‘Hotter than Morocco!’ read the front page of one rag this week. Yeah, take that Morocco. You can keep your beautiful landscapes, food and culture. We win, apparently.

Beau is afraid, you’re afraid, we’re all afraid
Following the success of Midsommar and Hereditary, Ari Aster is back with his latest mind-melting epic. Co-produced by A24, Beau is Afraid is a wild horror-slash-tragicomedy telling the story of one man’s odyssey back to his mother’s house. Joaquin Pheonix stars in the leading role as his character embarks on the nightmarish journey home amidst a world of heightened reality, irrational anxieties and the downright terrifying. Buckle up.

Beau is Afraid is out in cinemas now. 

Two festivals, one weekend
You know it’s coming up to summer when you get two festivals in one weekend. Firstly, South London’s three-dayer festival GALA is returning to Peckham Rye for its seventh year. Bringing together an array of jazz, funk and soul on Friday with Jordan Rakei headlining alongside live sets from the likes of Sherelle and Nubya Garcia. Saturday and Sunday tap heavier into house and techno with headline sets from Overmono and Kerri Chandler plus Young Marco, Jeremy Underground and Josh Caffé.

Festival number two: Wide Awake. Also in South London, this year’s fest is headlined Caroline Polachek, while support comes from Black Country, New Road, Viagra Boys, and Osees (read our HERO 29 interview with frontman John Dwyer). Always a great day out, listen to our playlists with Wide Awake acts Cola and Los Bitchos to get you firmly in the mood.

GALA takes place at Peckham Rye Park from May 26th – 28th, more info here.
Wide Awake takes place at Brockwell Park on 27th May – buy tickets.

Lovers’ tiff
Arriving at The Artist Room this weekend, Ania Hobson’s solo exhibition is a meditation on human emotion. Titled Hotel, her latest body of work depicts two figures in an unravelling relationship that quickly becomes estranged following a hotel visit intended to save their partnership. Crated in her distinctly vivid colour palette of fiery hues, the exhibition is also accompanied by a physical comic zine incorporating unseen drawings and textual narration.

Ania Hobson: Hotel runs at The Artist Room until June 24th, more info here. 

A decade of Machine-A
Cult London boutique Machine-A reopens with a fresh revamp, marking its 10th anniversary. Taking its cues from brutalist design, clock that beautiful sci-fi spiral staircase and concrete walls that resemble a spa from the cosmic future. As for the clothes, Machine-A are unmatched. Heavyweight labels such as Raf Simons, Rick Owens and Comme des Garçons rub shoulders with newcomers Chet Lo, Nensi Dojaka and Olly Shinder, while seating and fitting room fabrication reworks materials from the Kvadrat/Raf Simons textile collection. Treat yourself.

Machine-A is located at 13 Brewer Street.

Our Land
Interested in abstract beauty and the role photography plays in representing it to the viewer, William Waterworth’s solo exhibition Ein Tir at Pipeline Contemporary explores the fundamental nature of how we look at others and what it means to feel seen. Comprising photography, film, writing and craft spanning the entirety of Waterworth’s practice, the exhibition documents the photographer’s travels and dramatised interpretations of literary works.

William Waterworth: Ein Tir runs at Pipeline Contemporary until June 10th, more info here. 

Bao buns galore
First launched in New York City in 2009, Eddie Huang’s infamous bao buns are finally hopping across the pond. Baohaus is taking up residency in Islington’s Neighbourhood from this weekend until the end of August, so you have the whole of summer to sample every bun the menu has to offer. Expect to see a line up of braised pork belly with Haus relish, 24-hour brined fried chicken and organic fired tofu nestled in flully bao as well as rice bowls of stewed pork infused with shitake mushrooms and poached turkey.

Neighbourhood is located at 77 Upper Street, N1 0NU, more info here.