The first couple of weeks in 2026 have been… hard. Largely for that reason, there isn’t any politics this time, and I hope you’re not mad about it. 

This week’s issue doesn’t really have a theme, but is a mix of some stuff that I thought deserved some extra shine. From a locally hand drawn video game, to a few new bands to pay attention to, hopefully you’ll learn find something you like.

Happy reading,
Dakotah

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It really is just a mix of things this week with no clear common thread. And you know what, sometimes that’s exactly what you need.

Kids on the Slope is a Japanese animated series about a classically trained pianist who discovers jazz and learns to let go of some of his rigidity around music. It’s set in 1966 and explores themes about Catholicism in Japan, plus queer themes and male friendship. 

It also features a pretty wonderful soundtrack composed by Yoko Kanno from Cowboy Bebop. The series also shares the same director, Shinichi Watanabe. I’ve seen it twice since it came out, and I get something new out of it every time.

Lonely Magic is a refreshing and relatively short seven-track album from Rebecca Sugar, who previously wrote music for Adventure Time and created Steven Universe. As both a songwriter and an illustrator, the album combines the two through original art and character designs. These sorts of touches further bring you into Sugar’s colorful – but still emotional – world. 

The first song off the album, “Ice Water,” feels like the opening theme song for a character I’m rooting for. Don’t just listen to it, check out the hand drawn music video.

When I first got this article in my inbox, I was a little taken back because of the title. (Note: If you didn’t already know that I lost someone very important to suicide in 2024, well, now you do.) For this reason, it’s still hard for me to read these words without feeling something shitty.

But, I trust s.e. smith and chose to buckle up.

 “Algospeak” is an online trend where people soften their speech to avoid censorship by algorithms on social media platforms, smith writes. Beyond the simple act of opting for euphemisms, smith argues that it’s further impeding our ability to communicate. Worse, it might even be another sign that we’re submitting in advance to fascism.

Over the last few decades, it feels like we’ve lost so much of our ability to communicate and use language with intention. smith’s words validated a lot of feelings that I’ve had while also challenging me or some of my discomforts. I’m not mad at it, but I sure am still thinking about it. 

If you’re missing an independent and feminist news source in your life, check out The FlyTrap. I was a massive supporter of Bitch Media (founded in Portland!) and am grateful that it’s returned in somewhat of a new form. The FlyTrap not only includes many of the same contributors – including smith – but also re-prints old issues from Bitch Magazine.

Catch Qualified and Thicarus at the Beachland Tavern on Jan. 16 for a birthday bash and a wild night of music.

It can be tricky to find your place as a musician in a city dedicated to mostly one genre: rock and roll. For jazz saxophonist Max Schlenk, he’s set out to build spaces where artists across genres can connect and blend sounds. Catch him performing with his band, Qualified, for the first time this Friday at Beachland Tavern.

Schlenk started playing instruments in fifth grade and initially chose the clarinet after Squidward, a cynical sea creature from Spongebob Squarepants. He spent years playing clarinet before auditioning for tenor saxophone. After his first solo performance, he said something “just switched on.”

“I just could see the music in my head and I knew I wanted to do this,” Schlenk said. Shortly after, he was gifted two albums: The Capitol Years by Cannonball Adderly and The Sidewinder by Lee Morgan. 

Over the last few years, Schlenk has managed to make it work as a full-time musician in Cleveland. Between performing live and teaching at The Music Settlement, Schlenk is now trying to cultivate a genre-diverse community for local artists.

He grew up around jazz musicians, and as he got older, noticed it was hard to break into the scene and find new opportunities.  A lot of the jazz musicians – especially saxophonists – are veterans with loyal gigs, making it less likely that one will open up, he said.

It took him a few years performing in the rock scene before he decided to set out on his own and build something new.  

Prior to teaming up, members of Qualified met performing at Crobar’s Soul Train Avenue event. The band consists of Schlenk (saxophone), Iszaiah Armstrong (bass), Nick Frank (guitar), Gabe Jones (drums), D’Angelo Maxwell (talkbox), Rob Morrow (auxiliary keys), Jordan Wright (keys) and Vandarrel (trumpet).

On Friday, people can expect “a giant crazy collective of R&B and gospel musicians,” Schlenk said. Joining Qualified is Thicarus, self-described as a horn-driven six-piece. The show also happens to double as a birthday show, as Schlenk and Thicarus members all have January birthdays.

Tickets are on sale ($15 advance or $20 at the door). Doors open at 8 p.m. and the show starts at 9 p.m at Beachland Tavern in Collinwood.

And no, Little Nemo has absolutely nothing to do with Finding Nemo.

Little Nemo and the Nightmare Fiends is an upcoming video game based on Winsor McCay’s classic comic about a young boy who fights fantastical battles against nightmares and other demons in Slumberland. The game is still in development, but you can play it for free at Free Play: Innovative Game Design at the Cleveland Institute of Art until Feb. 8. If you’d rather wait, you can back the project from your couch and receive a beta-testing copy before the end of January, according to the game’s developer, Chris Totten.

If you’re a nerd, you might also recognize the name because of the Ghibli-like feature film that was released in 1989. If you’re a really big nerd, you know that the film was based on McCay’s comic from 1905. McCay also created one of the first animated films in history in 1911, containing more than 4,000 hand drawings.

“What if this game were a game that kids sleeping over at a friend's house could stay up way too late to play?,” Totten said, having grown up playing video games himself. “That’s the kind of game we want to make.” 

Since 2022, Totten, a professor at Kent State University, has led a small team of game developers – including students – to carry Little Nemo into the 21st century. He studied both architecture and game design, before finding a career in game design. The game is handdrawn, an art form that corporate media has generally tried to leave in the dust. 

Part of Totten’s vision is to create a game that uplifts McCay’s original art style, a relatively new feat, he said. Little Nemo and the Nightmare Fiends is meant to be a living version of the comic, which is demonstrated through the careful hand drawn style of the game. 

At the same time, the game isn’t meant to be a sequel or an exact copy. Instead, it’s meant to “help people understand a very old piece of art from a pioneer of animation,” such as McCay, Totten said. This version also introduces an original character named Peony, a ballerina. The game allows you to play as four characters, including Nemo and Peony. The game is told through vignettes rather than a serialized story, according to Totten. 

“It’s more like a fever dream,” he said, referencing the strong themes of dreams and subconscious, even in the title of the game. 

Because the original comics showcase a lot of architecture, particularly Art Nouveau and some Art Deco, Totten exercised his architecture training to include some iconic Cleveland Easter eggs throughout the game. For example, the Guardian statues make regular appearances, he said.

In addition to carefully crafted graphics, the game features an original soundtrack composed by Wayne Strange. One of the most recent updates from the project includes the promise of an original song performed by Arizona-based and Grammy-nominated nerd core rapper, Mega Ran. 

FREE PLAY: Innovative Ohio Game Design is open until Sunday, Feb. 8 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Reinberger Gallery at Cleveland Institute of Art. The exhibit features seven playable indie games from creators across the Buckeye state. On Jan. 23, you can also attend the juried exhibit for free.

This time, it really is “it” for the week. Check back in the next issue for a little something extra.