My Favorite Thing

Finding a Home with Tom Waits

Finding a Home with Tom Waits

When the light hits the music just right, Tom Waits’ body of work unlocks and reveals itself: to be at home anywhere is to be at home nowhere at all.

Hopelessly Devoted to Whom? Olivia Newton-John, Juliana Hatfield, and Me

Hopelessly Devoted to Whom? Olivia Newton-John, Juliana Hatfield, and Me

In her tribute album, Juliana Hatfield Sings Olivia Newton-John, Hatfield gives us a direct line to the heady days of the ’80s and makes us wonder if shiny, electric blue lycra was really so bad. 

’70s TV Horror/Mystery ‘Kolchak: The Night Stalker’ Keeps Crawling from Its Grave

’70s TV Horror/Mystery ‘Kolchak: The Night Stalker’ Keeps Crawling from Its Grave

Horror-mystery TV series Kolchak: The Night Stalker has a sour take on society that hasn’t dated since the ’70s; hence, its eternal afterlife.

When You’re Strange: 5 Gen X Films That Shaped My Goth Goth Heart

When You’re Strange: 5 Gen X Films That Shaped My Goth Goth Heart

Gen X kids of single working moms like me had to figure a lot of things out themselves. These five films helped make sense of the world – outside and inside.

The Cure’s Genre-Defining and Genre-Defying ‘Faith’ 40 Years On

The Cure’s Genre-Defining and Genre-Defying ‘Faith’ 40 Years On

The Cure’s Faith–released 40 years ago this April–comes from a haunted, solipsistic place and it seduces you into its tormented world.

A KISS Army Loyalist on How KISS Transformed His Life and How the Band Should End It All

A KISS Army Loyalist on How KISS Transformed His Life and How the Band Should End It All

A KISS Army stalwart muses on the band’s legacy and a lifetime of super-fandom as KISS nears the “End of the Road”.

Jan de Bont’s ‘Twister’ Wreaks Havoc for 25 Years

Jan de Bont’s ‘Twister’ Wreaks Havoc for 25 Years

In the 25 years since Jan de Bont released Twister, it has not stopped tearing through my life. This is my devastating love story.

Taylor Swift’s “seven” Marks the End of Innocence

Taylor Swift’s “seven” Marks the End of Innocence

Taylor Swift’s childhood has frequently acted as the rare domain that can neither be snatched by tabloids nor staked out by fans, but “seven” presents a narrative of innocence dragged out of a child by abuse.

Weird and Sweet, Riotous and Hushed: The Beatles’ ‘The White Album’

Weird and Sweet, Riotous and Hushed: The Beatles’ ‘The White Album’

The Beatles' 'The White Album' is a piece of art that demonstrates how much you can stretch, how far you can bend, how big you really are. The album is deeply weird. It has mass. It has its own weather.

My Favorite Aaliyah Things