God willing, it’ll soon be warm enough to start going outside for lengthy periods of time here in Chicago. I’m talking about porch parties, backyard barbecues, and block ragers. We even have a roof deck here at work perfect for sunny lunches and Friday night flip cup. But sometimes it’s hard to get decent sound…
In Hear This, A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, in honor of our Best Films Of The Decade So Far list, we’re talking about songs from some of the best records of the decade so far.
In Hear This, A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, in honor of our Best Films Of The Decade So Far list, we’re talking about songs from some of the best records of the decade so far.
In Hear This, A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, in honor of our Best Films Of The Decade So Far list, we’re talking about songs from some of the best records of the decade so far.
In Hear This, A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, in honor of our Best Films Of The Decade So Far list, we’re talking about songs from some of the best records of the decade so far.
Matt And Kim have never shown much interest in expanding beyond the shamelessly simple, high-energy party-playlist anthems that they’ve faithfully churned out for nearly a decade now—their sole, unwavering goal has been to pump up the crowd, not prove anything to the critics. Through the years, however, each batch of…
The musical evolution of Chaz Bundick, a.k.a. Toro Y Moi, is characterized by such dramatic stylistic leaps of faith over such a short period of time that it’s as though he’s executing a progression plotted out years ago. That kind of calculation is prudent for an artist to emerge from a sub-genre as limiting as…
The words “John Darnielle” and “professional wrestling” wouldn’t seem like a natural pairing, but given that The Mountain Goats’ frontman has recorded concept albums about meth addicts, domestic violence, group homes, and Bible verses, it probably shouldn’t surprise anyone that he’d get around to applying his…
Over the course of three releases, certain expectations about Waxahatchee’s sound have been established, whether bandleader Katie Crutchfield likes it or not. It’s those preconceptions—that her standards are haunting acoustic guitar ballads and bouncy pop songs—that make the blast of noise that opens Ivy Tripp so…
In Hear This, A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, in honor of our upcoming Best Films Of The Decade So Far list, we’re talking about songs from some of the best records of the decade so far.
Throughout music history there are numerous tales of bands that teetered on the verge of separation until a sudden burst of success made the grueling tours, creative disagreements, and personality clashes seem worth it all. Less frequent—but more fascinating—are cases like the following 11 bands, which split soon…
Though we’re only halfway through the ’10s, the ’00s can occasionally seem like a long time ago. (Remember when barely anyone had cell phones? Jesus.) Still, five years is enough time to get some critical distance from a decade, and so 2015 seems like the perfect time to produce this, The A.V. Club’s A.V. To Z list of…
Noel Gallagher has released a new album, Chasing Yesterday, which means there’s a media onslaught of witty commentary courtesy of the sometime songwriting force behind Oasis. The interviews are to promote Chasing Yesterday, but these days, the elder Gallagher garners more interest for his banter than his music. This…
In Hear This, A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, in honor of the return of Mad Men on April 5 for its final seven episodes, we’re looking at some of the show’s most important song selections.
Formed in Tacoma in the early ’60s, before rock really got weird, The Sonics secured a place in history with “The Witch,” “Psycho,” and “Strychnine”: an unholy trinity of unhinged stompers credited with spawning punk, metal, and grunge. All three feature a muddy guitar-and-sax attack and lyrics that might read like…
At the end of Carrie & Lowell’s best song—when the gorgeous, gutting “John My Beloved” is already over, really—Sufjan Stevens draws in a sharp breath. It’s a moment he didn’t need to leave in, but it speaks to the mood of his brilliant, stripped-bare seventh album: It sounds almost like the singer is overwhelmed by…
It’s easy to be put off by the punctuation in an Efrim Menuck release. Exclamation points abound, haphazardly strewn throughout his work in both Godspeed You! Black Emperor and prolific side project Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra (who else would write a song called “Sisters! Brothers! Small Boats Of Fire Are…
The first words on Death Cab For Cutie’s new album Kintsugi are “I don’t know where to begin.” Despite ever-expanding production budgets, additional instrumentation, and the sonic explorations that come with a maturing band, the voice and lyrics of singer Ben Gibbard have always kept a personal, grounded intimacy to…
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