✍️ Ten Things #258

Plus 24 hours in Berlin

A drawing of Joel & Yuri by me

Hi friends,

Next week, I’m going to Berlin for 24 hours to see my friend Pär play a show with his band, Pär Hagström & Charlatans of Love. (If you’re in Berlin on Thursday, you should come along! He’s also playing more shows in Germany and Poland.)

It’s been 12 years since I lived in Berlin. So if you have tips for art (naive and colourful), food (unfussy and plentiful), beer (dank and hoppy), I’d love to hear them. And I’ll share them in the next newsletter.

So far, my only plan is to go to Unkompress on Thom’s recommendation. Apparently “Unkompress is all you need”.

Hope you’re doing okay. It feels weird and bad out there but there are still good people and good things, I promise.

Your friend,
Luke

---

Ten Things

1. 💿 Parcels — LOVED

Much dance, very disco. I’ve had opening song Tobeloved on repeat because it just feels so damn good!!!!

2. 💿 Tobias Jesso Jr. — s h i n e

I fell in love with Tobias’ debut album Goon when it arrived in 2015. He disappeared for 10 years (more on that in this interview with the Guardian) then returned with this beautiful, lo fi, less pop record at the tail end of 2025.

It finished top of my 33 good things from 2025 list but I feel compelled to highlight it again lest you miss it. The video for I Love You features Dakota Johnson and Riley Keough and a surprising drum moment.

3. 📺 Can You Keep a Secret?

Sometimes you just need a gentle but v funny comedy about insurance fraud. Starring Dawn French and Mark Heap, it’s a real gem.

4. 🎥 Come See Me in the Good Light

I didn’t know anything about poet Andrea Gibson until watching this documentary. It’s stunning and will almost certainly make you weep (I didn’t but that’s only because I’m dead inside).

5. 🖼️ Nathaniel Russell

Full of nature and goodness and heart, Russell’s art is a treat. Given the state of the world, we probably all need more softness. And here’s a calendar with top tips for thriving in 2026.

6. 📝 Move over Bluetooth: wired headphones are back – and suddenly cool again

Just fyi.

7. 📝 ‘Suddenly, it was everywhere’: why some books become blockbusters overnight

Timing, translation and having a pretty cover. Sounds easy.

8. 📝 The end of naked locker rooms

It’s the age of the never-nudes.

9. 📝 The goon squad

“The gooner goons to reach the “goonstate”: a supposed zone of total ego death or bliss that some liken to advanced meditation, the attainment of which compels them to masturbate for hours, or even days, at a time.”

Thanks to Search Engine for leading me down this gooning rabbit hole.

10. 📚 Lamorna Ash — Don’t Forget We’re Here Forever

As if the world couldn’t get any weirder, apparently the youngs are coming back to church. Lamorna Ash writes a book to figure out why.

By Nathaniel Russell