Aviya on “Grief Measure,” Emily Dickinson, and the Influence of Moscow and Israel
In her poem, I measure every Grief I meet, the late great poet Emily Dickinson muses on themes of grief and sadness, using a series of rhetorical questions to try to decode her feelings. Israel-based musician and composer Aviya Kopelman takes a few pages from Dickinson’s journal in her new song, “Grief Measure”— a modern […]
Is Tropical on “Hummingbird,” Off-Kilter Pop, and Performing in Mongolia
“Alternative pop” has always been difficult to define, mostly because pop itself is difficult to define. Pop, after all, is characterized by what music is popular at a given moment, which means it’s more fluid than most other genres: if a Lingua Ignota song topped the Hot 100, the definition of pop would at least […]
Arbor Green on “Margaret,” Musical Parents, and the Last Gig of 2020
The brainchild of Ali Begg, Arbor Green was formed with the intention of creating songs whose sound is reminiscent of alternative indie and folk bands from North America. Of course, the band’s sound also invokes images of their native lands of Edinburgh and Glasgow. Their new single, “Margaret,” is no exception. As soon as the […]
Cathal Coughlan on “Song of Co-Aklan,” His Illustrious Career, and the Pitfalls of Technology
Over the course of Cathal Coughlan’s forty-year career, he’s made brooding sophisti-pop alongside future High Llama Sean O’Hagan in Microdisney; he’s made spiky, seething post-punk with Fatima Mansions; he’s released gorgeous, shatteringly sad material under his own name (listen to The Sky’s Awful Blue if you need a good punch to the gut.) But whether […]
Antonio Lopez on Roots and Wings and the Warriors Inside Us All
Antonio Lopez takes flight in his newest album Roots and Wings. In an Icarian journey towards insight and unity, Antonio leaves his wax wings on the floor and trusts the ones he has inside him. The gentle Indie folk sound sways like leaves in a carefree wind, but deeper down is a powerful testament to […]
Melissa Erin on “Settle On Down”, Her Influences, and This Whole Crazy Year
2020 has been a year marked by anxiety and trauma. Beginning with the raging wildfires that spread uncontrollably across the Australian heartland back in January, the last eleven months have given us a bottomless pit of catastrophic events too numerous and disheartening to enumerate. “When life gives you lemons”, the saying goes, “make lemonade.” But […]
Einsam on “Pressing Matters”, His Home Cities, and How He Writes
When forced into relative solitude during a pandemic, what is it that we cling to? What is it that we long for? As expressed in “Pressing Matters,” the debut from Bristol-based producer and songwriter Sam Jackson’s new project Einsam, it is connection and contact for which he yearns. “Pressing Matters” is a fresh electro-pop track […]
Angelle Waltz on “Moon Gurlz”, Her Evening Rituals, and Her Sense of Adventure
“I’ve heard that most everyone believes in something,” Angelle Waltz says at the start of her bewitching “Moon Gurlz”. “But for me? Well, I believe in…y’know.” It’s a coy, playful demurral, typical of a song (and an artist) who delights in leaving blank spaces for the listener to fill in on their own. One gets […]
Loris and the Lion on “Waxwing”, Fairy Tales, and Halloween
Fairy tales are stories that have been so thoroughly absorbed into our collective consciousness that it’s more common nowadays to see them subverted than played straight. In some cases, like Into the Woods, common fairy tale tropes are used to more realistic ends, showing how things like witch’s curses and magic wishes would have unintended […]
KINO MOTEL on “Waves”, Gritty Pop, and How a Blonde Wig Brought Them Together
KINO MOTEL (stylized in all-caps) has broken into the music world with their debut single “Waves,” and its unique, post-modern, other-worldly sound is making a place for itself in that world. Thanks to the works of Ed Fraser and Rosa Mercedes, KINO MOTEL has been born, and might just pave the way for a new kind […]
