Reimagining America
I’m a performer, and in hard times, this job gets harder. I make music when the nation mourns, and my music can sound like hope.
Music
1832 posts
Writing on music at The Rumpus!
This Week in Posivibes: The Features
This week, Flying Nun is reissuing work by the Features, particularly 1980’s X-Features. Besides the fact that the record is some great post-punk, Raven Sings the Blues did a fine job of highlighting their importance…
Wanted/Needed/Loved: Kurt Wagner’s One-of-a-Kind Hat
I try not to think about fashion. It’s more that I want to settle on something to wear so I don’t have to think about it.
Anthem for the Age: “Don’t Grab My Pussy”
Kristin Kontrol worked with the Vandelles to adapt The Beach Boys hit “Don’t Worry Baby” into a message we can really get behind: “Don’t Grab My Pussy.” Listen to the song here,…
Hip-Hop for Clinton
Jay Z, Beyoncé, Chance the Rapper, J. Cole, and Big Sean performed at a Get Out the Vote rally in support of Hillary Clinton this weekend. Trump’s response: a critique of Jay Z’s use of…
A Necessary Evil
Hope Sandoval (Mazzy Star) and Colm Ó Cíosóig (My Bloody Valentine) spoke to Consequence of Sound about their third album together as Hope Sandoval & The Warm Inventions, detailing how they found…
The Honesty of Kathleen Hanna
Kathleen Hanna sat down with VICE’s Kim Taylor Bennett and immediately began a very honest and powerful discussion of her experience with tokenism, how we won’t live in a post-sexist world until the…
Song of the Day: “Helpless”
Neil Young’s name has become synonymous with a special brand of rock music that came of age in the 60s, matured in the 70s, and burned on well past its…
Albums of Our Lives: The Front Bottoms’ The Front Bottoms
When I first heard Brian Sella’s sweet, pathetic voice sing these words, they seared a sense of guilt into me.
This Week in Posivibes: Hidden Ritual
Austin-based Hidden Ritual’s second album Always is receiving some great attention from those who respect well executed takes on sounds from music’s past. Still Single describes the band’s sound on this album by piecing…
Forty Years of Independent Music
Dazed Digital celebrated Rough Trade’s fortieth anniversary by conducting an interview with its founder, Geoff Travis, and co-director, Jeanette Lee. Responding to a question about the relevance of independent labels…
The Copyright Saga Continues
A new copyright lawsuit has been initiated against Bruno Mars and Mark Ronson for their single “Uptown Funk.” Collage, a funk band out of Minneapolis, alleges that the hit rips the instrumentals…