Burial and Blackdown Team Up for ‘Shock Power of Love’
Shock Power of Love is being advertised as a split, but it doesn’t even pretend to give Burial and Blackdown equal footing.
Daniel Bromfield
Daniel Bromfield is a writer and musician who splits his time between San Francisco, CA and Eugene, OR. In addition to PopMatters, his work has appeared in Resident Advisor, San Francisco Magazine, SF Bay Guardian, Pretty Much Amazing, and Spectrum Culture. His work can be found at danielbromfield.com.
Joshua Chuquimia Crampton’s ‘4’ Is Powerful Landscape Music
Listening to Joshua Chuquimia Crampton is like watching a guitarist perform with a thought bubble over their head. 4 is landscape music, but in a way that draws power from the land rather than just evoking it.
The Avalanches Say ‘We Will Always Love You’
The Avalanches as a collaborative pop project isn't a bad look, but the guests here embarrass themselves in too many ways, mostly through vague polemics.
Ariana Grande ‘s ‘Positions’ Is Pure Pop Sugar
Ariana Grande's Positions is a perfect pop album in a very conservative sense of the term.
‘Wildflowers & All the Rest’ Is Tom Petty’s Masterpiece
Wildflowers is a masterpiece because Tom Petty was a good enough songwriter by that point to communicate exactly what was on his mind in the most devastating way possible.
English Folkie Richard Dawson’s ‘Republic of Geordieland’ Features Some of His Best Songs
This Bandcamp-exclusive "dog's dinner" is better than Richard Dawson gives it credit for and features some of his best songs and guitar playing.
Washed Out’s ‘Purple Noon’ Supplies Reassurance and Comfort
Washed Out's Purple Noon makes an argument against cynicism simply by existing and sounding as good as it does.
The Beatles’ ‘Help!’ Redefined How Personal Pop Could Be
‘Help!’ is the record on which the Beatles really started to investigate just how much they could get away with. The album was released 55 years ago this week, and it’s the kick-off to our new “All Things Reconsidered” series.
Shinichi Atobe’s ‘Yes’ Sports an Appealing Electronic Eeriness
Despite its reverence for the roots of house music, an appealing eeriness blows through electronic producer Shinichi Atobe's Yes like a salty sea breeze.
Vladislav Delay Blends Electronics and Metal on the Brutal ‘Rakka’
Sasu Ripatti's first Vladislav Delay album in six years, Rakka, is his shortest and most brutal, tying his electronic music legacy to his metal roots.
Destroyer’s ‘Have We Met’ Is Dan Bejar’s Best Album Since 2011’s ‘Kaputt’
Dan Bejar seems omnipresent on Destroyer's first album of the 2020s, moving through the arrangements at his own whim.
Prince’s ‘1999’ Shines a Light on What Might Be the Best Year Ever for a Pop Artist
Prince's 1999 is not so much one of the greatest albums of all time as a curation from an amorphous mass of music that might be one of the greatest achievements in pop.