SAVAGE LOVE

Orville Peck calls “Daytona Sand” his favourite video so far

by Mike Usinger

If you’re going to make a statement, it might as well be so difficult to believe that there’s no way it’s anything but true.

Orville Peck has just done precisely that with the video for “Daytona Sand”, off his upcoming sophomore album Bronco.

Rather than put words in his masked mouth, we’ll let him have the stage.

“We shot the video for ‘Daytona Sand’ over three days in Miami as an homage to all things Florida,” Peck states in the promo material for the clip. “When we wrote the story for the video, we never thought we’d be able to pull off half the stuff we were dreaming up but somehow, we managed it all, including a horseback police chase and me surfing on an 18-wheeler truck through Miami. I don’t know if they’ll ever let us back into Florida again but this is probably my favorite video to date!”

The important words there to note are the last six, especially when one considers Peck’s body of video work to date. Recall, if you will, the way “Hope to Die” referenced everything from Sid Vicious’s favourite T-shirt to the Slow Club to our good lord and saviour Satan (rendered in Helmut Newton–brand black-and-white, rather than his usual hue of crimson-and-brimstone red). Or the way “Dead of Night” left you wondering whether it was shot in the badlands of Utah, the actual Chicken Ranch, or your grandparents’ wood-panelled ’70s rumpus room.

As Peck notes, it’s a whole new deal with “Daytona Sand”—for that one might assume that his new label, Sony, has a little more liquid cash on hand. Or that, because he’s still also signed to much-loved Seattle indie Sub Pop, that he and his creative team did a lot with a little D.I.Y.-guerilla-style.

Whatever the answer, there’s no shortage of things to love in “Daytona Sand”, including a Grand Theft Auto-style carjacking, retro-riffic surfing footage, cheapmotel-room hookups, and a horse chase ripped straight from the vaults of McCloud.

Sound like a statement? As sure as Hank Williams III is one of the most polarizing dudes to ever wear a cowboy hat, you’re goddamn right. g

There’s an abundance of things to love in masked musician Orville Peck’s latest video.

MUSIC / SAVAGE LOVE Wuji makes an old-school statement with “Slipping”

by Mike Usinger

For a video that takes a straight-ahead and simple approach, there’s a lot to zero in on if one pays attention to the little things in Wuji’s “Slipping”.

Start with the buttons and patches adorning the coats of guitarists Andrew Kashak and 12-string afficianado Tyler Dallas. Those too lazy to click “About” on Facebook can learn plenty about a band by paying attention to the little details. In the case of “Slipping”, those include jeanjacket nods to Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, the Rolling Stones, and Nirvana’s Sub Pop–era “Negative Creep”.

Add to this the from-another-netherworld lettering that flashes across the screen every 15 or seconds, and the fact that said lettering is impossible to decipher unless you speak Led Zeppelin or ΚΕΦΑΛΗΞΘ-era Ministry. As fantastic as Google Translate might be when you find yourself trying to order dinner in Wuhan or craft cocktails in Kuwait, good luck getting it to decode things here.

Taking a widescreen look at “Slipping”, director Logan Charron goes old-school with the idea nothing makes a statement like having a band plug in and play. Yes, things get mondo-trippy and mystical at the twominute mark, when the Pacific Northwest suddenly looks like the most spiritual place this side of Twin Peaks. But mostly, the thinking seems to be “Who needs a practice space or dank and sweaty club stage as a backdrop

One member of Wuji seems still on the fence about joining the Facial Hair Club for Men. when you’ve got what looks like a Canuck version of the muddy banks of the Wishkah?”

Speaking of Washington state—and assuming you got the reference—Wuji might list Cream and Tame Impala as being among seminal influences, but it’s the sound of Seattle that looms large in “Slipping”. Maybe the grey skies and flannel are what colour things, but goddamn if the four-piece doesn’t sound like the best parts of the Singles soundtrack—which is to say everything, including the Smashing Pumpkins’ totally overblown “Drown”. Simple and straightforward? Yes. And, at the same time, not at all. g

Exercise and dilation can help with painful sex

by Dan Savage b I HAVE A problem. (How’s that for an opener?) I’m a 60-something cis woman with a 30-something cis man lover. The problem is my vagina is extremely tight. Also, sometimes I bleed a little bit after PIV and then urinating burns, but only briefly.

We are only able to hook-up about every other week, so frequency isn’t going to “stretch me out”. I had previously been diagnosed with vaginal atrophy, which for many women can result in pain during PIV intercourse.

We’ve been using Uberlube with silicone, which has helped, but it still gets painful. Any suggestions?

I’ve been on an estradiol vaginal insert for three months, which helps my overall dryness but not PIV so much, although he has said I feel softer inside. I could really use some help because as much as I love having sex with him, I’m going to have to pause PIV altogether due to my discomfort.

I also will say that before him it had been 17 years since I’d had sex. I find this embarrassing to admit, but it may be information that will help you answer my questions.

- Age-Gap Enhancing Intense Sexual Treats

PS He propositioned me. I was initially mortified but I have since overcome my ageist bias against relationships with large age gaps. Oh, and last night I experienced the “luxurious” sensation of having my anus licked for the first time!

Dan advises a female reader in her 60s that solutions exist for episodes of painful sex. Photo by Getty/Axel Bueckert. “Vaginal atrophy is very common in women and people with vaginas, and it can make not just PIV but any type of penetration painful,” said Lori Brotto, a clinical psychologist, author, and sex researcher at the University of British Columbia. “And while Uberlube is a fantastic external lubricant that makes sex more comfortable, it does nothing to moisturize the vagina.”

Brotto says your hunch—that more frequent penetration might help—is correct, but you don’t have to wait for your lover to return to experience it.

“There are well-known advantages to regular vaginal dilation for people who have not had penetration in a long time,” said Brotto. “So, I would recommend that in between the times AGEIST has sex with her partner, she uses a dilator—or uses a dildo—to engage in solo vaginal penetration. She should do it at least once per week, with copious amounts of lubricant, and use it while fantasizing or enjoying erotica, to stimulate her mind’s arousal.”

You don’t have to simulate fucking with a dilator or a dildo (and a dilator in this case is just a dildo by another name); instead, gently insert the lubed-up dilator, remember to breathe, and then—once it’s all the way in— read some erotica or watch some porn. And then, if you’re feeling it, masturbate to climax. And then, when you’re with your lover, do the same but with his dick. Get his P in your V without it being about his pleasure. It’s about yours. When you do feel ready to let him fuck you, don’t feel obligated to endure it until he finishes. Only let him fuck you for as long as it feels comfortable and/or good for you, then pivot to something else you both enjoy if he hasn’t finished.