Fleetwood Mac’s First LP Shows a Hungry, Irreverent Approach to Chicago Blues
Surprisingly, Fleetwood Mac began life as a blues-rock band before morphing into the pop/rock juggernaut that ruled the charts in the late 1970s.
Bruce Miller
Bruce earned an MFA in fiction from Goddard College. He teaches college-level composition and literature. He has traveled, documenting music from India, Uganda, Ghana, Senegal, Vietnam, and elsewhere. He's published in Magnet, Rootsworld, Signal to Noise, The Old Time Herald, and The Oxford American.
Faten Kanaan Revels in Ever-Molting Textures on ‘Afterpoem’
Faten Kanaan’s musical molting feels more organic than the repetition in Steve Reich or Philip Glass; her music doesn’t rely on an unwavering framework for effect.
Acid Arab Bring Middle Eastern Textures to the Dance Floor on ‘٣ (Trois)’
Blending Algerian Raï and Gasba, Syrian Dabke, Turkish dance, and floor-shaking Chicago Acid moves, Acid Arab make music targeting hips with surgical precision.
Lucrecia Dalt Beckons Traditions Across Oceans on ‘¡Ay!’
¡Ay! tugs Colombia’s music and language out of its natural space, allowing Lucrecia Dalt to beckon traditions across oceans and provide new spaces to inhabit.
‘The Futuristic Sounds of Sun Ra’ Gets Its Most Crucial Reissue
The Futuristic Sounds of Sun Ra hearkens back to Sun Ra’s big band roots and his determination to create a genuine exploration of otherworldly space.
Bill Orcutt’s ‘Music for Four Guitars’ Is a Masterpiece of Mantra-like Precision
Bill Orcutt’s Music for Four Guitars is at once unlike anything he has ever released and a logical distillation of whatever has come before.
Matmos Brilliantly Re-purpose Electro-Acoustic Composition on ‘Regards Ukłony dla Bogusław Schaeffer’
Matmos flit between the high and low transforming them into sound art that gives pop culture a friendly jostling on Regards/Ukłony dla Bogusław Schaeffer,
Sonny Singh Celebrates Sikh Spiritualism with Pop on ‘Chardi Kala’
Red Baraat’s Sonny Singh celebrates Sikh spiritualism with more than a dash of Western pop’s global power on Chardi Kala, but its dependence on pop balladry weakens it.
The Staples Jr. Singers Are Resurrected by ‘When Do We Get Paid’ Re-Issue
Luaka Bop’s reissue of the Staples Jr. Singers’ sole album, When Do We Get Paid, brings a crucial gospel LP back into circulation.
The Good Ones’ ‘Rwanda…You See Ghosts, I See Sky’ Reaches Staggering Depths
The Good Ones’ raw truths and achingly beautiful music reach staggering depths on Rwanda… You See Ghosts, I See Sky.
Charles Mingus at His Unruly, Instigative Peak on ‘The Lost Album From Ronnie Scott’s’
Charles Mingus’ The Lost Album From Ronnie Scott’s is right there next to his most blistering records from the 1960s. It’s that good.
‘In/Out/In’ Makes a Taut Case for Sonic Youth’s Continued Relevance
In/Out/In, a collection of almost entirely instrumental tracks recorded during Sonic Youth’s final decade, would be a crucial record if it was the only thing they ever recorded.