Travis Laplante Creates Beautiful String Quartets
Working with the acclaimed JACK Quartet, the multitalented Travis Laplante unleashes compositions of intensity and beauty on String Quartets.
PopMatters Picks
PopMatters picks the best pop culture for your enjoyment, including music, film, TV, books, games, comics, and more.
Sessa Harnesses Soulful Sparks on Gorgeous LP
Sessa makes magic. Refreshing musical subtleties and emotional complexities make Peqeuna Vertigem de Amor worth repeat listens.
David Garland Eloquently Navigates Loss on ‘The Spark’
David Garland’s The Spark may be an expression of loss, but it also overflows with kindness, positivity, and the endless curiosity of a truly original artist. Â
Bob Dylan Rings in His Ears
Music theorist Steven Rings helps readers understand Bob Dylan the performer, not the lyricist or songwriter, in a welcome and indispensable addition to Dylan scholarship.
Milo J Shows Off the Beauty of Argentine Folk
Milo J’s La Vida Era Más Corta is a display of youth inserting itself into an ancient landscape with more pride in its history than anxiety about modernizing it.
Three Japanese Horror Classics Haunted by Women’s Agony
If there’s an undercurrent throughout the Japanese horror in Daiei Gothic Vol. 2, it’s how women’s suffering is so embedded in Japanese folklore.
‘Things in Nature Merely Grow’ Tackles Death Differently
Yiyun Li’s beautiful and complex autobiography Things in Nature Merely Grow is not about death or loss; it is about who we become when we lose.
Patricia Brennan Creates Otherworldly Jazz
Patricia Brennan has assembled a unique ensemble featuring strings and electronics, as well as a jazz quintet. She continues to astound us.
Charlie Bruber Goes on an Experimental Folk Adventure
Charlie Bruber’s unique, lovable record navigates different stylistic paths while maintaining its consistently high quality.
Ruel Creates Sunny, Self-Assured Pop Creates Happiness
Australian singer-songwriter Ruel opts for an optimistic tone on his sophomore album Kicking My Feet, mixing soft rock, funk, and pop.
Vanessa Wagner Beautifully Interprets Philip Glass
These 20 intense, radiant piano works are a testament to Philip Glass’s compositional prowess and Vanessa Wagner’s dedication to bringing them to dazzling life.
Demi Lovato Finds the Right Frequency on New Album
Demi Lovato stops overthinking her craft on It’s Not That Deep, a slick collection of club-ready tracks. The record strikes a new balance between work and play.