The '80s were a wild and crazy time also filled with troubles, heartbreak and disappointment for Go-Go's bass player-guitarist Kathy Valentine, who covers many of those moments in her intriguing dual project that she discusses in this freewheeling interview.
One of the UK's best new rock bands, False Heads, released It's All There But You're Dreaming recently, but coronavirus has stalled their tour plans. The band take us through their new album in depth. Enjoy before they unleash their rocking assault on stages worldwide.
Former Jellyfish members combine forces as the Lickerish Quartet for a collection of imaginative songs influenced by one of rock's most creatively fertile eras. Roger Joseph Manning Jr. discusses the group's origins and debut track, "Lighthouse Spaceship."
Son Little finds commonalities across jazz, hip-hop, soul, R&B, and rock. His latest album grew out of a setback, but he created a stronger, simpler, more ruminative set of songs. Here he talks about creativity and obstacles and how they work together.
Veteran troubadour Willie Nile's latest album, New York at Night, is inspired by his adopted hometown and world events. "The song moves me," he says. "I love what it says. It's true. We could use a little bit of love in this country and this world for sure."
Former Robyn producer Kleerup dropped a lovely solo debut in 2008 then largely disappeared before deciding to come back over a decade later. What happened to him in the intervening years? "Actually, I died twice but got sent back," he tells us.
Americana/folk-pop supergroup Nobody's Girl, featuring former Voice contestant Rebecca Loebe and fellow singer-songwriters Grace Pettis and Betty Soo, share their uplifting new single, "Kansas".
Reinventing herself as Love You Later, Lexi Aviles is a Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter who came up with the idea after seeing the Japanese House perform. On her new single and music video, she gets to the heart of the matter.
From Phil Spector's Wall of Sound to 20 Feet from Stardom, Julia, Maxine, Luther, and Oren Waters reflect on their six-decade career, including historic sessions with Herbie Hancock, Neil Diamond, Michael Jackson, and countless other music legends.
George Cain's 1970 semi-autobiographical novel Blueschild Baby, recently republished by Ecco, is a difficult and unapologetic work about the life of a functioning drug addict. In this interview Imran Khan discusses Cain's work and life with his ex-wife, Jo Lynne, and son, Malik.
Vocalist Martha High spent three decades with James Brown, and she tells PopMatters about her resurrected solo career as well as her path through the music industry.
Donovan Quinn's (Skygreen Leopards) first solo album in seven years explores memory, love, and loss in no uncertain psych-folk terms.
Rockabilly queen Tami Neilson gets back to basics on her new LP, as she moves between country, gospel, and R&B. She also looks back on meeting one of the artists who shaped her life, Mavis Staples. "She radiates joy," says the singer.
Corb Lund delivers a batch of new country-inspired songs that highlight his strength as a songwriter, and remembers a hunting trip that quickly went off course via "90 Seconds of Your Time".
Singer-songwriter Chris Maxwell creates stately portraits of life while subverting musical expectations. New Store No.2 is the experimentalist's Americana.
Ahead of her new album Walking Proof, Americana's Lilly Hiatt shares "P-Town", where jangle and twang intermingle with loud, flesh-raising rock 'n' roll and lyrical forthrightness.
Exploring topics like poverty, Black consciousness, burgeoning love, and mortality, Jahshua Smith's latest album, They Don't Love You Like That, encapsulates some of the most difficult moments in his life.
The Staple Singers' Stax recording, Come Go with Me, captures their transformation from the church-wrecking gospel highway to the soul-filling pop charts.
The Sweeplings might make the most gorgeous music by a folk-pop duo since the unfortunate demise of the Civil Wars following their official split in 2014. The pair discuss their music and new video for "In Between".
Berlin-based techno producer, Phase Fatale discusses how music can operate as a means of control and how technology has entered the most intimate of human affairs.
Liturgy founder Hunter Hunt-Hendrix discusses religion, philosophy, history, and music from Johannes Brahms to Waka Flocka Flame.
Veteran composer Gavin Bryars and "noise guy" Crowhurst present a new LP recorded in a 17th century hotel and brimming with musical imagination. Says Bryars, "To watch what Jay does was, sometimes, beyond my comprehension and I thought, at times, that Jay may be more intelligent than me. But it didn't last long!"
After suffering through the pressures and losses of years past and laboring on their album in practical anonymity, the Wrens have hit the ground running.
Raul Malo-mentored rock outfit, Sweet Lizzy Project, share a track from their upcoming album that finds them longing ever-so-slightly for home. "I think I can feel my Cuban roots a little more on this record," says vocalist Lisset Diaz.
Rising R&B songwriter Parisalexa talks about pitching a song on NBC's Songland, how she writes music, and what it takes to get to the top.
Little Common Twist, the latest improvisatory album from Ryley Walker and jazz drummer Charles Rumback, sounds like listening. The two musicians are locked in intuitive communion that confines neither guitar nor drums to their pigeonholes. We ask them how they do it and why.
Mike Edison's biography on the Rolling Stones' Charlie Watts, Sympathy for the Drummer is a full-throated assault on the notion that, in music, more is better, and that perfection is a friggin' virtue.
Andrew Patterson's debut film, The Vast of Night, compels its audience to listen to a radio conversation and watch a mysterious play. Interview with director Andrew Patterson and actors Jake Horowitz and Sierra McCormick.
Following the release of her latest album She's Back, the legendary Dionne Warwick delivers another musical gift with Dionne Warwick & the Voices of Christmas.
Randall Bramblett reissues his acclaimed, quiet masterpiece, The Meantime in 2020. "This was not an easy record technically to make," he recalls. "We were vulnerable." Listen to "Vibrating Strings".
With a documentary and new album slated for 2020, GRAMMY-winning legend Ray Parker, Jr. reflects on his career from Motown to "Ghostbusters" and beyond.
Americana rocker Tyler Boone wraps up a successful year with a video for "Jealousy" while growing his second career in the bourbon business.
"Let memories happen later. Live now," says the Pedaljets's Mike Allmayer as he discusses the themes running through the group's upcoming LP, Twist the Lens. Hear "Sleepy Girl" now.
Manchester's Elephant Trees possess fearless enthusiasm. Their upending of genre and life-affirming lyrics are all present as they move from brooding synthpop to dynamic, growling alternative rock on their latest EP.
Todd Snider's 2004 album, East Nashville Skyline, is getting a new lease on life with a new vinyl edition, but the veteran troubadour remains creatively restless and committed to his musical future. "I might sound like I know how life works but I don't. I know less about it all the time."
There is a palpable buzz surrounding Isle of Wight singer-songwriter Lauran Hibberd. Throughout 2019, she has been capturing hearts with her electrifying live shows, chock full of whip-smart, playful indie-pop songs anthems infused with her wonderfully twisted, caustic wit.
Director Midge Costin, who explores the art of cinematic sound in her documentary, Making Waves, shows how we are informed as much by sound as we are our visual world.
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