Best New Songs

Music Reviews

‘Even the Forest Hums’ Showcases Little-Known Ukrainian Music

This new compilation celebrates Ukrainian musicians’ abilities to find alternate modes of creating in the face of Soviet state restrictions.

Tashi Dorji’s Guitar Eradicates Western Notions of Authenticity

Opeth’s ‘The Last Will and Testament’ Is a New High-Water Mark

Seasoned MPB Artist Rogê Conjures Classic Samba

St. Lenox Offers a Fifth Installment of Modern American Songs

Genius Meets Genius in Caroline Shaw’s New Soundtrack LP

Alex E. Chávez’s ‘Sonorous Present’ Is a Beautiful Meditation

Max Richter’s ‘In a Landscape’ Connects Nature and Humanity

Albert King’s ‘In Session’ Offers a Master Class in Mutual Respect

Music Features

The 15 Best K-Pop Songs of 2024

In a year full of industry shakeups and unexpected controversies, 2024’s best K-pop tracks provides a surprising degree of relief in a panoply of styles.

On Tour with King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard at the End of Days

Finding a Home with Tom Waits

‘Louder Than You Think’: The Improbable Origins of Pavement

Taylor Swift’s ‘1989’ Subverts Being Trapped in a Glass Castle

12 Compositions to Introduce You to Classical Music Post-1950

Warhaus Is the Music of Maarten Devoldere’s Subconscious

Film

Nazis and Racial and Sexual Subtexts in ‘Revenge of the Zombies’

Revenge of the Zombies stands at the axis of Nazis, race relations and feminism in a mishmash of wartime themes under an immigrant director.

‘Louder Than You Think’: The Improbable Origins of Pavement

Punk Is a Virus That’s Infected Everything

A Queer Feminist Storytelling of ‘Jurassic Park’

‘Fight Club’ Still Serves as an Odyssey of Alienation and Brotherhood

Wherever You Go, There You Are: ‘Interstellar’ at 10 Resonates

Bruce Springsteen Documentary ‘Road Diary’ Takes a Familiar Route

Books

Punk Is a Virus That’s Infected Everything

Tracing punk’s mutations, Iain Ellis’ Punk Beyond the Music is a robust and kaleidoscopic survey of this once-outsider subculture’s continuing, pervasive influence.

A Queer Feminist Storytelling of ‘Jurassic Park’

Fembot Despair in Olivia Gatwood’s ‘Whoever You Are, Honey’

Music in Haruki Murakami’s ‘The City and Its Uncertain Walls’

Anders Nilsen’s ‘Tongues’ and the Nature of God

Games

Phoenix Springs’ Journey to Nowhere Is Worth It

Phoenix Springs‘ streamlined gameplay and inventive point-and-click adventure has the pacing of an art-house psychological drama.

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

Neva’s Emotion-Engine Gameplay Is a Beautiful Crowd-Pleaser

Video Games Set in the 19th Century and Their Literary Allusions

‘Five Years Old Memories’ and Naïve Art in Video Games

Interviews

Warhaus Is the Music of Maarten Devoldere’s Subconscious

For Warhaus’ latest LP, Karaoke Moon, Belgian songwriter Maarten Devoldere (Balthazar) delved into his subconscious with some hypnotic assistance.

Carminho Expresses Her Passion for Life Through Song

Digging Deeper with Denver Emo Band A Place For Owls

The Rhythmic Remembrances of Fred Thomas

‘The Theatrical Adventures of Edward Gorey’ Is Spectacular

Lists

The 15 Best K-Pop Songs of 2024

In a year full of industry shakeups and unexpected controversies, 2024’s best K-pop tracks provides a surprising degree of relief in a panoply of styles.

12 Compositions to Introduce You to Classical Music Post-1950

20 Music Videos of the 1980s That Have Aged Well

MetalMatters: The Best Metal Albums of November 2024

When the 1950s Met the 1960s via LSD TV

Television

‘Slow Horses: Season Four’ Subverts the Spy Genre

The good, the bad, and the ugly dance to Slow Horses‘ strange game, which reminds viewers that solidarity is essential to fighting oppression.

When the 1950s Met the 1960s via LSD TV

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

The Top 10 Episodes of ‘Are You Afraid of the Dark?’

Deadwood’s Moral Optimism

PopMatters Picks

‘Even the Forest Hums’ Showcases Little-Known Ukrainian Music

This new compilation celebrates Ukrainian musicians’ abilities to find alternate modes of creating in the face of Soviet state restrictions.

Tashi Dorji’s Guitar Eradicates Western Notions of Authenticity

Opeth’s ‘The Last Will and Testament’ Is a New High-Water Mark

Seasoned MPB Artist Rogê Conjures Classic Samba

St. Lenox Offers a Fifth Installment of Modern American Songs