The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame traditionally announces its annual slate of nominees in October and narrows it down to a set of official inductees in December. But like just about everything else, the Rock Hall’s schedule was disrupted last year by the COVID-19 pandemic, with the May induction ceremony concert delayed and downsized […]
Behind its bare and utilitarian user interface, the Internet Archive has stashed a certified treasure trove of music. It’s the product of the non-profit’s ambitions to build a digitized library to be used by the general public. A library that holds everything from e-books to news broadcast, to computer programs, to old websites, that would […]
“The 27 Club” is a depressing cultural phenomenon — it’s the age musical luminaries Amy Winehouse, Jim Morrison, Kurt Cobain, Mia Zapata of the Gits, Janis Joplin and Jimi Hendrix died. The Pretty Reckless singer Taylor Momsen is now is 27 but was 25 when she wrote a reckoning in the semi-autobiographical “25.” The song […]
Ten years ago, some buddies and I made a film called We Juke Up in Here. It was an insiders’ journey into the underbelly of Mississippi’s surviving juke joint culture. Three years later, The New York Times showed up on my doorstep. “How many such places still exist?” the reporter asked. “With actual real, live […]
Google Image search “Steven Wilson sadness meme,” and you’ll find plenty of hilarious results. His music rarely sounds depressing — despite the groans of the modern prog-rock community, he’s just as likely these days to channel Abba as Gentle Giant. But he does tend to explore the dark corners of the human psyche, from the […]
It’s become crystal clear this year that without touring revenue, many musicians have little hope of making a living. Streaming royalties are a pittance, and musicians have had to turn to new creative ways to stay afloat. Some sell exclusive vinyl, cassettes, and other merchandise on Bandcamp. Others have turned to the subscription service, Patreon, […]
On Jan. 6, 2021, a sea of confederate banners, Make America Great Again hats, and flags embossed with the TRUMP 2020 logo punched through the glass of the U.S. Capitol and attempted a coup of the government. Someone reenacted George Floyd’s death on the Capitol steps and another person flew the confederate flag in the […]
He looks like a guy who’s done some time and knows a thing or two. One month out of jail, he wears aviators, sounds like De Niro and often mentions God. Who else could have pulled him through almost 32 years behind bars, shafted in the injust Florida prison system? His sentence was life imprisonment. […]
Street and local musicians, some as talented as any big name in the industry, dot the French Quarter in New Orleans, filling the air with music. We wondered how these performers were surviving with music venues closed. We spoke to three musicians to get a firsthand account. Matthew Dethrow is an upright/electric bassist from New […]
Willie Nelson made Aaron Lee Tasjan throw his guitar away. No, the stoney country legend didn’t request that Tasjan toss his instrument; rather, the singer-songwriter had a petulant pandemic freak-out during an April livestream, marched outside, and dumped his guitar into the trash. “Right before you play [on the Come and Toke It stream], you […]