Marsha P. Johnson’s Story of Community and Solidarity
Tourmaline’s biography of Marsha P. Johnson urges readers to witness the complexity and collective power of Black trans life.
Elisabeth Woronzoff
Elisabeth earned her doctorate in American Culture Studies at Bowling Green State University, Bowling Green Ohio. Her research identified eighteenth century women who used music as a trade. She wrote her master thesis on the Smiths and Morrissey and published a chapter in the book "Morrissey: Fandom, Representations and Identities." Her areas of interest include gender, music, history, and popular culture. You can find her on Twitter @cupcakeharborer
Valerie June Shows Radical Joy and Care as Resistance
For Valerie June and bell hooks before her, joy and care are vital forces for survival. As such, June’s album affirms love, care, and joy as radical, resistant acts.
The Head and the Heart’s ‘Aperture’ Is a Compelling Return
The Head and the Heart take artistic control, and the result is a self-produced LP that leans into vulnerability underlined by personal and creative agency.
Moonrisers’ Debut ‘Harsh & Exciting’ Is a Folk Treasure
Moonrisers fuse musical influences without traditional conventions. This genre-blurring approach uses tradition and innovation to evoke feeling and imagery musically.
‘A Living’ and the Affirmation Work
Michael D. Stein’s A Living: Working-Class Americans Talk to Their Doctor affirms the dignity of work while refusing to reduce workers to transactions.
David Longstreth’s New LP Shows Beauty Spiked with Damage
Song of the Earth is daring and sincere; it is an artistic statement enshrining David Longstreth’s musical versatility, creativity, and nuanced moments of resistance.
The Devil Makes Three Offer a Spell-binding LP of Loss and Resilience
The Devil Makes Three let listeners lose themselves in song, but not without missing sight of the deeper truths. It’s a compelling and cathartic musical experience.
Sunny War Refutes Complacency and Embraces Defiance
Sunny War’s music and lyrics stand in resistance and vulnerability, evoking a reminder of music’s powerful ability to inspire change.
The Slavic Fairytale’s Baba Yaga Upends Japanese Yakuza Culture
In Akira Otani’s thriller The Night of Baba Yaga, the Slavic Fairytale’s Baba Yaga refuses to conform to women’s roles in patriarchial Japanese yakuza culture.
Mindy Smith’s ‘Quiet Town’ Is a Meditative World
Mindy Smith’s Quiet Town is introspective and critical as she longs for a time when individual rather than societal narratives define self-authenticity.
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The 10 Best Folk Albums of 2024
The year’s best folk albums transcend genre boundaries, yet each entry remains firmly grounded in the folk ethos of connection and storytelling.
Max Richter’s ‘In a Landscape’ Connects Nature and Humanity
In a Landscape reconciles nature with humanity through lush soundscapes, and it feels like a revelation for newcomers to composer Max Richter’s oeuvre.