This is One to Skip

I think that microgenres are some of the best (and sometimes funniest) things about music. Longtime solvers will know that I love a pop queen or a 90’s alt rock classic, but have you ever listened to Dungeon Synth? No, this isn’t a Runescape soundtrack - this is people making dark, medieval-flavoured ambient synthy tunes with names like Mushroom Grandpa because that’s just what they like to do. And I like that they like to do that. Shout out to The Yellow Button for introducing me to this very specific genre.

This week’s crossword features another niche (and perhaps less listenable) microgenre, among a smattering of other references I hope you’ll enjoy.

Discussion (and spoilers!) below the break.

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This is One to Skip by Brandon Cathcart

Discussion

I was really happy with this puzzle when I finished it! The theme felt strong, and I was energized during the cluing stage. It’s always fun finding pop culture references for clues, but too many has the potential to frustrate solvers in different cultural spheres. So I always try to balance it with classic definition clues and ensure some of the pop culture ones are easier! Lots of thought goes into balancing clue difficulty for the overall puzzle.

This was a relatively music-heavy puzzle, but given the preamble about microgenres, I feel like I need to share the ["Beavis and Butt-Head" spinoff show that inspired a hyperpop/EDM microgenre called ___core] insanity that is DARIAcore. I both weirdly like it and also can’t listen to too much of it or my brain gets overstimulated.

Today’s Theme

Today’s theme has a bit of trickery to it, though it’s nothing too weird and wacky. Three long entries each have a set of six circled letters in them. You might be able to solve the clues and see a pattern - the same letters keep appearing, but in a different order each time.

31-Across is the revealer - [One who repeats themselves... and a hint to each set of circles]. The answer here is a BROKEN RECORD, and the circles contain the word RECORD but “broken,” or anagrammed. That’s a little cryptic lingo sneaking its way in again ;)

Behind the Clues

1A. A long clue to start things off, [Charli XCX song with the line "I think the ___'s rotten right to the core / From all the things passed down from all the ___s coming before"] is APPLE. The first line of the song is “I think the apple don’t fall far from the tree” which felt a little too gimme. I also processed what the song was actually about (not apples) and wanted to pick a lyric to highlight that a bit more clearly. A+ song.

11A. [Card-based party game aptly named for the inability to recall the names of everyday things] is ANOMIA, which is one of my favourite party games I’ve ever played. With the right group of people, it gets the energy up without relying on shock/cringe humour (I’m looking at you, Cards Against Humanity et al). Go to your local board game cafe and play it with some friends. A+ game.

38A. [Asks not to be hit, in a casino] is a purposeful misdirect, softened by the casino hint. The original clue was [Asks not to be hit, in a way], which prompted my faithful test solver to say “I don’t get it,” then when explained, “Oh.” We decided that the casino was necessary to give the right brain context for STAYS, or doesn’t ask for another card (hit) in a game of Blackjack.

8D. [Like the Beacons, when Gondor calls for aid] references a famous scene and line from Lord of the Rings. The full quote is:

12D. Oh boy, another TV/movie reference. ["Spider-___," recent black-and-white Spiderverse spin-off starring Nicholas Cage] is Spider-NOIR, which I haven’t watched yet (I’m so slow at watching TV shows) but it looks great. They released it in black and white too, which makes the whole thing even better.

27D. Maybe it’s nostalgia bait for all the years I spent playing street hockey, maybe it’s an excuse to include a clip from one of my favourite movies Wayne’s World. Maybe it’s Maybeline. Maybe it’s all three. [Word occasionally yelled during street hockey] is CAR! And, subsequently, GAME ON.

I hope you enjoyed this puzzle!

Until next week,

Brandon

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