Pity the punk who grows up but doesn’t grow accustomed to mortality. Not in a “rage, rage against the dying of the light” kind of way, but more the “sitting in the all-ages hardcore show basement, wondering why you still feel the same” mentality. Billie Joe Armstrong’s concerns are still largely the same as those…

In the family tree of music, Midnight Room, Greta Morgan’s second record under the moniker Springtime Carnivore, directly descends from the retro-alt-country of Neko Case & Her Boyfriends. More recently in the ancestral bloodline would be the retro West Coast rock of Jenny Lewis’ Acid Tongue. As on those foregoing…

Joyce Manor broke out on the strength of a blisteringly catchy debut album that had basically crossed enemy lines. The band was held in high regard both by fresh-faced, college-age music fans flocking to the band’s emotionally ragged lyrics as well as by the bearded, beer-swilling Peter Pans whose annual holiday…

This week’s question comes from reader Rob Curtin:

For years, it seemed like time would never catch up with NOFX. The legendary L.A. outfit has always seemed to take joy in living the life of a band that’s lucky enough to play punk rock for a living. That includes the excesses and indulgences that come with it. Early songs like “Drugs Are Good” and “You Drink, You…

In Hear This, The A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, we’re picking songs that saw an artist bounce back after releasing a dud of a record.

Liz Phair’s triumph and curse is that she made a classic album. Her first record, 1993’s Exile In Guyville, was a galvanizing response album to The Rolling Stones’ Exile On Main Street that continues to stand perfectly on its own today. It’s smart, explicit, spare, and unsparing—an indie rock classic. Then she had the…

In Hear This, The A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, we’re picking songs that saw an artist bounce back after releasing a dud of a record.

In Hear This, The A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, we’re picking songs that saw an artist bounce back after releasing a dud of a record.

There’s no shortage of rappers who incorporate food into their work. Most notably, onetime chef Action Bronson sprinkles his tracks with references to fine dining, even spinning those interests into a Viceland TV show called Fuck, That’s Delicious. But there’s no other rapper who uses food as a springboard for…

Permanent Records is an ongoing closer look at the records that matter most.

In Hear This, The A.V. Club writers sing the praises of songs they know well. This week, we’re picking songs that saw an artist bounce back after releasing a dud of a record.

Every Friday, dozens of new records are released into the wild. Some make big splashes, and others sink almost immediately. For most music consumers, it’s almost too much information, and save for those precious few who spend their hours glued to review sites and release calendars, it’s hard to know what’s coming out…

Ten years ago, Justin Vernon wasn’t succeeding. Just before he made his first album as Bon Iver, For Emma, Forever Ago, he experienced the loss of multiple things—a band and a relationship among them, so the story goes—so he burrowed, regrouped, worked, and wrote songs, proving to himself that he was still whole…

Let’s start here: The Pixies sound happy. Head Carrier is decidedly upbeat, with rousing choruses, bright harmonies, and a touch of earnest longing. Credit newly minted full-timer Paz Lenchantin: “She’s awesome,” enthuses guitarist Joey Santiago in the album’s press materials. “Now, everything is just so light, we’ve…

In Under The Influence, The A.V. Club asks a musician to pair three of their songs with a non-musical influence.

When Anamanaguchi rolled through Chicago recently The A.V. Club asked the band if it’d be up for something a little out of the ordinary. After playing at the Chicago Theatre the band took the seats out of the sprinter van it was touring in and set up its stage show inside. They then drove through the streets of…

When Bruce Springsteen was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 1999, he reigned as one of the most influential and successful musicians ever. With a roster of enormous and lasting hits under his belt, Springsteen could have retired or died in the late ’80s and still gone down in the annals of rock ’n’ roll…

At the Chicago edition of this year’s Riot Fest The A.V. Club put together a questionnaire for bands to answer. They were four open-ended questions followed by a round of word association, and then a shot of Chicago’s favorite beverage, Malort. We’ll be releasing a video each day with answers—and grimacing faces— from…

At the Chicago edition of this year’s Riot Fest The A.V. Club put together a questionnaire for bands to answer. They were four open-ended questions followed by a round of word association, and then a shot of Chicago’s favorite beverage, Malort. We’ll be releasing a video each day with answers—and grimacing faces— from…