Glenn Donaldson Moves to the Front in the Reds, Pinks & Purples
Glenn Donaldson discusses his new album as the Reds, Pinks & Purples and how good pop can stop you cold in your parked car waiting for a song to finish.
dream pop
Marissa Nadler Tells Unorthodox Tales on ‘The Wrath of the Clouds’
Unorthodox subject matter and an ability to find the more macabre aspects of daily life take Marissa Nadler in fresh, less explored directions on The Wrath of the Clouds.
Lana Del Rey Wasn’t ‘Born to Die’, She Was Born to Rise Above
Lana Del Rey’s major-label debut Born to Die provides a roadmap for her songwriting journey, and her personification of America reinvents the past to tell modern stories.
Elena Setién’s ‘Unfamiliar Minds’ Basks in Quietly Foreboding Minimalism
Immersion into Elena Setién’s Unfamiliar Minds is not unlike watching a bowl being coaxed into shape on a potter’s wheel. The slightest touches can send it in another direction.
Lotte Kestner’s Shares Haunting “Slip” From New Album ‘Lost Songs’ (premiere)
Indie folk artist Lotte Kestner shares her haunting new single “Slip”, which appears on her upcoming album Lost Songs and is one of its darkest songs.
Elbow’s ‘Flying Dream 1’ Soars Quietly
Elbow’s Flying Dream 1 trusts its listeners, asking us to hold a quiet space for the music and let it reveal itself over time.
Constant Smiles Continue Their Chameleonic Ways with the Pop-Infused ‘Paragons’
Listeners familiar with Constant Smiles’ mutative oeuvre will find Paragons intriguing for the chameleonic adoption of familiar pop templates.
Kacy Hill Bares Her Soul with ‘Simple, Sweet, and Smiling’
Creative and gifted Kacy Hill does a wonderful job updating the sounds of 1980s synthpop and soul on her new album, Simple, Sweet, and Smiling.
Penelope Isles’ Genre-Hopping Rarely Rises Above Pastiche on ‘Which Way to Happy’
Penelope Isles love a lot of different music, and they spend much of Which Way to Happy approximating those influences and not quite establishing their sound.
Magdalena Bay Escape Reality in a ‘Mercurial World’
On Mercurial World, Magdalena Bay weave disco, EDM, vaporwave, and video game music into a dense world of escapist charms and an inescapable structure.
Sneaker Pimps (Sort Of) Nod to the Past With ‘Squaring the Circle’
Sneaker Pimps producers Chris Corner and Liam Howe return with the slow-paced Squaring the Circle that plays it safer than their talents warrant.