By Colin Dray
Torn apart, but narratively stitched back together through the affection of its fans and creators, the Bluths and Arrested Development hang suspended in a moment of disrepair, the beating heart of their sorrow exposed, but yearning always to reconnect. [19.Jun.13]
By Craig Hayes
Darkwave luminary Lycia had its 1996 album, Cold, issued on LP for the first time recently, and with the band's first full-length in a decade due for release in August, Cold's reappearance is a timely reminder of Lycia's legacy in the sphere of bewitchingly mournful music. [19.Jun.13]
A test of Superman is a test of selflessness and our expectations of a being that is completely selfless, despite his omnipotence. And, perhaps, selfless behaviors are just not that much fun to enact. Who wants responsibility to others to exclusively motivate play? [19.Jun.13]
Judith Hill represents the new guard in 20 Feet from Stardom, showing the world just how much the music business has changed for background singers. [19.Jun.13]
By Joe Vallese
In anticipation and celebration of Exile in Guyville’s 20th anniversary, Sound Affects shares its picks for the top five Girly Sound tracks, the record that formed the blueprint for Exile and later portions of Liz Phair's output. [19.Jun.13]
Today's Articles
19.Jun.13
Working through the darkness to see the light, Jason Isbell reflects and bares his soul on the mesmerizing Southeastern.
After such a promising set with 2010's Shout It Out, the brothers Hanson present a disappointing, rock-leaning record that has few bright spots.
Journeys like those on Drifters/Love Is the Devil are never easy ones on the artist or the listener, but, then again, the whole point of Dirty Beaches' music is to explore paths that are harder to travel.
A longstanding piano trio makes its first magical live recording.
This will be album number eight for the Finnish metal quintet, and the years of touring and studio seasoning have Children of Bodom flexing their muscles oh so confidently.
Limited to 3,000 copies, this is a brilliant experiment in guitar noise, not in entertainment.
Darkwave luminary Lycia had its 1996 album, Cold, issued on LP for the first time recently, and with the band's first full-length in a decade due for release in August, Cold's reappearance is a timely reminder of Lycia's legacy in the sphere of bewitchingly mournful music.
In anticipation and celebration of Exile in Guyville’s 20th anniversary, Sound Affects shares its picks for the top five Girly Sound tracks, the record that formed the blueprint for Exile and later portions of Liz Phair's output.
Judith Hill represents the new guard in 20 Feet from Stardom, showing the world just how much the music business has changed for background singers.
From the things we want to remember to the things we wish we could forget, The Totally Sweet '90s is a fun-filled jaunt down memory lane.
There’s no shortage of good research to be conducted on modern television, nor can it truly be said that what Leigh Edwards has accomplished isn’t good research.
The devastating weights of patriarchy and tradition hang over the resourceful subjects of the documentaries, Camera/Woman and Born This Way.
Mates of State kick out the jams with a very small audience in their metaphorical Connecticut backyard, fresh off of three nights opening for The Postal Service in sizable arenas.
With Monsters University (a good film, go see it), Pixar has stopped playing perfectionist forever. From now on, merely being good will have to do. Greatness seems like a thing of the past. The distant past.
Violet & Daisy might be a parable, but the lessons to be learned are both trite and impenetrable, something about family or friendship or maybe the importance of bringing extra ammo to a hit.
Cate Shortland's fantastic sophomore film asks the question: Were there any good Germans during WWII?
What makes this western “psychological” are the sparring types of man -- young and virile versus old and protective, playful against serious, handsome facing ugly. Should a man be sexy? More to the point, should he be pretty?
Sponsor
Our friends at Smirnoff have created new artistic project, Mindtunes, that involves groundbreaking methods of creating music through brainwaves.
A test of Superman is a test of selflessness and our expectations of a being that is completely selfless, despite his omnipotence. And, perhaps, selfless behaviors are just not that much fun to enact. Who wants responsibility to others to exclusively motivate play?
Torn apart, but narratively stitched back together through the affection of its fans and creators, the Bluths and Arrested Development hang suspended in a moment of disrepair, the beating heart of their sorrow exposed, but yearning always to reconnect.
In Wolverine & the X-Men #31 the Jean Grey Institute for Higher Learning comes up against its evil counterpart, a school for budding supervillains, raising such ethical issues as education-for-profit and inspiring schoolkids to being greater…
Recent Articles
Tuesday, 18 June 2013
Why do Mick, Sting, and Tina cast the spotlight on Lisa Fischer? As 20 Feet from Stardom reveals, she knows how to stop time.
British television viewers are hungry for cutting edge programs -- most only available legally in the United States. But will the BBC listen?
It's been awhile since we have come across a young solo singer/songwriter that stops us in our tracks, so we were thrilled to record a session with Our Griffins, the project from musician DJ Brown.
The buzz around the album is that it’s a little more experimental, with the band dabbling in a wider sonic palette for maximum creative expression while also tapping into how the talent in the band adds up to a greater whole than the sum of its parts.
Sigur Rós' "dark album", Kveikur, doesn't do much to push the Icelandic band into new sonic territory, but it does refine its decades-tested style in the best way possible.
Pedal-Driven is sure to please fervent mountain bikers with the conflict it drums up.
The astro-traveling, high-pitched, bad character of hip-hop makes his return after an eight-year break.
What should have been a lively romp from a notable author gets mired in the mundane.
If Frank Sinatra is up in heaven, kicking back with a bourbon on ice after the big show we call life, he’s probably listening to Anouk’s Sad Singalong Songs.
While Perfect View isn’t a bad album, it doesn’t do enough to distinguish itself from the pack of dark wave synth acts with an infatuation for the early ‘80s that have come about in recent years.
A defiantly old-fashioned, exceptionally good quality collection of lush, broken-hearted pop songs from the Coral's former guitarist.
Monday, 17 June 2013
This week at PopMatters, we turn our patented “Spotlight” series on five of the incredible women featured in RADiUS-TWC’s bombastic, moving new film 20 Feet from Stardom, which chronicles the lives and careers of some of the most underrated singers in modern music history.
As part of our 20 Feet from Stardom, today we explore the gospel of legendary chanteuse Merry Clayton. Our interview discusses friendship, faith, and fearlessness, principles by which this diva passionately abides.
Terence Blanchard is more than a brilliant jazz trumpeter. His long-standing quintet is one of the most flexible groups in jazz, and his work as a composer of film soundtracks is distinctive.
The variety of music to absorb on Friday posed formidable challenges, and navigating from one stage to the next all day is a good way to lay waste to your body, which happens to be one of Bonnaroo’s most-popular pastimes.
Why are so many picking on Superman for destroying a few hundred thousand people when his actions clearly save billions?
PopMatters is pleased to premiere Singles by North Carolina underground heroes Spider Bags.
Yep, it's here. It may not change the game like My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy did, but there's still plenty to keep your attention on album that, of course, has to be called Yeezus.
deepsouth and The New Black both explore American social and political history, but they take different approaches to addressing GLBT rights in America.
Although its references to the 2012 political seasons will be as dated as Murphy Brown's Dan Quayle references, 30 Rock, against all odds, goes out on a perfect note.
Investigative reporter and Detroit native Steve Miller takes us from the glory days of Grande Ballroom to the time when Kid Rock rapped -- and beyond. Wayne Kramer, Jack White, Violent J, and others appear.
Writer Zeb Wells takes Wolverine down the road less taken as he develops the plot without relying on the gimmick of a love interest in Savage Wolverine…
Friday, 14 June 2013
Attempts to update horror icons by recasting them as mere 'mistreated monsters' risk bringing them too far out of the paradoxical isolation that fuels their monstrosity.
Who are the Mythbusters? Adam Savage and Jamie Hyneman take time off the set of Mythbusters to answer Gillette's challenge of "How Does He Shave?" And in a discussion with PopMatters, the Mythbusters get to the heart of why they make popular culture, and why it matters.
In time for the 75th anniversary of the Man of Steel comes the first comprehensive literary biography of Joe Shuster and Jerry Siegel, creators of the DC Comics superhero Superman.
The King is gone, but he’s not forgotten. This is the story of the 133rd most acclaimed album of all time. Is there more to the question than meets the eye? This week’s Counterbalance investigates.
Typically a warm-up bonus day before the headliners kick in on Friday, this Thursday was full-bore Bonnaroo mayhem, with bigger-than-ever crowds doubling the capacity of the tents, where buzz acts like Django Django, Purity Ring, and Alt-J played hour-long sets.
I’ve tried breaking The Walking Dead down to its core components. I’ve tried to analyze it from a distance to figure out how it’s able to so effectively hook my emotions, but I can't break it. I can't "game" it.
The familiarity of this story cuts at least two ways in this decidedly not-new version. It means the film will rehearse and reinforce the grandly mythic saga of Superman, and provide rationales for his eyeglasses and his cape.
Torrential rains on the first day caused Friday to end early and left the Governors Ball grounds very very muddy. But throughout the weekend, music from Kanye, Cut Copy and several other bands made trudging through the sloppy field worthwhile.
The aughts are in desperate need of a new action hero. In his upcoming film, Mad Max: Fury Road, here's how director George Miller can make Tom Hardy be the new Mel Gibson (you know, in a good way).
The story reaches new levels of dumb for the franchise and not the campy fun dumb that defined Resident Evil in the past. This is just dumb.
What does it mean to be a revolutionary leftist today?There is still that tapping at your shoulder, that whisper in your ear that you once knew, when you were young, idealistic, in college -- Marx was right and you know it.
Thursday, 13 June 2013
Netflix is such a beautiful service that it’s terrifying. It’s given us everything we ever wanted, and one day we’ll look back on what a tragedy that was.
A survey of Sherlock fans supports what broadcasters have long suspected: international viewers won't wait for new episodes on cable when the Internet is oh, so close to home.
What hath Bendis wrought?! In unravelling the traditional structure of the Avengers nearly a decade ago, writer Brian Michael Bendis lay the groundwork for something truly unimaginable at the time. Something both Joss Whedon with the 2012 blockbuster, and current writer Jonathan Hickman are heirs to.
Proteus shows that chasing a single definition of "video game" distracts us from more important things.
Welcome to our weekly field guide to 1950s horror and sci-fi movies and the creatures that inhabit them. This week: A petty crook with an alibi you can see through spices up The Amazing Transparent Man.
Perfect Understanding presages romantic comedies like Four Weddings and a Funeral and Friends with Benefits.
This substantial anthology memorializes the work of one the 20th century's greatest political thinkers, for better or worse (depending upon your politics).
In Sofia Coppola's weirdly fascinating, beautifully composed film, stolen stuff doesn't feel owned or stolen, exactly, but more endlessly transferred, from one briefly desirous individual to another.
Primavera's certainly evolved from where it started out early last decade, but it hasn't lost its special vibe that's unmatched by most of its competition.
Through comedy, the members of the Lonely Island provide another direct criticism on American subcultures and flaunt their knowledge and reverence of rap and hip hop with The Wack Album.
On the opening night of the 2013 Nelsonville Music Festival, several attendees reported seeing a meteor or fireball in the sky.
Mixed Media
Shigeto Releases Single "Ringleader" (stream) [Wed, 10:35 am]
'Revolutionary Optimists' on Independent Lens [Wed, 8:16 am]
Smirnoff's Mindtunes Project Rocks the House with Beats from New Musicians and DJ Fresh (Sponsor) [Wed, 6:45 am]
Fuck Buttons - "The Read Wing" (video) [Tue, 10:30 am]
Australian Psych-poppers Pond Return with "Xanman" (stream) [Tue, 9:30 am]
Maya Jane Coles - "Everything" ft. Karin Park (Breach and Last Magpie Remixes) (stream) [Mon, 3:55 pm]
Foals - "Bad Habit" (video) [Mon, 2:01 pm]
Wampire - "Orchards" (STRFKR Remix) (stream) [Mon, 1:55 pm]
Jay-Z Dropping New Album, 'Magna Carta Holy Grail' [Mon, 1:15 pm]
'Call Me Kuchu': David Kato's Courage and Charisma [Mon, 11:55 am]
Franz Ferdinand Release Video Ahead of New Album, 'Right Thoughts, 'Right Words, Right Action' [Mon, 10:45 am]
Greg Porn - "Cloud 9" (video) (PopMatters Premiere) [Mon, 9:01 am]
'Herman's House': The Tolls of Solitary Confinement [Mon, 8:15 am]
Toro y Moi Remixes Billie Holiday's "My Man" (stream) [Fri, 5:06 pm]
PopMatters Highlights
Mates of State: 15 June 2013 - Hamden, CT (Notes from the Road) [Wed, 12:00 pm]
Shigeto Releases Single "Ringleader" (stream) (Mixed Media) [Wed, 10:35 am]
'Monsters University' and Pixar's Transition from Perfectionists to Product (Short Ends and Leader) [Wed, 10:15 am]
The Postal Service's New Music Video is a Bit of a Spin (Cycle) (Mixed Media) [Wed, 9:34 am]
Human Rights Watch Film Festival New York 2013: 'Born This Way' + 'Camera/Woman' (Reviews) [Wed, 9:30 am]
The Top 5 'Girly Sound' Tracks from Liz Phair (Sound Affects) [Wed, 9:10 am]
It's Like Two Crazy China Dolls Are Brought to Life in 'Violet & Daisy' (Reviews) [Wed, 9:00 am]
'Revolutionary Optimists' on Independent Lens (Mixed Media) [Wed, 8:16 am]
Don't Stay in School: "Wolverine & the X-Men #31" (Reviews) [Wed, 7:15 am]
'Lore' Is a Coming of Age Story That Dives Into the Sinister (Reviews) [Wed, 7:10 am]
The Quirks, the Accomplishments, and the What Were We Thinking Moments of 'The Totally Sweet '90s' (Reviews) [Wed, 7:05 am]
Why Superman Fails As a Video Game Character (Moving Pixels) [Wed, 7:00 am]
Smirnoff's Mindtunes Project Rocks the House with Beats from New Musicians and DJ Fresh (Sponsor) (Mixed Media) [Wed, 6:45 am]
Performer Spotlight: The Women of 20 Feet from Stardom: Judith Hill (Features) [Wed, 2:20 am]
Engulfed in Dark Waves: Lycia's 'Cold' (Features) [Wed, 2:14 am]
The 10 Best/Worst Post Apocalyptic Future Scenarios in Film (Short Ends and Leader)
Why 'Game of Thrones' Matters (Features)
Kanye West: Yeezus (Reviews)
Black Sabbath: 13 (Reviews)
The Top 10 Movies About Movies of All Time (Short Ends and Leader)
Will Netflix Kill TV? (Features)
Boards of Canada: Tomorrow's Harvest (Reviews)
Beady Eye: BE (Reviews)
Vampire Weekend - "Diane Young" (video) (Mixed Media)
I Can't Break 'The Walking Dead' (Moving Pixels)
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