“Tennessee’s government has turned hard red, but a new set of outlaw songwriters is challenging Music City’s conservative ways—and ruling bro-country sound.”
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The Dave Matthews Guide to Living and Dying
“Now 56, Matthews has been singing about mortality for a long time, and he’s confronting its specter in new and surprising ways.”
All You Touch and All You See: “Dark Side of the Moon” at 50
“A half-century ago, Pink Floyd unleashed a classic that still lingers on the Billboard charts and in college dorms to this day. But what’s the legacy of the blockbuster album?”
‘This Stuff is Alive’: A Global Folk Music Reading List
Six pieces that demonstrate the timelessness of ever-changing sonic traditions.
“Blurred Lines,” Harbinger of Doom
“How Robin Thicke, Pharrell, and T.I.’s cursed megahit predicted everything bad about the past decade in pop culture”
The Legend of The Music Tree
What is so special about a particular tree harvested from a forest in Belize? Ellen Ruppel Shell finds out in this meticulous essay. But then, there it was: a Paul Bunyan–size log, wedged deep in a gully and covered in undergrowth. In an instant, Novak knew this tree was truly extraordinary. But he had no […]
How Bay Area Hip-Hop Found Its Sound in the 1980s
“How is a discussion about street dancers connected to an exploration of the Bay Area hip-hop sound? It’s important to understand the conditions under which the genre emerged locally.”
Trance Is Back—and It’s No Joke
“With Y2K aesthetics back in vogue, and post-pandemic clubbers jonesing for a hit of euphoria, the much-maligned genre is making a comeback.”
The Final Dead Shows: Part One
“Everyone is dancing a little bit, bobbing, but really they are having an extended, possibly endless, interior experience.”
The Women Who Built Grunge
Bands like L7 and Heavens to Betsy were instrumental to the birth of the grunge scene, but for decades were treated like novelties and sex objects. Thirty years later, it’s time to reassess their legacy.