In the heart of Appalachia, that rich musical territory, lies West Virginia, a place known for beautiful mountains and luckless coal mining ballads. The latest record from Steve Earle and the Dukes ventures into the state’s musical and economic heritage. On Ghosts of West Virginia, Earle explores the hardships of the…

The airborne toxic event in Don DeLillo’s 1985 postmodern novel White Noise, from which the band The Airborne Toxic Event derives its name, involves a chemical spill that forces the book’s characters to grapple with their own mortality—while enjoying unnaturally beautiful sunsets. So while the timing of the release of…

Whether it’s initially embracing the boy band label or spewing tasteless jokes about struggling independent artists during an economic crisis, there are many reasons to root against Matt Healy and The 1975. But dagnabbit, there are so many more reasons to marvel at why they’ve been so successful. Without…

Charli XCX and her band of collaborators have been leading the charge of pushing pop music headlong into new territories over the last few years, using the latest and greatest in PC Music (aka bubblegum bass) production techniques. However, it was a bit of a surprise to hear she…

Experimentation is essential for the evolution of an artist’s style to create distinction between each subsequent work and encourage the audience to return and experience the new side of the artist. The catch-22 is that experimentation can often backfire just as much as it can do wonders. On the…

Most of All Visible Objects, the new album by Moby, is a very good throwback electronic dance album. The rest is a maudlin EP of similar-sounding piano ballads. Released separately, they would each be a success for their respective audiences. Unfortunately, mashed together into one album, each undercuts the…

Jason Isbell exists in an unpretentious universe. The accomplished Southern rock veteran plays in a style that almost sounds retro in 2020. The fact that his new album, Reunions, sounds so vital reminds listeners of the possibilities inherent to the classic rock format. Isbell is accompanied here by his band…

Hayley Williams steps out on her own with her first solo release, the expansive and emotional journey of Petals For Armor. The album is the first time Williams has put out music that’s exclusively her own, dropping any reference to Paramore, which is currently on hiatus. That’s not to say…

Without context or backstory it would be easy to assume Maria Lindén wrote Warnings, the third album by I Break Horses, specifically during the coronavirus lockdown as a soundtrack for these bizarre times. Warnings I Break Horses Bella Union, May 8 It wasn’t, of course. In fact, the album…

While known for acting roles in movies like “Get Out” (2017) and “X-Men: First Class” (2011), Caleb Landry Jones has long harbored musical ambitions. Other than the short-lived Robert Jones project in the 2000s, his relegated his ideas to the deep recesses of his mind and the occasional recording…