Midnight Snack Vol. 30

AI Music, AGING, Nuuly Finds, & More!

Nov 04, 2024

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Hello Night Crawlers, welcome to Vol. 30 of The Nocturnal: Midnight Snack, a weekly recap of anything I found “shareable” over the last 7 days. I write to you as I embark on my first (non-partying, mind you) all nighter in a few months as I have to board a train at 5:30 AM (EW!) and CANNOT for the life of me wake up to an alarm earlier than 7:30 AM. So here I am, watching Gossip Girl (the OG) re-runs, realizing that although Serena was ALWAYS the villain, even before the undoing of Blake Lively, the REAL villain is whoever styled Vanessa. Did they have to do the Brooklyn girl so dirty?! For real what is this outfit:

Anyhow, let’s shake off the eyesore of that pattern texture disaster and get into this week’s recs for what to See, Listen, Talk, Taste, & Shop:

See: Sunset Boulevard & The Substance

This week I saw two productions about the UTTER HORROR of aging. Well, more so the leading ladies’ utter fear of it. And **yikes**, the moral is CLEAR: self love is essential, people.

Friday night I went to see Broadway’s acclaimed Sunset Boulevard (starring our favorite Pussycat Doll) and came home to watch Demi Moore’s body-horror-thriller The Substance. Yes, apparently my weekend’s entertainment theme was “women who can’t embrace aging” and both the thematically related play and film are SO tragic.

I’m not a huge musical (or theater) person, but I love Old Hollywood Glamour so was totally in when a girlfriend got us tickets to Nicole Scherzinger’s live production of Sunset Boulevard, adapted from the 1950s film, which is now on my watch-list, too. I can’t quite explain it (you’ll just have to go see it!), but the director combined live-video with on stage acting which made it such a unique, eerie production and so artfully done. Definitely recommend, if not for Tom Francis’s performance of the title track “Sunset Boulevard” at the opening of Act II alone (my fav part!).

Per chat gpt:

“In the latest Broadway revival of Sunset Boulevard, faded silent film star Norma Desmond, portrayed by Nicole Scherzinger, clings to the dream of returning to the big screen, believing she can reclaim her former glory. When she entangles struggling screenwriter Joe Gillis in her delusions, their complex relationship spirals into obsession and tragedy, exposing the darker side of fame and ambition in Hollywood.”

Now, The Substance, though equally sad and dramatic, has bouts of humor and satire that make it a little more fun. I need to look up the director (or video editor) because it’s one of the most artistically filmed movies I’ve seen in a while, especially of this genre. The cinematography alone warrants a rewatch and the styling and costume design is SO ON POINT. I’ll let the glossy trailer speak for itself:

Also, Margaret Qualley is SO CUTE (as is Demi, who definitely deserves an Oscar for this performance).

Listen: An AI-Generated Pop-Country Banger

At dinner tonight as I joked with girlfriends about my future pop career (with the help of some AI vocal enhancements), one of them shared this song by Girly Girl Productions that is allegedly just some techies playing with AI to make songs they think girls will like and I’m DED:

The lyrics are kind of iconic:

[Refrain]
Seriously, I don't need anything from a man
Actually, maybе give me some monеy
I don't need money from a man, I got my own
But I want money from a man

LOL.

NYT wrote a really good article about the group in September if you can get past the paywall to read it but here’s a little glimpse:

As a **free** writer (who realistically is just writing for fun), I hate a paywall. If it’s on the internet, it just needs to be free IMO, but maybe my tune will change when I get more subscribers and want a piece of that COIN, so pretend I didn’t say this!

Talk: Embracing Change

I’ve mentioned this one before, but perspective is EVERYTHING.

At one point during Sunset Boulevard, Joe (the leading man) screams at Nora,“There’s nothing wrong with being 40 unless you act like you’re 20!”. And he’s SO RIGHT. There are beautiful aspects of all our life stages, so we need to get down with ~evolving~.

This tweet on the topic had me ROLLING:

LOL to the max!!! And this sentiment captures exactly how I’ve been feeling as I, dare I say it, age. It’s honestly NOT BAD!!! Getting older feels richer, and I’m all about embracing what comes with this era that is new and exciting versus yearning for the past. As Wayne & Garth would say, “Live in the Now!”

Taste: Are we at Peak Smashburger???

This weekend, walking home with my hub and craving a burger, we found yet ANOTHER smashburger place. Is NYC the new smashburger capital? Not that I’m complaining, but it’s getting a little hard to tell all these gooey meat sandwiches apart.

This spot, Burger by Day, lacked any real ambiance, but they made up for it in size (all burgers are at least a double patty) and in special fry flavors (particularly the Sour Cream + Onion Fries). Was it the BEST burger I’ve ever had? No. But was it so delicious I devoured the whole thing? OBVI! I need to spend a day comparing all the smashies, though, bc tbh right now I really couldn’t tell you which is the best.

Shop: Two Pieces That Nuuly Made Me Want

I dabble with Nuuly, the clothing rental service (this is NOT an ad), and the best part about it is getting to experiment with pieces or designers I wouldn’t otherwise have tried. Here are two items I rented and now want to buy:

Pilcro Oversized Sweater Vest

I rented the XS but I think I’d buy the small so it fits a little more oversized like on the model. Pls excuse the grainy screenshot (and Aldo lighting) from my insta:

NAVY is having a MOMENT and I love that this sweater is classic whilst having some pizazz.

Now, this next dress isn’t the exact Selkie dress I rented, but the rental turned me from a spectator of the brand (at one point these dresses were ALL OVER social media) to a super fan. Their babydoll dresses are SO FUN and flattering for all. I am now eyeing investing in one of these babies:

One for Fall

One for Spring

I know this last one is a LITTLE babyish, which is slightly contradictory to my earlier claim about embracing new eras and evolving, but I think with the right shoes and hair it could be sophisticated and chic??? TBD.

Alright beautiful vampires, I must leave you now and go pack while half watching the rest of GG (**spolier alert: Did everyone else forget that at one point Nate had a crush on Jenny???). Anyway, thanks for coming back for another midnight snack.

Stay hungry and restless!