I can’t get enough of Midnight Radio from James Reeves. His twice-monthly mixtape drops might just be musical prisms of my brain. His anti-bullshit music app, Spite, is worth trying in tandem with Midnight Radio (and all the owned music you’ve ever accumulated). It’s fast becoming my go-to player.
Simon James is a well respected sound designer. Working solo, and in collaboration, for decades he’s been involved in countless art installations and community projects. He’s also released music on labels such as Castles In Space and Lo Recordings. I’ve known Simon since the early 2000s, when we were both part of a crowd that hung around Brighton’s bespoke clothing boutique, The One40Five Store. Back then Simon was a hip hop fanatic and budding producer. He’d just invested in his first bit of…
A loose review of an album that was released in 1994. Currently Listening: Milla “The Divine Comedy”Reply via email
This group from Kansas City has hammered together a thoroughly impressive debut Cassette here, available via the local powerhouse Dirtbag Distro, made up of eleven punches of deliciously raggedy and pissed oldschool-ish hardcore. I do think the bandcamp blurb mentioning Minor Threat and Black Flag kinda undersells this record though, which actually comprises of a lot more than just your average retro early ’80s hardcore rehash, keeping things thrilling and unpredictable all the way thanks to…
Here’s another strange artifact of peculiar yet also kinda catchy noise rock and postcore delirium for connoisseurs of rough and unwieldy noise. Agita are a group from Philadelphia and their third EP, just released on cassette by local label Strange Mono, unleashes upon us fifteen attacks of a crude ruckus mostly less than one minute long that reminds me as much of early proto noise rockers á la Flipper, No Trend or even slightly of very early Rudimentari Peni as it does of more recent noisy…
These dudes’ music is still among the most unique things in the current crop of blackened and vaguely dungeon-themed punk bands with their uncharacteristically death rock- and post punk-informed take on the genre, even if some of their more recent releases struck me as a bit spotty and directionless. Well, direction is definitively less of an issue here, after their previous Cerebral EP marked kind of a return to form whose increasingly catchy, melodic flourishes get expanded upon here even…
I hadn't been to Musical Mondays at LUSH in almost a year, but when they used a photo of the Spoonbridge and Cherry sculpture as the May show image, Cherry and Spoon had to go! And I'm so glad I did. I love this monthly cabaret series started by BFFs Max Wojtanowicz and Sheena Janson some 12 years ago, and would attend every month if I weren't so busy seeing 4-5 shows a week in this busy #TCTheater season. But take it from me, if you're ever free on the first Monday of the month, head to LUSH…
Two musical worlds and two icons meld their respective styles into a unified canvas of artistic subtlety and beauty. Source: The Perfect Note over at AllMusic 💿 Stream
Shrudd from Louisville, Kentucky already have been a more than notable presence in the garage punk scene for a while but they really hit it out of the ballpark with their first longplayer No Man Is Good Three Times from last winter, leaving behind much of their humble eggpunk beginnings for a more fleshed-out, sophisticated sound very much on the psychedelic, spaced-out side of the garage- and post punk spectrum. A tough record to follow really, but with their first substantial release since…
The former Synth-/Electro Punk one-man-band Klint based in Schleswig, Germany quite obviously has grown into a duo now and, as i’ve caught wind of some time ago already, is planning to finally hit the stages as a live act at some point and if you thought damn, these vocals sound unfamiliar this time around, then that’s because yes, it’s not the same dude doing the singing here. That minor technicality aside, Klint mostly stick to their winning and still completely unique-sounding formula of…
Super neat thing, this newest EP by Götri of Jakarta, Indonesia, on which they craft an explosive cocktail of hardcore punk that’s as heavily garage-infused as it’s indebted to the classic early eighties era in its no-frills simplicity and unbroken momentum with every tune on here built around a minimal but effective hook and all the fat stripped away and what can i say, the shit just works!
Cincinnati, Ohio dudes Smarm are making a thoroughly promising impresson here on their debut EP sporting a completely unpretentious garage punk sound with a neat ’77- and proto punk edge that clearly pays tribute to some local punk heritage with plenty of a timeless Dead Boys energy to these tunes, excelling in a simple but perfectly balanced kind of songcraft that also perfectly nails it in terms of infectious hooks and a determined, straightforward no-bullshit performance. Yet another…
Oddfellows releases June 12th via Wild Honey Records.
Amidst the flurry of band dissolution announcements last week, I was alarmed to see this Twitter thread from Tokyo shoegazers COLLAPSE (not to be confused with Tokyo Shoegazer, although singer Shoko Inoue was once part of Tokyo Shoegazer, as you know), announcing: “As of April 2026, Gt.YU will be leaving the band, and going forward, […] The post COLLAPSE – “Path” appeared first on Space Echo.
I asked ChatGPT to build yet another playlist around Khruangbin and Hermanos Gutiérrez, but not in the dead-simple “similar artists” way that streaming services tend to do. Feel how you like about AI-generated stuff, but it's pure fire when putting together music. The goal was to capture a shared atmosphere: desert guitar, dubby basslines, cumbia shadows, Anatolian psych, surf noir, cinematic funk, and slow-motion groove. Khruangbin and Hermanos Gutiérrez do not sound exactly alike, but they…
This song means more than just childhood orchestra memories to us. During our lowest of lows as the pandemic happened, we were ready to give up. As part of a last hurrah, we were invited to play a Christmas party in somebody's barn in the middle of Texas, and we said sure, why not? It was a four-hour gig, and after about two hours, we started running out of tunes to play - and in a moment of inspiration, Jon summoned this fiddle tune from deep within his soul and for the next minute and a half,…
Madrid, day 2
It's very strange when they actually say the bluetooth messages: @string.and.tell Are these the voices in your headphones? @kdimerc and @Tawny Platis | Voice Actor get into voice matching, IVR voices, rave culture, jump-scaring yourself with your own voice in public, and what it’s like hearing yourself everywhere #funny #voiceactor #voiceacting ♬ original sound - String and Tell I bet this works really well @jasonkpargin ♬ original sound - Jason Pargin, author - Jason Pargin, author Also this,…
All One Song - “After the Gold Rush” with Simon JoynerPretty much every All One Song guest complains about one thing: having to pick just one Neil Young song. And yeah, it’s a catalog of such consistency and strength that it can feel virtually impossible to have a single favorite. So as a disclaimer, all of our guests could’ve chosen maybe a dozen other songs. Or more. We just cruelly forced them to whittle it down to one.But I’ve often wondered … what is Neil Young’s favorite Neil Young song?…
Released: 8th May 2026 “We were spellbound by her ability to highlight unique perspectives with her songwriting” – Maverick magazine “Duffy’s first-class writing shines through” – RnR magazine The double A-side ‘Lock Up Your Daughters’ / ‘He Wore Rose Oil in his Hair’ is the fifth and final single from the warmly-anticipated new album by London-based singer-songwriter, Little Lore aka Tricia Duffy. Inspired by the work of Tennessee Williams, the full album, Being Serafina, will be released in…
"House of the Rising Sun" by The Animals Post one of your favorite standards. - House of the Rising Sun by The Animals Eric Burdon has one of the greatest rock and roll voices of all time. Enjoy! View Lou Plummer's Crucial Tracks profile
My 9th year at SXSW. A good time to name the top performances since 2016 and go a little deeper into my 2026. · 2016: Tickle Torture @ The Iron Bear with a lubed up set more erotic than Prince. · 2017: Duckwrth @ Banger’s playing a most vibrant day-party set. · 2018: Joey Dosik @ Zilker Park. A pop up in the park was picnic perfect. · 2019: Celeste @ St David’s Church. One of the greatest voices of our time, performing at a church. · 2022: Annabelle Chairlegs @ The Creek and The Cave. What fun…
Alex Zhang Hungtai – Mother These two pieces from Alex Zhang Hungtai (of Dirty Beaches, among other projects) are alchemical. From his upcoming double album Orion/Mother, Zhang describes the music as “like something that was dormant is starting to awaken.” True to its title, the second disc’s second track indeed feels as if it is being wrenched from the primordial soup, Zhang’s trumpet sounding sustained, exhausted birth calls over halting percussive clatter, as if marking the last stretch of…
Major thanks to Ethan Hein for writing about the Disquiet Junto music community I’ve moderated for the past 14 and a half years (or more to the point, the past 748 consecutive weeks). Here’s a link to Ethan’s newsletter issue (from which the above quote was extracted) about the Junto, in which musicians respond each week to a composition project that I send out.
Josh Davis aka DJ Shadow is about to reissue his Mo Wax singles as a deluxe boxset . This gives me a good excuse to share a few thoughts on his landmark Mo Wax debut… “This is a song about life, death, love, hate, wealth, poverty… just a few things that have been running through my head…” There’s no denying that DJ Shadow’s “In / Flux” was groundbreaking. When I interviewed Shadow recently and asked if, back in 1993, there was any precedent for a 12 minute long instrumental hip hop track, he…
Best Record of 2001: Day 32 For a hot minute, I had a weird streak going: I’d make the drive from Portland to Seattle and tune into 107.7 The End as soon as it came in. And sure as shit, every time I did, I’d hear The Clash’s “Train in Vain.” They certainly made more tracks than that, and certainly made ones that are more resonant, but my point here (besides some musing about the universe working in mysterious ways) is that it was incredibly catchy and stuck with you long after you heard it. It…
In the Book Notes series, authors create and discuss a music playlist that relates in some way to their recently published book. Previous contributors include Jesmyn Ward, Lauren Groff, Bret Easton Ellis, Celeste Ng, T.C. Boyle, Dana Spiotta, Amy Bloom, Aimee Bender, Roxane Gay, and many others. Ana Kinsella’s novel Frida Slattery As Herself is a spellbinding debut delivering poignant themes of art, power, and achievement. Elif Batuman wrote of the book: “Frida Slattery As Herself is a deft,…
Last night we checked off another required item to become official Los Angeles residents, by going to see a show at the Greek Theatre. It was a celebration of the 40th anniversary of Pee-Wee’s Playhouse, as part of a Netflix comedy festival.1 2 All credit to my husband for finding and planning it and getting the tickets, because I would’ve noped out just at the thought of trying to park at a packed event in Griffith Park. And I would’ve been wrong, because the show was fantastic. Patton Oswalt…
Elina DuniRob LuftReaching for the Moon Elina Duni voice, percussionRob Luft guitars, electronicsRecorded June 2025 at Studios La BuissonneEngineer: Gérard de HaroCover photo: Jean-Guy LathuilièreMastering: Christoph StickelAlbum produced by Manfred EicherRelease date: April 24, 2026 Stranger is the heartIn the shadows it has grown apartLonely dancer, lonely larkYour song is lost, adrift from the start For her sixth foray into the ever-expanding territory of ECM records, singer Elina Duni…
Stereogum: By now it’s widely accepted that the live industry is fucked for 99% of us. Be it artists struggling to cope with growing costs, or fans with diminishing disposable income being met with ever increasing ticket prices at arena and stadium gigs, from a gouging music industry. Bands and Music Biz Insiders are often keen to express their plight, but so often what they say falls short of being interesting because it doesn’t include any detail or tell us anything we don’t already broadly…
