Tuesday, January 17 2012
Traveling at Different Speeds: An Interview with Icebird’s RJD2
After producing countless underground-rap hits, scoring the Mad Men theme, and putting out iconic albums of his own, RJD2 decided to write songs with singer Aaron Livingston before they formed a band. RJ talks about the creation of the one and only Icebird.
Friday, January 13 2012
“Copying People I Like”: A Conversation with Eleanor Friedberger
The Fiery Furnaces' Eleanor Friedberger tells PopMatters all about her breezy, gorgeous new solo effort, and also tells us why she doesn't like giving interviews, which Fiery Furnaces album she least enjoys, and how performing solo was a revealing experience for her.
Friday, January 6 2012
From Touring Carnival to Destination Festival: Lollapalooza at 20
When Lollapalooza disappeared from view in 1997, it seemed that a good idea had run its course. But the end of the road for Lollapalooza as a tour turned out to be just the first part of its story.
Thursday, January 5 2012
Somehow You Love Me: An Interview with Saves the Day
With the influential emo-rockers closing out a long-in-the-works album trilogy, Saves the Day's Chris Conley speaks openly and candidly to PopMatters about who he was, who he wants to be, and the event that changed everything for him ...
Wednesday, January 4 2012
“I Don’t Like There to Be Artifacts”: An Interview with DJ Shadow
DJ Shadow pieces together his sonic collages from a veritable mish-mash of samples and formats. His new album The Less You Know the Better is no less a compelling puzzle than his previous works. And so we set out to know more about this album by asking none other than Shadow himself ...
Tuesday, January 3 2012
“I’ve Never Been the Coolest Kid in School”: An Interview with Jack’s Mannequin
He graduated from high-school piano-rock outfit Something Corporate into a mature pop songwriter who also hangs out with Tommy Lee. Andrew McMahon sits down to talk with PopMatters, explains his blog posts, and why he recorded his most recent album twice ...
Monday, January 2 2012
The Best Hopes to Break Out in 2012
The year ahead looks to be an exciting one with the emergence of wealth of great new music waiting in the wings. Will Alabama Shakes be the toast of 2012? Will 2012 be a banner year for forward-thinking hip-hop and R&B? And let's not forget all the great new bands expected to break big in 2012.
Friday, December 30 2011
The Best New and Emerging Artists of 2011
The year's best new and emerging artists range across the musical spectrum from forward thinking R&B to classic soul, from a bevy of exciting new hip-hop talent to great new hopes for indie rock and Americana. 2011 shows that music is always pushing forward even as it dips into the past.
Thursday, December 29 2011
The 2011 Artists of the Year
This year's top artists are a diverse lot represented by two of the world's biggest pop divas, a plethora of critically adored indie faves, some new talents emerging from the hip-hop underground, a couple of veteran Americana acts, and a few alt-rock legends among many more.
Wednesday, December 28 2011
The 75 Best Songs of 2011
The year's best songs are headlined by an instant synth pop classic, the massive hitmaking of the planet's hottest new diva, the pristine harmonies of a young band headed for greatness, the return of the poster boys for indie rock, and an instant Americana classic.
Tuesday, December 27 2011
The 75 Best Albums of 2011
The year's best albums feature sophomore sets from two of indie's finest artists, a hardcore punk opera masterpiece, career highlights from four amazing women in the top 10 alone, new forward-thinking R&B and hip-hop, an electronic Big Album that shoots for the moon, and so much more.
Monday, December 26 2011
The Best Metal of 2011
PopMatters’ staff of metal experts present their top picks from a year that offered a standout work of Christian “progressive death metalcore”, a philosophical treatise on “Transcendent Black Metal”, and one amazing debut.
Thursday, December 22 2011
The Best Electronic Music of 2011
Our electronic music enthusiasts pick highlights from a year when the genre ranged widely and wildly from ADD dance music to the last great pure dubstep record to an industrial cacophony that's a proper soundtrack to a world in turmoil.
Wednesday, December 21 2011
The Best Indie Rock of 2011
A “Best of Indie Rock” list, by definition, will be an eclectic bunch. And the process of culling through what the genre had to offer is a task this year -- the indie world has had a banner 2011.
Tuesday, December 20 2011
The Best Americana of 2011
If you ask a critic or music fan to define Americana, be prepared for an avalanche of diverse responses of opinion. Still, there remain some constant benchmarks, such as pedal steel, fiddle, acoustic guitars -- and good songwriting.
Friday, December 16 2011
The Best Women in Rock of 2011
In 2011, Tori Amos, Björk, and PJ Harvey turned the clock back to their mid-'90s heyday.
Thursday, December 15 2011
The Best Alternative Songwriters of 2011
Some of 2011's best songwriting came from artists whose work could be broadly defined as "alternative". Few of these artists fit the mold of the traditional singer-songwriter, creating music the blurs the lines defining genres.
The Best Pop-Punk of 2011
It’s true, pop-punk is not dead. Far from it. And now is the perfect time to celebrate some of the best albums from a year that helped put the genre back on the map.
Wednesday, December 14 2011
The 20 Worst Albums of 2011
These artists didn't just disappoint, they offered up the listening public albums of utter awfulness across the board. Some of the acts just need to hang it up already, while others have made some sorry mis-steps here along the path of otherwise decent careers.
The Most Disappointing Albums of 2011
The selections on this list aren't necessarily bad albums -- some actually happen to be among the most critically acclaimed of this year. In some cases, it's just that the albums weren't what fans were expecting, and in others, they were exactly what they were expecting.
