Alternative Music
Björk: Fossora
Hope springs eternal in Björk’s fantastical world. Her optimism is one of the most spiritually nourishing things about her work, as if she’s dressing the emotional wounds of the world despite making increasingly avant-garde music and becoming the world’s first Animorph. At times her lyrics have urged the listener to accept a lack of control as an opportunity—the way there are “unthinkable surprises about to happen” on Vespertine’s “It’s Not Up to You,” or how Post imagines romantic hope through self-possession. You can always find the spark or glimmer of light in Björk’s music, whether it’s in the outlook or the instrumentation. Of course, her emotionally complex canon, spanning nearly 30 years, also shows that unthinkable surprises can be catastrophic, most acutely on 2015’s Vulnicura, wr...
Freddie Gibbs Unleashes New Album $oul $old $eparately: Stream
After more than a decade of success as an independent artist, Freddie Gibbs has released his major label debut album, $oul $old $eparately, via ESGN/Warner Records. Stream it below via Apple Music or Spotify. The 15-track LP features appearances from Pusha T, Rick Ross, Scarface, Offset, Raekwon, and more. Producers on the project include close collaborators Madlib and The Alchemist, as well as Boi-1da, Justice League, Kaytranada, Jake One, and DJ Dahi. James Blake, Anderson .Paak, and Three 6 Mafia’s DJ Paul pulled double duty by producing and contributing vocals. In anticipation of $oul $old $eparately, Gibbs shared Rap Song of the Week “Too Much” featuring Moneybagg Yo and the James Blake-produced “Dark Hearted.” The Gary, Indiana rapper’s last full-length was 2020’s Alfredo in collabor...
LCD Soundsystem Share “New Body Rhumba,” First New Song in Five Years: Stream
LCD Soundsystem are back with their first new song in five years. James Murphy and company have today shared “New Body Rhumba,” their contribution to the soundtrack for Noah Baumbach’s upcoming film White Noise. The black comedy-horror stars Adam Driver and Greta Gerwig as a married couple whose idyllic life is thwarted by disaster. White Noise comes out in select theaters starting November 25th before it hits Netflix December 30th. “New Body Rhumba” is LCD’s first new music since their 2017 album American Dream, which arrived a whopping seven years after its predecessor This Is Happening. So, while we’d love if this meant there’s a new LCD album on the way, we’re just happy enough to get a one-off single from the indie veterans. Listen to “New Body Rhumba” below. Though LCD...
Pixies Unveil New Album Doggerel: Stream
Something to make you feel old today: It’s been 30 years since Pixies broke up the first time, and thanks to Doggerel, their new album that’s out today, the band have now released as many records since their reunion as they did during their original heyday. Needless to say, Pixies have grown up, and, as a press release explains, Doggerel shows that. “This time around we have grown,” guitarist Joey Santiago said. “We no longer have under two-minute songs. We have little breaks, more conventional arrangements but still our twists in there.” “We’re trying to do things that are very big and bold and orchestrated,” frontman Black Francis added. “The punky stuff, I really like playing it but you just cannot artificially create that shit. There’s another way to do this, there’s other things ...
M.I.A. Wants Us To Live Free on New Single “BEEP”: Stream
M.I.A. has always been an outspoken, boundary-pushing artist, and she’s no different on new single “BEEP.” Listen to the track below. “You can be who you wanna be,” goes the hook in “BEEP,” a short, slinky song rife with exotic percussion. Doing what she wants has always been M.I.A.’s MO, and she remains unbothered by that fact here: “I tried to tell you all what will happen to you/ I tried to make you see I was telling the truth/ I was tryna be everything you want me to be/ I can’t please everyone/ Imma let it BEEP BEEP,” she raps. No word on if the single’s “Be free” message is about vaccines, though. “BEEP” will appear on M.I.A.’s upcoming album MATA, which has yet to receive a release date. So far, however, the musician has previewed the project with the singles “The One” and “Popular....
Danny Boyle to Direct a Dance Stage Show Based on The Matrix
Did someone ask for a hip-hop stage adaptation of The Matrix? Of course not, but Danny Boyle is giving us one anyway. As Variety reports, Boyle will turn the 1999 sci-fi smash into a “large-scale immersive performance” titled Free Your Mind. Its logline reads as follows: “Combining the hip-hop choreography of hundreds of dancers with the latest immersive design, Free Your Mind will take audiences on a thrilling journey through The Matrix and into a new realm of possibilities.” Licensed by Warner Bros. Theater Ventures, Free Your Mind is also scheduled to be the inaugural performance at Factory International, a new arts venue in Manchester, UK, in October 2023: “This eye-opening production will stretch across the building’s ultra-flexible spaces, responding to them and h...
Pixies’ Black Francis Talks New Album Doggerel, Why The Velvet Underground and Grateful Dead Are Similar, and Much More
Pixies are back with their eighth album, Doggerel, which finds the legendary alt-rock band exploring new sonic landscapes. With the album set for release on Friday (September 30th), Consequence caught up with frontman Black Francis to discuss the LP and more. Doggerel was recorded during the pandemic, with Francis having written 40 new songs heading into the sessions. The album also features the first writing credits from guitarist Joey Santiago, who co-penned the music for the single “Dregs of the Wine” as well as a few lyrics for the title track. With Doggerel, Pixies have now released as many albums (four) in their current era as they did in their initial run from the late ’80s to the early ’90s, during which they released four classic LPs in four years — including 1989’s Doolittle, whi...
Coolio Recorded New Dialogue and a Song for Futurama Before His Death
Just a few weeks before he died of cardiac arrest, Coolio was in the studio recording dialogue and a new song for the upcoming revival of Futurama, producer David X. Cohen told TMZ. During Futurama’s initial run, Coolio had a recurring role on the animated satire as Kwanzaa-bot, the exasperated holiday companion to Santa Claus Robot and Chanukah Zombie. “Coolio was one of my favorite guests,” Cohen said. “He was always totally upbeat and genuinely enjoyed coming in to record as his character Kwanzaa-bot.” Cohen said that the episode will be dedicated to Coolio and feature him rapping over the credits, in order to give him “the best send-off we can.” He added that he’d had an enjoyable conversation with the “Gangsta’s Paradise” MC, and learned that Coolio had r...
Bruce Willis Could Appear in Future Projects Thanks to Deepfake Twin
Bruce Willis was forced to retire from acting earlier this year after being diagnosed with a language disorder called aphasia, but we may see him on screen for future projects thanks to the use of deepfake technology. Last year, Willis worked with an AI-powered technology firm called Deepcake so his likeness could be used in a commercial without stepping a foot on set. Engineers at the company used AI technology to create a 4K “digital twin” of Willis by loading 34,000 “image fragments” from movies like Die Hard and Fifth Element into their neural network. That data was then used to superimpose his face onto the face of understudies with “surgical precision.” Though making Willis’ replica was a 14-day process, Deepcake claims their engineers only need “three to five days” to recr...
Saturday Night Live Season 48 Cast Guide: Everything We Know About SNL’s New Cast Members
Since its inception in 1975, Saturday Night Live has seen many people come and go from its cast. The comedy show’s massive influence on American pop culture has thrust many cast members into the spotlight, generating generation after generation of influential stars in entertainment. Following the recent departure of eight prominent members of Saturday Night Live’s cast, the comedy show’s 48th season will introduce four new cast members on October 1st. Making their Studio 6H debut this week are Marcello Hernandez, Molly Kearney, Michael Longfellow, and Devon Walker — here’s everything to know about SNL’s newest cast members. Molly Kearney [embedded content] Related Video American actor and standup comedian Molly Kearney comes from Cleveland, Ohio. After starting their career as a stand-up i...
Arctic Monkeys Share Lovely New Song “Body Paint”: Stream
Arctic Monkeys have a hard conversation with a liar on their new song, “Body Paint.” This latest preview of upcoming album The Car finds the Sheffield squad in introspective lounge lizard mode over sparkling piano and slowed-down drums. “For a master of deception and subterfuge,” Alex Turner sings to open the song, “You’ve made yourself quite the bed to lie in.” Despite Turner’s previous remarks that this album will be “louder,” “Body Paint” suggests that they’re still interested in beauty over bangers. He tells his partner, “So predicable, I know what you’re thinking/ I’m watching your every move, I feel the tears are coming on.” Whatever excuses they may have, he doesn’t want to hear them. Over pained strings, he laments that his interlocutor remains stained from...
Bryan Fuller on New Docuseries Queer for Fear and How Hannibal Is “Explicitly Queer”
In working on the new AMC documentary series Queer for Fear: The History of Queer Horror, director/executive producer Bryan Fuller (Hannibal) was excited to dig into all the facets of storytelling around this genre — including the way in which queer themes have been hidden within mainstream works for centuries. “As somebody who grew up used to the codes, and faced obstacles in my own career as a storyteller with queer representation, and having that eradicated or suppressed by studios or other creatives who just felt that the world wasn’t ready for queerness in that regard… I have a great affection for the codes of queerness, because there’s so much about being queer that is already coded,” he tells Consequence over Zoom. In fact, he says, that affection for codes ended up having a big inf...
