Rising songwriter Johanna Samuels has joined the roster of Mama Bird Recording Co., a label known for like-minded folk acts such as Damien Jurado, Vetiver, and Haley Heynderickx. To coincide with the signing announcement, the Los Angeles native is sharing a new single dubbed “High Tide for One”. While 2019 offerings like “Rush of Wheels” and “Supposed to Say” were more of the moody folk variety à la boygenius or Sharon Van Etten, today’s track finds Samuels experimenting with more left-field styles. There’s hints of whimsy in her curling guitars, and following Samuels’ lilting melodies is like taking a leisurely drive across rolling hills. The lyrical focus of “High Tide for One” isn’t as lighthearted, though. According to Samuels, the song was penned in response to watching Dr. Blasey For...
Kevin Morby has unveiled a tribute to mothers, daughters, and postal workers with the new song “US Mail”. In keeping with this theme, he’s also shared a P.O. Box where you can write him a letter. This loosie was originally intended for Morby’s October release Sundowner, which is perhaps the best album of his career. But after the studio went into lockdown, Morby decided to record the song remotely with producer Brad Cook. The lyrics take the form of an exchange of post cards between a mother in rehab and her lonely daughter. “Mama won’t you write me a letter?” he sings. “Stick it in the US Mail/ And mama I do hope you feel better/ For you, I will not fail.” In a statement, which he fittingly styled in the form of a letter, Morby explained his fascination with the postal service and ho...
Hark! is the forthcoming holiday album from Andrew Bird, due out next week. An expansion of his 2019 EP of the same name, the project features covers of John Prine and John Cale, as well as original numbers like today’s newly unveiled “Christmas in April”. As you may have guessed by its title, this seasonal offering was inspired by and written during quarantine. On it, the indie troubadour wonders what the holidays will look like amidst the coronavirus pandemic. “When will we know if we can meet under the mistletoe?” Birds asks with a sobering melancholy in his voice, echoing our very same anxieties and fears as the global health crisis stretches into fall and winter. (Remember when we thought it would only last through spring?) Editors’ Picks In a statement, Bird further explained h...
Consequence of Sound and The Modern School of Film are proud to announce Assembly is back for a second season. On November 10th, host Robert Milazzo’s documentary podcast series will go behind the scenes with comic David Cross. Recorded in 2019, Milazzo follows Cross as he shapes his new stand-up act through a set of intimate gigs in Brooklyn, New York. Along the way, long-time collaborators, friends, and family all lend their perspectives on Cross’ life and work. No kidding. Milazzo has assembled one star-studded supporting cast. Along for the ride are Amber Tamblyn, Bob Odenkirk, H. Jon Benjamin, Janeane Garofalo, Patton Oswalt, Sarah Silverman, Sam Seder, and Julian Casablancas of The Strokes. “David was part of just about every great memory of comedy I have,” Garofalo says. “Assembly ...
Harry Styles is still actively promoting sophomore album Fine Line almost a year later, but we’re not mad about it — especially when it involves gorgeous music videos like the one for “Golden”. Released today, the clip sees the former One Direction star spending the day along Italy’s breathtaking Amalfi Coast. Styles can be seen jogging through old picturesque tunnels and pathways; taking a dip in crisp blue waters; cruising down winding roads in a fancy car; and sunbathing on dramatic cliffs. It’s basically everything we quarantined folks could ever dream of and so much more. Let us all live vicariously through Styles in the video below, which was directed by filmmakers Ben and Gabe Turner, known for their work with One Direction and Demi Lovato. Editors’ Picks Pandemic has been mor...
Oneohtrix Point Never (photo by David Brandon Geeting) and The Weeknd (photo by Natalie Somekh) The latest album from Daniel Lopatin’s Oneohtrix Point Never project is set to drop this Friday — just in time for Halloween. Entitled Magic Oneohtrix Point Never, the album was first teased with the three-song “Drive Time Suite”, which included the Caroline Polachek-featuring track “Long Road Home”. Today, OPN has unveiled another block of songs, the “Midday Suite”, which boasts another major guest collaborator in The Weeknd. The five individual tracks that make up “Midday Suite” are entitled “Cross Talk II”, “I Don’t Love Me Anymore”, “Bow Ecco”, “The Whether Channel”, and “No Nightmares”. It’s on that latter song, a dreamy power ballad fit for an ’80s cinematic romance, where The Weeknd provi...
Xenia Rubinos has returned with a new song called “Who Shot Ya?”. Following last year’s singles “Diosa” and “Bugeisha”, and this past April’s collaboration with Helado Negro, “Who Shot Ya?” serves as only Rubinos’ third release since dropping her Black Terry Cat album back in 2016. “Who Shot Ya?” includes stark yet glistening production, fluttering Auto-tune, and a choppy chorus that features the phrase “Get it”, delivered like a righteous demand. Our former CoSign definitely has her own unique style, but artists like FKA twigs and Empress Of are reasonable reference points for her artful yet enveloping breed of experimental R&B. Lyrically, the new single touches on a number of racial justice topics that have dominated the discourse throughout 2020 — from police brutality and our ...
After playing the titular villain in X-Men: Apocalypse, it looks like Oscar Isaac may be taking on another headlining role in a Marvel project — only this time as a hero. Variety reports the actor is in talks to star in the Moon Knight series coming to Disney+. Should Isaac officially sign on for Moon Knight, he’d play Marc Spector, a rich ex-mercenary who devotes himself to the Egyptian moon god Khonshu in order to save his life. As Knonshu’s avatar Moon Knight, he viciously fights crime with weapons funded by his massive wealth, often drawing comparisons to Batman in that sense. However, Moon Knight isn’t Spector’s only alternate identity, as he creates the personas of millionaire Steven Grant and cab driver Jake Lockley to further aid in his heroics. Later incarnations of the character ...
Kyle Meredith With… Elliot Easton Listen via Apple Podcasts | Spotify | Google Play | Stitcher | Radio Public | RSS The Cars guitarist Elliot Easton speaks with Kyle Meredith about his new album with The Empty Hearts, the supergroup that also features Blondie’s Clem Burke and The Romantics’ Wally Palmar. Easton discusses the influence of ’60s music, working with Ringo Starr, and how the New Wave generation were naturally nostalgic even as they blazed a futuristic sound. He also celebrates the 40th anniversary of The Cars’ Panorama and shares the band’s plans for another record prior to the death of Ric Ocasek. Kyle Meredith With… is an interview series in which WFPK’s Kyle Meredith speaks to a wide breadth of musicians. Ever...
The late and great Selena Quintanilla will soon conquer Netflix. On Monday evening, the streaming giant dropped the first trailer for Selena: The Series, its highly anticipated biographical drama that premieres on December 4th. Watch below. Starring Christian Serratos (The Walking Dead, The Twilight Saga) in the titular role, the forthcoming series captures the life and upbringing of the iconic Latin artist, chronicling the singer’s rise to fame from a young age. In addition to Serratos, the series stars Ricardo Chavira as her father Abraham, Gabriel Chavarria as her brother A.B., Noemi Gonzalez as her sister Suzette, Seidy Lopez as her mother Marcella, and Madison Taylor Baez as a young Selena. As previously reported, the scripted series was developed alongside the Quintanilla family and ...
There’s a rising star in leftist politics, and we don’t mean the California senator or the representative from the Bronx. No, it’s the talent booker for the Wisconsin Democratic Party, who has already put together cast reunions for Veep, Happy Days, The Princess Bride, and Parks and Recreation. Now, the donkeys in the Dairy State have announced a Halloween night livestream featuring music and actors from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. Based on the 1973 musical The Rocky Horror Show, the RHPS film arrived in 1975 as an instant cult-classic. The gender-bending comedy took on new life after theaters in Los Angeles and San Francisco arranged midnight screenings with so-called “shadow casts” — groups of live performers who acted out the movie and encouraged audience participation. Wit...