Misha Sultan Shows His Musical ‘Roots’ Are Everywhere
Geographically Misha Sultan’s roots may be in Siberia, but sonically they’re everywhere. Ambient, dub techno, krautrock, chill-out—he does it all.
PopMatters Picks
Michael Goldberg on The Avengers’ Jimmy Wilsey and His Wicked Punk Guitar
Michael Goldberg captures The Avengers’ Jimmy Wilsey and his downward trajectory with spare, slow, searching lines much like the guitarist summoned from his instrument.
Criminal Subterfuge and Dark Desires in Chabrol’s Minimalist Murder-Mysteries
While murder and crime certainly run deep in Claude Chabrol’s world of subterfuge, the dark desires of human nature that provoke them run immeasurably deeper.
Thomas Dollbaum Launches Impressive Debut with Folky, Textured ‘Wellswood’
New Orleans singer-songwriter Thomas Dollbaum fuses vivid lyric imagery with eclectic musical choices on his impressive debut album, Wellswood.
SOAK Explores Their Complicated Past on ‘If I Never Know You Like This Again’
SOAK shows on If I Never Know You Like This Again that using uncomfortable past experiences for personal growth doesn’t have to be a drag. It can be a blast.
Fanclubwallet’s Debut LP Has the Witty Exuberance of a Comic Book
Fanclubwallet’s first record, You Have Got to Be Kidding Me, litters cartoonish bedroom-pop melee with sober self-examinations.
The Staples Jr. Singers Are Resurrected by ‘When Do We Get Paid’ Re-Issue
Luaka Bop’s reissue of the Staples Jr. Singers’ sole album, When Do We Get Paid, brings a crucial gospel LP back into circulation.
From Busan, With Love: Say Sue Me’s ‘The Last Thing Left’
Whether Say Sue Me are surf-rock, shoegaze, or dream-pop, none of these categories seem to matter when listening to the delightful The Last Thing Left.
The Smile’s ‘A Light for Attracting Attention’ Possesses Great Musical Depth and Shading
The Smile aren’t a full-on syncretism of Radiohead and Sons of Kemet, but A Light for Attracting Attention proves that it needn’t be.
One Night in May 2011 with Mavis Staples and Levon Helm
American roots music legends Mavis Staples and Levon Helm teamed up in 2011 for a fabulous collaboration, which we can now thankfully hear on Carry Me Home.
Kendrick Lamar Steps Off the Pedestal on ‘Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers’
On Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers, renowned rapper Kendrick Lamar observes the strife plaguing his kingdom and consciously abdicates the throne.