Why Tokyo Has So Many Record Stores
In a country where curation itself has long carried economic value, the identities of Tokyo’s record stores are inseparable from the owners’ personal obsessions.
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Laurie Anderson Helps Us Face Catastrophe on Live LP
Laurie Anderson has created a rare live album worth listening to from start to finish, both for the music and all the interstices.
‘House of Cards’ Is a Faux-Hitchcock Thriller
House of Cards looks like a million francs in Techniscope and Technicolor and plays like a picture Hitchcock forgot to make.
Social Distortion Return with Their Teeth Bared
Born to Kill is new yet vintage Social Distortion, a greatest-hits package of new material that is authentic, fresh, and retrospective all at once.
Chris Potter Tells the Story of Abolitionist John Brown
Chris Potter always plays jazz with a combination of respect for its traditions and an urge to push the sound forward. It is an audible balance on this new recording.
Weird Nightmare’s Power Pop Is Hard-Rocking and Catchy
Weird Nightmare’s take on classic power pop is hard-rocking and catchy, but the songwriting is rarely distinct enough to rise above the level of pastiche.
SUSS Unleash More Quietly Atmospheric Beauty
Often imitated but rarely duplicated, SUSS’ “ambient country” sound is unmistakable, and with their latest album, they haven’t slowed down a bit.
Beef’s Cooked-in Class Anxiety Turns Up the Heat
If Beef Season 1 gave you a tension headache that you refused to placate by turning off the television, Season 2 is even more addictively high-stakes, tightly wound, and explicit in its view.
Teo Hernández’s Queer Avant-Garde Films Rewire Your Brain
Watching Teo Hernández’s queer avant-garde films, the source for his ideas about cinema as sex and ritual, all culminating in ecstatic visions, becomes self-evident.
Did Drake and Kendrick Lamar Kill Battle Rap?
The biggest rap battle in history between Drake and Kendrick Lamar blurred the line between victory and cultural collapse. Has hip-hop killed itself?
Braxton Keith Finds the ‘Real Deal’ in Classic Country
Braxton Keith’s charm lies in part in his ability to keep things light. Let’s sing about love, cheating, drinking, and forget about our heavy concerns.
Wendy Eisenberg Strikes the Perfect Songwriting Balance
Wendy Eisenberg knows not only the art but the craft of songwriting, they bring their truest self, never compromising, never pushing, always being. Absolutely stunning.