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On his weekly Instagram Live stream, The Fat Joe Show, the “Lean Back” rapper shares his unfiltered thoughts on all sorts of topics, from the controversy surrounding Joe Rogan to why no one wants to see Busta Rhymes in a Verzuz hits battle. Given his status as a veteran of the rap game — his debut album Represent was released nearly 30 years ago, in 1993 — his opinions hold weight, even when his expertise isn’t always obvious. For instance, in his latest episode, he has some critiques for J. Cole’s new pro hoops career.

Although it may not seem like it, Joe’s just as heavy in the New York streetball circuit. And while ESPN’s recent And 1 mixtape documentary showed that pro ball and streetball are two very different games, Joe’s success at world-famous tournaments like Rucker Park’s gives him a certain amount of credence. “Now, is J. Cole really good?” he wonders “They say he is nice. Are you sure they say he is nice? Because this is a classic story…” He then compares Cole’s exploits and the praise he’s received from playing in the Basketball Africa League and Canadian Elite Basketball League to another rapper-turned-hooper whose success has been exaggerated in later years.

“Master P didn’t score one point at the Rucker,” he recalls. “Master P keeps showing these videos of him going to the league. I respect Master P at the highest level, but that is not true. It’s emphatically non-cipher. He came to the Rucker and stunk it up. Didn’t score one point. I don’t know how he’s going to the league.” So while Drake, Rick Ross, and others have supported Cole’s hoop dreams, it seems he has at least one peer who remains skeptical — and probably with good reason, considering the Scarborough Shooting Stars’ losing record and Jermaine’s ho-hum stat lines so far.

Vladimir Putin appears to have expected to march Russian troops into Ukraine and see them immediately fold to his imperialistic whims. Over 100 days into the war, that hasn’t happened, and we’ve already heard that things are disastrous behind the military scenes. Putin’s inner circle is said to be maneuvering to insert a successor in his place amid national embarrassment, and U.S. intelligence offers dug through documents that revealed how his “rule is no longer absolute,” given an assassination attempt and Putin’s ongoing health battles, among other concerns.

Russian troops are also reportedly completely over this invasion, to the point where they stomped their feet and almost blew up their general. Amid other disappearing military leaders (after either being killed in the line of duty or being fired by an irate Putin), Newsweek is now relaying how a top Russian commander — known not-so-lovingly as “The Executioner” — lost his life as well. Vladimir Andonov, who’s believed to have murdered POWs and civilians, bit the dust by way of a sniper:

Social media channels and Russian newspapers reported that Vladimir Andonov, 44, had been killed by a sniper in Ukraine’s second city of Kharkiv.

“He died at night during reconnaissance of the area, along with his comrade, presumably at the hands of a sniper,” said the Peleng 03 telegram channel on Sunday, in a post reported by the mass circulation Russian newspaper Moskovsky Komsomolets.

Yeah, Ukrain is not messing around here. From the very beginning of the invasion, President Volodymyr Zelensky, refused to be airlifted to safety, stating his firm belief that he must help defend his country and people. And with Ukrainian citizens brandishing molotov cocktails and Russia making much slower progress than expected, it appears that Putin’s struggle is real, and so is the survival of his army and presidential tenure.

(Via Newsweek)

Pairing steak and bourbon has been around as long as, well, bourbon itself. The two go hand in hand, thanks to the balance of sweet and spicy from the brown juice pairing with the umami and savory notes of the steak. Begging the question, what’s the best bourbon whiskey to pair with your steak?

Today, I’m going to find out.

For this blind tasting, I’m pouring eight bourbons — classic, crafty, and high-end — and tasting each one with a slice of steak. I grabbed a Japanese A5 Wagyu filet (280 grams worth) and butter-basted it (I used buffalo butter from Italy) with a nice outer sear in a cast-iron skillet to a very low medium-rare (about 120F internal temp).

Which turned this:

Into this:

I then heated a piece of slate for plating while the drams were poured for me and the steak rested. The whole process took about five minutes. I sliced the steak into thin strips, hit it with some birch smoked salt flakes, placed it on the pre-heated slate, and dove in.

Before we get to the tasting, here’s my methodology. First, I had a piece of the steak as a control before I started anything. Yes, it was delicious on its own. I’m nosing and tasting (spitting) each dram of whiskey first to prime my palate with that whiskey for the bite. Then I’ll take a bite of steak. Lastly, I’ll nose and taste the whiskey again.

Here are the competitors:

• Old Elk Wheated Bourbon
• Redemption High-Rye Bourbon
• Michter’s Single Barrel 10-Year Bourbon
• Garrison Brothers Balmorhea
• Wild Turkey Longbranch
• Frey Ranch Small Batch
• George Dickel Single Barrel Aged 9 Years
• Weller Special Reserve

Ready to see how it shook out?

Also Read: The Top 5 UPROXX Bourbon Posts Of The Last Six Months

• The 50 Best Bourbon Whiskeys Of 2021, Ranked
• Every Winning Bourbon From Our 2021 Taste Tests, Blind Tasted And Re-Ranked
• The 100 Best Whiskeys Our Head Drinks Writer Tasted In 2021
• We Blind Tasted A Whole Bunch Of $30-60 Bourbons To See If Any Could Beat Weller
• The Best Ten-Year-Old Bourbon Whiskeys, Tasted Blind And Ranked

Part 1: The Tasting

Taste 1

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

You’re drawn in by a big bowl of vanilla ice cream drizzled with salted caramel sauce next to a very faint hint of dried florals. The palate builds on that ice cream, creating a sundae with crushed almonds, creamy toffee brittle, and a hint of eggnog spice. The end is medium-length with a touch of that buttery sweetness carrying the sip to a warm end.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

The steak was initially kind of sweet with a nice layer of salt but had a hint of bitterness to it that I couldn’t quite pinpoint. A touch of smoke adhered to the toffee and nutmeg of the whiskey right away and evened things out.

When I went back to the whiskey, there was a lot more bitterness, as though the spices had been over-cooked. This was just an okay start.

Taste 2

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

Rich vanilla wafers with nougat and orange zest mingle with tart berries and winter spices on the nose. The palate is all about the dried cherries dipped in chocolate with lemon pepper spice, a hint of cedar, and old leather. The end feels part vanilla-cherry tobacco and part mint chocolate ice cream with a touch of cedar tying it together.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

This was classic and grassy on the palate which primed me really well for the steak. That grassiness leaned a little sweet and helped highlight the sweetness of the steak while a hint of vanilla added a lushness to the whole experience, especially when I got back to the whiskey.

This felt like it was starting to gel as a pairing.

Taste 3

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

The nose opens with soft wood and worn leather next to light touches of dark berries, orange oils, egg nog spice, sourdough Southern biscuits, and slight cotton candy sweetness. The palate starts off with maple syrup sweetness which then leads into a rush of berry brambles. The mid-palate hits on a bit of dark spice, vanilla tobacco, and dark cacao espresso bitterness. The finish leans into a dry-yet-almost-sweet oak with a touch of an almond shell and dry grass coming in at the very end.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

Okay, this is where it’s at! That sour biscuit vibe really counters the rich and unctuous steak nicely. The smoked salt marries the maply syrup and sweet grass while the bitterness in the whiskey compliments the softness of the steak.

Going back to the sip after tasting the steak, there’s this perfect balance of sweet, bitter, woody, spicy, and dry that just works. This is the pairing to beat!

Taste 4

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

This opens with that signature Garrison Bros. raw oats and leather before veering into a sense of a corn-syrup-laced pecan pie next to hazelnut bespeckled cinnamon rolls and creamy milk chocolate with a hint of vanilla tobacco. That chocolate drives the taste towards a mint-chocolate ice cream vibe (heavy on the chocolate part) with small dashes of holiday spices, hard toffee candies, more raw leather, and a flourish of wet grains. The end circles back around to all that sweet and chocolatey creaminess with a final slice of perfect pecan pie on a slow fade.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

That raw leather and grain brought out the rawness of the steak. That wasn’t bad per se, but it felt like a step back and not a step forward.

Going back to the whiskey after the steak, there was more balance to the whiskey and that raw/wet grain/leather vibe really calmed down, allowing more of the nuttiness and spices to shine through.

Taste 5

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

Christmas spices meet oily vanilla and subtle caramel up top. The palate adds orange oils and buttery toffee to the mix, as the spices edge upwards on the palate, next to a creamy vanilla pudding body. That velvet texture builds throughout, with toasted oak and cedar notes as a hint of sweet firepit smoke arrives on the long and satisfying finish.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

This really popped when you took a bite of steak. The palate was a little weak at first, but the fat and salt of the meat helped everything to sort of amplify.

The steak itself stayed somewhat neutral. I’m not sure if the whiskey helped it, whereas the steak certainly helped this whiskey pop.

Taste 6

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

The sip draws you in with hints of burnt orange rings next to fresh honey, apple-cider-soaked cinnamon sticks, cherry tobacco, and vanilla pods. The palate leans dry with cornmeal, bales of straw, woody eggnog spices, cherry stems, and a touch of dried mint next to cedar boxes full of vanilla tobacco. The mid-palate turns with a note of pancake syrup that leads back towards the dry woods and tobacco.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

This was a complex whiskey for sure. Then it sent the steak sort of sour and bitter at the same time, which was not really that ideal. I tried another bite of steak to see if something was off and there was still a distinctly sour note created for the palate of the bourbon.

Going back to the bourbon, it was a perfectly nice dram but… kind of screwed up the taste of the steak.

Taste 7

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

The higher ABVs add depth to the cherry cola notes on the nose as the sweet syrup lurks in the background next to eggnog spice, salted peanuts, and a touch of dry wood. The palate delivers on those notes while leaning into the cherry and vanilla while the spices kick up and notes of soft leather, dry reeds, and maybe a touch of wicker arrive late. The end is slightly fruity but leans more into cherry tobacco with a dry and woody end.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

This was old and bold on the palate and that sort of worked with the steak. It added an almost super long dry-aged vibe to the mix. The steak became extra soft and sweet as the whiskey rolled around in your senses.

Going back to the whiskey, there was a clear sense of the sweetness and wicker that rounded both the dram and steak out very nicely. This was very good, but I’m not sure if it beats out number three. It’s close.

Taste 8

Whiskey Tasting Notes:

This felt the most “classic” on the nose with hints of vanilla cream, cherrywood, new leather, and apple blossoms leading the way. The palate had a thin cream soda feel to it with both cherry and apple pie filling, a buttery pie crust, and a vanilla/cherry pipe tobacco chewiness. The mid-palate was full of dark cherry syrup that lead to more of that tobacco with a slight dry reed vibe on the end.

Tasting Notes with Steak:

There’s a nice and classic element to the whiskey that gives way to a raw leather note but it’s way more dialed back than number four. Interestingly, that raw leather note ages as you take a bite of the steak, which becomes nicely sweetened and spiced.

When you go back to the whiskey, there’s a clear sense of soft tobacco and dark cherries that shine through and add to the sweetness of the steak that’s very pleasing.

Part 2: The Ranking

First, can we just appreciate this steak for one second? Have you read our steak guides? Click here! And here!

8. Frey Ranch Small Batch — Taste 6

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $57

The Whiskey:

Frey Ranch is all about the farm behind the whiskey. In this case, that’s a 165+-year-old farm in the Sierra Nevada basin near Lake Tahoe. The grains (corn, wheat, rye, and barley), fermentation, distilling, aging, and bottling all happen on-site at Frey Ranch.

How It Paired:

This was the worst pairing by far. That sour and bitter note that the whiskey gave to the steak was unfortunate. It was also so pronounced that it was hard to get past. Look at it this way, I wouldn’t have been pissed enough to send it back if I was in a swanky restaurant and ordered this pairing, but I would have been pretty damn disappointed.

7. Old Elk Wheated Bourbon — Taste 1

ABV: 46%

Average Price: $74

The Whiskey:

This craft whiskey from Colorado takes the idea of wheated bourbon to the very edge of its limits. The mash bill carries a whopping 45 percent wheat, pushing this very close to being a wheated whiskey. The juice is then aged for an undisclosed number of years before it’s batched and cut down to proof with that soft Rocky Mountain spring water Colorado is known for.

How It Paired:

This was a little bitter too but not overwhelming so. Still, that’s the reason this whiskey is ranked this low. Call me crazy but I don’t want a whiskey to turn my steak bitter.

6. Garrison Brothers Balmorhea — Taste 4

ABV: 57.5%

Average Price: $200

The Whiskey:

This much-lauded Texas bourbon is the highwater mark of what great whiskey from Texas can be. The juice is aged in Ozark oak for four years and then finished in oak from Minnesota for another year, all under that blazing West Texas sunshine. The bourbon is then small-batched, proofed with Texas spring water, and bottled at a healthy 115 proof.

How It Paired:

I generally dig Garrison’s raw grain and leather nose. It’s part of what makes the whiskey unique. I just don’t think that note worked as well as it could today in a steak pairing. In fact, I’d go so far as to say that this bourbon was a little too bold for a good pairing. It sort of overwhelmed the subtlety of the steak.

5. Redemption High-Rye Bourbon — Taste 2

ABV: 52.5%

Average Price: $50

The Whiskey:

These bottles are the masterwork of chef-turned-master-blender David Carpenter. The juice is hand-selected MGP single barrels that provide a classic bourbon base that then leans a little softer on the palate.

How It Paired:

This is where things get good when looking at pairing these whiskeys with steak. This was perfectly fine overall but didn’t wow. I think I’d order this if I was in a steak house and there was nothing else on the menu that jumped out at me.

4. Wild Turkey Longbranch — Taste 5

ABV: 43%

Average Price: $40

The Whiskey:

A few years back, Wild Turkey brought on Matthew McConaughey to be the brand’s Creative Director and design his own whiskey. The product of that partnership was launched in 2018. The juice is a wholly unique whiskey for Wild Turkey, thanks to the Texas Mesquite charcoal filtration the hot juice goes through. The bourbon then goes into oak for eight long years before it’s proofed and bottled.

How It Paired:

This just worked. The whiskey was a stone-cold classic with nice nuance and uniqueness that worked well with the fatty meat. This is very close to being a go-to pairing. The only thing that held it back for me was that it was a little sweet from top to bottom. But that’s really nitpicking.

3. Weller Special Reserve — Taste 8

ABV: 45%

Average Price: $60

The Whiskey:

Buffalo Trace doesn’t publish any of their mash bills. Educated guesses put the wheat percentage of these mash bills at around 16 to 18 percent, which is average. The age of the barrels on this blend is also unknown. We do know that they cut down those ABVs with that soft Kentucky limestone water.

How It Paired:

This was another easy “yes.” The pairing worked really well and both the steak and the whiskey brought something to the table. Again, this feels a little sweet for my palate for a pairing but that’s very personal. Overall, this is a solid way to go the next time you’re ordering steak and whiskey.

2. George Dickel Single Barrel 9-Year — Taste 7

ABV: Varies

Average Price: $52

The Whisky:

This is Dickel’s signature whisky. Nine-year-old single barrels are hand-selected by Head Distiller Nicole Austin that fit Dickel’s flavor profile at cask strength but with a little nuance from release to release, making this a fun single barrel offering to track down yearly.

How It Paired:

This nearly won, given that it added a very funky dry-aged element to the steak that felt elevated. In the end, this made the most sense on my palate as a pairing that complimented the whiskey and steak while adding something to both. Moreover, it felt right.

1. Michter’s Single Barrel 10-Year Kentucky Straight Bourbon — Taste 3

ABV: 47.2%

Average Price: $552

The Whiskey:

Michter’s is currently distilling and aging their own whiskey, but this is still sourced. The actual barrels sourced for these single barrel expressions tend to be at least ten years old with some rumored to be closer to 15 years old (depending on the barrel’s quality, naturally). Either way, the juice goes through Michter’s bespoke filtration process before a touch of Kentucky’s iconic soft limestone water is added, bringing the bourbon down to a very crushable 94.4 proof.

How It Paired:

This was instantly the right whiskey (though that Dickel came close). It felt right from the first bite of steak and then really popped when I went back to the whiskey. The fat and salt of the steak added exactly the elements the whiskey needed to take it somewhere new. A hint of smoke popped up, there was a new hint of singed marshmallow, and the spices felt sweeter.

The steak had this lovely soft sweetness that felt like it had been wet brined in a whiskey spice mix for a few days. It was bold and smooth and delightful. I heartily encourage you to copy this pairing for yourself.

Part 3: Final Thoughts

This was a pretty illuminating blind taste test. Yes, the most expensive whiskey won. And yes, it’s also my go-to whiskey for special occasions. But it really did stand far above most of the rest of these bottles.

Overall I’d say, find the whiskey between five and one that has a flavor profile and steak vibe that speaks to you and go with that. I truly liked the Dickel, Weller, and Longbranch as steak pairing whiskeys. The Redemption was solid too but looking back feels more like it should have been in a Manhattan than neat. Still, none of them could hang with a Michter’s 10 Bourbon.

As the music industry adapts to the new era of streaming and TikTok trends, there is another shift that has to be made: making the industry more economically sustainable.

With summer tours kicking off this month, many artists have spent a substantial amount of time working towards curating an exciting show experience, with minimal waste and lower CO2 emissions. Most, if not all, concertgoers aren’t generally thinking about the impact that their favorite artist is making on the environment, but they should: a tour like Coldplay’s “Music Of The Spheres” tour can bring in over 50K eager fans per show, each with their own unique carbon footprint.

Artists like Coldplay have teamed up with various organizations to help encourage their fans to educate themselves about their individual impact on the environment and provide resources for them to reduce said impact. Coldplay’s tour aims to be as waste-free as possible, with a focus on recycling and reusing. Before the show, the band introduces a short film with different ways their tour has worked with venues across the world to ensure a cleaner show. Single-use plastics have been discouraged from their tours, being replaced with special edition Ball Aluminum Cups, which can be taken and re-used, or recycled at the venue. The band also sells custom water bottles, with proceeds going directly to ClientEarth. Their popular LED wristbands are also made of plant-based, compostable material. These little steps make a larger impact when they are being promoted to thousands of fans every night. It also helps when they make it fun– fans are invited to dance on kinetic floors and use stationary bikes to help power the stages. Just one night on the bike can generate 11kWh which can power their c-stage performances.

“Artists and music have always been at the forefront of social change and advocacy.” Live Nation’s Director of Global Sustainability Lucy August-Perna said, explaining that big artists have the power to inspire action from an individual level. August-Perna notes that Coldplay worked for over a year in order to make sure every aspect of the tour was addressed in order to see where they could improve their sustainability efforts. One aspect that was often overlooked was fan transportation to and from the show.

“Our Green Nation rep worked together with Coldplay management and local public transport authorities to help incentivize and subsidize public transportation to and from the shows,” August-Perna explains. For their MetLife tour stop, fans were encouraged to purchase railway tickets instead of driving, which were discounted in partnership with NJ Transit. Other fans can log their commitment to sustainability on the World Tour App to receive discount codes. “It has been a win-win for everyone involved, bringing awareness to an important solution to climate change – public transportation infrastructure. It also helps reduce traffic congestion, which is good for the venue, fans, and the local community. These kinds of high impact, focused executions are what we’re looking to accomplish.”

While Coldplay has been actively working on its suitability effort for many years, other big-name artists have been following in their footsteps. Billie Eilish and Shawn Mendes, who are both embarking on worldwide tours this year, have teamed up with REVERB, an organization that has been educating fans and artists alike about the environmental impact of their tours.

REVERB brings initiatives like free water stations and battery recycling to various tour stops, with some stops offering donation boxes and bringing in local organizations for community outreach. REVERB manager of communications Chris Spinato says that fan outreach is a major component when it comes to making an impact. “Much like a guitar tech or sound engineer, our ‘on-site coordinator’ acts as a green tech, making sure that all sustainability measures for the tour are in place,” Spinato says. “Those measures can include waste diversion including recycling, composting, reusable service ware, and water refill stations backstage, in catering, and on buses, collection of batteries for proper disposal (or donation to local shelters if they are still useable), coordinating local food for catering, and much more.”

For Harry Styles’ sold-out 2021 tour, REVERB helped eliminate over 30,000 single-use plastic bottles over nearly 100 tour dates. The practice has been trickling down to merch creation as well — Eilish partnered with REVERB to create a sustainable edition of her album on vinyl, created with vegetable-based inks, a recycled sleeve and jacket, and bio-wrap “plastic” that is made from sugar cane. Lorde, who has been actively promoting sustainable practices by not physically releasing Solar Power cds, also worked with REVERB to create her eco-friendly merch.

Despite the big-name acts being at the forefront of the sustainability movement, these practices can easily be transmitted to smaller bands without a sustainability team. Encouraging fans to take the necessary steps to even just be aware of their impact can help trigger a widespread movement. “It would have been great if it had been happening decades ago, but that’s true of the environmental issues in every industry,” Spinato adds. “What’s unique about the music industry is it not only has a real opportunity to meaningfully reduce its environmental impacts, but also an outsized ability to influence change. Music has always had immense cultural power to change hearts and minds. If we can unleash that power to combat the climate crisis and other environmental issues, big things will happen. It’s already starting.”

Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

iHeartRadio Music Festival will return to Las Vegas this September. This year’s festival boasts a promising line-up featuring Megan Thee Stallion, Halsey, Nicki Minaj, and Avril Lavigne.

iHeartRadioMusic Festival will take place September 23 and 24 at the T-Mobile Arena. In addition to the aforementioned performers, Black Eyed Peas, Lionel Richie, LL Cool J featuring DJ Z-Trip, Luke Combs, Maren Morris, and Morgan Wallen are all set to take the main stage.

On that Saturday, Maggie Rogers, 5 Seconds of Summer, Big Time Rush, Girl in Red, Lauv, Chloe, Willow, Chase Rice, Latto, Carly Pearce, Ryan Hurd, GAYLE, and Lauren Spencer-Smith are set to take the Daytime Stage at Area15.

“We’re thrilled to once again return to Las Vegas for a weekend full of great live music with this year’s Festival,” said Tom Poleman, Chief Programming Officer for iHeartMedia, in a statement. “What makes this festival one of a kind is that we have the best artists from every genre of music that we play on our 860 iHeart stations all on one stage. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime chance to see so many legends performing together.”

For those who can’t make the festival, The CW Network will livestream the concert through the CW app, and will also broadcast the concert on a later day in October.

General on-sale begins Friday, June 17 at AXS.com.

Some of the artists mentioned are Warner Music artists. Uproxx is an independent subsidiary of Warner Music Group.

On Sunday, Atlanta rapper Trouble was shot and killed during a home invasion. Now, according to local news, police have a suspect in custody. 33-year-old Jamichael Jones turned himself in after Rockdale County Sheriff’s deputies went to Jones’s mother’s house and she received a call from Jones himself. One of the deputies got on the call and convinced Jones to surrender near Southern Regional Medical Center in Clayton County. He has been charged with felony murder, aggravated assault, home invasion, and battery and a judge denied his bond, setting his next hearing for June 15.

According to witnesses, Jones did not know the “Bring It Back” rapper, and Trouble was visiting a woman Jones did know. Apparently, there was some domestic dispute between them, and Trouble was shot once in the chest after Jones forced his way into the home. A neighbor described the neighborhood as “quiet” and said it was “traumatizing” to learn that not only was a national celebrity visiting the apartment building but was killed there as well. “To be honest with you, we don’t have that type of situation or issues that happen in this particular neighborhood, so to find out that you have a local celebrity that’s inside your residential area and this is what happens … it was like very, very traumatizing,” he explained.

Trouble was signed to Mike Will Made-It’s Ear Drummers label and was just two years removed from his last project, Thug Luv.

The Last Jedi is, I have to imagine, no one’s second favorite movie in the Star Wars sequel trilogy. It’s either your favorite for brilliantly subverting the worst Star Wars tropes, or your least favorite for turning Luke Skywalker into a defeated grump who turns his back on the Jedi. As someone who belongs to the former camp (it’s my third favorite Star Wars movie overall), I wanted to “burn it down” every time I looked at writer and director Rian Johnson’s Twitter mentions whenever he tweeted about the movie.

Heck, Johnson still hears from pissed-off Star Wars, five years later, so it’s understandable that he muted the replies to his first The Last Jedi tweet in some time.

“Haven’t touched this stuff in years, but Bryan lines them up and knocks them down so succinctly and with such a pleasant tone, I figured eh, f*ck it. (replies off to spare his timeline),” the Knives Out director tweeted. He was quote-tweeting a thread from writer and filmmaker Bryan Young, who wrote, “I’ve been seeing some interpretations of The Last Jedi in my mentions that are making me scratch my head and wonder if I saw the same movie. So I thought I’d tackle a few of them in a thread.”

The whole thing is worth a read, but here are some highlights:

Young left out the most important reason why The Last Jedi is good, though: porgs.

(Via Twitter/@swankmotron)

Mike Lindell is already facing multi-billion dollar lawsuits, and by his own admission, has spent over $30 million chasing (non-existent) definitive proof of voter fraud in the 2020 presidential election. Considering that endeavor has yet to re-install Donald Trump in the White House, you’d think Lindell wouldn’t get involved in another election, but nope. The MyPillow CEO is now accusing Georgia Governor Brian Kemp of stealing votes from Republican primary candidate Kandiss Taylor.

Despite running with the not-at-all awkward campaign slogan of “Jesus Guns Babies,” Taylor only earned three percent of the vote in the GOP primary. According to Lindell, who notably could only make this accusation on his self-owned Frank TV platform, there were shenanigans afoot. However, like all things Lindell, his accusations don’t make a lick of sense and rely on heavy “Trust me, bro” vibes.

Via Ron Filipkowski on Twitter:

He got 73 percent! How could you take those other votes? Let me tell you, everybody, we have preliminary evidence that Kandiss Taylor, for every single vote that Kemp got, he took her votes and then added them, and Kandiss got five percent. Now these are all through all the precincts. And then you have stuff go on in Georgia where certain people like Jodi Heights. They got the same percentage in just about every county like 17 percent. What is that rabbit? Well, Jay, I’ll you what it is, everybody. Did they not think anybody is gonna look? No, they don’t care. They want our country, they don’t care.

As for what any of that means, who the hell knows? We’d even go so far to say that Lindell doesn’t even know because he just rambles and rambles without providing proof of how Kemp somehow siphoned off 95 percent of Taylor’s votes if that’s even what Lindell is saying. Again, your guess is as good as ours.

(Via Ron Filipkowski on Twitter)

While Phoenix has yet to announce a new album, many signs reveal one is on the way. Most notably, when the group released the single “Alpha Zulu” last week, a press release noted Phoenix is “currently in the studio finishing up” their next LP, which has yet to be officially announced beyond that. Now, they’re getting further into this sort of pre-album album cycle by dropping a video for “Alpha Zulu,” a fun clip that makes used of deepfake technology to animate people in classics works of art into singing and nodding their heads along to the song.

Furthermore, the band has also announced a run of tour dates for later this year, which run in North America from September to October before heading to Europe in November. Porches will be opening on the North American dates.

Check out the “Alpha Zulu” video above and find Phoenix’s upcoming tour dates below.

06/08 — Barcelona, ES – Primavera In The City
06/10 — Lyon, FR – Nuits de Fourviere
06/11 — Barcelona, ES – Primavera Sound
09/06 — St. Paul, MN @ Palace Theatre *
09/07 — Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom *
09/09 — New York, NY @ Radio City Music Hall *
09/10 — New Haven, CT @ Westville Music Bowl *
09/13 — Boston, MA @ Roadrunner *
09/15 — Philadelphia, PA @ The Fillmore *
09/16 — Washington, DC @ Anthem *
09/17-18 — Atlanta, GA @ Music Midtown
09/19 — Nashville, TN @ Ryman Auditorium *
09/20 — Indianapolis, IN @ Egyptian Room *
09/22 — St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant *
09/23 — Bentonville, AR @ FOR_MAT Festival
10/06 — Los Angeles, CA @ YouTube Theater *
10/07 — Berkeley, CA @ Greek Theatre *
10/10 — Denver, CO @ Mission Ballroom *
10/12 — Kansas City, MO @ Arvest Bank Theatre *
10/14-16 — Austin, TX @ Austin City Limits
10/18 — Mexico City, MX @ Pepsi Center
11/16 — London, UK @ Brixton Academy
11/18 — Milan, IT @ Alcatraz Club
11/20 — Berlin, DE @ Columbiahalle
11/23 — Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique
11/26 — Amsterdam, NL @ Paradiso
11/29 — Paris, FR @ Olympia

* with Porches

Madden 23 has revealed its cover and offered up a brief tease of its gameplay, and with that comes the usual cycle from fans where there’s initial excitement over a new Madden game followed swiftly by begs and jeers to make it “good this time.” Unfortunately, Madden has failed to meet fans expectations for the last few entries. The reason for this ranges from a dependency on Ultimate Team, launch day glitches, and a gameplay system that has grown stale.

While Ultimate Team isn’t going away anytime soon, and we’re going to have to wait until launch day to see how the game plays, we do know that EA Sports is working on adding some changes to the gameplay of Madden 23 to make it feel like a step in the right direction. Recently, we were able to head to EA Tiburon in Orlando, Florida where Madden 23 is in development, and get an early look at the game. We also got access to an early build of the game to try out some of the new gameplay features in Madden 23, but what we really have been focusing on though is their new big staple, FieldSENSE.

FieldSENSE is the way Madden 23 is giving the player slightly more control over what is happening on the field. One of the big complaints of previous Madden games is how certain plays can feel like a slot machine playing out based on animations. Not to mention, players would interact with each other in sometimes unnatural motions. While these new animations have not made a perfect game, it paints the potential of a big improvement for the franchise and a great step into the next generation of consoles.

Hit Everything

The feature that probably is going to have the most impact on Madden 23 is what the developers are touting as “hit everything.” Essentially, pretty much anyone on the field can be hit at any point until the whistle was blown dead. An example of this would be on a play where a running back and a linebacker would collide with each other. Usually, based on some under the hood stuff, an animation for the play would be chosen and then it would play out and the play would end. What we would then see is players running up and then stopping instead of contributing to the tackle, or assisting the running back, until the animation played out. With hit everything, players now will run into the play and contribute to the action.

The feature doesn’t only play out in tackles though. It also takes place in pass plays, such as mid-air collisions, and even on the line in blocking scenarios. Tight ends now throw effective chip blocks to slow down rushers as they run out for routes. A player that is stumbling from chip blocks is less likely to make a tackle, or is more susceptible to a huge block from an incoming lineman. Of course, to counteract this blitzers on defense no longer have a slight delay, but instead take off the second the ball is snapped. Line up in an empty set if you want, but pass rushers can and will reach the QB without blocking help.

One area of frustration that hit everything did cause is that turnovers feel more frequent. This could be by design, because of my choice to fight for extra yardage, but there was one instance where my player got caught in an animation and fumbled the ball for a scoop and score because someone else came in and knocked it loose. Plays like that are going to frustrate players who feel like QB’s still fumble too easily.

Skill-Based Passing

Skill-based passing feels really good when it works, as every player has a catch radius where, if the ball lands in that radius, they’re almost guaranteed to make a play on the ball. However, the player can choose to utilize skill-based passing and choose where in the radius the ball lands making it easier to play keep away from defenders. This also creates a good skill gap between an accurate QB, like Aaron Rodgers, compared to a rookie like Matt Corral. If the player chooses they can have a meter on the bottom that, when it lands in the green, creates a more accurate pass and obviously players that are more accurate will have more green to work with.

Where skill-based passing gets really fun though is when the player chooses to put the ball outside the catch radius. If someone has Ja’Marr Chase and they throw a deep ball they can choose to put it in the catch radius, but there’s always a chance the corner is going to get there too, so what the player might want to do instead is put the marker farther outside that catch radius where they know only Chase can reach the ball with his incredible speed. If they place it just right, and Chase makes the grab, then that’s an easy TD. It adds a slight sense of skill where players that get really good can pick apart defenses.

Don’t feel obligated to use the game’s default settings either. The player can customize how far the marker can be moved from the catch radius, the sensitivity of the marker, if they want to have an accuracy meter, and if they want to use this feature in the first place. There’s even a slowdown option to help new players get used to using it, and if players don’t like skill-based passing then they can turn it off and go back to classic passing. This level of customization is really valuable for anyone that wants to create their own experience.

360 Cuts

360 Cut is probably the weakest of the FieldSENSE features. It’s not necessarily bad, but it feels very geared towards star players. An example of this can be seen in the trailer when Christian McCaffrey shrugs off a tackle while barely being touched by the safety.

Considering how skilled every running back is in the NFL these days, it feels a little unfair that stars can simply shrug off tackles while every down backs don’t get the same luxury. That said, the ability to break tackles is really only one part of the 360 Cuts feature. The real purpose of this is to let players make more direct movements with the ball.

In that sense, it works for the most part. It was definitely easier to redirect towards a hole in the line and not feel obligated to just push straight forward and hope everything works out. Kick returns also feel easier to dance through the coverage. Getting a good run game going still feels overly challenging sometimes, but this at least makes hitting the lane easier. The dream scenario for 360 Cuts, and this is where stars can really show their impact, is that eventually the really good running backs can dance behind the line and wait for a hole to open up the way Le’Veon Bell and David Johnson used to at their peak.

WR vs. DB Battles

It’s hard to say one way or the other how this is working so far. The build we were given at the moment only has Play Now and Play Online so there aren’t many ways to try out the game as a wide receiver or a corner. The AI would use the moves here and there, but it never felt particularly impactful although I did have one game where Stephon Gilmore ate Trevor Lawrence’s lunch, so maybe it was working better than I knew at the time. This is a feature we’re gonna have to come back to once more game features open up and we can play an experience meant for playing as an individual receiver or corner.

Note: Our build of Madden 23 is an incomplete version of the game for the PlayStation 5. While we were able to get early thoughts on FieldSENSE and the game itself, our experience was not a complete one.