Ian Shelton has some thoughts on whoever might be upstairs. “I think the idea of the omnipotent god that concerns himself with the success of a random white guy is a legitimately stupid concept.” He, meaning Shelton, has no illusion that any god is there to save him, or even concern him or herself with […]
If one thing was apparent after two weekends of the annual Austin City Limits festival, it’s that the never-ending cycle of nostalgia is shining a renewed spotlight on indie rock of the 2010s. With a lineup featuring darlings from that era such as Empire of the Sun, Cage the Elephant, Passion Pit, Phantogram, Dr. Dog, […]
As I greet Mike Dean over a video call, it’s five days until the closing of the first round of voting for the 2026 Grammy Awards. His production work on the Weeknd’s Hurry Up Tomorrow is up for 10 categories. I ask him if there’s a particular category he’d like to win. “I’ve never won […]
“It’s so rad to be on this wave again,” says Yellowcard frontman Ryan Key. “What are the odds of catching this wave twice in your life, 20 years apart?” Around this time two decades ago, Key’s band was riding high on the platinum sales of 2003’s Ocean Avenue and the Top 40 crossover success of […]
Mike Scott of the Waterboys doesn’t like to use the word “obsession” to describe his particular affliction. When it comes to the creative artists who have moved him over the decades, he prefers to identify as a “completist,” as if he was a humble archivist, a cultural trainspotter observing the minutiae of his favorite musicians, […]
“If you put a Van Halen album in your record collection, it will melt all the rest of your records,” was famously David Lee Roth’s sales pitch for the legendary California hard rock quartet he originally fronted from 1973 to 1985, and again from 2007 to 2020. Guitarist Eddie Van Halen and his brother Alex […]
David Byrne and Hayley Williams have enjoyed a close personal and working relationship for the past several years, and their chemistry was evident last night (Oct. 11) at New York’s Radio City Music Hall, where the Paramore frontwoman made a surprise appearance for two songs. The artists reprised their collaboration “What Is the Reason for […]
Former Lostprophets singer Ian Watkins was murdered today (Oct. 11) at HMP Wakefield in West Yorkshire, England, where he was serving a 29-year-sentence for sex offenses. Watkins, who was 48, had been in jail for the past 12 years on 13 horrific charges involving children and animals. According to West Yorkshire Police, Watkins was attacked with a […]
Inside the Frolic Room in Hollywood, a small crowd of early drinkers leans up against the bar as an old Rolling Stones song blares overhead. It’s another hot day outside on the boulevard, but in here, it’s all shadowy glamour and laughter as the locals knock back one drink after another. It’s not where the […]
Taylor Momsen sits at a desk in her New York City apartment, the place she’s called home since she was 12, a sign hangs just beyond her right shoulder: “love” written in cursive pink neon. “Welcome to my home,” she says, fresh faced and smiling, a natural beauty in black wide-rimmed glasses. In August, her […]