No Closer to Heaven (10th Anniversay Edition) – The Wonder Years

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The Wonder Years have remastered their 2015 record No Closer to Heaven for its 10th anniversary. This record always sounded a little muddled, but I had assumed this was an intentional choice. Perhaps I’m the only person that made this connection, but the letlive. record from the same year, The Blackest Beautiful, was similarly muddled and also recently got the same remastering treatment, and their lead singer Jason Aalon Butler is featured on “Cigarettes and Saints”.

The remastering really breathes new life in to this album. I won’t say I’ll *never* return to the original, however I do think I’m partial to this remastered version.

Live in Denver – Panic! at the Disco

Panic! at the Disco released their Live in Denver record to streaming services, which was originally limited to 25k copies in a deluxe version of A Fever You Can’t Sweat Out from 2006. This release really took me back. I’m not sure how I ever watched this – maybe it made it on to YouTube in 2007 or 2008? However, I had completely forgotten about their cover form that show of “Karma Police” by Radiohead. I think this was what got me to go and listen to Radiohead. 

 

Silver Bleeds the Black Sun… – AFI

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In many of Davey Havok’s interviews for this record he described the album as AFI’s first “mood record”. I didn’t quite understand what that meant prior to listening to the album, but I do now. The entire record is really well-layered and coated in shimmering guitars with chorus and flanger effects. I’m genuinely surprised by how much I’ve liked this record. I didn’t care much for the lead single “Behind the Clock”, in part because I don’t understand anything about the characters from David Lynch’s work. I liked “Holy Visions” more, but it is still a very weird song from AFI in isolation. The context of these songs within the record really makes me appreciate them. In the same way that “Holy Visions” is an odd song for AFI in isolation, so too is the record itself within the bands discography. It’s just a left turn. Thats not meant to be a judgement – I do after all love this record.

Apple TV Ideas

I love my Apple TV. It’s better than any smart TV interface, or any Roku I’ve used while traveling or visiting friends. However, it seems that Apple has let the platform stagnate over last three years or so, in part, I’m sure, because they have effectively zero competition. I’d like to see Apple care about this product, like its fans do. If Apple really cared about this product, these are the sorts of things they’d be working on.

1) Connect Apple TV Profiles to Profiles within apps

My Apple TV has three user accounts: one for me, one for my wife, and one for my child. My Netflix App has three use accounts: one for me, one for my wife, and one for my child. My HBO app has three profile: one for me, one for my wife, and one for my child. Are you getting it yet? Have Netflix just know which account to go to based on the Apple TV user. I am sure there are going to be examples where there is an app Profile that isn’t represented in the Apple TV and vice versa. Thats fine, but allow me to connect them to one another.

 

2) Disallow custom video players

It seems that every app has a custom video player, and they are all crap. Disney+’s is terrible, HBOs is terrible, Amazon Prime’s is terrible, and the list goes on. The video player in the Apple TV app for Apple TV+ and iTunes purchases is genuinely good! Third party video players often don’t use system features, like “reduce loud sounds”, and imagine how great SharePlay could be if there was system-level integration from the control center all the way down to the video player. People might actually use it! Now, perhaps Apple needs to build in some APIs so that third parties can build in their own proprietary features, like Amazon’s X-ray, or YouTube’s pause-screen ads. Apple needs to listen to these developers as to why they’re not using the default.  It’ll be the platform better for everyone.

 

3) Add widgets

Why not? Weather, family calendar, things like this. They’d be great. Make them show data from users iPhones, like the Mac does, and like the rumored HomePod with a screen is rumored to work. 

 

4) Provide major changes to Up Next

Up Next used to be the primary thing when you launched the Apple TV app, and it displayed a great poster for the item listed. In the last 3-4 years, Apple moved to an auto-playing trailer for the latest thing they’re Promoting from Apple TV+. This is bad! I already paid $200 for this hardware. Let it serve me first, and let you advertise Apple TV+, which I also already pay for, second.

 

I have a few other ideas regarding Up Next that I’m going to just quick-fire below:

 

a) Separate out TV shows from Movies.

b) Allow me to create folders in Up Next. Imagine having easy watching shows separated from hard-hitting dramas, or scary movies from fun comedies, so that when October comes around, I know what are the best movies to watch get me in the season.

c) Allow for shared users for an up next list. This way my wife can keep track of what we’re watching with us, with our, kid, and we can separately track lists of what we’re watching separately

 

5) Netflix support in the Apple TV app

We know they built it, and they’re just waiting for… something. Just pay them. Pay them what they want, get them in the ecosystem. Again, this will make it better for everyone.

 

6) Better support for sports

Apple has done a great job with MLS support in the Apple TV app. For instance, if you’re late to a match, it can play a highlight reel catching you up. Thats great! Do it for other sports! Open it up! Apple heavily promoted the F1 app for their F1 movie this summer. Add Practices, and qualifying to my Up Next! Do the same thing for Formula E, and IndyCar

 

7) Add in Shortcuts

This would be great for Home automation. I’m not sure what else you’d do with it, but why not? Could be fun.