Weekend Picks: Religion For Atheists
Peter O’Toole in The Ruling Class.
THURSDAY:
There was this great piece by Jia Tolentino in the New Yorker recently about how Waxahatchee’s Saint Cloud has been, for her, thee pandemic record, and all the reasons why. Samesies, as we noted on the “Friendrock” episode of our podcast a few months back. An interesting note on this is that one of our other big go-to’s has been a record by Katie Crutchfield aka Waxahatchee’s partner, Kevin Morby. That record is called Oh My God, and it’s been out for a while, and together, this pair of records (and if you follow them on Instagram, this pair of people) are a study in getting down to the really real. Oh My God plays with rock ‘n’ roll blasphemy with joy and abandon, almost the way Peter O’Toole played Classy Hippie Jesus in the movie The Ruling Class. But here, it’s a series of classic rock-meets-gospel motifs: airy saxes, female background vocals borrowed from some of the more bawdy Leonard Cohen records, and the Velvets if/when Lou was ever having fun. He performs the record in full tonight on Noon Chorus; don’t worry if you miss it — a ticket’s good for the stream for 72 hours after the show, too.
Oh look, they’ve turned the Empire State Building blue. The context: “The Empire State Building will shine its world-famous tower lights in sky blue with a white peace sign rotating in the mast tonight, Thursday, October 8, 2020, in partnership with the John Lennon Estate and Universal Music Group to celebrate John Lennon’s life and legacy ahead of what would have been his 80th birthday, Friday, October 9. The lights will illuminate at sunset (approx. 6:25 pm EDT) and stay on until 2 am EDT. Sean Ono Lennon will be on hand to flip the switch and light up the iconic building in honor of his father.”
FRIDAY:
Stand in the autumn breeze by Palmer Cemetery, listening to a small band play gypsy jazz just before dusk. It’s not whistling past the graveyard; it’s whistling with the graveyard.
Or perhaps you’d like to be in a room, any room that is not your own, but safely so. We may have something for you. Hot Bed, the gallery space/studio/event space, currently has a show running called Growth Determined — a multidisciplinary exhibit featuring works from Gregory Brellochs, Kate Norris and Francis Beaty. Like many galleries around the world right now, they’re doing this by scheduling appointments for visits, and on Friday nights, you can do so… at night! The art is fantastic, and so are these rooms, which, you will notice, are not your room.
SATURDAY:
Are you old? Don’t answer that. It doesn’t matter. Go for an “Awe Walk.” Or one better, do the 10th anniversary of the Philly Trans March.
Check out the drive-in in the parking lot of the Ikea on DELAWARE AVE. (not Columbus, don’t test my patience, friend), where A League of Their Own will be playing tonight. Benefits Pennsylvania SPCA.
SUNDAY:
But I want to pick up on the whole thing about Oh My God that I was talking about a minute ago. One of the things about the record is that (to me, anyway) it seems to play with, like, what we are doing when we invoke the divine, whether we believe in anything or not. We all do it. We all say things like “OMG” or “holy shit” or “sweet goddamn.” I think that is what is behind that is maybe something more powerful than religion: When we are amazed or grateful, or consternated or cursing our luck, we seek to address the heavens, to see if there is any cosmos or force that is bearing witness or taking this all in. As if to ask the sky, “Are you seeing this shit?”
I like something about this. I like the universal want of witness. And I also like the choose-your-own adventure that art and literature and music plays with when it comes to spirituality: There’s nothing to stop you from treating any religious text as literature, or myth. I think Nick Cave has been doing this for his entire career, and it’s also one of the central tenets of Alain de Botton’s Religion For Atheists, which I somehow just convinced my father and sister to read with me as part of our family book club. Wild times!
This is also by way of saying that no matter what you believe, you could do worse than to spend your entire Sunday listening to The Gospel Truth: Complete Singles Collection, which collects the gospel singles that the legendary Stax label was putting out at the very same time as it was creating a godhead catalog/canon of American soul.
Anyway. You were looking for something to do! Right. Da Vinci Art Alliance is having an in-person preview/launch event for its Da Vinci Fest Live. See the newly painted mural on Catherine Steet, pick up your a Festival Guide, and attend the in-person openings of “Philadelphia Forthcoming: The Endless Urban Portrait,” “The Inquisitives: At the Intersection of Art and Science,” and “Exquisite Copse,” and make your own art project with ColorWheels. Attendees must register in advance.
To submit an event for consideration for Weekend Picks, email your stuff to tips[at]philebrity.com. And of course, in these times, please consult Philly Protests for up-to-the-minute and vetted actions going on around the city.
