders, Muczynski, Esteve Pastor, Carrascosa García, Halvorsen, Gimenez, Soler, King, Gillmore, Lopez Farfan, B. Tchaikovsky, Weiner, Kleine Schaars.
2. Because so many of my favorite Ponty tracks are covers, in his case I’m strictly limiting my Favorites playlist to non-covers, which I don’t do so strictly for other artists’ Favorites playlists.
3. The pieces I listened to for each composer were: Kangro, Strauss I, Joplin, Couperin, Boccherini, Monti, Scarlatti, Henze.