On Speaking Plainly: A Conversation with Rajith Savanadasa
Rajith Savanadasa discusses his debut novel, Ruins, writing across oceans, and the chance encounter with refugees that led to the story at the heart of his novel.
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Posts Tagged: Nirvana
The Sunday Rumpus Essay: Victim Story, a Mix CD
All the cruelty of the past seasons washed away with the new layer of snow. I thought your streak was over. I thought we could be friends.
...moreSong of the Day: “Where Did You Sleep Last Night?”
Mournful is the best way to describe Leadbelly’s voice in the song popularized by Nirvana on their live album, MTV Unplugged in New York. While Nirvana’s version captured the attention of audiences, the original lament was recorded by a canonized blues artist whose given name was Huddie William Ledbetter. “My girl, my girl, where did you go,” keens […]
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The Rumpus Interview with Andi Zeisler
Andi Zeisler, co-founder of Bitch and author of the new book We Were Feminists Once: From Riot Grrl to CoverGirl, discusses capitalism, breast implants, pop culture, and feminism.
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A Ringing in Your Ears That Would Disappear by Morning
Soon, you would discover the local isle of misfits. Every town has at least one if you do some digging. Yours was The Boathouse.
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Five Stages of Prince Fandom
You don’t need to know him personally, you say. You get the best of Prince through his music. Maybe that’s the truth, and maybe it isn’t.
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Sound & Vision: John Congleton
Allyson McCabe speaks with GRAMMY-winning producer/engineer John Congleton about what it’s like to make music in today’s technological and economic environments, and the benefits of being open to adaptation.
...moreSong of the Day: “Fade Into You”
“Alternative rock” group Mazzy Star reached their commercial peak during the early 90s, a period when American music was dominated by grunge and Nirvana. The creative core of Mazzy Star consisted of guitarist and producer Dave Roback and lyricst and multi-instrumentalist Hope Sandoval. The duo was often accompanied by a rotating cast of musicians, and the […]
...moreBen Carson Wants the Rap Vote
Ben Carson has engaged the logic of the ’90s in his latest attempt to drum up support: when in doubt of how to reach your audience, write an awkward hip hop song about it! Stereogum has conjectured that the use of Aspiring Mogul as the segment’s rapper seems to suggest Carson (or his people) actually […]
...moreSong of the Day: “All Apologies”
The new documentary about Kurt Cobain, Montage of Heck, contains up-until-now unreleased home videos and animated footage of the Nirvana frontman’s tortured diary entries. It reveals a deeply troubled psyche, inextricable from the genius associated with it. On the hypnotic Unplugged version of “All Apologies,” Cobain complements a recognizable strain of defeatism in his lyrics with a kind of layman’s spirituality. […]
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Albums of Our Lives: Nirvana’s Nevermind
The first time I listened to Nevermind, I sat on the bathroom floor with the liner notes and jewel case open on my lap.
...moreKnown Pleasures
In the wake of So This Is Permanence, a recently released archive of Joy Division frontman Ian Curtis’s notebooks, Jillian Mapes reflects on why artists’ scribblings mean so much to fans: “It’s a human reaction to see handwritten things, as opposed to typewritten things, as being quite intimate,” Savage tells me. “Rock music is burdened […]
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PJ Harvey Tuesday #2: “Rid of Me”
“I very much wanted to write songs that shocked,” PJ Harvey recently told Spin about her early career. “All I wanted to do was shock with my artwork. When I wrote ‘Rid of Me,’ I shocked myself.”
...moreThe Week Social Media Broke My Heart
Do you still remember the Internet of last week, just another barrage of all-over-the-place political and cultural events in which millions of people watched, reacted and interacted online?
...moreAlbums of Our Lives: Nirvana’s Nevermind
“I miss you; I’m not gonna crack” I was 14 and following older kids through the woods.
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