Alternative Rock
Porno for Pyros Reunite for First Performance in 24 Years: Watch
Porno for Pyros are back. As promised, Perry Farrell’s ’90s supergroup came together on Thursday night as part of Lollapalooza’s Lolla2020 live stream. Farrell, drummer Stephen Perkins, guitarist Peter DiStefano, and bassist Mike Watt gathered together for an acoustic backyard performance of “Pets” and “Kimberly Austin”. The reunion marked the first time this particular lineup has performed together in over 24 years. Otherwise, the last time the Porno for Pyros moniker was dusted off was when the original lineup featuring bassist Martyn LeNoble reunited for Farrell’s 50th birthday party. Since then, Farrell has teased of getting the band back together to no avail. This isn’t the last we’ll see of Farrell. The Lollapalooza founder has two other special performances in store for the weekend:...
Alanis Morissette’s Such Pretty Forks in the Road Shines Light into the Depths: Review
The Lowdown: Alanis Morissette is back! After an eight-year hiatus, one of the ’90s pinnacle pioneers of alt rock is sweeping back into the spotlight with her ninth studio album, Such Pretty Forks in the Road. After four years of work and a three-month delayed release due to COVID-19, the album applies a trademark Morissette treatment — cutting lyrics and a voice that howls and croons and whispers as deftly as an arrow — to questions of adulthood, responsibility, and creativity to greater and more complete effect than what we’d last seen from her. The resulting album is extremely haunting, immaculately polished, and complexly kind. The Good: Such Pretty Forks in the Road finds Morissette exploring the tenuousness of fame, youth, and passion but in a way that thwarts that tenuousness in its...
Phoebe Bridgers on the Value of True Crime and Why She’s a Fan of My Favorite Murder
Kyle Meredith With… Phoebe Bridgers Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS Phoebe Bridgers speaks with Kyle Meredith about Punisher. The sophomore album finds the singer-songwriter taking on a bigger production with a balance of themes of disconnection. Bridgers discusses having to trick herself while writing, being “coffee shop famous,” producing Christian Lee Hutson’s new LP, becoming a fan of My Favorite Murder, appreciating true crime, and how this album could be the score to a “Midsommar-style divorce drama.” Kyle Meredith With… is an interview series in which WFPK’s Kyle Meredith speaks to a wide breadth of musicians. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, Meredith digs deep int...
Blaqk Audio (AFI Members) Announce New Album, Unveil Five New Songs Including “Hiss”: Stream
Blaqk Audio, the synth outfit made up of AFI members Davey Havok and Jade Puget, have announced a new album, Beneath the Black Palms. The entire LP will be released on August 21st, but the duo has made Side A, comprised of five songs, available today. Beneath the Black Palms marks the fifth album for Blaqk Audio, following up 2019’s Only Things We Love. Along with releasing the first five tracks on the album, the duo has unveiled a visualizer for the first single, “Hiss”. “Beneath the Black Palms is an affirmation, exaltation, and momentary illumination of rich, arcane shadows fortified by blinding and rapturous light,” stated Havok in a press release. “Musically a bird sister of Only Things We Love, our latest record more deeply traverses our EBM and futurepop roots while also extend...
R.I.P. Denise Johnson, Primal Scream Vocalist Dies at 56
Denise Johnson, veteran singer who performed with Primal Scream, New Order, Pet Shop Boys, and countless other acts, passed away on Monday. She was 56. Friends and family confirmed the news on Twitter. Although no cause of death has officially been disclosed, a statement from the family confirmed that Johnson had been ill the week prior and her body was discovered holding her inhaler. Born in Manchester and raised in the suburb of Hulme, Johnson grew up in a musically rich household. After performing with cover bands throughout the ’80s, she eventually joined soul group Fifth of Heaven and began turning heads. [embedded content] One such head was Hypnotone’s Tony Martin, who recommended Johnson to Primal Scream for their third studio album, 1991’s Screamadelica. She would go on to sin...
Stone Temple Pilots to Perform Core in Its Entirety During Livestream
Stone Temple Pilots, featuring current lead singer Jeff Gutt, have announced an upcoming livestream performance of their classic 1992 debut album, Core. Plus, they’ve released a pair of archival concert recordings from 2011 and 2019, the former featuring the late Scott Weiland, the band’s original frontman. As live music remains in a relative stasis during the pandemic, the Stone Temple Pilots livestream is the latest in a bevy of virtual performances from isolated bands and artists. Like a ticket to a physical concert, access to the pay-per-view performance costs $9.99. The show airs next Friday (July 31st) at 5:00 p.m. PT / 8:00 p.m. ET via live music curator nugs.tv. Stone Temple Pilots are also sharing shows from 2011 and 2019 via nugs, which hosts official live recordings of many popu...
St. Vincent Shares Clip of Her “Fumbling” Through “Stairway to Heaven”: Watch
St. Vincent, photo by Ben Kaye There’s nothing like guitar stores, with their rows upon rows of unlimited potential, and the ever-present sound of overeager amateurs stumbling through famous riffs. Many such establishments are now closed, but to recreate that hallowed vibe, St. Vincent has shared a Led Zeppelin cover just in case you “missed the sound of someone fumbling through “stairway to heaven”.” The artist born Annie Clark posted the video to Instagram. She wore a fruit-covered robe with red-framed sunglasses, and chose a filter with the color saturation turned all the way to Vegas Strip. While the short clip doesn’t contain singing or any other words, she did add a short comment in which she honored and roasted guitar stores. Clark wrote, “Since guitar stores have been closed, I tho...
The Psychedelic Furs’ Made of Rain Is a Confident, Trippy, and Wonderful Comeback: Review
The Lowdown: Few British post-punk/new wave acts made as big a splash in the 1980s as The Psychedelic Furs. Led by the illustrious vocals and bass playing, respectively, of bothers Richard and Tim Butler — and with tracks such as “Pretty in Pink”, “Heaven”, and “Love My Way” becoming huge hits — the group was as much a part of that zeitgeist as any of their genre peers. Sadly, they went on hiatus following the release of 1991’s World Outside, and although the pair continued to create with Love Spit Love prior to a Furs live reunion at the turn of the millennium, fans have been clamoring for a proper new record for nearly three whole decades. Thankfully, it’s finally arrived, and it’s as exhilarating and charming a return as anyone could’ve wanted. [embedded content] Joining the main duo th...
Nick Cave Previews Idiot Prayer Solo Piano Concert With Stunning “Galleon Ship” Performance: Watch
Nick Cave performing “Galleon Ship” during Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at Alexandra Palace Tomorrow, July 23rd, Nick Cave will present a special solo piano concert performance called Idiot Prayer: Nick Cave Alone at Alexandra Palace. He’s previewing the gig today with a clip of the song “Galleon Ship”. Originally from his 2019 album Ghosteen, the already-spiritual track takes on a whole new life as Cave delivers it from behind a grand piano, pages of sheet music propped up before him, alone in the London venue’s ornate West Hall. It’s a truly powerful setting and Cave’s performance of the track is both visually and musically intense, displaying an evocative energy that transcends its digital presentation and feels truly palpable. Fans who tune into Idiot Prayer will get ...
Song of the Week: Taylor Swift’s “exile” Reminds Us That We’re Not Alone
Song of the Week breaks down and talks about the song we just can’t get out of our head each week. Find these songs and more on our Spotify New Sounds playlist. It’ll be interesting if a decade or two from now, we’ll look back at “quarantine albums” or “pandemic art” as a thing — like how we classify certain things, including some old music, as “Depression-era.” First, I think we can all agree that we don’t want this tumultuous time to carry on any longer or more destructively than it must. But the isolation and time for contemplation that have accompanied this pandemic have inevitably seeped into music: how it’s created, how it’s shared, how it’s performed, and, yes, even its substance. Might we look back at the growing body of quarantine content in the years to come and acknowledge that ...
PJ Harvey Unearths Dry Demos Album: Stream
As part of an extensive archival campaign, PJ Harvey is reissuing her entire discography on vinyl. Notably, these re-releases are also being paired with demos culled from the original album sessions. First to be spotlighted in this series is, of course, her 1992 breakthrough debut album, Dry. Its corresponding collection of demos is simply titled Dry-Demos and consists of 11 early recordings, each raw and captivating in their own way. Whether you’ve been a longtime fan or have just recently discovered her magic, it’s a piece of Harvey history worth savoring (or at the very least, adding to your streaming queue). This release marks the first time Dry-Demos has ever received a standalone release. In addition to digital formats, it’s available in CD and vinyl form and comes packaged...
The Flaming Lips Imagine “You n Me Sellin’ Weed” on New Song: Stream
The Flaming Lips are back with a new song called “You n Me Sellin’ Weed” from American Head, their upcoming 21st album. Better yet, it comes with a sun-soaked music video to brighten up your quarantine. This is the fourth single we’ve heard from American Head so far, following “Dinosaurs On The Mountain”, “Flowers Of Neptune 6”, and “My Religion Is You”. While this new track reads like it will be a giddy uptempo number about the magic of selling drugs with your partner, it begins like the opposite. Over some hazy guitar strums and mellow percussion, Wayne Coyne sings with a tinge of nostalgia about a relationship — that is, until the tempo picks up, sound effect pop in the background, and the psychedelia starts to trickle in. As with the previously released songs from the album, “You n Me ...
