Movies, TV, music, and books we're into this week

Akira is a legendary adaptation of an equally legendary sci-fi manga, set in a dystopic futuristic Tokyo. A violent biker gang gets embroiled in shadowy government research into telekinesis, with implications that could threaten the entire world. This landmark animation that remains fresh 30 years later, and was recently remastered for its Blu-ray release.

It's been cold outside lately — it snowed last weekend — so my TV consumption has gone up. Luckily, Netflix has put out some good stuff lately, Maniac as no exception. It stars Emma Stone and Jonah Hill as two people struggling with life and looking for a fix. They both sign up for a pharmaceutical drug trial, and from there stuff gets … weird.The show has a cyberpunk retro vibe to it that I loved. It seems to be set in the present, yet computers never evolved past enormous blinking machines with CRT monitors as controls, there are no cell phones, and there are odd little custodial robots that tool around picking up trash. The aesthetic is great and the storyline takes you on a wild trip. Definitely recommend.

New Zealand's wacky humor-band 'Flight of the Conchords' is sort of an acquired taste—and you generally like them or you … don't. I like 'em. And when I saw the duo has new HBO special coming soon, I was inspired to check out some of their earlier music, starting with the self-titled collection, Flight of the Conchords.My favorite thing about the band is that while their tunes are clearly supposed to be jokes, and the main goal is to make you laugh, they actually make really good music that's super catchy. The track 'Business Time' is a perfect example of a song that's genuinely funny but that'll stick in your ear and have you humming the tune for days. (I'm literally humming it as I write this, and I haven't listened to the song in days … )

As a respite from my current outlaw country kick, I went back to Paul Simon's Still Crazy After All These Years. I attended a music festival a couple weeks ago and saw a band dedicated to Simon covers, and it reminded me that I need to listen to more of his music.This album starts out with the title track (which is beautiful) and goes from there with some of Simon's most iconic songs. If you haven't listened to this one in a while (or have never listened at all), I suggest heading back.

Bruce Fielder, better known as Sigala, is one of my favorite present-time DJs. He has been responsible for some killer hits, including Easy Love and Lullaby. Brighter Days packs some of these awesome sub-friendly tracks and more. If you happen to be a fan of lighthearted and summer electronic dance music, you should check this album out.

This book is a quirky take on the traditional noir private eye novel, in which Boston investigator Mark Genevich simultaneously battles narcolepsy and a group of local baddies, as he tries to solve his latest case and unravel a twisty mystery.If you don't know, narcolepsy is a medical condition in which you cannot control when you fall asleep (hence the clever title, which is a play on the name of the classic noir book, The Big Sleep by Raymond Chandler). And as you can imagine, narcolepsy not only makes life very difficult for anyone afflicted by it, it is particularly difficult if you're a private investigator at the center of a web of intrigue.The book is packed with clever pop-culture references, and it's a fun, relatively short and easy read. It's also one of Tremblay's earlier novels and offers a clear glimpse of the good stuff he'd later pen.

Growing up with The Lord of the Rings movies, it was easy to lose oneself in the fantastical world of Middle-earth. What makes the experience even better is reading the four books and how Tolkien truly intended to convey the story about Hobbits, dragons, death hunters, orcs, and wizards.