Recent

Rhiannon Giddens Understands That 'there is no Other'

MacArthur genius grant winner Rhiannon Giddens' new album, there is no Other, invites us to do more than share our misery. It asks us to see ourselves as part of something bigger.

Music

William Brittelle's Non-Religious 'Spiritual America'

Composer William Brittelle's "electro-acoustic song cycle", Spiritual America, attempts to capture non-religious spirituality in musical form.

Music

Brad Mehldau Spans Many Musical Forms on 'Finding Gabriel'

Jazz pianist Brad Mehldau creates another hybrid project built on a layering of keyboards, drums, woodwinds, voices, and strings—with a gloss of politics and religion along the edges. Occasionally brilliant.

Music

"It's Not About Genre, It's About Emotion": Composer William Brittelle on Faith, Music, and Identity

Composer and New Amsterdam Records co-founder William Brittelle discusses his latest work, Spiritual America, with PopMatters and talks about faith, genre, and his genre-fluid electro-acoustic music.

Music

Joshua Redman Quartet's 'Come What May' Is an Essential Jazz Album

Joshua Redman Quartet's Come What May is not just a strong contender for 2019's best jazz album, but also one of the year's essential releases overall.

Music

Mountain Man Travels on a 'Magic Ship'

The beauty of Mountain Man's three voices singing together will seduce many listeners on Magic Ship. Unaccompanied human expressions have a powerful impact when artfully combined.

Music

Gabriel Kahane's 'Book of Travelers' Offers Glimpses of the American Psyche After the Trump Election

Gabriel Kahane creates a musical travelogue that seeks to capture the fractured and fragmented psyche of America following the 2016 election.

Music

Olivia Chaney Takes 'Shelter' Wherever She Can Find It

Olivia Chaney's Shelter is a purposely intimate record. She uses the sheer beauty of her vocals and the wood and wire instruments to create reflective and spiritual music.

Music

'All Ashore' Shows That the Punch Brothers Know Fully Who They Are Now

On their fifth studio outing, Punch Brothers sound more assured in their identity than ever -- which isn't necessarily a good thing.

Music

Lake Street Dive Gets Loose, Collaborative With 'Free Yourself Up'

Lake Street Dive wanted to capture the energy of its live shows as well as its unique at its finest. So the quartet went into the studio without a producer and leaned on each other instead.

Jedd Beaudoin

Music

'Seymour Reads the Constitution!' is Brad Mehldau's 2018 Victory Lap

Reunited with drummer Jeff Ballard and bassist Larry Grenadier, Brad Mehldau dives back into the trio format with gusto.

Music

The 15 Best Americana Albums of 2017

In Americana music the present is female. Two-thirds of our year-end list is comprised of albums by women. Here, then, are the women (and a few men) who represented the best in Americana in 2017.

Music

Pop Ten

Videos vs. Colonialism: The Cases of Rammstein and Hatari

Jackie Chan's 10 Best Films

Scorsese and Dylan: A Match Made in Fantasy

The 100 Greatest Alternative Singles of the '80s: Part 1: 100 - 81

Collapse Expand Pop Ten

Mixed Media

Collapse Expand Mixed Media

PM Picks

Collapse Expand Pm Picks

Rhiannon Giddens Understands That 'there is no Other'

MacArthur genius grant winner Rhiannon Giddens' new album, there is no Other, invites us to do more than share our misery. It asks us to see ourselves as part of something bigger.

William Brittelle's Non-Religious 'Spiritual America'

Composer William Brittelle's "electro-acoustic song cycle", Spiritual America, attempts to capture non-religious spirituality in musical form.

Brad Mehldau Spans Many Musical Forms on 'Finding Gabriel'

Jazz pianist Brad Mehldau creates another hybrid project built on a layering of keyboards, drums, woodwinds, voices, and strings—with a gloss of politics and religion along the edges. Occasionally brilliant.

"It's Not About Genre, It's About Emotion": Composer William Brittelle on Faith, Music, and Identity

Composer and New Amsterdam Records co-founder William Brittelle discusses his latest work, Spiritual America, with PopMatters and talks about faith, genre, and his genre-fluid electro-acoustic music.

Joshua Redman Quartet's 'Come What May' Is an Essential Jazz Album

Joshua Redman Quartet's Come What May is not just a strong contender for 2019's best jazz album, but also one of the year's essential releases overall.

Mountain Man Travels on a 'Magic Ship'

The beauty of Mountain Man's three voices singing together will seduce many listeners on Magic Ship. Unaccompanied human expressions have a powerful impact when artfully combined.

Gabriel Kahane's 'Book of Travelers' Offers Glimpses of the American Psyche After the Trump Election

Gabriel Kahane creates a musical travelogue that seeks to capture the fractured and fragmented psyche of America following the 2016 election.

Olivia Chaney Takes 'Shelter' Wherever She Can Find It

Olivia Chaney's Shelter is a purposely intimate record. She uses the sheer beauty of her vocals and the wood and wire instruments to create reflective and spiritual music.

'All Ashore' Shows That the Punch Brothers Know Fully Who They Are Now

On their fifth studio outing, Punch Brothers sound more assured in their identity than ever -- which isn't necessarily a good thing.

Lake Street Dive Gets Loose, Collaborative With 'Free Yourself Up'

Lake Street Dive wanted to capture the energy of its live shows as well as its unique at its finest. So the quartet went into the studio without a producer and leaned on each other instead.

'Seymour Reads the Constitution!' is Brad Mehldau's 2018 Victory Lap

Reunited with drummer Jeff Ballard and bassist Larry Grenadier, Brad Mehldau dives back into the trio format with gusto.

The 15 Best Americana Albums of 2017

In Americana music the present is female. Two-thirds of our year-end list is comprised of albums by women. Here, then, are the women (and a few men) who represented the best in Americana in 2017.

'Doom Days' Indeed for Bastille

'Black Mirror' Season 5 Should Be Its Last

Videos vs. Colonialism: The Cases of Rammstein and Hatari

Scorsese and Dylan: A Match Made in Fantasy

The 100 Greatest Alternative Singles of the '80s: Part 1: 100 - 81

Shaun Evans, aka DS Endeavour Morse, on the Economy of the Gesture in Storytelling

Anaïs Mitchell Joins Nels Andrews on "Scrimshaw", a Song About Keeping Steady (premiere)

Michelle Vezilj's Debut Song "Fire Goes to Die" Is Powerful (track review)

Chilean Singer-Songwriter Catalina Returns With 'Multifacética' (album stream) (premiere)

Eilen Jewell Turns World Upside Down With "Crawl" (premiere + interview)

Welcome Center Create Stirring Electropop with "Is This All There Is?" (premiere)

Shinyribs Pave the "Highway of Diamonds" with New Single (premiere)

Los Coast Delivers Bold Flavors, Sounds via Their Debut 'Samsara' (album stream) (premiere)

Stronger Hooks Prevail with Thank You Scientist's Latest Video, "Swarm" (premiere)

New Box Set Gives a Definitive Overview of Chicago's Bea & Baby Records (premiere)