February 20, 2017

Noveller’s Trippy Vignettes

Electric guitar tinkerer Sarah Lipstate creates intriguing, immersive environments on her new album.


Noveller
A Pink Sunset for No One
Fire

Courtesy of Fire Records

Noveller, aka inveterate electric guitar tinkerer Sarah Lipstate, creates intriguing, immersive environments, subjecting her multi-layered sounds to crafty alterations, topped off by a dollop of synths—or is that just more guitar? Any number of terms could be applied to her lovely eighth studio album, from ambient and tender to psychedelic and unpredictable, but no simple description fully captures the elegant charm of her trippy vignettes. At first glance, A Pink Sunset for No One feels gentler and more meditative than Lipstate’s previous efforts, although the rumbling title track suggests the overture to an extravagant Sci-Fi film. Best of all, Noveller’s subtle textures reveal new wrinkles with each listen, making this an endlessly renewable source of stimulation.

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WHO DOESN’T LOVE A POSITIVE STORY—OR TWO?

“Great journalism really does make a difference in this world: it can even save kids.”

That’s what a civil rights lawyer wrote to Julia Lurie, the day after her major investigation into a psychiatric hospital chain that uses foster children as “cash cows” published, letting her know he was using her findings that same day in a hearing to keep a child out of one of the facilities we investigated.

That’s awesome. As is the fact that Julia, who spent a full year reporting this challenging story, promptly heard from a Senate committee that will use her work in their own investigation of Universal Health Services. There’s no doubt her revelations will continue to have a big impact in the months and years to come.

Like another story about Mother Jones’ real-world impact.

This one, a multiyear investigation, published in 2021, exposed conditions in sugar work camps in the Dominican Republic owned by Central Romana—the conglomerate behind brands like C&H and Domino, whose product ends up in our Hershey bars and other sweets. A year ago, the Biden administration banned sugar imports from Central Romana. And just recently, we learned of a previously undisclosed investigation from the Department of Homeland Security, looking into working conditions at Central Romana. How big of a deal is this?

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