The Rumpus Interview with Julianna Barwick
With her haunting voice looped in a wordless glossolalia over pianos, keyboards, and other instruments, Julianna Barwick makes music like no other artist working today.
...moreWith her haunting voice looped in a wordless glossolalia over pianos, keyboards, and other instruments, Julianna Barwick makes music like no other artist working today.
...moreIceland’s Ólöf Arnalds (cousin to contemporary classical wunderkind Olafur Arnalds) is only in her early 30′s, yet has already charted an impressive career path that is only gaining traction with the release of her latest full-length, Sudden Elevation.
...moreIt is near the time of my college graduation. I’m graduating early, barely 20 years old. Among my friends, the stuff of my romantic self-sabotage is legendary.
...moreCorin Tucker, formerly of Sleater-Kinney and Heavens to Betsy and now the leader of the Corin Tucker Band, has been called “a punk-rock heroine” by Rolling Stone. Judging by her band’s newest record, Kill My Blues, there is no reason to disagree.
...morePhil Elverum, who records as Mount Eerie (and formerly as Microphones) has the distinction of releasing not one but two acclaimed records, Clear Moon and Ocean Roar, in 2012.
...moreUpon hearing that Lost in the Trees’ A Church That Fits Our Needs was inspired by the suicide of lead singer and songwriter Ari Picker’s mother, Karen, my heart instantly broke.
...moreToday in a Russian court, three members (Nadezhda Tolokonnikova, 22, Maria Alekhina, 24, and Yekaterina Samutsevich, 30) of the all-female Russian punk band Pussy Riot were sentenced to two years in prison for “hooliganism.”
(For those unfamiliar with the story, here is a round-up of links that we published last week.)
The trio had been facing up to seven years, but, after much deliberation, was sentenced to two years in prison for an anti-Putin song they performed in a church.
...moreFormed in 1985 with relentless touring and album releases to follow, the Canadian 4-piece, the Cowboy Junkies are one of the most enduring acts in music today.
...moreFeaturing a slide guitarist that used to tour with Dylan for his Rolling Thunder Revue, Melaena Cadiz minces no words in her new song, “Hometown.”
Featuring a rhythm sometimes reminiscent of “Me and Bobby McGee,” the song is an infectious and immaculately penned plea for salvation.
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Now, with the Wave Books release of Aygi’s poems, translated masterfully by Sarah Valentine, audiences worldwide are able to celebrate Aygi among his Russian contemporaries.
Icelandic singer-songwriter Sóley Stefánsdóttir has released her first full-length record, We Sink (Morr). This comes after Stefánsdóttir’s debut EP, Theater Island.
Maine-born, Brookyln-based musician Luke Rathborne is still in his early 20s, but he is already off to a promising start. Rathborne has opened for the Strokes and played with Devendra Banhart, among other accolades.
California native Chelsea Wolfe has returned, after her first album, The Grime and the Glow, to the aural world with Ἀποκάλυψις, pronounced “Apokalypsis.”
I discovered Dar Williams back in high school when I was, misguidedly, trying to be a singer-songwriter.
Since 2004, Boston-based singer-songwriter Marissa Nadler has released a steady output of thoughtful, acutely written folk songs highlighted by her dreamy vocals and distinct guitar stylings.
I’ve only rarely worried about death. The one time I actually was dying in a hospital for a while, I wasn’t worried about it.
Lady Lamb the Beekeeper (aka Aly Spaltro) has been quietly minding her apiary in past years, recording LPs on her eight-track in New England apartments. After a stint at SXSW contributed to her opening for Beirut, this self-taught singer-songwriter-multi-instrumentalist started to garner more well-deserved attention.

Austra
Feel It Break (Domino Records)
Not long ago synthpop was something of a boys’ club. The genre’s early days were dominated by male-fronted bands like Depeche Mode, Kraftwerk and The Pet Shop Boys.
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