Just to ramble off the top of my head…
Toy Machine-Welcome to Hell
Surely a million love letters have been written about this but it just goes. Melted my brain with the heaviest skating I’d ever seen at the time. Whole crew just bangs. I was listening to NPR this week talking about Jefferson Airplane being inducted into the library of Congress and all I could think about was the friends montage section here.
World Industries/Blind/101-Trilogy
The soundtrack on this thing is just incredible. 101 firing it off with Dill and Gino parts. The whole Blind section is so pleasant. Kareem skating to Nas. Sam Devlin skating to Jesus Lizard, so weird I love it. Something to this day you can put on and vibe out and do chores around the house and enjoy the music and pop in and watch something amazing on screen. The only downside is mid 90s cali spot overload.
Stereo-Tincan Folklore
When skate videos were little films. The complete opposite of something like the Toy videos. More meandering and vibey, lots of super 8, lots of cruising sf at night.
Alien Workshop-Timecode
It’s a more structured version of something like Stereo was doing. Alien has always been weird and cool and had their own lane and I love this era. Photosynthesis gets so much love for good reason but I like this. If for nothing else, take in the final part from Lenny Kirk. The flash in the pan and descent into madness is wild. Head injuries are serious. Escape hell.
Solid Brand-Take Five
This is kind of a deep cut but it’s just like the skate video equivalent of comfort food for me. Based around Cincinnati, it was different because it just looked like home. It opens with cruising past a carousel to Van Morrison’s Sweet Thing and I can just feel the whole thing in my bones every time. The music is awesome, the skating is great and the spots are crusty.
Apr 24, 2024
Related Recs
The OG episodes were and still are some of the most important and iconic docs of an era in skateboarding thats gone but not forgotten. Antwan Dixon And Ed Templetons are amazing. Watch from the very beginning.
Feb 21, 2024
A documentary about grafitti and breakdancing. Between the antagonists (Ed Koch and Cap), the pearl clutching public and the charismatic subjects it really keeps you engaged. Also really solid editing. Tony silver was on one.
you can watch it on nightflight but if money is tight I’m sure if you poke around the usual spots you can find it ;)
May 12, 2024
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Hale County This Morning, This Evening — Definitely an acquired taste, but imo one of the best documentaries out there. Beautiful, slow, immersive. RaMell Ross took years worth of footage and curated a 76 minute work of art. Lots of discourse out there on it. HUGE rec.
Paris is Burning — basic rec but worth it if you’ve never seen. House/ballroom scene of the mid/late ‘80s NYC. I sob consistently every time.
Roger & Me — Love or hate Michael Moore, this doc is amazing. Covers US deindustrialization & the consequences for the midwest, specifically focusing on Flint, Michigan.
All That Breathes — Another breathtakingly beautiful doc. Follows two brothers in Delhi who run a bird hospital for injured black kites. Hindu nationalism, interspecies connection, ecological collapse. Nominated for an oscar. So good.
Jun 22, 2025
Top Recs from @erraticcompendium
To show her I was using this magnifier headset thing she gave me at Christmas. I was doing some hobby watchmaking. Since I wear glasses its hard to do a traditional loupe.
May 23, 2025
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Let’s play hooky in Chicago.
Apr 6, 2024
Mar 31, 2025