Today’s track is the third Random Weekend selection from Sarah McLachlan’s 2003 album Afterglow, and the first in more than nine years.
This album holds a special place in Random Weekend history because it contains the very first song featured as part of the series, way back on January 21, 2012.
That’s right, we’ve had more than 11 years of Random Weekends.
Today’s track is the fifth and final single from Katy Perry’s 2013 album Prism. It made it to #24 on the Billboard Hot 100, lower than the previous four (which included two #1 hits) but respectable nonetheless.
Prism was a bona fide smash, and the third straight Perry album to go multi-platinum. It was also, at least for now, the last major success of her career. She hasn’t had a song reach #1 since this album’s ‘Roar’ and ‘Dark Horse.’
Concluding the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…
Best Films of 2022
#1 – Marcel the Shell with Shoes On
Invariably, the movie that ends up at #1 on my year-end list is the one that moved me the most.
Every one of my favorites is well-crafted, featuring excellent writing and direction and memorable performances, but one usually stands out for knocking me on my ass emotionally.
This year, that movie was a partially animated mockumentary based on a series of YouTube shorts about a talking shell.
Continuing the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…
Best Films of 2022
#2 – The Fabelmans
I find it fascinating that Steven Spielberg — the most successful filmmaker in history, director of some of the most iconic movies of the last half-century — has released two of his best films in the past two years only to see them flop at the box office.
Is the pandemic to blame? Or are we so saturated in superhero culture that adult dramas can’t find an audience even when directed by the greatest of all time?
Continuing the countdown of my favorite 2022 movies…
Best Films of 2022
#3a – X
#3b – Pearl
Here’s where I’m cheating to fit 11 movies on my “top ten” list. But given that Ti West’s horror film X and its prequel Pearl were shot at the same time and released just six months apart it seems fitting to pair them.
I credit X with kickstarting my new interest in horror. In the past I’ve made time for well-reviewed scary movies, within reason. I remember wrestling with the decision to see Get Out in the theater before finally giving in because it was clearly dominating the cultural conversation. But that’s a far cry from a slasher movie that owes its biggest debt to The Texas Chainsaw Massacre.
Meet Me In Montauk 