Alternate Routes
When you're looking for something a bit different. (The Bus 5.49)
Welcome aboard The Bus!
The Stop
I’ve been publishing The Bus twice-weekly since pulling out of the station in early April 2022. As a platform, Substack has developed a great deal since then - mostly for the better - but the big change I’ve noticed the most is the number of high-quality publications that continue to emerge. Some publish regularly, some less so - but I have been impressed by many, and subscribe to several. As it can be daunting to find new ones, this week’s Stop is a suggestion for five you might want to check out - five ‘Alternate Routes’, to keep with the Bus motif!
The Biblioracle Recommends
John Warner writes a weekly books and reading column for the Chicago Tribune, is the author of nine books including Why They Can’t Write, The Writer’s Practice, the novel The Funny Man and a short story collection, Tough Day for the Army. The Biblioracle Recommends is a great place to find his musings on the state of the book world, book reviews and a look at literature and culture in general. But one of the best parts is the Biblioracle feature, where anyone can list the five books they’ve recently read and he’ll send a personalised recommendation.
Dirtbags Through the Ages
Allison Epstein is an historical fiction author, ‘fact enthusiast and extremely amateur historian’ who also writes a (roughly) bi-weekly Substack featuring deep dives into ‘historical weirdos, dirtbags, and iconoclasts whose wacky stories warm [her] heart in one way or another.’ It’s a fun, completely irreverent take on people who probably should have been forgotten - but it’s great she’s there to bring them back to life for a while - and it’s always entertaining.
North Carolina Rabbit Hole
Jeremy Markovich is a writer, producer, podcaster, and journalist who (though not a native North Carolinian) has nevertheless fallen in love with the state since moving there in 2005. Over the years he’s amassed countless stories about North Carolina’s ‘most remote, interesting, and forgotten places and people,’ and as a North Carolinian living in the UK I can truly say this is a rabbit hole I’m happy to fall down every time it pops into my inbox.
On Repeat Records
Kevin Alexander is a self-described ‘suburban dad in flyover country,’ a ‘mixtape maker [and] playlist dealer.’ Interested in ‘future classics and forgotten gems’ he describes On Repeat Records as a ‘publication sit[ting] at the intersection of music discovery and community, helping you find a new favourite song, or remember a forgotten gem.’ Three times a week, On Repeat Records pops into the inbox and does exactly what it says on the tin - not to mention he’s in the middle of creating one of the best Top 100 album lists I’ve heard. The only problem: there’s so much music, and you can only listen to one track at a time!
Reids on Film
Reids on Film is the project of four friends: Theo (who has an a-level in Film Studies), Callum (who has ‘nothing to declare but [his] genius’), Steven (who ‘ran a film club at medical school and has a MUBI subscription’) and Nathan (who is ‘actually in the business, making funny animal films’). Each week they ‘take turns in selecting a film, watching it, then submitting it to a masterful critical analysis’ which they then share with their readers the following Monday. What separates them from similar publications is the films these guys choose: some might be somewhat well-known (Moonlight, North By Northwest, for instance), but others are well-off the beaten track (Endgame, Faust and Synecdoche, New York, for instance). With insightful analyses and opinions you feel you can trust, this is my favourite film-based Substack.
The Detour
Today’s Detour is to Antediluvian, a short (3:35) animated homage - soundtracked to Wagner’s ‘Tristan und Isolde’ - to the 19th century scientists who established the new science of palaeontology. It’s a great watch - and the animation works on numerous levels. Let me know what you think!
The Recommendation
Today’s Recommendation is Young Frankenstein (1974). Directed by Mel Brooks and starring Gene Wilder, Peter Boyle, Teri Garr, Cloris Leachman, Marty Feldman, Madeline Kahn and Gene Hackman, the film is a parody of the various film adaptations of Mary Shelley’s novel, Frankenstein. Shot in black and white, the film was a critical and commercial success upon its release, and Brooks considers it his finest (though not funniest) film. If you’ve not seen it - or haven’t seen it in ages - give it a watch, as it’s a classic.1
Young Frankenstein (1974) Trailer
The Sounds
Today’s collection is composed of five great tracks that have made their way onto my current playlist, all courtesy of recommendations from music-oriented Substacks: ‘Biscuit’ (Portishead, 1994), ‘Casimir Pulaski Day’ (Sufjan Stevens, 2005), ‘Blackbird’ (The Beatles, 1968), ‘Let Down’ (Radiohead, 1997) and ‘Mayonaise’ (Smashing Pumpkins, 1993). Enjoy!
The Thought
Today’s Thought is from Mel Brooks:2
‘Humour is just another defence against the universe.’
If you have a thought on this Thought - or any part of today’s issue - please leave a comment below:
And that’s the end of this Stop - I hope you enjoyed the diversion!
Thanks to all Bus Riders! Whether you ride in the front, middle, back or the cool-kid seats, your interest and support is truly appreciated. If you like The Bus, please SHARE it with a friend or two.
If you haven’t climbed aboard The Bus, please do!
Until the next Stop …
Young Frankenstein came to mind because of a Substack ‘challenge’ to curate a film festival, all with movies that start with the letters of your name. My ‘festival’: Blue Velvet, Reservoir Dogs, Young Frankenstein, Apocalypse Now and No Country for Old Men. A festival I’d definitely go to watch!
For more on Brooks, see: Mel Brooks (Britannica).
Videos don’t usually leave me speechless, but that one … interesting, weird, oddly dark (the vision, not the color). Thanks for the recommendations.