Month: September 2023

The Taylor Swift-ification of The National is complete.

The process began many years back, when Swift was just making playlists in her post-1989 era and including songs from The National, Bon Iver, and others who would go on to intertwine themselves with the pop star. And it peaked this last weekend, as The National returned to their hometown for the appropriately named Homecoming Festival. It was not the first time they’d thrown such an event, though this one was in some way a makeup for their canceled 2020 edition that was meant to celebrate 10 years of High Violet, one of their most beloved releases.

The influence could be seen among the fans, particularly those who made friendship bracelets spelling out songs from High Violet and Trouble Will Find Me, the other album whose anniversary would be honored over the weekend. And while there weren’t fans dressing up like song lyrics — cherry trees? alligators? a swarm of bees? — fans of all ages did adorn their favorite National merch representing the 20+ year history of the band. And, mirroring what Taylor Swift managed to do a couple times on her Eras Tour, The National let the IRL fans be the first to know that they had an album of new material dropping. (The National didn’t simply announce, either, they even had autographed vinyl copies of Laugh Track ready to be purchased days before the record was set to hit streaming, giving their diehards a first-listen opportunity and a chance for rare merch.)

It’s not surprising that The National’s influence on Swift, which includes Aaron Dessner working as a songwriting and production partner on her last three albums and the band guesting on the track “Coney Island,” has been mutual. Swift, for her part, appeared on songs for both The National and their offshoot Big Red Machine. When The National were canceling their own Homecoming Festival in 2020, Swift was having to squash plans for her Lover Festival. Heck, even The National’s speedy succession of First Two Pages Of Frankenstein and Laugh Track this year recalls Swift’s pandemic prolificacy with her offerings of Folklore and Evermore.

The scale is obviously not the same and the differences between the artist are plentiful, but there is something to say about how Taylor Swift has transformed the music industry and how artists going forward can borrow from her learnings. But the biggest parallel comes from the fan service that each provides. Regardless of the size of the audience, creating experiential, unique opportunities for those diehard fans is the most lasting and impactful way to maintain them. It’s the kind of move that will cause devotees to spend their free time crafting letters onto string, or spend their vacation money for a flight to the midwest to see not only their favorite band, but likeminded artists like Patti Smith, Pavement (playing the final show of their reunion tour), The Walkmen, Weyes Blood, Julia Jacklin, Bartees Strange, Snail Mail, and many others.

For their part, the moment was not lost on The National. Those hoping to hear the band wax poetic about how High Violet and Trouble Will Find Me impacted their lives on an emotional or spiritual level were left wanting, but that also isn’t typically how the band expresses themselves. Where they did not hold back was in expressing their love of their home city, using their two nights of headlining sets to shout out all sorts of Cincy-centric references, and even receiving the key to the city from the (surprisingly hot?) mayor.

They also made sure to discuss the significance of the other bands on the bill, be it talking about how seeing The Walkmen in their NYC heyday inspired the writing of “Available,” which they then performed for the first time in a decade, or dedicating “Lemonworld” to Bartees Strange, who they noted has his own excellent cover of the song. They spoke about their heroes Pavement before playing “So Far Around The Bend,” a rarity that references a desire for the California band to reunite, released shortly before they actually did in 2010. And they spoke about playing “Afraid Of Everyone” for the first time in 2009 in front of Patti Smith and R.E.M. leader Michael Stipe (who traveled to the festival with Patti and took in many acts side-stage), noting how important it was to get their crucial approval in 2009 and then welcoming Patti to the stage to duet “I Need My Girl.” Many of the acts there felt not just curated as artists their fans might like, but ones whose stories are intertwined with their own, parts of an extended family that Weyes Blood and Snail Mail and the others were now invited to.

Some other rapid-fire highlights:

• The Walkmen proving just how sturdy and timeless their catalog is, and while “The Rat” rightfully gets its due as one of the best songs of this century by anyone, I nominate “In The New Year” as the peak of their achievements, which is the perfect song to ring in January 1st with, 15 years running.
• Snail Mail yelling “Pavement” between songs, encapsulating the still-confounding appeal of the MOST Gen-X band appealing to a wide swath of Gen-Z women.
• Pavement ending their reunion 2.0 without the fatigue that seemed to come at the end the last time around. They said it will be a long while until they perform again, but their commitment to celebrating their whole catalog and virtually delving into jam-band territory on this incarnation should be used as a playbook for how band reunions can thrive and remain special.
• Patti Smith just being Patti Smith, complete with Ginsberg readings, tributes to her departed friends, and a few genuine festival-ready hits in the form of “People Have The Power,” “Gloria,” and “Because The Night.”
• Weyes Blood ending her set in the same way that Babylon ends. Both rule, don’t @ me.

And while The National’s two performances were notable beyond the full-album plays — only repeating a handful of tracks each night — it was the many little details that made the event feel like a true gift. The “American Water” branded sparkling water cans; the archival shirts and posters on sale; the First Two Pages Of Frankenstein mannequin head selfie station. Even some dude who kept emerging from backstage with random catering food to pass out, including PB&Js, bags of chips, and pickles. In all, there was little to take the focus away from the music and community, with everything striking as a solid 20% nicer and more thoughtful than it had to be. (I would be remiss to not mention my only major gripe with one of The National’s tour photographers: It’s not good to stand on stage and obstruct the audience’s view. People were getting very upset in the crowd because of this. Just a note I hope someone passes along. Whatever shot you are trying to get, it’s not worth it if it ruins someone’s favorite song for them.)

We live in an era where most festivals feel like you are fighting the elements, be it weather or crowds or ticket agencies or whatever else — just ask Taylor Swift fans. Swift in turn gave her fans the show of a lifetime with the last tour, as a thank you for the difficulty in being a fan in 2023, an honoring of the wealth of material she has released, and an acknowledgment for all that we’ve been through in the past few years. For its part, Homecoming also felt like this, living up to its name even for those who traveled to be there. It had a level of comfort that doesn’t exist at most events, where the audience reveled in like-minded solidarity and the curators put the audience’s needs at the forefront. So, it is here that I present my alternate headline for this article, which was scrapped because, well, it looks psychotic: There Is No Place Like (The National’s) Home(coming Festival).

Check out some exclusive photos of The National’s Homecoming Festival 2023 below

The National

Weyes Blood

The Walkmen

Snail Mail

Pavement

Patti Smith

Julia Jacklin

Homecoming Festival

Bartees Strange

Arooj Aftab

It’s hard to have a prequel that hits the same mark as the core material, but a few have done it. House of the Dragon is a recent hit, while Yellowstone has all types of prequels. Unfortunately, the John Wick universe has not yet had such luck.

The John Wick prequel The Continental debuts on Peacock this weekend, though, without Keanu Reeves as the leading hitman, it seems like the franchise doesn’t have the same magic. The series, starring Colin Woddell, Ayomide Adegun, and Mel Gibson (yeah, that guy) follows the early days of the titular hotel and Cormac’s rise to power in New York way back in the 70s. Early reviews call the prequel series a bit misguided, which is a lot to say about a series revolving around so, so much violence.

Of the many (negative) reviews, most were centered around Mel Gibson’s spotty history, which seemed to affect the rest of the viewing experience, as brought up by Alan Sepinwall at Rolling Stone:

Yes, Mel Gibson was once one of the biggest stars in the world. But that was a long time ago, before he exposed himself as a virulent hater of women, Black people, and Jews. And where once he was a tremendous physical presence whose facility with on-screen would have made him a perfect fit for this franchise, he’s now in his late 60s and not as fluid of motion. Mostly, he’s here to speak in a cartoonish Noo Yawk accent and bug his eyes out a lot as Cormac grows more and more furious about each failure of his men to stop Winston’s plans. Given that the last hit movie where he was the primary onscreen draw was Signs, which came out 21 years ago, there are any number of actors who could do what Gibson does here without the baggage

The Verge also made a similar point:

For the most part, McShane has been able to get by playing Winston as essentially a heightened, more melodramatic version of himself. But Gibson’s attempt at taking the same approach to Cormac consistently falls flat both because of the actor’s personal scandals and because of how The Continental frames Cormac as the kind of villain who sees other people — particularly people of color — as beneath him or things to be owned and traded

The Continental’s table is set quite nicely and filled with a series of performances that would have been more than strong enough to carry each of the miniseries’ three hour-and-a-half-long episodes without his assistance. But rather than doing the sensible thing and steering clear of any unforced errors The Continental puts a big one front and center to stunningly disastrous effect.

While there were qualms with the casting, it seems like the plot is just as unlikable. Deadline:

The story is daft and the resolutions often neglect their own setups, but that’s bullseye on-brand for Wickworld. There are some moral dilemmas encountered in the hallways as a younger and vengeance-seeking Winston Scott (Colin Woodell) tries to take over the iconic establishment, but The Continental is primarily a gritty and swagger-filled romp, as it should be.

Variety:

There are flashes of Wickian irreverence here and there, though setting a violent beatdown to an upbeat pop song loses its charm the umpteenth time around. But The Continental still comes off like a grave misunderstanding of what enthusiasts might want from a “John Wick” without John Wick.

IGN:

The Continental significantly miscalculates the scope it needs to tell its David and Goliath story. Even four movies deep, the John Wick films keep most of the action tied to John’s perspective, making room for occasional check-ins with Winston or the villains’ camps to keep the plot moving. The Continental features no less than five focal point characters, which the narrative bounces between with the intention of deepening the bench of those with grievances against the erratic Cormac and providing Winston a crack squad to take him down. But few of these satellite storylines feel truly important or emotionally resonant

Collider:

Unfortunately, as The Continental progresses, it rarely reaches the highs of that opening scene. The show quickly falls into explosion-heavy scenes with brief fights sprinkled throughout until we reach a finale that cranks things up to eleven. It’s an intentional approach to how the narrative is crafted, but it leads to lulls throughout. Thankfully, there are plenty of other things to keep your attention.

IndieWire:

So many sloppy splits from what made the films special dooms The Continental. It stumbles toward an inept, non-ending, where there’s plenty of story still to tell if a successful run demands more seasons, yet not enough resolution to make what you just saw feel meaningful. While anything could once again happen, a Wick-less John Wick may just be too crazy to work.

Is the series worth your time? Maybe not. The good news? You can stream the other John Wick installments on Peacock instead!

Troye Sivan is less than a month away from dropping his third studio album Something To Give Each Other. The album’s lead single, “Rush” proved to be a summer hit, notably on TikTok and at Pride events. Today (September 20), Sivan has given us the latest taste of Something To Give Each Other.

The song features a prominent sample of Bag Raiders’ “Shooting Stars,” over which Sivan details intoxicating newfound bliss.

“You just got me started / And I don’t think I can stop it / And I don’t wanna go home alone, alright,” he sings on the song’s chorus.

When the song came together, Sivan wasn’t sure if he’d be able to get the “Shooting Stars” sample.

“When we were writing this song, I was emphatic about using ‘Shooting Stars’ — I just kept humming it in the studio,” said Sivan in a statement. “It’s a huge sample and was a big ask; and I knew that they had never approved it in the past. So I’m over the moon about the opportunity to sample that track because this song is iconic to me. And then we have Ian Kirkpatrick on production, who is a genius. I love his work – he had this plan to record the vocal at a slower speed and then speed it up, and ultimately that’s what you hear in the chorus. I instantly loved the way it sounded.”

In the video, Sivan is seen dancing throughout Bangkok, and is later joined by drag performers, as he holds onto a romantic high as long as he can.

You can see the video for “Got Me Started” above.

Something To Give Each Other is out 10/13 via Capitol. Find more information here.

The Chicago Bears have gotten off to an awful start to the 2023 NFL season, as the team is 0-2 with losses to the Green Bay Packers and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They have the second-worst point differential in the NFC, and in what seems to be a perpetual issue for the Bears, the team’s offense has been especially rough. There have been a total of four designed runs for third-year signal caller Justin Fields, while the passing game has been a mess, too.

Fields spoke to the media on Wednesday afternoon and expressed that he “wasn’t necessarily playing my game” against the Bucs, saying that he felt “robotic and not playing like myself.” He promised to change things on Sunday before throwing in an interesting line: “That includes thinking less and just going out there and playing off of instincts, rather than just so much info in my head, data in my head, and literally just playing football.”

After getting asked what was causing him to think too much, Fields did not hold back.

“Could be coaching, I think,” he said. “But at the end of the day, it makes it … they’re doing their job when they’re giving me what to look at, stuff like that. But at the end of the day, I can’t be thinking about that when the game comes. I prepare myself throughout the week, and when the game comes, it’s time to play free at that point. Just thinking less and playing more.”

After making clear that he doesn’t think there are “too many coaching voices,” Fields talked about getting fed too much info and how a player will think about these things while they’re playing.

“It doesn’t let you play like yourself,” he said. “You’re trying to process so much information to where it’s, like, if I just simplify it in my mind, I would have did this. I saw a few plays on Sunday to where, if I was playing like my old self, we would have had a positive play. There would have been a few more third-down conversions. I think that’s the biggest thing for me, is just playing the game how I know how to play it, how I’ve been playing it my whole life. So, that’s what I gotta get back to doing.”

The Bears will travel to Kansas City to play the Chiefs on Sunday.

Boygenius is back with a new video for their song “Cool About It,” off their recent record, The Record. Directed by Lauren Tsai, it marks the band’s first animated visual and it is emotionally centered around a dog and their toy.

As each of the members tackles a verse, it matches the somber nature, opening with an image of a girl playing at a park with the dog, too.

“‘Cool About It’ is a beautifully melancholic and piercing song that puts words to feelings often unexplained,” Tsai shared in a statement. “It is an absolute dream to collaborate with the genius that is boygenius. I made animated videos on YouTube when I was 11 and I cannot imagine something I’d lose my mind over more if I could go back in time and tell myself. I will always be grateful to the band for the many ways in which their work has affected my life.”

Next week, Boygenius will kick off their fall tour with two sold-out nights in Boston starting on September 25. They will then play additional shows in NYC, Philadelphia, and more, as artists like Muna and Samia join them as special guests. A complete list of dates and more information can be found here.

Check out Boygenius’ video for “Cool About It” above.

The story of the college football season thus far has been Colorado’s 3-0 start under Deion Sanders, as Coach Prime has the nation buzzing about the Buffaloes.

It is such a big story that it’s a leading topic on First Take, which is usually an NFL first show when it comes to football. On Wednesday, Mad Dog joined Stephen A. Smith and Marcus Spears on the desk to discuss Colorado’s start and their first big test against Oregon on Saturday, where the Buffaloes are 20.5-point underdogs to the Ducks on the road. While talking about the excitement for the game, which will be the night game on ABC, Mad Dog laid out his incredible plans for Saturday, as he’s headed out to fabulous Flagstaff, Arizona to visit his son.

Mad Dog is going to have a day in Flagstaff, as he’ll go for a run, walk the dogs, and then get real loose by pouring a midday cocktail, popping a gummie, and getting ready to lock in on college football. Once he’s good and “sauced” in his words, he’ll call his bookie “Fat Rob” and put 10 dimes on Coach Prime and the Buffaloes before taking the other half of the gummie and dialing in on the game.

The best part of this entire thing is Marcus Spears absolutely losing his mind that Mad Dog is detailing all of this on air, looking around trying to see if everyone else is hearing this to make sure he’s not hallucinating this entire thing. Second is Mad Dog damn near doxxing his bookie by rattling off the first six digits of Fat Rob’s phone number — who apparently used to be a priest in the Vatican??????

I need this to be a weekly segment where Mad Dog just details his weekly plans and comes increasingly close to giving millions of people Fat Rob’s number.

Quentin Tarantino is hopefully not hard at work on The Movie Critic, but once the strike is over, production can begin on his 10th and final film. That includes finding a cast, although it’s been rumored that Paul Walter Hauser has been offered “the lead role,” assuming Jamie Taco doesn’t beat him to it.

The Ankler’s Jeff Sneider has also heard that Tarantino is “saving a role in his final film THE MOVIE CRITIC for two of his former leading men. Here’s one of them…” he wrote on X, along with a GIF of John Travolta in Pulp Fiction.

This is an unconfirmed report, but Tarantino has worked with many actors more than once, but not Travolta. Could a Vincent and Jules reunion be in the works? (I assume Samuel L. Jackson will be in The Movie Critic.) There’s no animosity between the two as far as we know, although if I were Tarantino, I would be bitter about resurrecting Travolta’s career, only to see him make Gotti.

Sneider responded to those asking if Samuel L. Jackson was the other ex-leading man who is set to appear in The Movie Critic by saying, “He was already kinda out there,” adding: “I’ve heard of another one… and an actress too.”

Bring back Pam Grier. Get her that overdue Oscar nomination.

(Via Games Radar)

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

Lately, I’ve been utterly fascinated by a current trend within music where artists with perfectly good stage names — Fly Anakin, Post Malone, Killer Mike, Vic Mensa, etc. — have been dropping albums titled with their real names (just their first name, though). For instance, Fly Anakin released Frank last year; Post Malone and Killer Mike dropped Austin and Michael earlier this summer, respectively; and last Friday, Vic Mensa shared Victor. I’m not entirely sure what sparked this trend — although I’ve got a sneaking suspicion that it was, as with many things, Doja Cat’s fault (she debuted in 2018 with Amala — but it has been interesting to watch so many artists enter their “vulnerable, stripped-down” eras at the same time.

However, only one of the above artists has really capitalized on the trend. After all, the use of your government name as an album title suggests that the album is going to be an introduction of sorts, peeling back the layers to reveal the person at the core of the persona. And with props all around to the other names mentioned above, most of these artists’ latest projects have been really good but not really revelatory or unique amid their respective discographies — except for Vic Mensa. With Victor, Vic has seemingly finally rediscovered his voice, over a decade after his entrance to the rap world at large. The struggles he went through to get here make it all the more impactful and welcome.

In a lot of ways, Vic’s career so far has been a victim of his associations. When I first discovered him back in 2011, he was the rapper and co-frontman of a band called Kids These Days at just 19 years old. Their blend of rock, blues, and rap was delightful and unlike anything else at the time, even with all the genre experimentation and fusion that marked the so-called Blog Era. Kids These Days put out an EP in 2011 and followed up with a mixtape in 2012, but split soon after, cleaving Vic from one of the more interesting aspects of his music, his band. This left him as just another in a plethora of new, young rappers scrambling for attention during one of hip-hop’s biggest talent booms since the Golden Era. It wouldn’t be the first identity crisis he’d go through.

In 2013, it felt like Vic had regained his footing with Innanetape, his solo debut mixtape, which garnered strong reviews and proved that Vic could stand on his own without the bluesy backdrops provided by his band. Unfortunately, the tape dropped six months after his friend Chance The Rapper’s game-changing Acid Rap, which seemingly ate up all the little oxygen available for breathless praise of rising rappers from the Windy City from blogs and critics. In comparison to the sonically adventurous Acid Rap, the more traditionalist approach of Innanetape got lost in the wash; it doesn’t help that Vic’s impressive technical delivery was overshadowed by Chance’s vocally dynamic bombast. This is all old news, but look no further than the fact that Vic’s opening for Chance on their shared 10th-anniversary tour for proof of the lopsided reception among fans, which caused a rift between them they only recently managed to mend.

It feels a little reductive to attribute Vic’s later unmoored wanderings to his and Chance’s later association with fellow Chicago star Kanye West, but it was right around the time both began collaborating with West that Vic’s musical compass seemed to start spinning out (incidentally, that was around the time Kanye’s did the same). Vic struggled with substance abuse around this time, and his musical releases — including his 2017 debut album The Autobiography and rock side project 93Punx — similarly felt unfocused and inconsistent. Mensa’s debut received generally favorable reviews, but most noted its scattershot approach (in my own review, I wrote that it felt unfinished, with the sense “Vic is still searching for a sound.”

With Victor, it feels like he’s finally found it. Playing armchair psychologist is a sucker’s game, but on past projects, it’s felt like Vic kept trying on different rap and production styles, looking for a persona or a gimmick that would redeem that early attention he got with Kids These Days and make him sound “unique.” Here, he sounds comfortable with himself, like maybe being conventional isn’t all that bad, as long as you truly great at it. From the confessional “Sunday Morning Intro” to the party-ready “Swish” with G-Eazy and Chance The Rapper, Vic embraces both his personal failings and the inspirational messaging which have always been the best parts of his prior work, employing straightforward, bass-heavy production that keeps things moving along with a gritty, propulsive intensity.

When it comes time to slow things down, Vic adeptly does so with introspective tracks like “Sunset On The Low End” and “Strawberry Louis Vuitton.” He tackles systemic racism on “Blue Eyes,” gives thanks for seeing 30 years on “Blessings” with Ant Clemons and D Smoke, and channels the spiritual best of Kanye on “14 Days” to close things out. His sole concession to trend chasing (outside of the title, of course), is the House-influenced bonus track “Eastside Girl” — which is wisely left for the end of the project, keeping fingers away from the “skip” button. Victor gives listeners exactly what it says on the tin: A holistic look at an artist who’s come into his own at last. Vic had to go through everything he did to mature enough as an artist to synthesize those experiences into an honest, unfiltered summation of himself. This is his real autobiography — it was worth the wait.

Sufjan Stevens revealed today that he has been diagnosed with a rare autoimmune condition known as Guillian-Barre Syndrome. In an emotional new Instagram post, Stevens updated fans about why he’s been distant from the release of his upcoming album, Javelin.

The musician has been in the hospital, after losing the ability to walk. “Luckily there’s treatment for this — they administer immuno-hemoglobin infusions for five days and pray that the disease doesn’t spread to the lungs, heart and brain,” he assured fans. “Very scary, but it worked. I spent about two weeks in Med/Surg, stuck in a bed, while my doctors did all the things to keep me alive and stabilize my condition. I owe them my life.”

Stevens has since been moved to an acute rehab a few weeks ago, where he is undergoing physical and occupational therapy to learn how to walk again.

“It’s a slow process, but they say I will ‘recover,’ it just takes a lot of time, patience, and hard work,” he added. “Most people who have GBS learn to walk again on their own within a year, so I am hopeful. I’m only in my second week of rehab but it is going really well and I am working really hard to get back on my feet.”

Check out Sufjan Stevens’ full post below.

“Hi Friends. Quick update on my life. I’m very excited about having new music to share, but I just wanted to let you know that one of the reasons why I haven’t been able to participate in the press and promotion leading up to the release of Javelin is bc I am in the hospital. Last month I woke up one morning and couldn’t walk. My hands, arms and legs were numb and tingling and I had no strength, no feeling, no mobility. My brother drove me to the ER and after a series of tests–MRIs, EMGs, cat scans, X-rays, spinal taps (!), echo-cardiograms, etc.–the neurologists diagnosed me with an auto immune disorder called Guillian-Barre Syndrome. Luckily there’s treatment for this — they administer immuno-hemoglobin infusions for five days and pray that the disease doesn’t spread to the lungs, heart and brain. Very scary, but it worked. I spent about two weeks in Med/Surg, stuck in a bed, while my doctors did all the things to keep me alive and stabilize my condition. I owe them my life.

On September 8, I was transferred to acute rehab, where I am now undergoing intensive physical therapy/occupational therapy, strength building etc. to get my body back in shape and to learn to walk again. It’s a slow process, but they say I will ‘recover,’ it just takes a lot of time, patience, and hard work. Most people who have GBS learn to walk again on their own within a year, so I am hopeful. I’m only in my second week of rehab but it is going really well and I am working really hard to get back on my feet. I’m committed to getting better, I’m in good spirits, and I’m surrounded by a really great team. I want to be well!

I’ll keep you posted as I progress. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. And a huge shout out to all the incredible caretakers of the world working night and day to help us heal. They are living saints.

Be well, be joyful, stay sane, stay safe. I love you.

yours truly from a wheelchair XOXOXO Sufjan Stevens.”

Amid a looming government shutdown and the usual deluge of Senate business, John Fetterman’s colleagues are taking the time to be very upset about his congressional hoodie. Never mind that he is getting the job done and showing up for votes and looking much happier these days than before entering treatment for severe depression. His GOP colleagues are still somehow fixated upon Fetterman’s decision to dress like himself after Chuck Schumer relaxed the dress code for the Senate floor.

This is good news for Kyrsten Sinema’s denim vest, but of course, criticism has been coming from the GOP House wing, too. Lauren Boebert called out Fetterman’s “unbecoming” congressional attire, which led to his comeback about her “grabbing the hog” in public. He also pushed back at Ron DeSantis, who described “like, sweatshirts and hoodies and shorts” as “dumbing down.”

Still, Fetterman is willing to indulge the whiners by issuing a condition for showing up in a suit. As Democratic advisor Sawyer Hackett reported, Fetterman made a statement: “If those jagoffs in the House stop trying to shut our government down, and fully support Ukraine, then I will save democracy by wearing a suit on the Senate floor next week.”

The aforementioned whining has included a letter penned by Rick Scott, who gathered 46 GOP signatures (via Business Insider) for this rhetoric about the “sanctity” of the Senate floor:

“The Senate is a place of honor and tradition, and the Senate floor is where we conduct the business of the American people. It is where we debate the policies which impact every American family and, when necessary, it is where we must make the gravest decision imaginable – whether to send our fellow Americans into battle to defend the freedoms we all hold dear.

“The world watches us on that floor and we must protect the sanctity of that place at all costs. Allowing casual clothing on the Senate floor disrespects the institution we serve and the American families we represent.

“Allowing casual clothing on the Senate floor disrespects the institution we serve and the American families we represent. We the undersigned members of the United States Senate write to express our supreme disappointment and resolute disapproval of your recent decision to abandon the Senate’s longstanding dress code for members, and urge you to immediately reverse this misguided action.”

Fetterman does not appear to be bothered by these grumbles. He’s even launched merch to make further light of the absurd situation. Hopefully, this will all blow over soon, so that Fetterman can go back to making ghost noises and chuckling over how the far right actually believes that a 6’8″ man with a very distinctive voice and tattoos galore could have a doppleganger. Whew.

(Via Sawyer Hackett, Senate.gov & Business Insider)