music
Conway the Machine Performs Tiny Desk (Home) Concert from Restaurant Booth: Watch
As Conway the Machine demonstrates on his new NPR Tiny Desk (Home) Concert, he’s equally comfortable posting up in the recording booth as he is in the corner booth of a friendly chicken and waffles joint. On location at Sweet Chick in Queens, New York, the Machine powered through a five-track set that drew heavily on his excellent new album From King to a God. He also received tableside service, gratefully accepting a plate of the house special and a side of mac and cheese. He kicked things off with two FKTG cuts, “Lemon” and “Front Lines”. Before this latter rendition, he explained how the killing of George Floyd impacted him, saying, “I got inspired to do this record kinda like… well, it didn’t start with the George Floyd killing, it’s been going on. But that one in particular, it k...
Beyond the Boys’ Club: Orianthi
Beyond the Boys’ Club is a monthly column from journalist and radio host Anne Erickson, focusing on women in the heavy music genres, as they offer their perspectives on the music industry and discuss their personal experiences. This month’s piece features an interview with acclaimed guitarist Orianthi. Australian guitarist, singer, and songwriter Orianthi has performed with some of the biggest acts in the world, from Michael Jackson to Alice Cooper. Back in 2009, Orianthi was knee-deep into rehearsals for Michael Jackson’s “This Is It” tour, but sadly, Jackson passed away before the tour could come to fruition. That same year, she scored a solo hit with “According to You”, and she went on to join Alice Cooper’s band for two world tours. Now, Orianthi keeps busy with her own solo music and ...
H.E.R. Is First Black Female Artist to Launch Fender Signature Guitar
Two-time Grammy-winner H.E.R. is the first Black female artist to launch a Fender Signature Guitar in the company’s 74-year history. H.E.R. first revealed the new axe in her performance Sunday at the 2020 Primetime Emmy Awards. During the “In Memorium” segment, she covered Prince’s “Nothing Compares 2 U”, ripping through a flawless guitar solo in the process. Now, that same model can be yours for $1,099. The H.E.R. signature Stratocaster comes with an alder body that’s finished with a new iridescent color, which Fender is calling Chrome Glow. It features a modern oval “C”-neck shape, which should be comfortable for most hand sizes, as well as Fender’s Vintage Noiseless pickups that promise a clean, well-defined tone. The custom neck plate is engraved with H.E.R.’s artwork. In a statement, ...
Cardi B is Being Sued for Calling MAGA Supporters “Racist”
Last week, Cardi B filed for divorce from her husband Offset. Now, the rap superstar has a different type of legal issue on her hands: she’s facing a lawsuit for defamation. According to court documents obtained by TMZ, Cardi, her sister Hennessy Carolina, and Carolina’s girlfriend, Michelle Diaz, are being sued for labeling a group of MAGA supporters as “racist”. It all started over Labor Day weekend, when Cardi and her crew were celebrating on Long Island’s Smith Point Beach. They’d set up not far from the lawsuit’s three plaintiffs, one of whom was proudly wearing a MAGA hat that afternoon. According to the plaintiffs’ lawyer (via NBC New York), Carolina approached them and began “raging, spitting, insulting, assaulting, defaming and threatening them, all the while videotaping them...
Rolling Stone Updated Its Top 500 Albums of All Time List So It’s No Longer Just White Dudes
Rolling Stone has published a new version of its Top 500 Albums of All-Time, and the biggest takeaway is that it’s no longer dominated by white dudes who played rock music. Compare the top 50 selections of today vs. the one published two decades ago. The 2003 list (which was slightly updated in 2012) had just three albums by female musicians among its top 50, and the first entry — Joni Mitchell’s Blue — didn’t appear until No. 30. Meanwhile, five Beatles albums appeared in the top 14. The 2003 list counted just 12 albums by people of color and zero from women of color. There was also only one hip-hop album among the entire top 50 — Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back — which ranked at No. 48. The updated 2020 is much more diverse. Marvin Gaye’s What’s Goi...
IDLES’ Ultra Mono Offers Rallying Cries for a Burning World: Review
The Lowdown: In a year that’s seen the world burn physically, politically, and epidemiologically, getting into a debate about whether or not a rock band is phony feels as nostalgic as it does futile. However, this is an IDLES review, so that’s exactly what we’re going to do (at least for a minute). After the twin triumphs of 2017’s Brutalism and 2018’s Joy as an Act of Resistance vaulted the Bristol five-piece into the upper echelon of the British music world, the backlash arrived with bite that seemed to go beyond the music. Pick any IDLES profile from this album cycle, and you’ll inevitably see references to the recent charges and epithets leveled by fellow artists like Sleaford Mods (“their take on [political music] is cliched, patronising, insulting and mediocre”) and Fat White Family ...
Josh Klinghoffer’s Pluralone Announces New Album, Shares “The Night Won’t Scare Me”: Stream
Former Red Hot Chili Peppers guitarist Josh Klinghoffer has announced a new solo album. Credited to his Pluralone moniker, it’s called I Don’t Feel Well and due out October 16th. The forthcoming effort serves as the follow-up to his 2019 debut album, To Be One with You, but is his first since being let go by the Peppers earlier this year. According to a statement, the 10-track effort was completed during the pandemic, hence the title’s rather dismal and uncertain tone. “This is a wild time,” Klinghoffer said of the LP. “This album was made during and amongst some very new experiences. I hope it captures some of how it felt during this period. I’ll feel better when this is behind us. As an early look at I Don’t Feel Well, stream reflective lead single “The Night Won’t Scare M...
Anthrax Announce “Stop Spreading the Disease” Hand Sanitizer
Anthrax’s 1985 sophomore album, Spreading the Disease, turns 35 on October 30th, but the band is celebrating the anniversary by encouraging the opposite: The thrash legends have announced their own “Stop Spreading the Disease” hand sanitizer. Yes, as revealed by drummer Charlie Benante in an Instagram post (below), Anthrax now have their own line of hand sanitizer. Without the revenue from touring — guitarist Scott Ian thinks he’ll be out of a job as a touring musican until 2022 — metal bands have improvised new ways to shift merch and stay connected with fans. What’s more practical during a pandemic than branded hand sanitizer? Anthrax are here to make the otherwise mundane act of squirting your hands with ethyl alcohol a lot cooler. Besides, the band recently released its own bourbon whi...
R.I.P. Roy Head, 1960s Rocker Famous for “Treat Her Right” Dead at 79
Roy Head, the 1960s rocker best known for the smash hit “Treat Her Right”, has died at 79. According to the Montgomery County Police Recorder, the cause was heart attack “Treat Her Right” was a sensation upon its release in 1965, reaching number two on the Billboard Hot 100, while boasting sales that would have made it number one at just about any other time — except that The Beatles had recently released “Yesterday”. The song has been a pop culture mainstay ever since, appearing over the opening credits of Quentin Tarantino’s Once Upon a Time in Hollywood and popping up in the 1991 film The Commitments. Head was born in Three Rivers, TX, on January 9th, 1941. His father was a sharecropper, and his love of music came from listening to Black sharecroppers singing in the field...
SXSW 2021 Going Digital Due to the Ongoing Pandemic
Due to the ongoing health crisis, South by Southwest is going digital in 2021. Today, the Austin music, film, and interactive festival announced plans for SXSW Online, a self-proclaimed “digital experience” that’s set to go down from March 16th through the 20th. Like the festival’s in-person iteration, SXSW Online will feature conferences, keynotes, screenings, showcases, networking, and other exhibitions. According to a statement, the event’s Film and Conference portions will be constructed using an application process. Submissions open up on October 6th using SXSW’s PanelPicker platform. Next year’s SXSW Music segment seems like it will go down a little differently, however, serving as something of a make-up for the performers affected by the festival’s cancellation this past March....
Baroness Announce Stunning Picture-Disc Vinyl Editions of Red, Blue, and Yellow & Green
Baroness are releasing picture-disc vinyl editions of their first three full-length LPs, Red Album, Blue Record, and the double album Yellow & Green. They’re currently available for pre-order direct from the band for $29.99 each and arrive October 24th. It marks the first time the albums have seen a picture-disc pressing, having been released on a variety of color variants over the years. Each LP brings frontman John Dyer Baizley’s glorious cover art to wax — the first side of each emblazoned with the album artwork and the reverse side adorned with alternative patterns from the original sleeve designs. Each picture-disc edition is housed in a gatefold sleeve and limited to 4,500 copies. Baroness fans can attest to the collectivity of the band’s many vinyl color variants, so these might...
The Glam Grief In Sad13’s Haunted Painting
By Caitlin Wolper Sadie Dupuis and a fellow poet were looking for ghosts. Rooming at the same supposedly haunted hotel, they took photos and stayed up until 4 a.m., but found nothing. It wasn’t until the next day that Dupuis — a vocalist and guitarist for Speedy Ortiz, who performs solo as Sad13 — came across a presence in Seattle’s Frye Art Museum. She was immediately obsessed with it. It was a portrait of the dancer Saharet by Franz von Stuck. Dressed in green, a red flower in her hair, Saharet appears benign at first. But after a moment, you notice the dark circles under her eyes — a stark contrast to her very red lips and intensely pale skin. The utter weariness of those circles adds a hyperrealistic depth, a whisper of sorts: She’s seen something. This portrait primarily inspired Dupu...
