Sharon O'Connell
@messyectomorph.bsky.social
Music writer (dCS Audio, Electronic Sound, Metro, Uncut). Ex staffer at Melody Maker and Time Out. Coastal dweller. Art, film, books etc.
Further to today’s news item: am old enough to remember a time when teddy bears were not AI-equipped & likely to dispense advice on kink. They were passive companions, like Tessa, whose fur I loved off.
November 29, 2025 at 4:55 PM
Further to today’s news item: am old enough to remember a time when teddy bears were not AI-equipped & likely to dispense advice on kink. They were passive companions, like Tessa, whose fur I loved off.
This is obvs terrifying & an increase in bear attacks is a public safety issue but: “to help hunters trap and *dispose* of bears”? I’m a big fan of animals generally, though not sentimental about them but jeez. Kill ‘em bec they’re starving & desperate?
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
Bear attacks man in public toilet in Japan
Incident north of Tokyo comes after a record 13 deaths from bear attacks in Japan since the start of April
www.theguardian.com
November 28, 2025 at 10:18 AM
This is obvs terrifying & an increase in bear attacks is a public safety issue but: “to help hunters trap and *dispose* of bears”? I’m a big fan of animals generally, though not sentimental about them but jeez. Kill ‘em bec they’re starving & desperate?
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
www.theguardian.com/world/2025/n...
Guess I’m being One Of Those People here. But, no ‘Knife In The Water’? Shame! www.theguardian.com/film/2025/no...
You’re gonna need a bigger boat: the 20 best films set on water – ranked!
As L’Atalante is re-released, we count down the best movies set largely on ships, boats, barges, yachts, steamers and trimarans. Submarines banned, as they’re under water
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 4:46 PM
Guess I’m being One Of Those People here. But, no ‘Knife In The Water’? Shame! www.theguardian.com/film/2025/no...
Greedy, entitled AND defensively literal minded. It’s a winning combination. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
‘I don’t live in a mansion. It’s a 1930s house’: Richmond residents react to council tax rise
Rachel Reeves’s new council tax surcharge on homes worth £2m or more earns mixed reception in well-heeled London borough
www.theguardian.com
November 27, 2025 at 9:28 AM
Greedy, entitled AND defensively literal minded. It’s a winning combination. www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2025...
Sitting outside, actual sun on actual face. It’s 4 degrees. I am immeasurably warmer than I was inside my flat.
November 26, 2025 at 10:54 AM
Sitting outside, actual sun on actual face. It’s 4 degrees. I am immeasurably warmer than I was inside my flat.
A great, informative read. At the risk of sounding like a ‘wellness’ zealot, the fascia network - which I’d never even heard of before I started Pilates - really is vital. My spiked roller ball is now a good friend.
The fascia secret: how does it affect your health – and should you loosen it up with a foam roller?
The fascia secret: how does it affect your health – and should you loosen it up with a foam roller?
Our muscles, bones and organs are held together by a network of tissue that influences our every move. Is there a way we can use it to our advantage?
www.theguardian.com
November 24, 2025 at 11:14 AM
A great, informative read. At the risk of sounding like a ‘wellness’ zealot, the fascia network - which I’d never even heard of before I started Pilates - really is vital. My spiked roller ball is now a good friend.
“There’s no one else quite like them” is lame praise, I know but really - Tortoise. They were phenomenal: dazzlingly on point & edge-of-the-seat compelling; 90 mins raced by in what truly felt like 30. Props to James Elkington for his more than capable depping for Jeff Parker, too.
November 22, 2025 at 4:42 PM
“There’s no one else quite like them” is lame praise, I know but really - Tortoise. They were phenomenal: dazzlingly on point & edge-of-the-seat compelling; 90 mins raced by in what truly felt like 30. Props to James Elkington for his more than capable depping for Jeff Parker, too.
My excitement has been building. Slowly & steadily, of course…
November 22, 2025 at 2:20 PM
My excitement has been building. Slowly & steadily, of course…
Zelenskyy is clearly smart, pragmatic, principled & extraordinarily stoic but how he hasn’t lost his mind over this Moscow-pleasing joke of a “deal” is beyond me. His rock-and-a-hard-place position is as heartbreaking as it is enraging.
November 22, 2025 at 11:51 AM
Zelenskyy is clearly smart, pragmatic, principled & extraordinarily stoic but how he hasn’t lost his mind over this Moscow-pleasing joke of a “deal” is beyond me. His rock-and-a-hard-place position is as heartbreaking as it is enraging.
Went to see some “electric rock ‘n’ roll” last night. (No identification needed.) Loved the fact that L was wearing a piece of jewellery modelled on his own image. And that he was going back to London afterwards, on the train.
November 22, 2025 at 11:22 AM
Went to see some “electric rock ‘n’ roll” last night. (No identification needed.) Loved the fact that L was wearing a piece of jewellery modelled on his own image. And that he was going back to London afterwards, on the train.
Feeling oddly thrown by the sad news of Mani’s death. I never met him but aside from his obvious musical talent & widely acknowledged niceness, he was emblematic (along w the other Roses) of a whole UK subculture that went supernova - & always will be. His loss sends the late 80s rushing at me. RIP
November 20, 2025 at 6:25 PM
Feeling oddly thrown by the sad news of Mani’s death. I never met him but aside from his obvious musical talent & widely acknowledged niceness, he was emblematic (along w the other Roses) of a whole UK subculture that went supernova - & always will be. His loss sends the late 80s rushing at me. RIP
Cut down or burn everything. What you can’t, concrete over. If you can’t concrete over it, pollute it to a level that will not sustain wildlife. If anything remains, kill it.
Trump officials reveal plan to roll back regulations in Endangered Species Act
Trump officials reveal plan to roll back regulations in Endangered Species Act
Experts fear plan, one of many attempts Trump’s made to dismantle wildlife protection, will speed up extinction crisis
www.theguardian.com
November 20, 2025 at 12:16 PM
Cut down or burn everything. What you can’t, concrete over. If you can’t concrete over it, pollute it to a level that will not sustain wildlife. If anything remains, kill it.
Floored by L Ramsay’s ‘Die My Love’, the hugely impressive telling of a difficult story (mental unravelling), w a sharp script, terrific sound design (odd silences, sudden explosions of extreme volume), rich colouration… & Jennifer Lawrence is 10 levels above extraordinary. Am still inside its world
November 19, 2025 at 9:53 PM
Floored by L Ramsay’s ‘Die My Love’, the hugely impressive telling of a difficult story (mental unravelling), w a sharp script, terrific sound design (odd silences, sudden explosions of extreme volume), rich colouration… & Jennifer Lawrence is 10 levels above extraordinary. Am still inside its world
Fascinating to hear gastrophysicist Charles Spence on the relationship between taste & sound/music on @cerysmatthews.bsky.social - incl a theory as to why someone who never drinks a Bloody Mary on the ground will order one on a plane. (Key: umami & dBs.)
November 16, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Fascinating to hear gastrophysicist Charles Spence on the relationship between taste & sound/music on @cerysmatthews.bsky.social - incl a theory as to why someone who never drinks a Bloody Mary on the ground will order one on a plane. (Key: umami & dBs.)
Like a fule, I slept on this debut from NYC experi-pop types Toso Toso. It’s quite brilliant & likely to hit the spot with anyone into Kate NV, bossa pop, Julia Holter, bass music & glitchy improv. Certainly not sleeping now… youtu.be/dlc0wphnXGo
toso toso - toso toso (full album, official audio)
YouTube video by Leaving Records
youtu.be
November 14, 2025 at 3:39 PM
Like a fule, I slept on this debut from NYC experi-pop types Toso Toso. It’s quite brilliant & likely to hit the spot with anyone into Kate NV, bossa pop, Julia Holter, bass music & glitchy improv. Certainly not sleeping now… youtu.be/dlc0wphnXGo
Anyone naive enough to have thought of Trump, re Epstein, “yeah, he’s deplorable but even he wouldn’t go there” might want to review T’s behaviour towards & comments on his OWN DAUGHTER, for god’s sake. Of course he knew about E’s conduct: the “secret” was foundational to their friendship.
November 12, 2025 at 3:10 PM
Anyone naive enough to have thought of Trump, re Epstein, “yeah, he’s deplorable but even he wouldn’t go there” might want to review T’s behaviour towards & comments on his OWN DAUGHTER, for god’s sake. Of course he knew about E’s conduct: the “secret” was foundational to their friendship.
“I saw the demon inside me, trying to claim my body as its own” - from the man for whom the word “lugubrious” was coined but whose slippery style works against definition. This track is an intriguing shift & (of course) terrific. #LaughingBilly pitchfork.com/news/bill-ca...
Bill Callahan Announces New Album My Days of 58, Shares Song
“The Man I’m Supposed to Be” leads the album, out in February 2026
pitchfork.com
November 12, 2025 at 2:01 PM
“I saw the demon inside me, trying to claim my body as its own” - from the man for whom the word “lugubrious” was coined but whose slippery style works against definition. This track is an intriguing shift & (of course) terrific. #LaughingBilly pitchfork.com/news/bill-ca...
The Met appears to be conducting a cold recruitment drive on LinkedIn, which strikes me as… weird. Though given their recent admission that 300 recruits were given inadequate or no vetting, I guess skimming over someone’s cv online must seem quite rigorous.
November 10, 2025 at 2:10 PM
The Met appears to be conducting a cold recruitment drive on LinkedIn, which strikes me as… weird. Though given their recent admission that 300 recruits were given inadequate or no vetting, I guess skimming over someone’s cv online must seem quite rigorous.
I had no idea what Celebrity (or normie) Traitors is or how it’s played & planned to start in on it, weeks of ambient fuss having made me curious. Now there’s no point. What happened to the courtesy of spoiler warnings, eh?
November 7, 2025 at 6:56 PM
I had no idea what Celebrity (or normie) Traitors is or how it’s played & planned to start in on it, weeks of ambient fuss having made me curious. Now there’s no point. What happened to the courtesy of spoiler warnings, eh?
If you’re a Pavement enthusiast (that’s everyone, right?) then get your paws on this lively & comprehensive Ultimate Music Guide from @uncutmagazine.bsky.social I took a deep dive into Brighten The Corners (their best, imo) & tracked Malkmus’s solo adventuring but there’s a ton of w/e goodness here.
November 7, 2025 at 12:38 PM
If you’re a Pavement enthusiast (that’s everyone, right?) then get your paws on this lively & comprehensive Ultimate Music Guide from @uncutmagazine.bsky.social I took a deep dive into Brighten The Corners (their best, imo) & tracked Malkmus’s solo adventuring but there’s a ton of w/e goodness here.
Waking up to good news is rare but Mamdani’s victory is that thing. Nice work, New Yorkers.
thing | Fate
thing.work
November 5, 2025 at 9:19 AM
Waking up to good news is rare but Mamdani’s victory is that thing. Nice work, New Yorkers.
Three Donkey Day
A difficult day so pleased to have donkeys George & Letty -Lou come visit and cheer me up
November 4, 2025 at 11:49 AM
Three Donkey Day
Jesus wept. Those any-port-in-a-storm Democrats might want to have a serious rethink about MTG. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Marjorie Taylor Greene tells Bill Maher she believes extraterrestrials are demons
Georgia Republican lawmaker also claims she didn’t know Rothschild family, of her ‘space laser’ theory, was Jewish
www.theguardian.com
November 2, 2025 at 9:52 AM
Jesus wept. Those any-port-in-a-storm Democrats might want to have a serious rethink about MTG. www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025...
Birthday felicitations to the brilliant Bill Woodrow, 77 today. I especially love this assemblage, Car Door, Armchair and Incident, from 1981.
November 1, 2025 at 6:03 PM
Birthday felicitations to the brilliant Bill Woodrow, 77 today. I especially love this assemblage, Car Door, Armchair and Incident, from 1981.
A cruel & unjust punishment, I think we’d all agree. His struggle starts now.
November 1, 2025 at 1:30 PM
A cruel & unjust punishment, I think we’d all agree. His struggle starts now.