“Best of” lists are always a contrivance, all the more so on a site like Ryeberg, with its treasure store of dazzling and distinctive essays. But granting that lists do have some value and interest, we bring you the Summer 2009, Ryeberg Top 25.
Compiling the list was tricky. We had to employ some rather ersatz mathematics to take into account various objective and subjective criteria. Web analytics helped us with the objective: number of unique visitors (in first week), discussion generated, linkbacks, average length of time spent, etc. These results were slightly nuanced by the momentary sentiments and judgments of a dozen Ryeberg intimates and editors. In other words, the product of a highly scientific process, this list!
A Top 25 may seem a little premature given that Ryeberg is only two months old, but here you have it, starting with number twenty-five:
25: Wire or Cloth?
Jon Davies on Harlow’s tortured monkeys.
24: Sexual Reconnaissance, Drinking Out of Cups
Jowita Bydlowska connecting through video clips.
23: Not Ghost but Trance
Catherine Bush on the limits of text.
22: Civility Makes Mistakes
Mary Ellen Carroll sees a media echo chamber in the tennis court.
21: The First One Not to Die
Micah Toub unconvinced of his final end.
20: Watching the Birds
Chris Gehman admires the cleverness of birds.
19: Fatlip’s Crack Up
Pasha Malla is, whoa, what’s up Fatlip?
18: What is this Place?
Sean Dixon wants his country back.
17: Knuckles and Narrative
Alana Wilcox prefers context with her violence.
16: Crazy Smart Typography
Darren Wershler on the roots of today’s popular typography.
15: No Secrets to Conceal
Peter Trachtenberg on video memorials.
14: Heavy Metal Case Study # 3 – Nitro
Ernest Hilbert questions the showmanship of shredders.
13: Lolita on Film
Sheila Heti finds the novel’s most perfect adaptation.
12: Dick Cavett is the Toilet Paper of the Entertainment Industry
Sholem Krishtalka sympathizes with a TV show host.
11: Guy Debord’s “Critique of Separation”
Mike Hoolboom on the separatedness of Guy Debord.
10: Destroy Your Safe and Happy Life
Damian Rogers advises the rock n’ roll cure.
9: On Nostalgia, Ironic or Otherwise
Russell Smith discovers the anthems of his youth on YouTube.
8: The Quintessential Song of the 00s
Bert Archer’s final installment in his quintessential song series.
7: It’s About Time, It’s About Space – Yesterday’s Tomorrows
Peter Lynch revisits the obsessions of the sixties.
6: Persisting in Delusion
Elyse Friedman awestruck by the bold and the talentless.
5: Je suis Morrissey
Jon Paul Fiorentino on Fran’s Morrissey covers.
4: Lady Gaga in Hell
Mary Gaitskill deciphers Lady Gaga’s poker face.
3: Bombs, Bombshells, and Bollywood
Mitu Sengupta on why a promotional video for missiles is misguided.
2: Michael Jackson and the Cruelty of the Ideal
Mary Gaitskill imagines the world of Michael Jackson.
1: Crazy Michael Jackson Fan
Lynn Crosbie writes a beautiful eulogy to the King of Pop.
Want more? Worry not, there are still 70 curated videos left for you to enjoy. Click here to see a complete list of all curated videos ever published.
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Ryeberg
