Rewatching VEEP

Once in a while, out of tiredness or sheer frustration, I switch on the first episode of Veep to put things right. It is, of course, absolute perfection, all 29 minutes of it. But then I know, two or three jokes into this thing: I have to watch the whole series yet again. From start to finish, from pilot to finale. All seven seasons of it. 

Which is what I have just done, all the way down to that unforgettable final footage that so beautifully brings the show full circle. Needless to say, I enjoyed it as much as ever (how many times have I done this now - five, six?). Except that this time there was one significant thing that was different. Because in the past, you see, I used to root for Selina Meyer. That's right. All through those five or six times that I had watched Veep previously, I could see what a monster she was becoming and yet through the thick and through the thin - I just wanted her to win. However many fuck-ups and betrayals, however much backstabbing and hypocrisy it took, I just wanted her to pull it off. 

Well, not this time. And it is not even because I have lost all my sense of humour all of a sudden (if anything, this time I chuckled and snickered and guffawed more than ever; that croissant joke is still one of the best things ever). It is because this latest rewatch took that old "hitting too close to home" cliché to a whole new level. I can probably even pinpoint the exact moment that it happened: when during her campaign Selina Meyer sits in her office and decides who she holds the biggest grudge against and who will fall first the moment she becomes president. And all of a sudden, I could no longer get the image of that revengeful little clown who is currently running the US out of my head.

But so much has changed. A few days ago I watched the interview with the Veep cast that was recorded during Trump's first term, and at the start of the talk all of the actors and creators of the series could not stop talking about how much they despised him. Again, that was a different time. In fact, not voicing your contempt back in 2019 or so would have appeared embarrassing. These days, most people just refuse to say anything. Interviewers don't ask the questions, artists do not give the answers. Few are willing to run the risk of alienating a huge portion of the audience. Bruce Springsteen has recently expressed his disdain for the orange cookie monster and see what fucking happened: his concert was cancelled due to the outrage of some of his supporters. Many of whom, obviously, do not go out without their red caps.

This is all too easy to explain, of course. In these times when the levels of human intelligence are falling and populism is on the rise, Trump has his support. That the guy's vocabulary is maybe a hundred words and he has no idea what he is talking about half the time, is irrelevant. He has charisma (of the lowest kind), he has the appeal. In the current climate, if the cast of the Veep gave an interview like that, we would not get such unanimity. In fact, we might just get nothing (which, admittedly, is better than the disingenuous mental gymnastics currently practiced by the likes of Douglas Murray, Ben Shapiro, Jordan Peterson et al). 

So coming back to where we started... I love Veep as much as ever (still in my top 5 favourite TV shows of all time). It is so good, in fact, that the monster it created has started to mess up with the reality a little too much. 

"Letters To Ordinary Outsiders" by Comet Gain

Comet Gain have always been a special band. I first heard them around fifteen years ago, and I believe it was "Some Of Us Don't Want To Be Saved" that sealed the deal for me. I simply refused to believe that obscurity could be this glorious, but there it was: the anthemic melody, the yearning and the desperation of David Christian's voice. I was hooked, and over the years I would listen to "Long After Tonite's Candles Are Blown" every summer morning in 2014 as I would be walking through the streets of Rome. I would make it a habit to listen to the adrenaline rush of "Just One More Summer Before I Go" at the end of May. And I sure as hell would often find myself singing "Movies" to myself at various points in my life (is there a chorus more infectious than that one?).

There are currently six ratings for the band's new album, Letters To Ordinary Outsiders (the most Comet Gain album title imaginable), on the RateYourMusic website. Not even reviews - ratings. Which is a shame, because it is another great addition to their catalogue that now encompasses 30 years. Literate, romantic, wistful indie rock music, tuneful to the point of delirium. 

Very little distinguishes this album from their previous LP, Fireraisers Forever! (2019), or from most of their work prior to that. David Christian says this is more pop and accessible but you would have to take it with a grain of salt. Comet Gain have very rarely been inaccessible (despite the dodgy sound quality on those early records and a number of self-consciously abrasive pieces like "The Punk Got Fucked"). Even when they tried to rock out (think of all that distortion on Howl Of The Lonely Crowd), there was always something inherently sweet about them. And it terms of the actual sound, Letters is as warm and and charming as Paperback Ghosts. 

There is no point in talking about individual songs. To a casual listener they would all sound either poor or amazing. Since I would definitely go for the latter, I find endless charm in this latest batch of melodies that manage to sound like twee pop without being twee. There are some timely female vocals. A couple of heady anthems. A little rock and roll. Even some fairly unexpected sonic jam towards the end of "Threads!". Essentially, though, there are twelve great songs with some of the best melodies you will hear all year. Nothing earth-shattering, nothing ground-breaking - just beautiful music all around. 

Letters To Ordinary Outsiders is not Comet Gain's best album (What is the best Comet Gain album, though? My pick would probably be City Fallen Leaves but they have been really consistent since 2002's Réalistes), but what a lovely reminder that some of the best things in life exist entirely out of time. Sometimes I think that might be the only way to be truly timeless.