Cloudspeakers

“American Honey” is the name of Lady Antebellum’s current single, but it could just as well describe Josh Turner’s voice. He has one of those deep, supple voices that make people compare it to mola... Lees meer

Fans bring their own perspective and bias to hearing a new work from musicians they admire. When it comes to the defunct indie-pop/rock band Beulah, my take is that they released four excellent alb... Lees meer

Lady Antebellum’s second album is titled after the song “Need You Now”, a #1 country single last year. The main reason it stood out from the pack of soft-pop-leaning country balla... Lees meer

There’s a Northwestern scene around the Audio Dregs and Fryk Beat labels (also touching States Rights, K, Holocene and others) of forward-looking electronic/indie music that takes inspiration... Lees meer

The title of the Magnetic Fields’ ninth album, Realism, is of course a trap. As a songwriter, singer, and musician, Stephin Merritt has never pretended to deliver Truth in song. Certainly you... Lees meer

The question “What is country?” is eternal, and not just among nerdy music critics. Contemporary country is filled with songs about what it means to be country. Some are defensive, some... Lees meer

The first song on Kamaal the Abstract is titled “Feelin’”. That seems about right. So much of what A Tribe Called Quest was up to in their 10-year career was trying to capture a f... Lees meer

That Dolly Parton’s first hit, in 1967, was called “Dumb Blonde” seems appropriate in retrospect, because she spent her career defying that image while visually embodying it. The ... Lees meer

The brief music-box chime that opens Magic Neighbor works like an alert that we’re entering a dream-space, especially since it begins a lovely instrumental that resembles a film theme. If thi... Lees meer

Missouri’s state fish is the channel catfish. Its state animal is the Missouri mule. Its state bird is the bluebird. Its state reptile is the three-toed box turtle.All of those facts are more... Lees meer