Kirby Fields

Now and Then, Smells Like Teen Spirit: The Death of Kurt Cobain

By Kirby Fields

There was a stretch when Nirvana was the soundtrack for our Friday nights. No, check that. There was a stretch when Nirvana was our Friday nights. [25 September 2009]

The Book Barn

By Kirby Fields

Kirby Fields revisits Joplin, Missouri's Book Barn, and poses the question: What does it mean to be the cultural center of a community that has no culture? [25 June 2008]

Rick Rubin: In the Studio, by Jake Brown

By Kirby Fields

Part of my antagonism toward this book stems from my feeling that it’s not so much as “written” as it is “researched”. [16 September 2009]

Arctic Monkeys: 3 August 2009 - New York

By Kirby Fields

There’s a difference between being “fan friendly” and “for the fans”, and this was definitely a show that was for the fans. [4 September 2009]

They Might Be Giants: 11 July 2009 - Brooklyn, NY

By Kirby Fields

Their transition from a quirky adult band to an earnest children’s band isn’t as seamless as it is inevitable. [10 August 2009]

Fool’s Gold by Gillian Tett

By Kirby Fields

This book examines, at a high level, what happens when a well intentioned financial innovation spins out of control and is used for nefarious ends. [28 July 2009]

Elvis Perkins: 20 May 2009 - Brooklyn, NY

By Kirby Fields

I described Elvis Perkins as “part Andrew Bird, part Arcade Fire, part Rufus Wainwright, part Leonard Cohen, part Dylan, and all good”, but this catchall fails to account for his periodic spurts of beer-hall charm. [7 July 2009]

Columbine by Dave Cullen

By Kirby Fields

This is an exquisitely researched, deeply considered treatment of an event that has heretofore fought a losing battle with sensationalism. [17 April 2009]

The Sex Pistols: There’ll Always Be an England

By Kirby Fields

Temple first provides the background out of which the boys and indeed, the whole punk movement emerged, before going on to debunk some of the myths and to substantiate some others. [2 April 2009]

Public Enemy: Revolverlution Tour Australia 2003

By Kirby Fields

For those of us who are interested in the intersection of politics and popular culture, our resentment of Reagan-Bush-Bush is mitigated by the realization that, hey, at least we got some good tunes out of the deal. [9 March 2009]

A Fan on the Never-Ending Tour: 18 Years of Bob Dylan Live

By Kirby Fields

For those of us who follow the set lists online, Bob Dylan songs are like currency: They accrue or shed their value based on the number of times they are played on tour. [5 January 2009]

Paranoid Park

By Kirby Fields

Van Sant’s narrative prowess will never be favorably compared to that of Wilder, Ford, or Tarantino. His bailiwick is character, particularly those characters who exist on the fringes: users, hustlers, hitchhikers. [14 November 2008]

The Fletch Collection

By Kirby Fields

My 13-year-old self that rooted along with Fletch for Gail Stanwyck to lend him her towel after his car allegedly hit a water buffalo was unable to fully appreciate the elements of noir, at the time. [26 September 2008]

Shine a Light

By Kirby Fields

Rarely do movies change my mind about anything, rarer still about rock 'n' roll, but Shine A Light did just that. [11 August 2008]

Sonic Youth - River to River Festival

By Kirby Fields

Just like the Beatles belong to Liverpool, Nirvana to Seattle, and N.W.A. to Compton, Sonic Youth belongs to New York… [25 July 2008]

Goodbye 20th Century by David Browne

By Kirby Fields

On more than one occasion the band’s collective memory is not exactly in synch, a point that only further reminds us that we are reading a mythology, not a chronicle. [21 July 2008]

The Darjeeling Limited

By Kirby Fields

At last, as in the final scene taken by a camera fixed to the exterior of a train as it clickety-clacks forward, the countryside speeding by, the rails extending into the distance, we can see that Wes Anderson is back on track. [22 February 2008]

Sonic Youth’s Daydream Nation [2007 Rewind]

By Kirby Fields

At their best, full-album concerts detach a recording from a particular place and time, making a case for the timelessness of its content. But, by the same token, trips down memory lane also have a way of hitting bumps in the road. [18 December 2007]

Sonic Youth performs Daydream Nation

By Kirby Fields

At their best, full-album concerts detach a recording from a particular place and time, making a case for the timelessness of its content. But, by the same token, trips down memory lane also have a way of hitting bumps in the road. [27 August 2007]

The Decemberists

By Kirby Fields

He knows bar maids and peg-leg princesses like the back of his hand, but when reality comes a'knockin, Colin Meloy simply cannot be trusted. [10 August 2007]

Rude Mechanical Orchestra

By Kirby Fields

There’s no use resisting when one of the dancers invites you to join the dance floor. He may be outfitted in trademark green and black, but when you decided to come to this show, you conceded that you are a Rude Mechanical, too. [25 July 2007]

Re:Print: Forever Young: Bob Dylan’s book for Jonah [24 April 2009]