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PopMatters is moving to WordPress. We will publish a few essays daily while we develop the new site. We hope the beta will be up sometime late next week.

How an audacious, daring record from disgruntled ex-Beatle John Lennon became a major musical landmark.

Twenty years removed from Deftones' debut album, the iconic alt-metal outfit gel more than ever and discover their poise on Ohms.

What sets experimental pop's Jonnine apart on Blue Hills is her attention to detail, her poetic lyricism, and the indelibly personal touch her sound bears.

The Flaming Lips' American Head is a trip, a journey to the past that one doesn't want to return to but never wants to forget.

Godcaster's Long Haired Locusts is a swirling, sloppy mess of guitars, drums, flutes, synths, and apparently whatever else the band had on hand in their Philly basement. It's a highly entertaining and listenable album.

Kate Bush's Never for Ever served as the stepping stone for the artist to reach her full potential as a bona fide musical genius.

Drummer Evan Dorrian makes a good argument to be the frontman of Australian improvisational band Tangents on their new album, Timeslips.

Neu!'s Michael Rother reflects on the creative environment of lockdown, the struggles of playing experimental krautrock, and the collective beauty of live performance.

Brooklyn experimental quartet JOBS don't have a conventional musical bone in their body, resulting in a thrilling, typically off-kilter new album, endless birthdays.

In honor of the band with the most U.F.O.s and robots, here are the ten best Flaming Lips songs based on all things science fiction. The psychedelic band's new LP, American Head, releases this September.

Chrome Waves, ex-Nachtmystium man Jeff Wilson offers up solo debut, Open Roads, featuring dark and remarkable sounds in tune with Sisters of Mercy and Bauhaus.

Paul Weller's On Sunset continues his recent streak of experimental yet tuneful masterworks. More than 40 years into his musical career, Weller sounds as fresh and inspired as ever.

Sublime harmonies and constant innovation make Ohmme's Fantasize Your Ghost an impressive work of modern indie rock art.

On 10:20, Wire retain the sound they've been cultivating for the last few albums and use it to reinvigorate and reinterpret tracks from their various periods.

One of the pleasures of human culture is that, as a combined stream of millions of individuals' efforts in this current moment, and millions of people's inputs across time stretching back thousands of years, no single person will ever have seen or heard it all.

Everyone's favorite noise rock curmudgeon, Steve Albini sounds off as he prepares to release an eerie score to a horror film.

Mike Patton's Mr. Bungle release a cover of the Exploited's "Fuck the USA". But what does it mean beyond its general timeliness?

Two years after Frog Eyes dissolved, Carey Mercer is back with a new band, Soft Plastics. 5 Dreams and Mercer's surreal sense of incongruity should be welcomed with open arms and open ears.

David Thomas guides another version of Pere Ubu through a selection of material from their early years, dusting off the "hits" and throwing new light on some forgotten gems.

The Universe Inside isn't a typical Dream Syndicate album. The verse/chorus structure has been neatly sidestepped in favor of a free-wheeling, improvised, truly experimental approach, and it's marvelous.

The Brazilian Gentleman's "Armageddon" is a psychedelic part of a concept album about beloved New Jersey shoegaze collective All Natural Lemon & Lime Flavors.

In times of quarantine we listen and we write, so here are 20 extreme (and some experimental) records to spin during these times.

Tautology I's six songs lack the musical sorcery of post-rockers usually mentioned in the same breath as El Ten Eleven.

The Beatles' 1968 self-titled double LP has been referenced by everyone from Joan Didion to Charles Manson and analyzed literally backward and forward. Mendelsohn and Klinger, always smiling and arriving late for tea, discuss the Number 14 album on the Big List.

Oneiric Formulary being a Sir Richard Bishop record, there are moments, of course, that will blow your mind.

Chicago-based cellist, Alison Chesley (a.k.a. Helen Money) creates an utterly riveting listen from beginning to end on Atomic.

Two guitarists, Lee Ranaldo and Raül Refree make an album largely absent of guitar playing and enter into a bold new phase of their careers. "We want to take this wherever we can and be free of genre restraints," says Lee Ranaldo.

tētēma's Necroscape has some highlights and some interesting ambiance, but ultimately it's a catalog of misses for Mike Patton and Anthony Pateras.

Counterbalance offers up the right profile of the Clash's London Calling, an epic, sprawling disc that will leave you sprawled out on the floor as your mind tries to wrap itself around the sprawl of genres over the course of an hour plus.

On their inspiring second album, Ohms, Arizona avant-garde collective Trees Speak invoke the best of expansive electronica through motorik repetitions across a sprawling masterwork.

Dutch progressive metal maestro Arjen Anthony Lucassen takes us on a stellar journey with "Amazing Flight" from the upcoming live performance of his third—and possibly best—Ayreon voyage to date.

Experimental rock's Horse Lords release their first album in four years, and it's meticulous and complex, but also undeniably joyous and celebratory.

Chicago XX is an absolute must for long-time fans and not a bad start for those curious about Cheer-Accident.

The Velvet Underground & Nico's self-titled debut album started as all hype thanks to Andy Warhol, but it somehow managed to become one of the most influential records of all time. Has this record outlasted its 15 minutes of fame? Peel slowly and see.

The fruitful collaboration between these two unique musicians continues on an album that is dark but surprisingly melodic.

Alt-rock supergroup the Third Mind launches a musical adventure that brings Alice Coltrane and Roky Erickson together and doesn't forget the guitar solos.

Algiers are what would result if Verso Books turned into an art rock band. This is a very good thing.