9 Longform Stories We're Reading This Week: Nick Saban, Cuban Metal, And Eels

Do you know where your unagi comes from? This week, BuzzReads explores the strange, cutthroat world of baby eel fisherman. Read that and other stories from BuzzFeed and the rest of the web.

1. The Eel World: Inside Maine's Wild Elver Turf War — BuzzReads

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In an economically depressed Maine county, Bill Sheldon is the kingpin of a $40 million baby-eel empire that may be doomed to extinction. Peter Andrey Smith finds out what happens when a community full of armed fishermen and elver dealers stop being polite and start getting real. Read it at BuzzReads.

2. The Gangster in the Huddle — Rolling Stone

Josh Reynolds / AP

Paul Solotaroff's much talked about piece about how former New England Patriots tight end Aaron Hernandez came to be on trial for murder. This run in with the law is only his most recent; why did the NFL turn a blind eye? Read it at Rolling Stone.

3. “¡Libertad!”: Cuban Metal Bands Get Their First Taste Of Freedom — BuzzReads

Photograph by Tracey Noelle Luz

After spending their lives making extreme music under oppressive circumstances, a handful of Cuban bands — with the help of writer David Peisner and a filmmaker — finally got the chance to play in the U.S. The hardest part: deciding whether they could ever go home again. Read it at BuzzReads.

4. The Outsiders: How Can Millennials Change Washington If They Hate It – The Atlantic

Photography by Richard A. Bloom for The Atlantic

Ron Fournier discusses a dichotomy: while Millennials have an incredible volunteer spirit, they're unlikely to see government as a means to change the world. As Boomers retire, this will leave an unfortunate hole in Washington. Read it at The Atlantic.

5. Curses! The Birth of the Bleep and Modern American Censorship — The Verge

theverge.com

Maria Bustillos takes a look at our culture's conflicted relationship with censorship in this entertaining and creatively laid-out essay. Read it at The Verge.

6. Nick Saban: Sympathy for the Devil — GQ

Wilfredo Lee, File / AP

Warren St. John delivers an insightful and occasionally hilarious profile of Nick Saban, the Alabama Crimson Tide's very successful coach, who is as revered as he is feared. Who is the man behind the grimace? Read it at GQ.

7. Welfare Fraud: "Damned if you do, doomed if you don't" — Al Jazeera America

Pittsburgh County Sheriff's Office; Joe Raedle / Getty Images / Via america.aljazeera.com

The tragic story of Oklahoma mother and wife Candice Lynn, who, at the suggestion of her caseworker, lied to the government about her income to continue receiving aid. Who's culpable when your alternatives are serve jail time or go hungry? Read it at Al Jazeera America.

8. An Everyday Genius — Intelligent Life

Chris Ware / Via chicagoreader.com

A charming profile of cartoonist Chris Ware. It reveals his struggles with self-esteem, the eleven arduous years he spent on Building Stories and how the birth of his daughter changed everything. Read it at Intelligent Life.

9. The Complicated Appeal of Black Metal — BuzzFeed

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It’s hard to love aggressive music made by murderous, homophobic white supremacists. But, Jessica Hopper argues, for fans of this subversive subgenre, navigating the space between an artist’s image and the art itself is part of the challenge. Read it at BuzzFeed.