Brunch, Ladies? On Arielle Zibrak’s ‘Guilty Pleasures’
Arielle Zibrak’s ‘Guilty Pleasures’ is such a fun and fast conversation that reading it feels like having brunch with a hilarious dear friend.
PopMatters Picks
Spanish Poet Eva Baltasar’s Novel ‘Permafrost’ and the Art of Translation
Eva Baltasar’s Permafrost is an aesthetic novel that underscores the magnificence of a poet successfully translating poetic awareness into prose.
‘Rare, Forever’ Synthesizes Leon Vynehall’s Instincts Into a Unique Vision
Rare, Forever synthesizes Leon Vynehall’s musical instincts into one unique vision. Both beguiling abstract and instantly gratifying it’s as dizzyingly immersive as Nothing Is Still.
Maria Muldaur and Tuba Skinny ‘Get Happy Together’
This is the kind of New Orleans music that makes a person smile and tap one’s feet when a song is happy and moan with a knowing smile when it’s sad.
Passionate Radical Carsie Blanton Sings of ‘Love and Rage’
Carsie Blanton’s Love and Rage shows her as an ardent romantic when it comes to affairs of the heart and a fervent advocate for the poor and disenfranchised.
Jayro Bustamente’s War Crimes Film, ‘La Llorona’, Reckons with Crushing Guilt
Bustament’s Efraín Ríos Montt-inspired La Llorona reimagines the Latin American folk tale of a woman mourning her children along the banks of the river where they drowned.
serpentwithfeet Celebrates Black Queer Love with the Emotionally Naked DEACON
Part of why serpentwithfeet’s DEACON is so remarkable – aside from its obvious musical merits – is that it’s a rare record that highlights Black queer love.
Satomimagae’s ‘Hanazono’ Is Full of Organic, Melancholy Folk
Like nature itself, Satomimagae’s Hanazono is by turns stormy and serene indie folk, as meditative as it is simmering with dormant, primal power.
Ruben Blades Melds Salsa and Swing on ‘Salswing’
Iconic Latin musician and actor Ruben Blades has fun breaking boundaries on his latest LP, Salswing, where he makes salsa really swing.
Andy Stott’s Chopped and Screwed Techno Takes on Warmer Hues with ‘Never the Right Time’
Andy Stott’s Never the Right Time may be the most inviting record in his catalogue, an entry point into his funereal sound-world. It’s also one of his best.
Michael DeForge’s ‘Heaven No Hell’ Delivers on Its Promise
Artistic evolution alone cannot explain what is found within Michael DeForge’s Heaven No Hell.