Staff Selects is the ultimate pick of music and art from our esteemed writers. Curating the waves of the month, each writer takes you through their deliberate and intentional pick of media that they adore.

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Aidan: Another Country by James Baldwin

God, this book wrecked me. An emotional, blunt, beautiful portrait of New York City in the 50’s that feels alarmingly prescient in 2026. Baldwin examines race, class, ambition, love, and death through a cast of disparate characters whose interwoven connections stem from their love of the book’s first protagonist. This novel also contains the most beautiful depiction of sex I have ever read, at once erotic and moving. 

Elvy: Broken Girl by Julie Doiron

Broken Girl was Julie Doiron’s first solo album, recorded and released in 1996 shortly before the break up of her first band Eric’s Trip. Cult heroes Eric’s Trip were an indie rock band from New Brunswick, beloved for their lo-fi mix of distorted guitars and fragile acoustic elements. On her solo records, Julie’s songwriting becomes even more tender, at turns sweet or desolately dark with emotion that’s real but never overwrought. The magic is completed by the DIY hum of the recording. The songs feel like intimate demos passed from one friend to another, as the listeners see beautifully raw sketches of Julie’s day-to-day.

I think Julie Doiron is a tragically unsung influence on modern singer-songwriter music. 

Emily: « ca pik un peu quand même » by Miki 

« J’accroche mon tel j’me parle à moi même, mais de fou, c’était ça que je voulais au début moi aussi, ouais putain trop bien, être potes, c’est ça ? Ca tombe à pic !

Mais ça pik pik pik un peu quand même”

(“I hang up the phone and tell myself, well yes! That’s exactly what I wanted since the start, yeah, it’s great. Friends, right? That works out perfectly… 

But that sting sting stings a little anyway”)

A melody driven by unintelligible background vocals and disco synths open this hyperactive track by French electronic pop artist Miki.“Ca pik un peu quand même” (“That stings a little anyways”) sounds like an obsessive, spiraling hamster-wheel of cope from someone stuck in the friend zone. The song is fun enough to convince you that there’s a freedom in the delusion, excitement in indulging in the self-torture. And don’t miss the music video, an animated battle-of-the-sexes basketball match with a sleek choreography that will have you attempting a grand jeté next time you’re on the court (directed by Emilie Tronch, the same mind behind the adorable and hilarious Arte series Samuel). 

Marie: Dog Proposal by Dry Cleaning 

The opening track of this post-punk ensemble’s 2019 EP Boundary Road Snacks and Drinks, perfectly encapsulates Dry Cleaning’s eclectic, hypnotizing sound and palpable cultural remarks. Accompanied by her tracelike vocals, frontwoman Florence Shaw touches upon the absurdity of work culture, and the fallacies it follows in “Dog Proposal.” Shaw discusses routine, and highlights its monotony, with quips about football leagues and our obsession with attempted self-improvement. This song hits me in a special way, not just with its hypnotic opening vocals, but in the way it resonates with my current self-improvement related burn-out and frustration with my own ennui..

Juliet: Flounder by quinnie

Quinnie’s 2023 album flounder beautifully paints the human experience through an unfiltered lens, shining light on the complexity of relationships, grappling with personal wellbeing, and identity questioning. Through authentic and delicate lyricism, flounder’s overarching theme is acknowledging the difficulties entangled within human life, yet still finding the good and appreciating it, no matter how small. I resonate with the emotional vulnerability harbored throughout the project and the encouragement to maintain a positive outlook on life, with one of my favorite lyrics being “when you step out, the world steps in to meet you,” from the seventh track “emblem.” 

Maren: Portrait of a Young Girl at the End of the 60s in Brussels (Chantal Akerman, 1994)

As if Sappho’s “What cannot be said will be wept,” was a short film. Except replace [wept] with whatever you can – what cannot be said will be [danced]. What cannot be said will be [intellectualized until just its just words without a feeling]. Leonard Cohen mentioned!

Dylan P: Seven Ate Nine by b7lanket

I recently discovered the artist b7lanket from a random Instagram post that popped up on my FYP that used their song “Shoelace”. I rarely find myself running to Spotify to look up a song I see on Instagram, but this one struck me instantly. I would describe b7lanket’s music as fun beep-boop music for yearners and those who loved a good “I Spy” book as a kid. Their sophomore album, titled Seven Ate Nine holds no exception and feels like an “I Spy” book personified into song form. It explores themes of childlike imagination and nostalgia while incorporating some of the most unique, evocative sounds I’ve heard in music as of late. From the sounds of dogs barking, the blow of a coach’s whistle, and a variety of beeps and boops that remind me of the sounds made by children’s toys, the soundscape of this album tickles my brain in just the right way. As I listen to the album more, I keep discovering new sounds that I didn’t hear before, and the lyrics feel more personal each time. One of my favorite lyrics is on the fourth track called “Bookbag,” where B7lanket sings, “take me to school, put me in your bookbag”. It’s safe to say that I’ll definitely keep this album in my regular listening rotation.

Chloe G: Slippers 08 by Slippers

Highlight: “Wants for Everyone”

Released in the heat of 2026 (which by that definition could be anytime, but in this case, June 8th), Slippers released a somewhat self-titled album titled Slippers 08. And whether it is a number on a jersey or the year, it feels like it bloomed from the twee ages. The album cover itself feels like a homage to the fabric bag you pick up after buying a piece or two at Free People.

Dylan S: Something To Consume by Die Spitz

Highlight: “Throw Yourself to the Sword”

Since first seeing Die Spitz in LA a month ago, Something To Consume has been my summer’s soundtrack, riddled with angst and allure that lingers heavy like a hot, wet summer night. The Austin-based band of early twenty-somethings borrows elements of metal, punk, alt rock, and shoegaze for their second LP, released last fall on Third Man Records. Something To Consume alternates between slow, sensual ballads and fast-paced, metal-inspired guitar riffs beneath screaming vocals. The all-female band of multi-instrumentalists is fascinating to watch perform (you may have seen their high-energy, cartwheel-infused festival sets cross your timeline), but they’re equally engaging in their studio recordings and witty lyricism. 

Something To Consume is mysterious and refined, with a sonic world as intoxicating as its underlying theme. The band interweaves the concept of consumption throughout explorations of queerness, womanhood, and the existentialism of postgrad bildungsroman. Ava Schrobilgen (vocals, guitar, drums) seeks escapism in illicit drugs (I just need some substance / Something to consume – “Go Get Dressed”) or the all-consuming devotion of sapphic relationships (Don’t judge me, I need her to survive – “Pop Punk Anthem (Sorry for the Delay)”). In “RIDING WITH MY GIRLS,” Eleanor Livingston (vocals, guitar) lambasts late-stage capitalism (I wake up, I clock in, I waste my life away) and finds solace in female friendships (But now everything, everything is gonna be okay / ‘Cause I’m riding with my girls, ay, ay). Rejecting exploitation (by men or by corporations) and championing female community through platonic and romantic relationships, Die Spitz echoes your grievances about the state of the world, and offers a place to scream and dance it all away.  

Melissa: Walking Through Clear Water in a Pool Painted Black by Cookie Mueller

A collection of short stories chronicling Cookie’s life as an actor in John Waters movies, as a single mother and as a wanderer with a natural inclination to adapt. Her writing style teeters back and forth from really free and descriptive to serious introspective prose. It’s one of those books I wish I could read for the first time again. 

 Both she and her husband died in quick succession of one another after contracting aids in the 80s–-living only until she was 40. The book also has excerpts from the column Ask Dr. Mueller where she gave insightful, lighthearted and often wild but practical advice to queer people and those seeking help during the AIDS epidemic in NYC.

Nat: We Want You, Women! Women’s Military Training, 1923–1939. Warsaw Rising Museum, Wola, Warsaw, Poland.

Through historical photographs, this exhibition traces Poland’s Women’s Military Training and the lives of its members. The contrast between formal military uniforms and candid scenes of women laughing, playing instruments, and sharing daily life presents them as both members of a disciplined collective and as distinct individuals. The exhibition reveals how women built strength, visibility, and community during a period of political uncertainty. Their experiences in interwar Poland feel especially relevant today, as political upheaval continues to directly impact women’s rights and security. These images remind us that empowerment can emerge through friendship, creativity, shared purpose, and the courage to claim space.