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Review: Kuttin Edge – Turn Style EP

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Every so often during the week I go through various YouTube channels and social media accounts so that I’m able to catch up with news of any music releases that I may otherwise miss – such is the life of somebody who deleted their Spotify account and let their Tidal account lapse for a while. I’ll admit that it has become a bit of a ritual to cram a bunch of tracks into the evening and see what lands, and sometimes the answer is “nothing”. On the other hand, there are a few instances where more time is needed for something to truly make a strong impression; whether that’s because I need a few listens to truly appreciate something or because tracks of an EP or album are being drip-fed before a new release. The point I’m trying to make is that I wasn’t intending to write words about Turn Style EP – but now that I’ve given it some time, I think that it deserves a recommendation.

Turn Style EP – music for vibing

Art featured on the Bandcamp page for Turn Style by Kuttin Edge

Turn Style EP was released on Kuttin Edge’s Bandcamp page at the end of May, and consists of four tracks – around 17 minutes – of lively electronic music. Before the full release, a couple of the tracks were available to listen to on Bandcamp – with a third track later being published on YouTube via the likes of Drum&BassArena. The initial teases were promising, and I can report that the final EP has a lot to recommend. “Don’t You Know” provides an opening salvo that feels effervescent and alive. Bright drum effects and purposeful beeps immediately capture the imagination and act as wonderful background ambience when you’re locked into an activity or just vibing. Well-placed transitions keep the track fresh and avoid repetition, and the track doesn’t overstay its welcome. “Overthinking” then presents a gorgeous vocal number with some suitably earworm-y lyrics supported by a subdued bass and some charismatic twangs. Of all of the tracks here, it’s an early favourite of mine and I‘m still not bored of listening to it.

“Mood board”

Despite a captivating intro, the title track “Turn Style” initially gives you the impression that it’s not really going anywhere – you’re tapping your foot at the beginning but simultaneously waiting for the layers to build up, or you’re expecting a big beat drop, but nothing’s happening. However, it slowly finds its own identity with some cute zappy sound effects, a few organ-like keys being jabbed and effects in the background that rise and fade like waves crashing on the shore. It didn’t instantly grab me in the same way that “Overthinking” did, but I think that it succeeds in creating an admirable collage of moods and sounds. To close out Turn Style EP, Fox features on the track “Catch Flight” – a mesmerising dance between hypnotic melodies, driving rhythm and solid vocals. It’s a great contrast to the previous vocal offering of “Overthinking” and is a fine way to conclude the EP.

Turn Style EP – sound of the summer

If you have a few spare minutes to enjoy something different – maybe whenever we get a chance to enjoy more sunshine in the summer months – Turn Style EP is a nice way to kill some time. It’s a lot more chilled than the breakneck insanity I might otherwise listen to, and it might not have the energy of something like a soulful Makoto number (maybe try the recent “It’s Alright, I Feel It” for that) but at the same time it has a unique identity that I feel has been lacking in other mellow releases that I’ve tried recently. In a year where so far I’ve been nonchalant towards a lot of new electronic music (Logistics’ “Earthling” made an impression during March, but I might cover that during the annual round-up), it’s a pleasure to recommend something like this.

Turn Style EP is available now and can be found on the Kuttin Edge Bandcamp at this location

Dan’s Disposable 2025 – Highlights

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Like many people, I’ve been thinking a lot about the content I create and consume over the last 12 months. The constant rise of AI slop, the ethics and costs of various streaming services, and the mental impacts of short-form content and social media have all played a part.

Along with pondering the future of writing, it’s one reason I’ve picked a seemingly odd time to start learning photography. I’ve also watched more than enough Youtube guides to building cheap home servers to run my own personal streaming solution, revived an old cheap record player from my childhood, and continued to stockpile physical media.

But while I continue the entertainment version of doom prepping, there have still been a lot of great new films, TV shows, music, games and more to lift my spiritis.

Dan’s Disposable 2025: Watching

For the first time, I’ve started logging the films I watch on Letterboxd, to accompany my Last.fm and Goodreads tracking. Which definitely makes it easier to pick the highlights from the 60 movies I’ve watched over the last 12 months.

From the 2025 releases, Death of a Unicorn was enjoyable nonsense, Deep Cover was fun, and Wake Up Dead Man was up to the usual standard of the Knives Out films. But probably the most interesting was F1: The Movie with Brad Pitt. As a lifelong motorsport obsessive, I thought it was OK but spent too much time on cliched movie tropes rather than racing action and details. But my partner rated it as one of the best car films she’d seen, probably for the same reason.

And yet we both love Rush and Le Mans ’66 (aka Ford vs Ferrari), which both seem to manage the balance better.

F1: The Movie
F1: The Movie

Some of the more interesting older releases included The Last Duel, which took a different perspective on medieval chivalry, the aesthetics of both Asteroid City and The Sisters Brothers, the plots of Civil War and The Order, and the achievement of low budget time travel film Lola.

Lola

On the smaller screen, Slow Horses and the new related Emma Thomson series Down Cemetry Road didn’t disappoint. Neither did The Bear, or the latest series of Andor. The last of which persuaded my partner to try a Star Wars TV series for the first time, and was well received by both of us.

Riot Women was righfully a standout of the year, even if it was hard watching the behaviour of pretty much every male character. It helped that the music created by Brighton band ARXX for the series captures some of the best aspects of riot grrrl classics to balance the more horrific and tragic moments, and that the entire cast is amazing.

One new series which might have been slightly overlooked is A Thousand Blows. Stephen Graham rightfully deserved all of the praise and recognition for Adolesence which arrived on Netflix this year, but this Disney+ series is also very much worth watching as it follows the all-female crime syndicate the Forty Elephants, and the world of bare-knuckle boxing in the 1880s East End of London.

Erin Doherty stands out as gang leader Mary Carr, despite the presence of Graham and the central role of Malacki Kirby as Jamaican immigrant Hezekiah Moscow. And the real stories on which the series is based are equally fascinating if you fancy spending some time reading up on the background. With a second series arriving in January, it’s a good time to catch up on the first.

One painful thing this year is the loss of Rob Reiner, whose The Princess Bride is an annual New Year’s tradition in my house. Not to mention Spinal Tap, Stand By Me and so much more.

Dan’s Disposable 2025: Listening

As always, I’ve spent the year trying to discover new music along with playing my old favourites while I work from home. Apparently I’ve scrobbled around 9,500 tracks without taking into account physical media, or the standby of Radio 6Music to find new bands (or classic soul tracks I’ve missed thanks to Craig Charles).

I’m still working my way through various ‘best of 2025’ lists, but some of the standouts for me this year include the absolutely hypnotic ‘Oaxaca’ by Maggie Koerner;

I also really liked new albums ‘The Parlour’ by Picture Parlour, ‘Glory’ by Teen Jesus and the Jean Teasers, and the ‘Cruising To Self Soothe’ single by Ecca Vandal.

I was late to the Ghost train, but spent a lot of time catching up this year, along with listening to Skelata on repeat. And while I’ve tried to indoctrinate my teenage son with my favourite artists, he’s now returned the favour with Sabaton popping up a lot, including their new album Legends.

Speaking of being late to an artist, I also discovered the amazing Stephen Wilson Jr this year, who is around my age and blends country, rock and great lyrics wonderfull in songs like Year to Be Young 1994 and Father’s Son. And also does one of the only covers of ‘Stand By Me’ that is worth knowing.

Alongside all of that great new music, I have to acknowledge that we lost several musicians who played a huge part in my life. In the space of just a few weeks we lost Jimmy Cliff, Steve Cropper and Mani from the Stone Roses. All three feature enormously in my love of music, whether it’s the entire Stax back catalogue, the iconic soundtrack of The Harder They Come, or spending teenage years shuffling on a dancefloor to She Bangs the Drums, I Wanna Be Adored, or I Am the Resurrection.

Dan’s Disposable 2025: Gaming

I had a fair bit to look forward to this year. Big name releases including Football Manager 26, Call of Duty Black Ops 7 and Assetto Corsa EVO were all on my wishlist. And all three were more than a little disappointing at launch (although AC EVO has come on a lot since arriving in January).

But the biggest surprising and highlight was actually releated to one of them, with Assetto Corsa Rally announced shortly before launching in early access in November 2025. It’s the first rally game to include laser-scanned stages, and developers Supernova Games Studios have combined the AC physics engine with what appears to be a massive love and obsession with rallying. I loved it, but even more surprising was that it encouraged by non-sim racing family to have a go behind the wheel.

It also looks and sounds great.

Outside of racing games, which I’ll cover in far more depth over at OnlineRaceDriver, I did dabble a bit with Rematch, although lag issues meant that it didn’t last long. Instead I did benefit from GamePass as it encouraged me to give Vampire Survivors (2022) and Deep Rock Galactic Survivor (2024) a try, and they both took me back to one of my early gaming memories playing Gauntlet for hours on a Spectrum with a family friend.

I also revisited another classic gaming memory with Tony Hawks Pro Skater 3 + 4 which is a great updated version of the series.

Of the big name titles, probably Call of Duty has been the most disappointing. As much as I can still get caught up in the quick action and camo grind, it feels like a cut-and-paste of previous games with all the same problems involving latency, repetitive maps and pointless prestiging. At least my switch to milsims means I have Hell Let Loose: Vietnam to look forward to, while the original has had some good recent updates.

Dan’s Disposable 2025: Reading

The one area I’ve let lapse too much in 2025 has been reading for pleasure rather than work. I’ve got an ever-growing pile of books to catch up on, and I need to start setting some specific time to relax with the printed word rather than staring at a screen all day.

One thing I have been doing is revisiting classic science fiction, having picked up various SF Masterworks editions. Some are familiar, like The Time Machine and The War of the Worlds by H.G Wells, and others I’d missed like The Stars My Destination by Alfred Bester, but all are fascinating. I suspect I’ll be trying to work my way through the whole list over the coming years.

And alongside that I have modern scifi to catch up on, along with all the Reacher, Bosch, Wallander and Beck novels I have yet to acquire to complete the various series.

Looking forward to 2026

It’s been a weird year. But amidst the turmoil, there’s always some great new music, art, literature and gaming, and whatever your highlights have been, it’s important to recognise and celebrate them when times are tricky. One thing that has been noticeable for me is that many of my highlights involve other people, whether it’s watching films with my family, gaming with my son and friends, or getting a great recommendation for a book or music online.

For me, 2026 is about building more connections. Whether that’s meeting up with other, better photographers to learn more, focusing on the more social side of gaming (especially sim racing with my team), or inviting friends round for some movie nights.

Hopefully by the end of the year I’ll have made more progress on sorting and making my physical media more easily available. And feed some of that back into this website, too.

For a very different but really interesting set of highlights, check out Qazi’s picks of the year for 2025. And I’m really keen to hear what stood out for you this year, so leave a comment witch your favourite discoveries, both new and old.

Qazi’s Disposable 2025 – Highlights

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When I brought 2024’s entertainment round-up to a close, I told myself that I wouldn’t have a whole lot of bold new plans for the subsequent year – maybe some new hardware would be purchased, but I wasn’t pointing at notable 2025 videogames and films as things that I would be eager to check out. Subsequently, as I write the inaugural Qazi’s Disposable 2025 draft, I realise that the last twelve months have been as much about tackling my bucket list as they’ve been about following current news – however, I feel like there have still been some notable things worth talking about.

Qazi’s Disposable 2025: Watching

Qazi’s Disposable 2025

My film-watching time this year has admittedly been taken up with a number of rewatches; my long-standing admiration for the Robocop and Back to The Future films will inevitably make me postpone any “new” viewings to a later date. However, I still managed to make time for some first-time viewings; I watched a TV broadcast of Top Gun: Maverick that delivered on emotive relationships as effectively as it showcased hi-octane dogfights – whilst not the most cerebral movie, it was a fitting follow-up to the original, and impressed me enough to buy the two-film box set about a month later. (It also has a sizeable runtime stretching over two hours, but uses the time well.) Similarly, I watched the recent Naked Gun reboot in late November, and admired the rapid-fire nature of its continuous gags and punchlines. Neeson adopted the role of Drebin better than I could have imagined, and whilst some jokes were a bit weak, the standouts more than made up for any lapse in entertainment. (Five words: “did you get all that?”)

Another first-time viewing that I caught on Prime Video was 2008’s Wanted, or “what happens when a director watches Jeff Lew’s Killer Bean animations and has access to Angelina Jolie, Morgan Freeman and James McAvoy.” It was delightfully absurd but impressive in its spectacle – with bullets deflecting one another and bending around corners, it could have seemed so phony and fantastical. However, the fact that the story plays it straight means that you remain engaged in the nonsense. Elsewhere, perhaps one of the most curious films I watched for the first time was Lost In Translation. Following the lives of two individuals (played by Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson) who cross paths and slowly develop an unexpected bond, the story is very loose – it could almost be a montage of short films that someone decided to stitch together into a full movie – but it manages to remain touching and bittersweet. Every conversation and chance meeting was interesting, and I enjoyed following the pair; wondering where the events of the day would take them. I totally understand the criticisms of there being “no story”, but I still think that it has compelling characters and emotions that are capable of drawing you in.

(I’d also like to give an honourable mention to Ballerina – the spin-off movie from the John Wick universe – which I only got around to watching shortly before submitting this article. I had already watched the four main movies in the series with mixed admiration for them, and even though Ballerina cast the spotlight on a new protagonist, it offered a compelling revenge tale that was every bit as engaging as the mainline Wick movies. I’d definitely be keen to see more movies with de Armas as the lead…)

Qazi’s Disposable 2025: Listening

Qazi’s Disposable 2025

In 2025 I cancelled my Tidal subscription in an effort to reduce the amount of monthly digital services I’m paying for online, and instead I’ve just been following accounts of artists, DJs and labels on social media – as well as visiting my favourite specialist channels on YouTube. Generally speaking, it hasn’t been a huge loss for me; I guess I miss the high quality output of Tidal in comparison to playing tracks from YouTube, but in terms of discovery I’ve still been able to find lots of new music without being subscribed to a streaming platform. (Also, the better YouTube videos tend to link to Bandcamp and Soundcloud URLs in the description, so it’s not like I’ve had to tolerate YouTube quality and adverts all of the time.) In my round-up for last year I mentioned Vision Radio – the radio show available on the Vision Recordings YouTube channel – and the show has continued to be a great resource for discovering new bass music. The channel for Fokuz Recordings has also offered lots of chilled drum ‘n’ bass music – but I’ll admit that when I’m trying to catch up with all of their uploads in one sitting it can be hard for a single track to really stand out and make an impression.

I listened to a few albums with varying results – Flava D’s Here & Now had plenty of fun vibes with genuinely great vocals on the tracks; in contrast, Royksopp’s True Electric was a bit forgettable – that being said, I listened to way more EPs and singles. In particular, Vodkah and Dr. Khan released some excellent drum ‘n’ bass tunes with After Midnight and Habanera; the combined efforts of Mitekiss, Subten and Charlotte X dropped a gorgeous vocal D&B offering with Golden Hour, and Phil:osophy evoked the Chrono Trigger soundtrack with its dreamy Xanadu. I would never have imagined that the forest music from Square’s RPG would complement a D&B rhythm so well, but it’s incredibly effective. And whilst these aren’t technically albums, I’ll offer honourable mentions to a couple of other releases. For one, we had 3RMX82 – this followed the Machinedrum album 3FOR82 and includes brilliant instrumentals of tracks such as Zoom and Rise. (When I think about how desperate I used to be for instrumental versions of those two songs, I’ll consider this a win.) I’ll also give props to Planet Mu 30, a compilation of music from artists on the Planet Mu label, containing various tunes from 1995 to 2025 and releasing on physical media as well as MP3 – so I was fortunate enough to pick this up on CD. All of my listening has been possible with the same tech I mentioned in my 2024 round-up, but there’s nothing that I really consider old or broken enough to change at the moment.

Qazi’s Disposable 2025: Playing

Qazi's Disposable 2025

At the end of 2024, my round-up of the year in gaming covered a few fresh new RPGs as well as some older classics – this year, my main focus has been drawn solely towards the classics. There hasn’t really been a massive hit game from 2025 that has caught my attention (I still struggle with Hades 1 too much to justify considering the sequel, and I have this irrational fear that I just won’t vibe with whatever Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 has to offer) – I played Shinobi: Art of Vengeance for a while, but even that got a bit tiresome thanks to some lengthy boss sequences and a move away from the classic linear levels. Instead, I’ve been making up for lost time by getting around to some older hits, and it’s generally helped me to enjoy the year at my own pace. You know, instead of chasing the latest trends at launch day prices so that I can throw meaningless contributions into The Discourse. Ahem.

If nothing else, I’m pleased that I’ve removed a few more games from my lifetime bucket list. I bought Final Fantasy IX in a sale after seeing some excellent retrospectives, and I was immediately captivated by the charming characters, the fantasy setting and the way that equipment can unlock abilities. The difficulty was generally perfect for my own pace, and the music had some standout tracks such as the brash Iifa Tree theme. I finally experienced Earthbound – I’ve wanted to play through this ever since I’ve been able to emulate SNES games, and over June I ultimately faced Giygas and watched the credits. (I honestly found some elements of the game a struggle, such as the inventory limit and a few of the status ailments, but pushing enemies into the instant-kill threshold makes progress smoother.) And in December I managed to squeeze in a first playthrough of Transistor – it had some tough encounters, but the narration, soundtrack and presentation kept drawing me back.

And of course, there was Dark Souls Remastered. This was a game that had been built up by fans for over a decade, and even though I disliked some of the runs from bonfire to boss – that, and I generally prefer the vibe of something like Bloodborne – I’ll admit that there is something to enjoy in this game. I still find the repeat trips through the Undead zones kind of fatiguing at the start of the game, but eventually the pacing and variety improves… even if it does peak early at Anor Londo. It’s telling that I’m already considering yet another playthrough in 2026 – the more you play the game, the more you get to know the boss battles… and so challenges that seemed insurmountable become mere formalities as you enjoy the journey.

Bonus content: Streaming in 2025

With Twitch imposing its 100hr limit for highlights, I haven’t really been keen to stream long games over the year. I know that last year I set up the streaming bit of “Qazi’s Disposable 2025” by hinting at ambitious plans – I wanted to do a full livestream of Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, even though I know that the game can be a bit grindy in places – but these were duly cancelled. I have been considering YouTube as a home for streaming, but I would want to set up a dedicated channel rather than stream to an existing one. I’ve also been trying to think of other games that would be short enough to justify streaming, but I haven’t made any definite plans for the moment. (Aside: my streaming setup has generally been well-behaved this year; my bitrate and quality settings have prevented any dropped frame catastrophes, and I’m happy with the current solution for audio offset. Of course, part of the setup will inevitably break for no reason in the future, but I just want to enjoy this while it lasts.)

2026 in entertainment

With the ceremonies for Qazi’s Disposable 2025 drawing to a close, I have a few things that I’d like to do over the next twelve months. For starters, I want to try and have another relatively cheap year, so I may continue to look at older games and films. I’d like to play some “7 out of 10”s such as Sonic Frontiers and Stranger of Paradise, my usual group of music channels on YouTube will continue to receive regular visits, and I may consider the Blu-Ray releases of the Nobody and M3GAN sequels. At the same time, I’ll still want to follow current news (the more Persona 4 Revival media is revealed, the better) so I hope you’ll join me in celebrating the new and the… slightly old, in 2026. Until then, thanks for any time you’ve spent reading our articles, and make sure that you check out Dan’s Disposable 2025 as well.

The 1999 of dance music: with Surrender and Rhythm and Stealth

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We love to reminisce. Throughout the history of entertainment and culture, we always look back on moments in time that represent significant periods where our lives were moulded by the media we were consuming at the time. Occasionally there are sentiments that can resonate across the internet, but today I want to highlight a fairly short but important journey through a few years of my life enjoying dance music. (A private joke I make to myself today is that my reminiscence of the 90s is no different to me as a 90s kid listening to adults reminisce about the 60s. Cultural impact aside, all generations are as guilty of living in the past as each other – but I digress…) This was going to be a broader love-in that started from 1995 and ended at the turn of the millennium – and rest assured, we’re still going there – but in my mind I sharpened my focus on two albums that made 1999 the 1999 of dance music.

Preface – the club era, and Wipeout

In 1994 I hadn’t yet started secondary school, and I was starting to make my own discoveries in the world of music. We had no streaming media and we didn’t really have the internet as we know it now, so I was listening to the top 40 music chart on the radio every Sunday. Armed with a stereo recorder and cellophane-wrapped blank cassettes, I would record all manner of genres – but I particularly grew to like dance music, and through much of 1994-1996 I would enjoy bold, brash club hits such as Livin’ Joy’s “Dreamer” or Baby D’s “Let Me Be Your Fantasy”. I was never too selective about my favourite artists through this early period of discovery; I just enjoyed the vibe of the dance scene around that three year period, and so instead of looking for albums I would often look for compilations – Dance Mania 3, Dance Tip ‘95 and In The Mix ‘96. These releases provided an instant variety selection of – hopefully – the best of what the genre had to offer in the year, and so I didn’t have to worry about looking for one artist’s album and realising that the single whose vibe and hook disrupted the UK chart was also the only song of note in the subsequent album.

However, in the late 90s I found myself being introduced to new sounds. The Prodigy would release “Firestarter” and their album “The Fat of The Land” – an album that presented brooding moments in “Climbatize” alongside rap offerings via “Diesel Power”. Sony and Psygnosis would release Wipeout 2097, featuring music from The Prodigy, Future Sound of London, Leftfield and The Chemical Brothers. I’d discover electronic music that wasn’t just designed to fill a dancefloor and be easily digestible – it would explore different moods, tempos and vibes. There was definitely a point where the club music of the mid 90s just wasn’t holding the same appeal for me that it used to, and I was looking for more music like The Fat of the Land, or like the Wipeout OST representatives. (That’s not to say that there weren’t timeless classics amongst those compilation selections; In the Mix ’96 Vol. 3 featured Underworld’s “Born Slippy”, for instance.) At the same time, I was still listening to the radio and following music news on TV, and in the late 90s there were special radio programmes previewing new tracks from those very representatives. I remember making time to set up my stereo in preparation to record exclusive reveals of songs from Leftfield’s “Rhythm and Stealth”, and also “Surrender” by The Chemical Brothers. Things were changing in my world – at home, the mix and dance compilations were being left behind, and even something like “The Fat of the Land” felt like a singular moment of raw punk ethos that few would try to emulate.

The 1999 of dance music – a psychedelic surrender

A still from the music video for Let Forever Be, for the article The 1999 of dance music

Forget the 1998 of gaming; the 1999 of dance music cemented this change in me – when both “Surrender” and “Rhythm and Stealth” would be released in June and September respectively. At this point in time I still hadn’t listened to Leftism or the earlier albums from The Chemical Brothers – I was only interested in buying the Brand New Thing I had heard about. However, even without that frame of reference (or perhaps because I lacked the frame of reference), each album opened my ears to new ways of thinking about the dance and electronic genres. “Surrender” still had urgent, energetic tracks such as “Under The Influence” and the timeless single “Hey Boy Hey Girl”, but it also explored other avenues of sonics. “Orange Wedge” was a deliberately slower groove that combined harsh twangs with a reassuring bassline; elsewhere, “Asleep From Day” offered a gorgeous and dreamy vocal track to begin side B of the cassette album – a mood that would return with the closing track, “Dream On”. Even tracks like “The Sunshine Underground” combined a dancefloor-friendly tempo with a euphoric melody that was like nothing else I was listening to in the prior years. This was dance music via psychedelia – grooves and vibes sharing company with bleeps and beats. It didn’t have to be listened to whilst stood up and jumping in a crowd – it was something you could sink into as your headphones closed off the world around you. I remember at first I felt myself stirring impatiently when listening to the album and waiting for the next club banger, but over time those bangers were the ones that I ended up skipping. I find value in all of the tracks, of course, but if I’m curating highlights from albums in my media library, “Orange Wedge” will be my first selection from the album.

(In 2019 The Chemical Brothers would celebrate the 20th anniversary of “Surrender” by releasing several new editions of the album. Firstly, a box set for CD or vinyl fans that came with additional remixes, a DVD, art prints, a photo book and more. Additionally, a cheaper edition which included a second CD with remixes curated by The Chemical Brothers. I skipped the box set, but I picked up the 2 CD edition.)

Rhythm and Stealth in the 1999 of dance music

A still from the music video for Afrika Shox, for the article The 1999 of dance music

Leftfield’s “Rhythm and Stealth” followed a similar template – yes, there were high energy offerings in “Phat Planet” and “Double Flash”, and bold vocal showpieces courtesy of “Afrika Shox”, but this was a different way of enjoying the genre. Slow, complex soundscapes were painted across the likes of “Dub Gussett”, delivering steady rhythm and an almost “industrial” quality to the melody. Meanwhile, “6/8 War” was exactly as it sounded – a rhythmic march to an unconventional beat. One of my favourite tracks on the album, “El Cid”, is beautifully soothing and serene experience that almost feels embarrassed to introduce any rhythm – it already does so much with so little. (As you’d imagine from my poor student life, I originally bought both albums on cassette and listened to them religiously on my personal stereo, but the digital treatment from CD releases definitely revitalised them.) If “Surrender” from The Chemical Brothers was dance music via psychedelia, I thought of Leftfield’s album as something more meditative; even so, it was still unafraid to be outspoken when it wanted to. If you’re looking for some music that’s going to get people on their feet and busting their moves, you probably won’t be doing it by including “Chant of a Poor Man” in the playlist, but that’s almost the point. My perception of dance music had changed; it wasn’t just about the safe bops; it was about tunes that made you think – that made you feel. The 1999 of dance music has kind of become a distant memory for the moment as my tastes have shifted again (towards drum and bass), but these two albums still activated something inside that was dormant, and I still enjoy more complex, weirder electronica whenever I come across it.

(Unlike “Surrender”, there were no special re-releases of “Rhythm and Stealth” to coincide with recent anniversaries. However, following the release of their subsequent album “Alternative Light Source”, “Rhythm and Stealth” was reissued. “Alternative Light Source” was released more than a decade after the original release of “Rhythm and Stealth.”)

When I first started thinking of ideas for this article, I was going to talk about how the Wipeout series shaped my tastes in dance music… but the truth was that it merely brought my attention to some names I hadn’t heard of. It was the exclusive radio plays that did more work than anything else, and that spirit of discovery can still be felt today. Streaming services will try and push personalised playlists to you every week, but curation is performed by specialist podcasts, blogs and YouTube channels. I’m probably discovering more album releases now than I ever was in 1999, but this article wasn’t just about media consumption – it was about the influence on my own interests. Again, this piece could have documented a longer journey through the end of the 90s… but the more I want to cover, the more that needs to be said, and then the size of this article becomes unreasonable. Besides, I didn’t want to dilute the impact of a very specific point in time. I think that these two albums serve as fine representatives for a particular moment in the genre’s history, and I only hope that I’ve done them justice with this personal journey through “the 1999 of dance music”. They’re not necessarily my favourite albums from The Chemical Brothers and Leftfield, but they came around at a time when I still didn’t know what kind of “dance music” was out there. I’d also like to make it clear that I’m by no means claiming that these two albums were the only notable releases in 1999, but I only knew so much at the time, through my limited exposure to radio shows and the like. Even today I still wouldn’t say I know everything, but it’s moments such as my own 1999 that awaken these kind of discoveries, and I think that’s something worth celebrating.

Rhythm and Stealth was released by Leftfield under the Hard Hands label in 1999; Surrender was released by The Chemical Brothers under the Freestyle Dust label in 1999. Both albums are available to listen to on all good streaming services.

Silent Hill 2 2024 Special Vinyl Sets Available To Pre-Order

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If you’re a fan of the modern remake of the classic survival horror game, you can now take your fandom to another level with Silent Hill 2 2024 special vinyl sets available to pre-order.

The new version of the game brought back Akira Yamaoka, the composer and musician who created music for the Silent Hill games and films. But while the original was developed by Team Silent, who were part of Konami, this time the game was created by Polish developers Bloober Team, although it’s still published by the Japanese company.

And to celebrate the positive response from fans and reviewers, there are four vinyl sountrack sets to choose from. Both the Deluxe Double Vinyl and Exclusive Edition Deluxe Double Vinyl in a milky clear colour feature 27 tracks sequenced by the composer in a widespined out sleeve for £36, with the latter being a Laced Records exclusive.

Silent Hill 2 2024 Special Vinyl Sets Available To Pre-Order
Silent Hill 2 2024 Special Vinyl Sets Available To Pre-Order

But the big one is the £125 6LP box set, with a Deluxe version, and the Laced exclusive Limited Edition with opaque brown and red A-side/B-side effect heavyweight LPs and a 32-page art booklet with liner notes written by Yamaoka, also featuring art work by Bloober Team, printed inner sleeves and a handy ribbon pull for the rigid board slipcase.

They feature the complete 93-track soundtrack mastered for vinyl, featuring the reworking of the original by Yamaoka with new and re-recorded cues using trip-hop, industrial rock, dark ambience and musique concrète to create the eerie atmosphere of the town in Maine as you guide James Sutherland on the search for his deceased wife Mary.

Silent Hill 2 composer, Akira Yamaoka, says: “After nearly a quarter of a century, SILENT HILL 2 has been revived. I’ve poured a tremendous amount of thought and passion into this thing called SILENT HILL. Touching it again evoked a special emotion I had never felt before—as if I was touching the breath of God. Writing this music was a personal challenge, but I feel a deep sense of gratitude towards the people around the world who have loved this series for so long.”

The expected shipping date is October 2025, and you can view the Silent Hill collection via Laced Records, through the UK and Canada store, here, or the rest of the world, here.

Destiny 2: Original Soundtrack Volume 1 Vinyl Pre-Orders Begin

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One thing that always separated the Halo and Destiny game series from similar titles was the music. And you’ll soon be able to enjoy it through your record player as Destiny 2: Original Soundtrack Volume 1 vinyl pre-orders begin.

There’s more than an hour of music over two LP records, and you also get a gatefold jacket with art inspired by the Light and Dark, a collectible insert card featuring Commander Zavala and Dominus Ghaul, and a code for an exclusive in-game ‘Drop the Needle’ emblem.

The compositions featured are from the inaugral Destiny 2 campaign “The Red War”, which followed the release of the game in 2017.

Destiny 2: Original Soundtrack Volume 1 Vinyl Pre-Orders Begin
Destiny 2: Original Soundtrack Volume 1 Vinyl Pre-Orders Begin

Track Listing:

  • A1. Inner Light
  • A2. Last Rite
  • A3. Rise
  • A4. EDZ
  • A5. Towerfall

Side A Timing: 18m54s 

  • B1. Lost Light
  • B2. Forge Ahead
  • B3. Battle Stations
  • B4. Utopia Fallen
  • B5. Lost Sector

Side B Timing: 19m30s 

  • C1. Journey
  • C2. View from Orbit
  • C3. Red Legion
  • C4. New Dawn
  • C5. What We Fight For

Side C Timing: 18m13s 

  • D1. Leviathan
  • D2. The Wilds
  • D3. Holliday
  • D4. The Farm
  • D5. Be Brave

Side D Timing: 22m04s

It’s a little odd to have around 20 minutes of music per side, which means you’ll going to be getting up regularly to flip the records over. The music for Destiny 2 was composed by Michael Salvatori, Skye Lewin, C Paul Johnson, Rotem Moav, Pieter Schlosser, Kris Dirksen, and Nikola Jeremic. Michael Sechrist joined from the Curse of Osiris onwards, with Josh Mosser being involved from Forsaken to the present day. Since release in 2017, the eighth expansion, The Final Shape, arrived in 2024, ending the initial Light and Darkness saga.

Obviously you can also stream the soundtrack to the game from various places online, but this is definitely more about owning a physical collectible as much as the improvement in audio quality for those with a high-end sound system.

You can order the Destiny 2: Original Soundtrack Volume 1 Vinyl directly from the Bungie store which shipping dates estimated at ‘4-6 months after placing order’. It’ll also be available from other retailers. And for more of our videogame coverage, click here, or for music, go here.

The worth of your entertainment

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Despite being deep into a digital future (which is pretty much a digital present now) I still enjoy physical media, and if you were to pay me a visit you’d see my music, films and games on display. If you cast your eyes over my small shelf of games you’d eventually spot a handful of Game Boy Advance titles, and right between Donkey Kong Country and (squints) some Tales game, is my copy of Wario Ware Inc. Not the copy I originally bought in 2003, but something I went out of my way to re-purchase online in 2010. I had sunk hours into my original copy of Wario Ware, and the massive regret I felt over flogging it (to fund a DS) prompted me to go and buy someone’s copy of the game – with the box, and manual, and in reasonably good condition. Not something I’d bother doing for a lot of old physical media I pick up, but sometimes I can make an exception. And now that you know about my own questionable purchasing decisions, let me talk to you about the worth of your entertainment and what it should mean.

The worth of your entertainment (for consumers)

Image from Wario Ware Inc, with Kat in front of the silhouette of Boneheads. Uploaded for the Disposable Media article "The worth of your entertainment".

What something is worth is a question that isn’t resolved simply by going to PriceCharting and searching for the going rate of your videogame collection – because if we just started measuring worth by potential monetary gain then we’d be living with the people who keep shrink-wrapped copies of their rare vinyl and obscure videogames. Worth isn’t just defined by an equivalent monetary exchange; “worth” can apply to an investment – monetary or not – that someone is willing to make in order to pursue a desired outcome; in this case, personal entertainment. In the seventh generation I had no interest in multiplayer shooters, so I would get much less out of a Halo 3 or a Call of Duty 4 – in contrast, I have tens of hours in Hotline Miami; a game that’s comparatively cheaper and yet is over in seven or eight hours according to the playthrough-tracking website HowLongToBeat. I’m not necessarily saying that people can’t wring more worth from those multiplayer shooters, but everyone finds different ways to enjoy their time with games, and so the “worth” is a much more personal aspect of an experience compared to the money you handed over in order to have that experience.

It extends even further beyond the people who play games for fun – there are professional gamers who wouldn’t want to waste their time with a product that is buggy, broken or imbalanced, and there are professional streamers and Youtube creators who will value something that they can wring precious “content” from. Sometimes the worst reaction from those people won’t be pointing and laughing at the game; it will be the lack of any reaction whatsoever. If a popular streamer is playing your game and visibly looks bored, will it really be worth their time to stream more of the game in future?

The worth of your entertainment (for businesses)

I bring this up not just to shed light on my questionable purchasing habits, but because I feel like this is something that the entertainment industry frequently risks losing sight of. We’re already in an environment where the service providers want to have a continuous stream of funds from your wallet. Movie streaming subscription fees, music streaming subscription fees, fees to remove adverts, downloadable content and season passes for videogames. (In the writing space, the feeling is magnified if you’re writing for free and buy all of the entertainment you review.) No amount of money you part with is enough for the people selling things to you… but for a consumer, certain amounts of money will be enough, and everyone has a threshold that can’t be crossed. The business dream of generating more revenue than last year – every year – only works if the entertainment is worth the increasing demands you make on those you sell to. Businesses will still chase the dream of infinite growth, but the amount a consumer can invest in a product or service is finite and often quite limited. And with that kind of caveat in mind we can find as much worth in the smaller scale productions as we do in the more ambitious releases – so now I’m going to make a point of including a picture of that Sonic meme below because I’ll forget by the time this is ready to publish.

Image of the Sonic meme where he is reclined and has a speech bubble: "I want shorter games with worse graphics made by people who are paid more to work less and I'm not kidding.". Uploaded for the Disposable Media article "The worth of your entertainment".

(Credit: X users Jordan_Mallory and MsFeliciaRondo (Knowyourmeme))

The obvious point

I guess what I’m trying to say is that “worth” should be more important than revenue? If people sink hours into your product or service and feel compelled to buy future additional content and tell their friends how much fun they’re having, it’s an outcome that has lasting positive effects. To a lot of people most of this should be obvious – of course people only have so much time and money – but you wouldn’t think so if you look at the business practices of selling less and asking for more. There is only so much lasting positivity that can come from bleeding funds from your audience, and if it begins to negatively affect their enjoyment then it tanks the worth of whatever you’re providing. And I guess I’m also trying to say that you should go and play Wario Ware Inc. again (cartridge battery permitting.)

Qazi’s Disposable 2024 – Highlights

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With the conclusion of my entertainment round up in 2023, I outlined some vague plans for these twelve months – catching up on my library, buying some new tech and doing some more streaming. And so when I started collecting my notes filed under “Qazi’s Disposable 2024”, In all honesty I probably didn’t get as much done with my plans as I would have liked, but I’m still content with the year in entertainment.

Qazi’s Disposable 2024: Watching

Qazi’s Disposable 2024

In my round up for last year I mentioned that I never got around to Barbie or Oppenhemier, so I made a point this year to watch both and write my thoughts on the films. Scheduling a block of two days to watch the two films, I began with Oppenhemier and enjoyed the atmosphere and tension; less so the nonlinear storytelling which came across as a bit clumsy and unnecessary. Barbie, on the other hand, was a fun commentary on identity and self-image, but was light-hearted enough for anyone to enjoy it. I also took some time to watch Fallout, the Prime Video series based on the popular post-apocalyptic RPGs. Whilst I haven’t played the games myself, I enjoyed the dark humour and the contrast of the three main characters, but also the moralising and the depth of emotion in the scenes. Purnell, Moten and Goggins were a joy to watch, and despite being talked into watching the series I ended up looking forward to each of the episodes.

Elsewhere, I did more catching up on older films, and I think I explored both ends of the emotional scale. The Mike Judge film “Idiocracy” had been on my bucket list for a while and I finally rented it in June. A fantasy comedy which follows two individuals into a stupider future, it’s a brilliant commentary on our own sense of intelligence, and I enjoyed it so much that I searched around for somewhere to order it on disc the next day. The other bucket list film – on the other end of the emotions – was “Hachi: A Dog’s Tale.” I vaguely knew about the story of Hachikō and so I had a general idea of how the film would play out, but it still got me pretty choked up. It inverts your typical animal tragedy by framing the dog as the one continuing life after the passing of their owner, and even though it gets a little bit samey in the middle, the last half hour or so was genuinely moving. I figured that as I grew older I wouldn’t have the same emotional reactions to tear-jerkers with cute animals, but this film managed it.

I don’t have any massive regrets about movies I missed, but I can’t deny that I’m falling behind on a few long-running series. The third Sonic movie was being talked about this year and I still haven’t got around to watching the second one – meanwhile, there are around four Avengers movies now and I think that I’ve only watched up to Age of Ultron. Oops.

Qazi’s Disposable 2024: Listening

Qazi’s Disposable 2024

Conveniently enough, I’m drafting this article on the same day that Tidal has published my “Most Listened” of 2024, although its summary of the year’s music isn’t too surprising – I ended up listening to plenty of EPs and singles in 2024, and a lot of “high energy” genres such as drum & bass. Under Influence Records, Bungle continued to deliver some dreamy D&B vibes with things like the Black Waves EPs. Squarepusher made a return with “Dostrotime”, his follow-up to 2020s “Be Up A Hello” (I particularly liked the “Arkteon” acoustic pieces that served as nice interludes between the more intense tracks) and even the dubstep producer Sharks decided to pivot into a high tempo number with (checks notes) “watching everything burn right in front of me”. However, if I were to settle on one standout I’d probably pick something from the Bungle EPs, because each one absolutely dials into the kind of vibes that I enjoy in electronic music.

(Although it isn’t a genre I typically follow, I also need to give a special mention to the feud between Drake and Kendrick Lamar – it’s been highly entertaining and captured the attention of all kinds of people who weren’t keeping up with the modern rap scene.)

I’ve also been revising and refining the sources of music discovery available to me – making regular visits to the Vision Recordings YouTube channel and their radio show (the show has a lot of exclusive early reveals and I often end up having to write myself reminders to hunt down tracks when they’re released for purchase and streaming), bookmarking the channels for Liquicity and Night Bass for my liquid and house needs, and keeping my one dormant X account alive just so that I still have a list of musicians, labels and DJs I can continue to follow. And of course, I’ve been insufferable on social media – filling Bluesky timelines and Discord channels with links to whatever tune has dominated my attention span on a given day. To everyone’s credit, I haven’t been met with any resistance and all of my mutuals and contacts seem pretty tolerant of my enthusiasm. The one thing that’s kind of remained dormant in 2024 has been my listening tech – I got some Marshall Mode EQ earphones in a sale, but that’s about it. Then again, not much is wrong with my current setup – I’ve generally covered my needs for home and portable listening. The only possible future purchase would probably be an optical drive for my desktop that actually works… but even then I have a dedicated CD player…

Qazi’s Disposable 2024: Playing

Qazi’s Disposable 2024

I was pretty excited going into this year. The inaugural Qazi’s Disposable 2024 article would have so many good things to say with Final Fantasy VII Rebirth being released and Metaphor: Refantazio finally making an appearance. What was more surprising, however, was that my favourite RPG was neither of these games. Like A Dragon: Infinite Wealth wasn’t just a riot from beginning to end – it’s probably provided me with the most fun over an RPG’s hour count since Persona 4 Golden. It filed the rough edges of the seventh game’s pacing whilst also making nearly every interaction fun and rewarding. The instant takedowns and pursuit of job skills made combat incredibly satisfying, the playground of minigames and side-stories managed to provide hours of distractions, and there are no difficulty spikes as notorious as chapter 12 in the predecessor. Did I enjoy it more than P4G? Not really, but in my mind – in my world of likes and dislikes – it’s one of the first games that’s comparable to P4G in terms of polish and quality. Tellingly, I’m already considering buying it again on Steam.

However, in a year without Infinite Wealth, Rebirth and Metaphor would still be remarkable achievements as well – one an extravagant celebration of FFVII’s world and characters; the other a stunning entry into the fantasy genre from a studio that leans more towards modern urban settings. Both impressed me to the extent that I’m already keen for news about the next game in the FFVII Remake trilogy and the next Metaphor game.

Finally, I was able to get around to some classics that I always wanted to play – I managed to complete Super Metroid at last (I enjoyed the adventure but I will never forgive how vague the in-game map is. I know that it’s nice to give the player room to speculate, but the map could at least colour-code the pink, green and orange doors on the map once I’ve seen them! In the end, I actually created my own map in Google Drive, but it’s likely to be full of errors…) and set aside four or five hours for Doki Doki Literature Club – the sugary-sweet visual novel which I… can’t really talk about. Just like Undertale, it’s the kind of experience you enjoy more if you know less beforehand.

As with most years, I wish I had more time to play more things, but I already have gaming plans outlined for 2025. Oh, and I didn’t play the Elden Ring DLC because I lent my disc to someone – so that’s why we haven’t covered it this year.

Qazi’s Disposable 2024: Streaming

I don’t have much streaming news to reflect on this year, save for one long-term project; I played through Final Fantasy V Advance on stream. I’ve streamed a few highlights from RPGs before, and I’ve previously streamed a full “Hero” playthrough of the charming Half-Minute Hero, but in terms of total hours streamed for a single game this is easily the most – 13 hours of stream footage over 16 sessions. I even streamed a separate window with the pages of notes I had written from a previous playthrough, so that I had something to refer to and so that anyone watching could see my inner madness. And although FFV Advance actually took more than twice that many hours to finish once the stream was done, I wasn’t going to broadcast all of my grinding. Personally I’m really happy with how much I was able to stream, and I have a more ambitious stream planned for next year…

Future adventures

As ever, I don’t know how much any kind of life stuff is going to affect me and the time I have to enjoy my favourite entertainment, but I’ll have some things lined up for when opportunities present themselves. For instance, I’d like to check out the new Monster Hunter but also get into a few older games, I’ll continue to grow my digital music library and look at more films to stream, and I’m considering some new hardware too. For now, I’ll just say thanks to anyone who has clicked on any of our articles this year, or followed us on social media – your support is always appreciated, and we hope you have a great 2025 planned. And while you’re here, don’t forget to take a look at Dan’s Disposable 2024 highlights as well.

Dan’s Disposable 2023 – Highlights

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2023 felt more like a sequel to the previous year than a fresh start. A continuation rather than an evolution. And that’s been reflected a bit in my personal entertainment highlights of the year.

As we all increasingly rely on the personalised recommendations tailored by algorithms, it requires more effort to actually find things outside our comfort zone. And if you’re worn down by challenging times, it’s a lot easier to just accept what you’re being spoonfed, or to rely on the comfort of binging on familiar music and TV.

There’s nothing wrong with returning to the familiar, but the era of individualism means you can’t rely on a late night radio show or TV appearance causing everyone to suddenly discover a band and insist you listen to them immediately the next day.

Dan’s Disposable 2023: Watching

When it came to TV, the year started with Season 3 of Jack Ryan on Amazon, followed by Season 4 in the summer, as Jim from The Office continued his watchable new spy career. Along with the entire run of Justified and this year’s Justified: City Primeval. And from the Elmore Leonard adaptation, I moved onto Season 2 of Reacher, based on the Lee Child books, and featuring the sizeable presence of Alan Ritchson as the title character.

But the standout spy thriller and adaptation of the year has to be Season 3 of Slow Horses. As Gary Oldman once again manages to make Jackson Lamb somehow endearingly uncomfortable to watch, it also provides a remarkably calm yet tension-filled showdown away from the gunfire.

If the third season of Ted Lasso was the end, then it went out with some brilliant moments despite the typical internet naysayers. And Colin From Accounts is a great new Australian comedy to fill some of the void, along with the second series of Good Omens.

Both Gen V and I’m a Virgo are queued up on my watchlist now that I’ve finally caught up with Picard, various Star Wars series, and the Marvel franchises.

But the TV pick of the year has to be Season 2 of The Bear. After being one of my highlights of 2022 when it debuted, having established characters and settings allowed it to go deeper, harder and in a few different directions. Most notably during the incredible Christmas episode, but also in fleshing out more of the cast, particularly focusing on the previously pretty unlikeable Richie Jerimovich, and the slightly anonymous Marcus.

When it comes to films, Qaz and I both agree on the brilliance of Everything Everywhere All At Once. If you haven’t seen it yet for any reason, you really should.

I also enjoyed The Unbearable Weight of Massive Talent with Nicolas Cage more than his work in Willy’s Wonderland. Finally catching up with the endless stream of Marvel products confirmed Thor: Ragnarok is probably the best at balancing drama and comedy (although Guardian of the Galaxy 3 is there with it). And a lot of time was spent clearing out recordings, or introducing my son to classic Jackie Chan films with classics including The Young Master, Armour of God and more currently available on Amazon Prime.

Dan’s Disposable 2023: Reading

I faltered a bit with reading enough away from a screen this year, and have a big pile of books to get through in 2024.

Having picked up an enormous stack of classic sci-fi in a charity shop haul, I finally read The Dispossessed by Ursula K. Le Guin, and can agree with the recognition and awards it’s received since being originally published in 1974. It’s one of the best books I’ve read where little actually happens to the protagonists, but sparks plenty of thoughts in the reader.

Plenty to read in 2024…

Away from science fiction, Burma ’44 gave me an insight into the experiences of my late grandfather during World War 2, and made me wish I’d made more effort to speak to him about it. And for a gentle encouragment to get out and walk more, there’s Where the Deer and the Antelope Play by Nick Offerman.

Dan’s Disposable 2023: Listening

Age and the availability of music through streaming platforms has made it much harder to identify recent releases from the fresh discoveries of songs and artists that everyone else knew about decades ago. Or diving into back catalogues that I hadn’t investigated.

But along with finally going through everything released by the likes of Mary Timony and Martha Wainwright, some recent releases I’ve been returning to on a regular basis include:

  • boygenius “the record”
  • Deerhoof “Miracle Level”
  • The Mountain Goats “Jenny from Thebes”
  • Lankum “False Lankum”
  • Greta Van Fleet “Starcatcher”
  • Anohni “My Back Was A Bridge For You To Cross”
  • Metallica “72 Seasons”
  • Cherry Glazer “I Don’t Want You Anymore”
  • Dengue Fever “Ting Mong”
  • Dream Wife “Social Lubrication”
  • Anti-Flag “Lies They Tell Our Children”
  • Death Pill “Death Pill”
  • Rancid “Tomorrow Never Comes”
  • Dropkick Murphys “Okemah Rising”
  • Muireann Bradley “I Kept These Old Blues”

And I’m slowly coming to terms with the recent announcement that The Screaming Females are calling it a day after 18 years.

Dan’s Disposable 2023: Playing

Given that I wrote about my strange obsession with Football Manager, it’s no surprise that the final iteration of the current game engine has been a part of my life for a while.

The new Forza Motorsport prompted me to finally spend some reward points on the Games Pass for PC, and once I’d recovered from realising that it’s easier to let the game play itself to level up cars, I did enjoy discovering Sea of Thieves 2023 Edition at the insistance of my son. And having him coach me through the trials and tribulations of piracy on the high seas.

Sea of Thieves 2023 Edition was a surprise highlight for me this year

Sim racing continues to be a big part of my gaming, with iRacing, Automobilista 2 and Assetto Corsa all letting me enjoy my biggest purchase of the year (some Thrustmaster T-LCM pedals ahead of a wheel upgrade in 2024). And the constant flood of free mods for Assetto Corsa mean I can drive anything from a 1920s Delage at Autodrome de Miramas, to driving through traffic on the Gunsai Touge route in a Nissan Skyline GTR34.

But I have enjoyed some less serious racing games, including Super Woden GP 2 and Karting Superstars. And while I’ve invested too much time in Apex Legends to quit entirely, The Finals has provided an alternative for quick FPS games.

Super Woden GP 2 combines overhead racing, vintage Gran Turismo and modern indie game fun...
Super Woden GP 2 combines overhead racing, vintage Gran Turismo and modern indie game fun…

Honourable mentions also go to the Papa’s Quiz for some lightweight triva games over Christmas using our mobile phones as controllers, Stardew Valley for time with my partner as I endlessly water plants while she goes off exploring, and the annual winter special event prompting me to relax with some Euro Truck Simulator 2, delivering Christmas gifts and using the in-game streaming radio to enjoy a Swedish rock station as I trundle down the motorways of Europe.

Plans for 2024:

After spending 2023 in what felt like a holding pattern, I’m already keen to get started on my reading list for next year. Including distributing various books around the house so I can dip into them more regularly.

I’m slowly deleting things I’ll never get around to watching from various lists and recording devices, although I’m still eagerly awaiting Masters of the Air finally appearing on Apple TV.

And I’m planning to add at least one new album each week into my regular work playlist to ensure a longer list of discoveries in 2024, along with potentially writing about some of my deep dives into the back catalogue of notable artists.

Qazi’s Disposable 2023 – Highlights

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Preface: Hints and inaccuracies

When I concluded last year’s round-up, I hinted at a few things that might end up in the highlight reel that is “Qazi’s Disposable 2023” – new tech purchases, gaming and streaming projects, lots of film watching. And, well, some of those hints were more accurate than others. So let’s get right into it.

Qazi’s Disposable 2023: Watching

Qazi's Disposable 2023

This was actually a lot more daunting for me to summarise than I initially thought – I imagined that I only found time for two or three big films, but I actually got through a number of decent movies in the past twelve months. As ever, I remained one step behind the cinema-goers and relied on Blu-Ray releases and streaming media access… but I still think I covered a number of great movies. After working through The Dark Knight Trilogy a while ago, I moved on to the moodier, darker “The Batman” film – a spectacular ride when you can actually see what’s going on amongst the darkness. I finally got around to watching Everything Everywhere All At Once – initially assuming it would be too wacky for my tastes, only to be blindsided by the rush of emotions and feels crammed into its runtime. I watched old and new David Leitch action films in the form of Atomic Blonde (which had plenty of atmosphere and great characters but perhaps moved a little too slowly at times) and John Wick: Chapter 4 (which had flashes of what made part 1 so special, but also got a bit silly), and enjoyed some thoroughly British comedy via Attack The Block and The World’s End. And I moved from the day-glo fantasy of the Super Mario Bros. Movie to the creepy horror of M3GAN. In all, I feel like I explored a decent amount of laughs, darkness, action and wonder spread across the year – and I have to commend streaming services for offering a generous range of rentals and purchases amongst their “free” offers.

There are more bits and pieces that could be mentioned, but I feel like the above gives you an idea about the range of films that have kept me occupied. I can definitely see myself going back to some of the films I streamed or purchased as digital rentals, and picking up Blu-Ray copies for my shelves. (I don’t know if it says anything about my bias when I recall that I only watched the Sonic The Hedgehog movie digitally but I bought the Super Mario Bros. movie as a physical disc.) As for the ones that missed out? I feel like a part of me wanted to completely dodge “Barbenheimer” (the social media trend referring to the releases of Barbie and Oppenheimer) – almost out of petty spite – because I was already tired of it filling up my timeline. Given that I’m used checking out older films months after the fact, I can see myself picking up both films sometime in 2024… and I’m sure you’ll get to read my ramblings about both of those in the future.

Qazi’s Disposable 2023: Listening

Qazi's Disposable 2023

After seeing Leftfield at Lakefest last year in one of the best live entertainment experiences I’ve been lucky enough to attend, I already knew that this year probably wasn’t going to top it. Even so, a few of my favourite musicians released some excellent EPs and albums. I already talked about The Chemical Brothers’ release of their tenth album (“For That Beautiful Feeling”) earlier this year, and even though I may have thought that it was a bit of a “safe” release that wasn’t taking many risks, that doesn’t mean that I don’t still listen to the likes of “Fountains” and “Feels Like I Am Dreaming” on a regular basis. Elsewhere, there was a short but sweet release from Aphex Twin in the form of the Blackbox Life Recorder 21f / in a room7 F760 EP. Seeing a listing of four tracks (well, one of them is a remix of another) might lead you to believe that it will all be over too quickly, but the EP manages to cover a decent range of moods and tempos – and honestly, it feels like so long since Collapse EP and the Peel Sessions release that I’m kind of happy to be getting anything new.

Additionally, there were a few decent individual tracks that slipped into regular rotation within the music library of my mobile. “All of My Love” by AC Slater and MPH is a glorious throwback to the house and dance sounds of the 90s, and rarely fails to put me in a good mood. “Catalyst” by Droeloe and Imanu sets a foundation of understated beats and a bouncy melody before building into a fantastic climax later on. And “Backshifting” by Ivy Lab demonstrated another shift in vibe that feels effortlessly slick and catchy. Finally, this was all helped by an impulse purchase in the summer when I received a discount offer on some wireless earbuds (Oppo Enco Air2 Pro). I’ve had some bad luck with wireless earphones in the past – they often lose sound in one ear, or they fail to charge after a few weeks – but hopefully these ones will be more reliable. I guess you’ll find out when I report back next year.

Qazi’s Disposable 2023: Playing

Qazi's Disposable 2023

This year I kind of wanted to avoid the outcome of 2022, where I ignored a bunch of notable releases in favour of playing more Elden Ring. It worked out, in a way – I got to play a lot of games I had been meaning to get around to. I covered Jet Set Radio, Final Fantasy XVI, Persona 3: The Answer and Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow on this site – but looking at those games again, I see that one out of the four games was actually released in 2023. The thing is, I didn’t ignore the notable releases… but the notable releases weren’t from 2023. I skipped Bomb Rush Cyberfunk in favour of playing its inspiration. I skipped Sea of Stars – a game I had been looking forward to for months – but played through The Messenger for the first time. And I got around to checking out Super Mario RPG shortly before a remaster of the game would be announced for the Nintendo Switch. That being said, I feel like my year in gaming has been about as successful as my year in film, as these are all things that I had wanted to check out for a long time, and so it’s nice to finally see each of them through to the end.

Anyway, Final Fantasy XVI is pretty much my Game of the Year by default, since I barely played anything else that was actually released this year. (One possible exception could be the Quake II remaster, which manages to offer a fun oldschool experience in its single-player campaign whilst also providing unmatched entertainment in multiplayer – it’s that unique kind of pull where an entire evening can disappear in moments because the chaos experienced with friends is too good.) At the time of writing, Final Fantasy XVI has also received its first piece of DLC that expands the story experience with some new quest content. I’m not going to get back into it immediately, but it’s nice to know that I have a good reason to revisit the world of Clive & co. It also managed to provide a nice distraction before next year’s release of Final Fantasy VII Rebirth (which I might actually play when it’s released, unlike Remake.)

Qazi’s Disposable 2023: Streaming

Oh dear. Nothing but bad news this year. I had a few positives with my streaming adventures – beginning with a Kirby: Nightmare in Dreamland playthrough at the start of the year, and then with me reaching the true ending of Ghosts ‘n’ Goblins for GBC over Halloween. However… I really wanted to do a blind stream for my first playthrough of Final Fantasy XVI. And almost every time I tried, I would watch the stream back only to find that the audio glitched – or dropped out entirely – without me knowing. The first few streams came out fairly well, but I felt like the problems occurred more often as I got further into the game. Part of me is tempted to get new streaming hardware in the new year, but I have other purchases in mind that may be prioritised. Ultimately, I haven’t been completely deterred – I already have some ideas for streams next year that should be less ambitious but still quite enjoyable.

Time Extended

I feel like I’ve already planned out the first month or so of 2024 – I’ll have some music and films to catch up on, I have games from the Steam Winter sale that I’m going to get into in the new year, some retro games I want to attempt, and hopefully another stream project. I may even pick up that new tech I told myself I’d get in 2023. Thanks to everybody who has read, shared and enjoyed our content – I hope you stick around next year, and don’t forget to read Dan’s Disposable 2023 whilst you’re here.

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