Music Reviews

Bonnie Prince Billy Finds a Comfortable Home

Bonnie Prince Billy’s The Purple Bird reaches its highest points when Will Oldham finds the joy in life, which feels like its own form of resistance.

Rose City Band Deliver a Collection of Jam-Friendly Tunes

The Greyboy Allstars Drop a ‘Grab Bag’ of Goodies

Brueder Selke and Midori Hirano Unite for Unique and Striking LP

Boom.Diwan Use Jazz for Kuwaiti Pearl Diving Music

Lilly Hiatt Puts Love in Motion on ‘Forever’

Brother Elsey Capture the Scary Present in Their Debut LP

Jazz Singer Michael Mayo Astounds With a Stunning Voice

Délirant Produce Monsters During the Sleep of Reason (premiere)

Music Features

Myanmar Hardcore Rebels Cacerolazo Amp Up the Volume for Revolution

Born out of the chaos of post-coup Myanmar, Burmese punk collective Cacerolazo’s debut LP rails against the brute forces of injustice and dictatorship.

Dead Pioneers Are Punk Rock’s New Conscience

When “Hocus Pocus” Guitar God Jan Akkerman Went Kind of Blue

30 Years of Alison Krauss’ Country Music Breakthrough

“Record in Iceland” and the Push for Global Relevance

Bad Bunny Creates an Astonishing (Inter)cultural Moment

James Brown and Prince Were Uptight As Funk

Film

Silent Film ‘The Bat’ Begat Comics Dark Superhero Batman

Murder, secret rooms, and a man in a bat suit are among the shenanigans in silent film The Bat, a seminal work that begat comics dark superhero Batman.

Dark Comedy ‘Patriot’ Illuminates Neoliberalism’s Dark Reality

B-Movie ‘Invasion of the Bee Girls’ Pollinates a Sexual Epidemic

There Are No Accidents on David Lynch’s ‘Mulholland Drive’

MoMA’s To Save and Project Film Restoration Fest Ranges from Classics to Avant-Garde

It Ain’t Easy Being Green in Wicked’s Hollywood

MoMA’s Film Restoration Fest To Save and Project Eyes Bad Behavior

Television

Dark Comedy ‘Patriot’ Illuminates Neoliberalism’s Dark Reality

The dark comedy Patriot illuminates how neoliberalism makes choices for us disguisedly, using entrepreneurial agency as a fig leaf to obscure manipulation.

What If Donald Trump’s Cabinet Picks Really Were Looney Tunes?

‘Slow Horses: Season Four’ Subverts the Spy Genre

When the 1950s Met the 1960s via LSD TV

Rom-Communism: ‘Ted Lasso’ and the Future of the Romantic Comedy

Books

The Passion of Garth Brooks

Stephen Deusner’s entry in the 33 1/3 series about the wreckage of Garth Brooks’ ‘The Life of Chris Gains project makes for a mightily entertaining read.

Cataloging Punk Permutations

Women in 1990s Rock Music Are Far from Dead

Roger Célestin’s ‘The Delicate Beast’ Will Devour You

John Patrick Higgins’ ‘Fine’ Hangs on in Quiet Desperation

Games

‘Stimulation Clicker’ Is Nauseating by Design

I have never been more depressed playing a game than with Stimulation Clicker. This game is nauseatingly illuminating by design.

Take Video Games and Our Perilous Era Seriously

The 24 Best Video Games of 2024

Phoenix Springs’ Journey to Nowhere Is Worth It

‘Silent Hill 2 Remake’ Is a Dark Gem in the Horror Game Renaissance

Lists

MetalMatters: The Best Metal Albums of December 2024

In December’s best metal, Blackdeath explore off-kilter black metal, Misanthropy open gateways in death metal, and An Axis of Perdition make a return.

15 Awe-inspiring Rock Guitar Solos You Might Not Know

The 30 Best Polish Albums of 2024

What If Donald Trump’s Cabinet Picks Really Were Looney Tunes?

5 Great Books That Reinvent Music Criticism

Interviews

Myanmar Hardcore Rebels Cacerolazo Amp Up the Volume for Revolution

Born out of the chaos of post-coup Myanmar, Burmese punk collective Cacerolazo’s debut LP rails against the brute forces of injustice and dictatorship.

Dead Pioneers Are Punk Rock’s New Conscience

Women in 1990s Rock Music Are Far from Dead

Poster Children Discuss 1995’s Brilliant LP ‘Junior Citizen’ at 30

Home and Away with Audio Author Adam Gnade

PopMatters Picks

Bonnie Prince Billy Finds a Comfortable Home

Bonnie Prince Billy’s The Purple Bird reaches its highest points when Will Oldham finds the joy in life, which feels like its own form of resistance.

The Greyboy Allstars Drop a ‘Grab Bag’ of Goodies

Brueder Selke and Midori Hirano Unite for Unique and Striking LP

Boom.Diwan Use Jazz for Kuwaiti Pearl Diving Music

Lilly Hiatt Puts Love in Motion on ‘Forever’