Nathan's Small Delights: SD_008

Ayup, what’s good?

The final nail has been hammered into the coffin of September, which means we have officially crossed the ¾ mark for 2025. I am somewhere between whelmed & under/overwhelmed, but to be honest, I am just too exhausted to accurately assess exactly where. Fortunately, the exhaustion has not prevented me from delighting in some delights. Let’s get to it!

The Delights

Now that the sun has crossed the celestial equator, we have officially left the sweltering heat of Summer behind us & have traversed into Fall. This time of year is tops in my books because it kicks off the hot tea & soup season. I have not had the chance to christen the season with a soup yet, but I have been indulging in some fantastic tea.

A bit ago, I was gifted a wide variety of loose tea. Amongst the many varieties was this outstanding Hot Cinnamon Spice blend from self-proclaimed master tea blenders, Harney & Sons. Please believe, I do not exaggerate when I say that this tea is PERFECT for the season. Hell, this tea may even be perfect for ALL seasons. The first time I tasted this blend was in cold brew form & I literally said out loud for the whole world to hear, “This is really good tea!” If it was that good cold, then it had to be out of this world hot, right?

So I did it. I brewed the tea in a hot fashion. Once the recommended brewing time had elapsed, I slowly raised the piping hot mug of tea, gently pursed my lips, exhaled a soft breath to cool the liquid, took a sip, & then literally said out loud for the whole world to hear, “Oh my god, that is so hot!”. But then after that, I said the thing again about it being a really good tea (because it is).

Midway through the month, I did a quick pop-in to Breakaway Records for a bit of digging through the fresh, pre-owned arrivals. I was elated to find a copy of the 1978 self-titled album by Brazilian artist Emilio Santiago while rummaging through the International section - this has been on my list largely in part to the opening song (written by Gilberto Gil & João Donato), Bananeira. That tune is 100% a certified bop, but oh my goodness, the B3 track Nega Dina is something special. It would work equally well while relaxing poolside with a mini-umbrella-adorned beverage or while shaking it loose at a get-together with other music-appreciating friends & acquaintances. Honestly, I feel like this tune would work in any situation where you want a feel-good vibe. Give it a whirl & see for yourself.

AFS Cinema has been getting some well-deserved mentions from me on account of their film programmers serving up a steady lineup of phenomenal screenings. September continued that trend with Animation Mixtape presented by renowned indie animator Don Hertzfeldt. The program was a curated collection of animated shorts, both new and old - a mixtape, if you will. The standout of the collection was Nicolas Ménard’s SXSW 2017 Best Animated Short Award winner Wednesday with Goddard. I absolutely adore everything about this. The excellent sound work, completely relatable storyline, & the juxtaposition of pencil-drawn backgrounds & malformed characters brings a smile to my face every time I watch this. It is truly a wonderful viewing experience. *chef’s kiss

What a delight!

Vinyl Jockey on the web

One of the massive annoyances of the past few months has been having the record collection all boxed up - it felt like a great injustice to have so much music at the tip of my fingers, yet inaccessible. With the move into the new spot complete, I am pleased to announce that the records are (mostly) unpacked - HUZZAH!

I’ve had a few mix sessions to break in the new room, but haven’t pressed that little red button to record anything yet. As such, I’ve got nothing new for your ears this month. Maybe next month?

Vinyl Jockey in the wild

October is shaping up to be a fun month for being a vinyl jockey. A few days ago, I kicked off spooky season playing an early evening set at Cosmic Saltillo on East 4th Street. The full rundown of that one has to wait until the October roundup - small spoiler, it was a lot of fun. Next on deck is a trip down to San Antonio to sling some wax with Rick Lara. On the 18th, you can catch us at Civic Park, setting the vibe at the annual San Antonio Beer Festival. Last year was a total blast & much like a foamy pint of beer, I am bubbling with excitement! Big shout out to Camy for keeping me out of jail last year - hopefully that won’t be a concern this time.

What better way to follow up the Beer Festival festivities than with an old-fashioned BBQ? That’s right, Rick & I will be teaming back up the very next day (October 19th) to lay down some sweaty grooves while meats & veggies are getting the grill treatment. If you find yourself in the San Antonio zone & want to kick it with a great community of music lovers, then hit me up & I’ll shoot you the details.

That’s a wrap for now!

-Nathan Stewart