Hikaru Utada’s ‘Bad Mode’ Is an Energetic Homage to Millennium Disco-Pop
A great dance-pop record is a marriage of great songs, appealing vocals, and innovative production. Hikaru Utada’s Bad Mode fits that bill. It’s a classy and elegant affair.
pop
Paul Simon’s ‘Graceland’ and Everlasting Redemption
Thirty-five years later, the redemption narrative driving Paul Simon’s Graceland has expanded to excuse the morally questionable decisions he made in recording the album.
45 Years Ago ‘An Evening with Diana Ross’ Proved to Be Her Defining Album
Diana Ross’ seminal live LP, An Evening with Diana Ross, captures nearly every side of her expansive talents, diverse gifts, and lofty career goals.
‘Be Good To Yourself’ Lends A Helping Hand To Artists In Need
Through the power of rock ‘n’ roll, 60 North Carolina musicians band together to shine a light on mental health with the compilation, Be Good to Yourself.
‘Oh, You Pretty Thing’: David Bowie’s Glam Masterpiece ‘Hunky Dory’ Turns 50
David Bowie’s Hunky Dory is self-conscious about artifice and image. It maintains a resounding undercurrent of human longing for connection and recognition.
Taylor Swift Re-Immortalizes Classic ‘Red (Taylor’s Version)’
Red (Taylor’s Version) is both an Intellectual Property strategy tool, and a prolepsis of the status that the 2012 album will uphold in the future.
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The 20 Best Pop Albums of 2021
The 20 best pop albums of the year radiate with unstoppable playlist power, much-needed sweet escapism, self-reflecting moments, and killer melodies.
TWICE Upgrade Their Brand on ‘Formula of Love: O+T=<3
TWICE’s Formula of Love: O+T=<3 speeds up their transition from innocent bubblegum songs to music showcasing them as determined women rather than shy girls.
The Devil Is in the Details: The Pepe Deluxé Interview
Pepe Deluxé make intricate songs with some of the world’s rarest instruments. James Spectrum says his band’s music is meant to be explored again and again.
K-Pop’s Sunmi on the Joy of Collaboration with Ed Sheeran and Jessi for “Shivers”
At the top of her career since debuting in Korea 14 years ago, K-pop star Sunmi chats with PopMatters about her collaborative work on “Shivers” and what’s next.
‘Howard Jones at the BBC’ Looks at a Portrait of the Artist As a Young Man
Howard Jones at the BBC highlights the new wave and synthpop star’s early ascension and the role of BBC Radio in his discovery and development.