Lightnews — Scholar-powered news

Robert Barry

@monsterbobby.bsky.social

1.9K followers 950 following 330 posts

Freelance writer (The Wire, Tribune, Art Review, Mubi Notebook, &c.). Musicker (Far Rainbow, The Pipettes). Reviews Editor at The Quietus. Author of The Music of the Future (Repeater, 2017), Object Lessons: Compact Disc (Bloomsbury, 2020). Idiot.

Posts Media Videos Starter Packs

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 1d

everyone who had garageband recognised the Umbrella beat!

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 1d

goes back to Ronnie Reagan, doesn’t it? he said the 9 scariest words in the english language were,” i’m from the government and i’m here to help. ‘ a very effective bit of propaganda.

1 1

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 2d

Pretty disappointing attitude from the White Hotel here www.theguardian.com/music/2025/o... Their comment seems to rely on the myth that charitable donations are more efficiently redistributed than state funding when the complete opposite is the case (by degrees of magnitude).

There’s a £1 idea that could save small music venues. Is Live Nation holding it back?

Artists including Coldplay and Katy Perry have got behind a plan to fund small venues from big gigs – but owners say that without Live Nation on board, it could fail

www.theguardian.com

1 1 3

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 3d

I reviewed Mikhail Karikis’s exhibition at Showroom Gallery, Songs For The Storm To Come, for the new issue of The Wire. www.thewire.co.uk/issues/501

The Wire 501

On the cover: claire rousay : The Texas raised composer finds an uneasy balance between melancholy and wonder with her interweavings of soundscapes and spoken word confessions. By Lucy Thraves; Rafae...

www.thewire.co.uk

Reposted by Robert Barry

Ed @ed3d.net · 5d

I try to mostly follow people on LinkedIn who are unafraid to shitpost on main

I removed all the chairs from my house. Yes, all of them.

Standing desks are for beginners. I don't sit anymore. Not at meals. Not during calls. Not ever.

Why? Because sitting is a dopamine sink. Your glutes go dormant. Blood pools. Your brain gets 23% less oxygen (I measured it). Standing keeps you in a state of "productive discomfort."

Discomfort = alertness. Alertness = pattern recognition. Pattern recognition = product-market fit.

I eat dinner standing over the sink. I take Zooms pacing back and forth like a caged lion. My calves are basically a pre-seed round for my cardiovascular system.

Studies show that 89% of Fortune 500 CEOs do their best thinking while in motion. Churchill held walking meetings. Zuckerberg did walking 1-on-1s. I haven't sat in 6 months and my sprint velocity is up 340%.

Every chair you own is a commitment to mediocrity. Every cushion is a compromise with your future self.

"But what about rest?" Rest is what you do after the exit. Right now, I have deals to close and a burn rate to justify.

My living room? Empty. Just space to pace. My dining room? A war room with whiteboards on every wall—no table.

Sitting is the new smoking. Standing is the new sitting. Pacing is the new standing.

I'm not uncomfortable. I'm optimized.

Don't let Big Furniture gaslight you.

10 110 700

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 9d

www.electronicsound.co.uk/reviews/soho... nice little review of last saturday’s Soho Electronic festival in @electronicsound.bsky.social

Soho Electronic Festival Review – Electronic Sound

www.electronicsound.co.uk

Reposted by Robert Barry

Jon Buckland @pacificbeliefs.bsky.social · 12d

Harmonious shaver-wrangled drones courtesy of @monsterbobby.bsky.social

1 1 3

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 12d

I've always been a fan of the variant:
– I walked from London Bridge to Bermondsey the other day.
– Jamaica Road?
– No, I used the one that was already there.

2 37

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 14d

This is today! ra.co/events/2245946 leftfield electronic music festival across multiple venues in central London, inc. Bjørn Hatleskog, Mieko Shimizu, Tullis Rennie, Daniel Miller (Mute Records), and me.

ra.co

Reposted by Robert Barry

Bruce Gorrie @bsgorrie.bsky.social · 16d

1 77 380

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 16d

They could tell it was an actor cos when they were plotting the action, they appeared to be whispering secretly but everyone could still hear what they were saying, right up to the back row.

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 17d

A new home for IKLECTIK in Peckham! thequietus.com/news/london-...

London Venue IKLECTIK Finds New Space in Peckham | The Quietus

London venue IKLECTIK has found a new home in Peckham. The team behind the experimental music and arts space shared the news on Instagram this week, revealing that they will be taking over a gig space...

thequietus.com

3 10

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 18d

why is he dressed like that? he looks like an overinflated balloon?

1 21

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 18d

Bit in @electronicsound.bsky.social about the electronic music festival in Soho taking place this Saturday featuring music by Daniel Miller (Mute Records), Hawksmoor, Tullis Rennie, Mieko Shimizu, and me among many others. Should be fun! And in Soho! www.electronicsound.co.uk/news/soho-el...

Soho Electronic: New Festival of Synth – Electronic Sound

www.electronicsound.co.uk

2 3

Reposted by Robert Barry

Will Dunn @willdunn.bsky.social · 21d

I wrote about the most frightening and dangerous trend in Britain

www.newstatesman.com/comment/2025...

Queueing in pubs disgraces Britain

The practice is unpatriotic and must be banned

www.newstatesman.com

8 23 72

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 23d

saw rhodri davies and richard dawson do a duo set at a festival once and, honestly, they made one of the all-time great comedy double acts (the music was also very good).

1 3

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · 24d

I'll be playing solo at this festival of electronic music across several venues in Soho on Saturday 27th, along with Daniel Miller, Tullis Rennie, Hawksmoor, and a bunch of other cool people. dice.fm/event/3olb8p...

Soho Electronic Tickets | £20 | Sep 27 @ Multiple Venues, London, London | DICE

Soho Electronic Future Leftfield Sounds Saturday, 27th September 2025 2pm-11pm accros 4 Venues, 1 Day, 20+ Artists. All is Joy | Below Stone Nest | Fars...

dice.fm

1 8

Reposted by Robert Barry

Honorée Fanonne Jeffers @blklibrarygirl.bsky.social · 25d

Ta-Nehisi Coates on Charlie Kirk.

Adam Serwer @adamserwer.bsky.social · 25d

www.vanityfair.com/news/story/c...

Charlie Kirk, Redeemed: A Political Class Finds Its Lost Cause

By ignoring the rhetoric and actions of the Turning Point USA founder, pundits and politicians are sanitizing his legacy.

www.vanityfair.com

17 170 570

Reposted by Robert Barry

Jeff Golick @jgolick.bsky.social · Sep 11

Superb look at @okkyunglee.bsky.social ‘s work, via @bandcamp.com & @monsterbobby.bsky.social : daily.bandcamp.com/lists/okkyun...

A Guide to the Music of Okkyung Lee

Essential works from the world's preeminent avant-garde cellist.

daily.bandcamp.com

1 1 6

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · Sep 11

thanks!

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · Sep 10

PinkPantheress is a banger. you're missing out.

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · Sep 10

yep. And it gets worse www.thewire.co.uk/in-writing/e...

Follow the science: Evan Parker’s views on the pandemic and Brexit - The Wire

Tony Herrington researches the sources of the saxophonist’s recent outspoken pronouncements on the pandemic and Brexit.

www.thewire.co.uk

1 1

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · Sep 9

Horrifying stuff www.theguardian.com/commentisfre... I believe Evan Parker lives in Faversham. I wonder if he is now feeling any remorse for his very public decision to vote Brexit and embolden these thugs.

A racist mob menacing refugee children and our town. Read this and see what lies ahead, unless we act now | Anonymous

Last weekend, it fell to ordinary people to oppose the far right and others. The national toxicity has reached us: a kind of hate I haven’t seen since the 1970s

www.theguardian.com

1 6

Reposted by Robert Barry

Mondo Mascots @mondomascots.bsky.social · Aug 31

In Kochi City Station there’s a statue of Berobero No Kamisama, a nude, pink, spiral-eyed figure who is the local god for drunkards.

A nude pink character with spiral eyes balances a sake cup on each hand and a sake bottle on his head.

32 460 1.8K

Robert Barry @monsterbobby.bsky.social · Sep 8

wait. if grace dent is doing masterchef, does that mean she might leave the guardian? (please??)