A Music Blog for Recovering Mix-Tapers
“There's something strange about being at a live concert that involves a tuba, saxophone, and two drummers and thinking ‘This is the greatest rock band I've seen all year.’"
Featuring: Sons of Kemet, Paul McCartney, Pongo, Jay Rock, and more.
Read More“This song exposes the asymmetry behind male grievance. It's about the way that the practical realities of living in certain bodies decimates the hypothetical framework of false equivalences. In short, there are real differences between negative feelings towards different groups, based on how likely those negative feelings are to contribute to the physical harm, or death, of their targets. And you thought you were listening to a jaunty indie rock song.”
Featuring: Angélique Kidjo, Wu Man, Clara Rockmore, Pussy Riot, and more.
Read More"Never mind the problem with essentially equating music with breakfast cereal or shaving cream, this conversation betrays an even deeper and more troubling misunderstanding in our culture: That who we are as people - what we value - is demonstrated and defined by what we spend money on. That our most important role is that of consumer. It's just the most rotten idea around, and I, personally, am against it with every fiber of my being."
Featuring: B.B. King, Drinks, Mohammed Fairouz, Ry Cooder, and more.
Read MoreEach year it becomes clearer that big music festivals are a young person's game. I've still got the stamina to zip and jet if I want to, but this year at Pitchfork I decided to take it a bit easier.
Featuring: Siba, Noura Mint Seymali, Bryan Adams, Bush Tetras, and more.
Read MoreGabe and I completed our Tennessee Tour 2013 this month with a few days in Memphis, a city whose musical culture, both past and present, is a gift that keeps on giving.
Featuring: Amy Lavere, Quadron, Wiley, Ry Cooder, and more.
Read MoreFor me, this month essentially began and ended with Ry Cooder. I've fallen in love with albums of his before, especially the stellar I, Flathead, but the enormity of his genius, the sheer amount of time he's been making great music, escaped me until I started sifting through his catalogue (which goes back to 1970) this month.
Featuring: Cate le Bon, Arcade Fire, Kate and Anna McGarrigle, and more.
Read MoreThank god for the Carter Family. There's something so elemental, so foundational about their sound. Even though I grew up with their songs, and experience the same kind of spiritual relief when hear them as when I hear my mom sing, there's still so much of their music I've never heard.
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