Music

Yob and Near-death Metal Experiences

Yob's Our Raw Heart topped PopMatters Best of Metal 2018 list. Here, Yob's Mike Scheidt meets with neuroscience and philosophy doctoral candidate Christopher James Stevens to discuss music and mystical experiences.

Music

Toro y Moi Contemplates Late Capitalism on 'Outer Peace'

Esteemed producer Toro y Moi takes on new, funkier sounds with Outer Peace, but none of them quite transcend the overblown promise of his early chillwave fame.

Music

Buzzcocks' 'Love Bites' Is an Uneven, But Worthwhile, Listen

Although the Buzzcocks were a singles band, their overlooked second album, Love Bites (1978), is still a solid effort, and it sounds better than ever on this reissue.

Music

Buke and Gase Continue their Genre-Defying Education on 'Scholars'

Scholars finds New York duo Buke and Gase once again pushing categorical boundaries within their unique experimental pop identity.

Jordan Blum

Music

Lula Miranda Makes an Acoustic Mashup Out of "Cherry Kiss" (premiere)

Remixing her song with some of Camila Cabello's "She Loves Control", pop artist Lula Miranda provides a refreshing new take on "Cherry Kiss".

Music

Tishmal Turns the Tables on Mistreaters in "You're Afraid" (premiere)

Speaking truth to those who mistreat or abuse others, pop artist Tishmal wrote "You're Afraid" to empower those who have been hurt or marginalized.

Music

A Sense of Contentment: An Interview with Steve Mason

With every new album, Steve Mason steps further from the enormous shadow cast by the critically lauded Beta Band. Now with his new album About the Light releasing on Friday, Mason talks about his career, newfound contentment, and his thrilling new record.

Music

'It Won/t Be Like This All the Time' Is the Album the Twilight Sad Was Destined to Make

The Twilight Sad's It Won/t Be Like This All the Time is like all of us. It's bruised, lonely, confused yet hopeful. It feels more important than a collection of songs on a spinning disc.

Music

Hunt Sales Sings About Love, Hate in "Angel of Darkness" (premiere + interview)

Veteran rock drummer Hunt Sales Memorial's Get Your Shit Together provides snapshots of life's darker side with rays of light filtering in, which he tells us about in this exclusive interview.

Jedd Beaudoin

Music

Astralingua Stunningly Isolates and Introspects on "Space Blues" (interview + premiere)

"Nomadic space-folk" Astralingua are chillingly pensive on "Space Blues" from their upcoming LP, Safe Passage, which they discuss in this interview.

Jordan Blum

Music

Frances Cone Awakens with Resourceful Confessions on 'Late Riser'

Whether brooding and ghostly or defiant, eclectic, and rambunctious, Frances Cone's Late Riser is filled with melodious poeticisms and gripping arrangements.

Music

Dave Douglas Quintet's 'Brazen Heart: Live at Jazz Standard' Sits Cozily Next to Miles Davis' 'Plugged Nickel' Recordings

This is trumpeter/composer Dave Douglas' second quintet, playing its repertoire from memory in eight sets in four nights. Dazzling.

Music

Melissa Manchester Looks Back at 1985 and Her Synthpop Experiments

Pop singer Melissa Manchester made some career calculations in order to stay current in the new wave era, as an expanded reissue of her 1985 album, Mathematics, makes clear. She talks to PopMatters about the pluses and minuses of her 1980s experience.

Music

Deerhunter Ask 'Why Hasn't Everything Already Disappeared?'

Deerhunter's eighth studio album wrestles with escapist and confrontational impulses, and continues their exploration of shifting sonic identity.

Music

The 1975 Try Everything on 'A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships'

A Brief Inquiry Into Online Relationships ends up being a middling mess of genre-hopping. The 1975 decided to try a bit of everything and the results are just completely scattershot songs.

Music

Oneohtrix Point Never's 'Love in the Time of Lexapro' Is a Brief, Pleasant Aside

Oneohtrix Point Never's latest EP Love in the Time of Lexapro supplements his prior 2018 full-length Age Of, with a small collection of exclusives and collaborative reworks.

Music

Motherhood Heed the Call of the Wild on "Bird Chirp" (premiere)

New Brunswick trio Motherhood approach their art rock with a mischief-spiked sensibility on "Bird Chirp".

Music

Electronic Artist Kayla Painter Gets Esoteric on "Sacrificial Magic" (premiere)

Electronic producer Kayla Painter shares a video for "Sacrificial Magic", a song inspired by Fijian mythology and folk horror films.

Music

Writhing Squares Scrape Away the "Dirt in My Mind's Eye" (premiere)

Philly post-no-wave jammers Writhing Squares play with raw power on their new single, "Dirt in My Mind's Eye".

Music

Have Patience: An Interview with Jane Weaver

With a trilogy of striking, multi-genre albums under her belt, a re-release of Jane Weaver's seminal 2014 classic The Silver Globe causes all sorts of reflecting on her own sound, her own legacy, and why she never wants to run a concert from a laptop.

Music

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