Features
Thursday, February 9 2012
“Don’t Let Me Fall”: Hip-Hop in the Age of Austerity
Rappers have always wrestled with the question of how to succeed in a society where the odds are stacked against them. The biggest difference now is that their middle class listeners have the same worries.
Thursday, June 2 2011
Kanye West = Batman? Five Perfect Broadway Superhero Musicals We'd Like to See
If only the creators of the Spiderman musical had chosen Elvis Costello instead of U2 to create Spidey's soundtrack... While we're at it, here are some ideas for Broadway's next pack of superhero shows.
Friday, December 24 2010
The 70 Best Albums of 2010
PopMatters is on its annual publishing break until 3 January 2011, except for some film reviews and blogs. In the meantime, enjoy some of the year's best...
The year's best albums are highlighted by the emergence of a future superstar, two veteran and virtuoso rappers, and a Dream Team of indie bands releasing career peaks.
Friday, December 24 2010
The 60 Best Songs of 2010
Sixty slices of musical greatness highlighted by one of the most delightful expletive-ridden hits in pop music history.
Friday, December 17 2010
The Best Live Albums of 2010
Successful live albums are challenging things, judged by their ability to adequately portray the power of a performance. 2010 proved that even a strong crop of carefully staged and recorded recent shows could still be overshadowed by legendary sets of the past.
Columns
Thursday, September 22 2011
Watch the Discourse: Luxury Rap, Success and Self-Absorption
The value of a release as large as Watch the Throne is that it goes beyond the gargantuan personalities involved or even the monster show dates designed to promote it. Part of the value is the discussion it generates.
Reviews
Wednesday, January 18 2012
Pusha T: Fear of God II: Let Us Pray
Fear of God II: Let Us Pray rarely highlights the strenghts Pusha T established as one-half of Virginian rap duo Clipse.
Monday, October 10 2011
Has-Lo: In Case I Don't Make It
Has-Lo's latest may not brighten your day with its demeanor, but his abilities on the mic are certainly worth your attention.
Wednesday, November 24 2010
Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
Whether or not this is the best Kanye West album, this may be the one he's remembered most for, the one that may trump the version of him we cringe at on the red carpet.
Monday, November 22 2010
Kanye West: My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy
After the epically disastrous 808s & Heartbreaks and world-infamous Taylor Swift incident, Mr. West returns to the same territory with extraordinarily different results.
Tuesday, January 12 2010
Kanye West: VH1 Storytellers
This live album serves as a reminder of the irritating truth that gets obscured by all of the grandstanding boorishness: Kanye West is one hell of a pop music artist.
Blogs
Thursday, September 15 2011
Chamberlin Cover's Kanye West's "Lost in the World" MP3 (PopMatters Premiere)
Vermont's very own it-band Chamberlin covers a Kanye West tune and releases Chamberlin Cabin Covers EP to aid Vermont flooding victims.
Monday, August 8 2011
Hip-Hop’s Heartbreak: Kanye West – "Coldest Winter" and "Pinocchio Story"
808s & Heartbreak -- and this Between the Grooves series -- wraps up with a two-song tandem that exemplifies everything Kanye West's masterpiece-before-the-masterpiece is about.
Monday, August 1 2011
Hip-Hop’s Heartbreak: Kanye West – "See You in My Nightmare"
West consciously kept the guest spots and big-name collaborations at a minimum when constructing his fourth album. That mantra allowed this particular joint effort to stand firmly on its own among some of the best work he has ever been a part of.
Monday, July 25 2011
Hip-Hop’s Heartbreak: Kanye West – "Bad News"
Don't discount "Bad News" because of its placement on 808s & Heartbreak. It's still one of the best art-pop compositions of our time.
Monday, July 18 2011
Hip-Hop’s Heartbreak: Kanye West – “Street Lights”
Kanye kicks off 808s & Heartbreak's home stretch with a song often over-looked, though never discredited.
News
Thursday, December 1 2011
West gets 7 nominations, but Adele gets Grammy spotlight
LOS ANGELES — Rapper Kanye West scored a leading seven nominations for the 54th annual Grammy Awards, but ceded the brightest spotlight of music industry…
Tuesday, August 9 2011
Jay-Z and Kanye West ascend the 'Throne'
JAY-Z AND KANYE WEST "Watch the Throne" Roc-a-Fella Records (3 1/2 stars) The kingdom is in peril. Confidence has been shaken: "Tears on the mausoleum…
Monday, December 20 2010
Taylor and Kanye rule the music scene now, but which one will last?
As she accepted her award for favorite female country artist at November's American Music Awards, Taylor Swift said, "I only want to thank the fans."…
Tuesday, November 30 2010
Kanye West shapes the message his way
LOS ANGELES — Early this fall, before any kind of promotional push for Kanye West's new album, "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy," had begun in…
Tuesday, November 23 2010
Kanye West's growing pains
Here's a quote that recently resonated with Kanye West: "Every child is an artist. The problem is staying an artist when you grow up." Pablo…
