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Megan MilksAbout Megan MilksMegan Milks is currently working on a Ph.D. in Literature and Creative Writing from the University of Illinois at Chicago. She has had critical work published on Venuszine.com, Lost Magazine, Grapevineculture.com, and Sparknotes; her fiction has been published or is forthcoming in DIAGRAM, Pocket Myths, Forge, and Wreckage of Reason, an anthology of experimental women writers. Like once a year, if that, she publishes a magazine called Mildred Pierce, which more people should know about. Features
Coming Soon: Tori Amos, A Collection of CollectionsTori Amos is a fascinating person and she will always be, among other things, the classically trained pianist who rebelled against her preacher father; sought inspiration from witch doctors and their drugs; made zany, unmediated statements in interviews; and proved that pianos are as liberating as guitars. [30 November 2006] ReviewsXiu XiuYes, a Xiu Xiu performance is intense. However, this intensity does not much involve an audience. It’s an intensity directed inward, with frontperson Jamie Stewart offering little to no interaction with the crowd -- indeed, very little eye contact at all. [1 May 2008] Sex Workers Art ShowSince its inception, the Sex Workers Art Show has advanced the conversation about sex work by opening the lines of communication and throwing a number of wrenches into the idiot side of American sex culture. [3 April 2008] 
The Artist’s Joke by Jennifer HiggieWhat is surprising is that so little of 20th-century art criticism has focused on humor in art. [16 January 2008] Diamanda GalasIt'd be easy to parody Diamanda Galas, but a spoof would necessarily omit what's so stunning about her music: in all their ugly, abrasive glory, her songs redefine what music can and should be. [3 December 2007] SpoonI’d never thought of Spoon as bourgie, but, suddenly, it seems obvious. After all, they play tight, melodic rock that’s just a little bit uppercrust. These guys are, dare I say it, adults... [19 November 2007] 
Wang in Love and Bondage by Xiaobo WangThe novellas in Wang in Love and Bondage explore sex and subjectivity in different, all transgressive, ways. [31 October 2007] SparklehorseIt's almost as if Sparklehorse mastermind Mark Linkous would rather be hiding under the horse head that features so prominently in his lyrics and album art. [31 August 2007] 
Salmonella Men on Planet Porno by Yasutaka TsutsuiThere's a mean streak of misogyny that runs almost throughout the collection and tends to distract from everything else going on around it. [21 August 2007] 
Women Who Write by Stefan BollmannThe category "women who write" has been interpreted in its broadest sense, to refreshing effect. [10 August 2007] 
Rid of Me by Kate SchatzPJ Harvey's Rid of Me still burns with a fever nearly 15 years after its release in 1993. It is an angry, throbbing album, barely containing the ragged voices within it. [16 July 2007] 
Aya by Marguerite Abouet and Clément OubrerieThe book serves as a reminder of a period of greatness for a country that is now struggling to regain its footing. [9 July 2007] 
Courting Equality by Patricia A. Gozemba and Karen KahnThe gay community is by no means united on the importance or prioritization of marriage rights. [28 June 2007] 120 DaysThough they're national-award winners in Norway, and presumably professionals, 120 Days seemed surprised/insulted by Philly's inattention. What did they expect, us awaiting their arrival with bated breath? [13 April 2007] Holy FuckClinic is headlining, and a rep is handing out faux-surgical face masks at the entrance. I don't take one. I am a critical thinker. I've come for one reason alone: to see Holy Fuck’s fresh! new! one-of-a-kind! 35-mm film synchronizer. [9 April 2007] 
The Call of the Weird by Louis TherouxLamb and Lynx showed signs of wanting to go mainstream, and describe Green Day as the equivalent of "pretty good for a commie band". [22 February 2007] Nick Lachey [2006 Rewind]Holy culture shock, Batman. I thought we'd squashed hysteria decades ago. [3 January 2007] 
Supermodel by David BreskinPerhaps Breskin went too far into the task of developing a full psychological portrait of a supermodel that he ended up giving her superwoman status as well. [14 December 2006] Nick LacheyHoly culture shock, Batman. I thought we'd squashed hysteria decades ago. [5 October 2006] 
A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian by Marina Lewycka[It is] about using the roots of one family's persistent psychodrama to view the greater crisis of war, power, and national/cultural upheaval. [27 September 2006] The Gossip + Erase ErrataOn the dawning of disappointment... [14 September 2006] Man ManWe are the hyperaware, hypercynical, hyperbored, hyper 'different', and hypermisunderstood. [1 September 2006] Fiery Furnaces + Man ManSeveral songs into Fiery Furnaces' set, I was still scouring the stage, hoping beyond hope that it was hidden behind an amp or something... [26 June 2006] Cat Power and The Memphis Rhythm BandChan Marshall looks like she's been through Extreme Makeover: Chanteuse Edition. [23 June 2006] Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® CircusWhimsicality is one thing, but Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus has started branding dreams. And not just my dreams or your dreams, but the dreams of our nation's children. [13 June 2006] Wolf ParadePopMatters' Megan Milks deconstructs the speedy rise of one of Canada's (and America's) newest 'it' acts, finding out what's left when the buzz is stripped away. [15 May 2006] Miss Catwalk Tragedy 2006The idiots are those who take it for what it is, right? So loosen up, hey. Don't take things so seriously. Bring on the naked goth chicks. After all, what's so wrong with the body beautiful? [17 April 2006] 
Arte Povera by Carolyn Christov-BakargievWith the beautifully designed Arte Povera, Phaidon once again makes art from documentation of art. [23 March 2006] Flogging MollyI'll bet you secretly prefer Jameson... [24 February 2006] 
Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds: The Road to God Knows Where/Live at the Paradiso [DVD]Nick Cave has always seemed misplaced, of another era. An Australian whose '60s-retro skinny suits and 19th century face have lived all over Europe, Cave looks and sings like an old soul. [22 February 2006] DeerhoofShin Splints, Arachnogasmic Musicals, and a regrettable lack of hooves. [13 February 2006] 
Devil’s Midnight by Yuri KapralovCertainly the Russian Revolution has been tackled before, but Kapralov's stab brings a level of dark, supernatural mysticism that throws an already-gloomy history even deeper into shadow. [8 December 2005] 
Speak Now by Kaylie JonesThe novel suggests that, if not faced -- if only medicated away, as both Clara and Mark have been wont to do -- shadows of the past will permeate the present. [29 November 2005] My Morning JacketWith the onset of darkness I was able to write feverishly, picking up on subtleties like 'lots of hair' and 'still dark', jottings that might later be transcribed into something insightful... [4 November 2005] Metricare no longer 'just-sorta' political popskotchers; they've become full-fledged activist musicians. And they ain't bad... [17 October 2005] Emiliana TorriniSinger/songwriter snobbery is written on my palms. I can't leave without it and I tend to sneer at vocalists who get help with their material. We all do. So are we wrong? [7 July 2005] 
Breath and Bones by Susann CokalIt was an exciting time to be in America in all of its gritty splendor, and Cokal depicts it with authority and obvious pleasure. [10 June 2005] Aimee MannThe crowds are mature -- usually adults in their 30s -- and polite. Nobody's knocking elbows to get to the bar, which leaves listeners relaxed... [1 June 2005] The Mars Volta: 7 May 2005 - Providence, Rhode Island'If you really loved me, you'd let me eat your brains.' So says the back of a T-shirt worn by kid at the show. Awesome... [27 May 2005] Dizzee RascalIndie kids are not enough. UK grime will get lost as a minute blip unless it manages to infiltrate the hip-hop scene that helped spawn it. [13 May 2005] MudvayneThe fricative 'f' sound combined with phonetic relatives 'k' and 'g' delivers a seething curse. The 'g'-less approach leaves the expletive weak... [14 April 2005] AquiWhile there were 'political' statements 'aplenty what I got was this: 'Dance, idiots!' [12 April 2005] Enon + Swearing at MotoristsLike watching two bands on stage at once -- you want them to either cohere or duke it out till someone's senseless. [5 April 2005] Bettie ServeertIf only I had a hip older sister whose tastes had trickled down. Then again, better late than never. [29 March 2005] BlogsNotes from the Road: Yo Majesty + Does It Offend You, Yeah? (2008-05-13) [21 May 2008]Consuming Consumables: LISTEN - Tori Amos: A Piano: The Collection [26 November 2006] |
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