Apparently, the title of the latest outing for these titans of righteous noise-making, 2R0I2P0, translates as “2020 R.I.P.” Too damn right. I can’t think of a better double-act to read the last rites. 2R0I2P0 is, in fact, the seventh album-length… Read More
Prolific, Hamburg-based producer Farhot has not been back to Afghanistan since leaving it as a child with his family during the Soviet-Afghan War. Distance notwithstanding, though, his music speaks to the deep connection he feels to his homeland. On Kabul… Read More
Calico Jim‘s songs take place mostly in rural North Georgia, where James “Pony” Bradshaw has lived for the past 15 years. The location is essential. It helps shape the characters’ temperaments and behaviors. It’s a place where people say things… Read More
“…Well, I woke up this morning and I got myself a beer The future’s uncertain And the end is always near…” – Jim Morrison, Roadhouse Blues (1970) Silence. A battered old Ford screeched rounding our corner. Darkness screaming, and the… Read More
You’d be forgiven if you never foresaw Detlef Weinrich and Emmanuelle Parrenin teaming up. The former is a Dusseldorf DJ known for his machine-like krautrock grooves; the latter is a French harpist and hurdy-gurdyist who made a name among cratediggers… Read More
Reviewing music built primarily on instrumental ambience and drone is a Rorschach Test. Ambiguous responses may or may not reveal something about the imagery flowing through an individual’s head. Any interpretation is unscientific and does not reveal a single common… Read More
Austrian indie-pop duo Leyya have played some of the world’s best festivals, including the Reeperbahn Festival, Primavera, Iceland Airwaves, and SXSW. Their catchy music has had more than 20 million listens on Spotify, and those clever hooks have wormed their… Read More
In 2008, Chinese journalist Yang Jisheng published Tombstone, a now-definitive account of how Mao’s ill-considered plan to industrialize the nation failed to bring about the intended Great Leap Forward and instead caused the Great Famine. Jisheng—a former reporter for state… Read More
Film critic Pauline Kael once declared cattily that the only flair in Candice Bergen’s acting work is in her “nostrils”. For over 50 years, Candice Bergen was a movie star, though for much of it, she was cast in ill-fitting… Read More
When Sharon Jones tapped her feet on stage, singing and shaking in a glitter dress, the dust from everyday life turned into sparkle to let us shine. Backed by the Dap-Kings, her powerful yet kind voice, energy, and down-to-earth attitude… Read More