Everything’s a Dollar in This Box: Tom Waits’ ‘Swordfishtrombones’ at 40
Tom Waits’ 1983 album Swordfishtrombones signified a seismic shift in the singer-songwriter’s sound. His music would never be the same again.
tom waits
Tom Waits’ ‘Closing Time’ and the Myth of the Eponymous Debut Album
Tom Waits’ Closing Time serves as the “Swim at Your Own Risk” sign hanging above his musical swimming pool. There’s a whole world waiting beneath that water.
10 Alternative Songs for Your Valentine’s Day Playlist
These songs for Valentine’s Day playlists live on the fringes, outside that neat little box of what we consider to be typically romantic.
‘Addicted to Noise’: Tom Waits Tests Michael Goldberg’s Sense of Humor
Tom Waits splashes about in his “puddle of consciousness”, testing Michael Goldberg’s sense of humor in this interview excerpted from Goldberg’s new book, Addicted to Noise.
41 Essential Pop/Rock Songs with Accordion
No popular musical instrument has been more frequently maligned than the accordion. Despite gaining hipster cred in the 1990s, its role in pop remains underappreciated.
The 100 Best Alternative Singles of the ’80s: 20 – 1
Songs of anxiety, paranoia, freak-outs, chilling verses, feverish desire, harrowing lyrics — they all make for damn good music.
Between the Grooves: Tom Waits – ‘Bone Machine’
Between the Grooves takes a deep dive into Tom Waits' Bone Machine. It's the one fans keep hidden amongst themselves, a secret treasure only the devout are privy to and the seasoned are worthy of. Simply put, it is not for the faint of heart.
The Most Memorable Albums of 1999 (Part 2)
PopMatters is 20 and to celebrate we are looking back at the popular music that defined the year of our birth. Part two covers the most memorable albums from March through June, highlighted by monster hits from the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Moby, and Travis.
VickiKristinaBarcelona Celebrate Tom Waits on “I Don’t Wanna Grow Up” (premiere)
VickiKristinaBarcelona celebrate the singular world of Tom Waits their upcoming debut, Pawn Shop Radio. Hear "I Don't Wanna Grow Up" ahead of tomorrow's single release.
The 15 Best Tom Waits Songs
From apocalyptic blues boasts to backwoods chant-alongs, here are 15 songs that encapsulate Tom Waits' incredibly varied career.
‘The Dead Don’t Die’ Confronts Climate Change with Deadpan Whimsicality
With The Dead Don't Die, Jim Jarmusch deliberately deprives his latest film of the propulsive terrors innate to most zombie films, instead using the genre to matter-of-factly rhapsodize about consumer culture and the inevitability of the apocalypse.
The Beat Goes on with ‘Kerouac on Record’
These essays explore the connection between Kerouac and the music he loved -- Charlie Parker, Lee Konitz, Chet Baker, Miles Davis and others -- and the musicians who loved him, in turn.