Alternative Rock
Every R.E.M. Album Ranked From Worst to Best
This definitive ranking of R.E.M.’s discography first appeared in 2017, several years after the band called it quits. It will remain not only to commemorate all the great music R.E.M. has given us over the years but also to burn like a candle — and keep vigil — just in case we one day get to add to it. Either way, we’ll keep going back to Rockville until it truly is the end of the world. It’s been over 40 years since R.E.M. played their first show, a friend’s birthday party in an abandoned church in Athens, Georgia, on April 5th, 1980. It’s hard to believe that a band with a catalog we kept holstered, cocked, and ready throughout our adolescences have turned such an advanced age. (We also must acknowledge that we’ve been drifting through a slightly emptier world for some time now without A...
10 Rock Albums IDLES Thinks Every Fan Should Own
Crate Digging is a recurring feature in which we take a deep dive into a genre and turn up several albums all music fans should know about. In this edition, IDLES guitarist Mark Bowen shares his exclusive picks. 2022 was as good of a year for IDLES as it could have been. After their stunning 2021 album Crawler found them touring the world with a loaded schedule, they played Coachella, Glastonbury, toured the US twice, and, most recently, nabbed a Grammy nomination for Best Rock Album. Since their breakthrough in 2018 with Joy as an Act of Resistance, IDLES have been a leader among their post-punk contemporaries, and their dominance both in their native England and beyond is a testament to their position as one of the biggest rock bands of the last decade. Guitarist Mark Bowen is ...
The Smile’s NPR Tiny Desk Concert Is the Prettiest Set You’ve Heard All Year: Watch
The Smile found themselves, both literally and figuratively, playing a gorgeous Tiny Desk Concert for NPR. According to producer Bob Boilen, Thom Yorke, Jonny Greenwood, and Tom Skinner “arrived early, along with saxophonist Robert Stillman, to test out several tunes and figure out just what made sense behind my desk — minus the volume and effects that shape the album’s sonic landscape. For roughly 90 minutes, the Tiny Desk crew was treated to a casual rehearsal, witnessing the band’s creative companionship work itself out, settling on four songs.” Not all made the final broadcast, with one of the songs falling victim to the band’s relentless perfectionism. “For keen eyes, you’ll see Thom Yorke being handed a guitar for the second tune but all of a sudden he’s playing bass while ...
Jeremiah Green, Modest Mouse Drummer, Dead at 45
Modest Mouse co-founding member and drummer Jeremiah Green has died at the age of 45 following a brief battle with cancer. The band’s frontman Isaac Brock announced Green’s passing in a Facebook message posted shortly before midnight on New Year’s Eve. “I don’t know a way to ease into this: Today we lost our dear friend Jeremiah. He laid down to rest and simply faded out. I’d like to say a bunch of pretty words right now, but it just isn’t the time. These will come later, and from many people. Please appreciate all the love you give, get, have given, and will get. Above all, Jeremiah was about love.” Just five days ago, Green’s mother, Carol Namatame, went public with her son’s battle with stage four cancer and asked fans to send “healing vibes.” In a subsequent statement, Brock said Green...
David Byrne and Miley Cyrus Perform “Let’s Dance”: Watch
David Byrne rang in the New Year by teaming up with Miley Cyrus for a two-song collaborative performance featuring renditions of David Bowie’s “Let’s Dance” and his own “Everybody’s Coming to My House.” Additionally, Byrne backed Sia for her performance of “Unstoppable.” Watch the replay below. The duet came as part of Cyrus’ New Year’s Eve TV special which she co-hosted with her godmother, Dolly Parton. Over the course of the two-hour telecast, Cyrus also performed with Sia, Paris Hilton, Fletcher, and Swae Lee. She also announced the impending release of a new single called “Flowers,” due out on January 13th. Last month, Byrne unwrapped a previously unreleased holiday song called “Fat Man’s Comin.’” Meanwhile, his contribution to the film Everything Everywhere All at Once is on the...
Nandi Bushell Covers Bloc Party’s “Helicopter”: Watch
Nandi Bushell is putting a bow on 2022 with a thunderous new drum cover of Bloc Party’s “Helicopter.” “Heading into 2023 with some #BIG #ENERGY!!!” Nandi wrote in a tweet captioning the video. Watch it below. By the look of it, 2023 is shaping up to be another big year for the 12-year-old musical prodigy and former Rookie of the Year recipient. After unveiling her debut solo single “The Shadows” back in September, Bushell is planning to drop an EP in 2023. Advertisement In the meantime, you can revisit some of her other recent rock covers, including Foo Fighters’ “Everlong” and Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit” with Shane Hawkins; Rage Agains the Machine’s “Killing in the Name” with her brother Thomas; and Eminem’s “Rap God.” Heading into 2023 with some #BIG #ENERGY!!! Time for a #PARTY!...
Every Album by The Replacements Ranked From Worst to Best
This feature originally ran in August 2013, but we’re dusting it off in celebration of Paul Westerberg’s birthday on December 31st. Welcome to Dissected, where we disassemble a band’s catalog, a director’s filmography, or some other critical pop-culture collection in the abstract. It’s exact science by way of a few beers. This time, we sort through the best and worst of everyone’s favorite Trouble Boys. “Whose side are you on?” That’s the age-old question Paul Westerberg asks on “Left of the Dial” off of Tim. While he wasn’t exactly talking to his fans, he just as well could have been. At the time, the Minneapolis bard was already one foot in the door of another new era for The Replacements, a polarizing chapter that would see the band wave goodbye to their blitzkrieg of boozy basement pun...
Foo Fighters’ 10 Best Covers
Covers have always been an integral part of the Foo Fighters lore. From Dave Grohl’s early demo doodling to extended live medleys to the late Taylor Hawkins’ fan-favorite side project Chevy Metal, the Foo’s love to pay homage to their influences — and have a damn good time while doing it too. Put simply, Foo Fighters just love music, and they can’t help but indulge in the sugary goodness of a cover. It’s as if there’s a cosmic pull willing them to perform the music they love but didn’t write. Like their multiple documentaries on the music-making process and their B-movie slasher flick, the band looks to revel in the magic and pure fun of music. Of course, a pillar of this rock-as-gospel mentality was the band’s celebrated long-time drummer Taylor Hawkins. While his aforementioned Chev...
Morrissey Announces Label Split, Says Miley Cyrus Wants Off His New Album
Morrissey spent this past Christmas weekend as the bearer of bad news about his career. Not only did the ex-Smiths singer reveal he has split from his record label, but he also claimed Miley Cyrus wants to be taken off his “hidden” album Bonfire of Teenagers. Both announcements were made via Morrissey’s official website. On December 23rd, a message was posted under the title “Roll On 2023” which read, “Morrissey has voluntarily parted company with Maverick/Quest management. Morrissey has also voluntarily withdrawn from any association with Capitol Records (Los Angeles).” One day later, Morrissey shared another note with the heading “Miley Is a Punk Rocker” and an image of the two artists in the studio. “Miley Cyrus now wants to be taken off the song ‘I Am Veronica’ for which...
Modest Mouse Drummer Jeremiah Green Battling Cancer
Modest Mouse drummer Jeremiah Green is battling stage four cancer. In a Christmas post to Facebook, Green’s mother, Carol Namatame, asked fans to send “healing vibes for [Green] who is battling stage 4 cancer. He’s is so strong and so brave and hanging in there!” In a separate Facebook post, veteran radio DJ Marco Collins said Green is currently undergoing chemotherapy treatment. “Despite having a stage 4 diagnosis, his prognosis is good!” Collins added. “Also his oncologist is a big MM fan (so he’s got that in his corner!)” Related Video Due to the diagnosis, Green was absent from Modest Mouse’s recent stretch of tour dates celebrating the 25th anniversary of their landmark album, The Lonesome Crowded West. Advertisement Green co-founded Modest Mouse alongside frontman Isaac Brock and bas...
Dave Grohl and Friends Cover Randy Newman’s “I Love LA”: Watch
Winter, that occasionally charming burden, is not shared equally, as Dave Grohl and Greg Kurstin reminded us on the eighth and final night of Hanukkah with their cover of Randy Newman’s “I Love LA.” Like previous covers in Season 3 of the Hanukkah Series, “I Love LA” was recorded live at Los Angeles’ Largo at the Coronet on December 5th. At the time they couldn’t have known that the midwest and northeast would be blitzed with snow storms at the end of the month. But right now, if you call one of those area home, it’s hard not take personally lyrics such as, “Hate New York City/ It’s cold and it’s damp,” and “Let’s leave Chicago to the Eskimos.” Dave, Greg, we hope you get sunburn. A note accompanying the cover’s release reads, “Merry Christmukkah! Our nondenominational gift ...
Dave Grohl and Jack Black Cover Rush’s “The Spirit of Radio”: Watch
Another night of Hanukkah has passed, which means Dave Grohl has gifted us with another performance in his annual Hanukkah Sessions: This time, he’s tapped Jack Black for a cover of “The Spirit of Radio” by Rush. As with all the performances throughout the week, it was taped in front of a live audience in Los Angeles at Largo at the Coronet. Watch it below. In a note accompanying the cover’s release, Grohl wrote, “Geddy Lee’s mother was so proud of her son that she put Rush posters up all over their family store and gave away Rush albums to kids who didn’t have money to buy them. In tribute to that proud Jewish mother, we give you — free of charge— ‘The Spirit Of Radio’ featuring Jack Black!” The 2022 iteration of Grohl’s and Greg Kurstin’s Hanukkah Sessions has also featured covers of&nbs...
