Waxahatchee’s Katie Crutchfield released her second album, Cerulean Salt, in 2013 to high critical acclaim. Full of punk-edged folk songs that are at once quiet and powerful thanks to a stripped-down performance and sublime lyrics, the record was rated an 8.4 out of 10 and dubbed Best New Music by Pitchfork. It landed at No. […]
Thunderbitch Thunderbitch/self-released If you think Brittany Howard is too confined as the frontwoman of Alabama Shakes, look no further than her new side project, Thunderbitch. To say she is unhinged here—and good God is it glorious—is an understatement. Guttural roars tear out of her lungs like cannon fire on many tracks, with “Closer” being a […]
Formed in eastern Pennsylvania in 2006, Cabinet is a band that honors Appalachian tradition by channeling bluegrass, country and folk into a hard-driving style that’s been deemed slamgrass. Through steady harmonies, soaring vocals and storytelling, the group’s music takes the long way home, inviting its listeners to sit back and relax on a virtual ride […]
Matt Damon may be the star of Ridley Scott’s The Martian, but science itself is the hero in this breezy yet breathless tale of survival against all odds, bucking Hollywood’s preference for redundant fiction over interesting science in its sci-fi. The characters are charming, the tension is palpable, nearly every joke lands, yet by putting […]
In the three decades since the notoriously idiosyncratic and gentlemanly Lyle Lovett erupted onto the country music scene with the single “Cowboy Man,” the Texas native has earned a reputation as being an artist’s artist. Lovett’s genre-bending 1986 eponymous debut received unanimous critical acclaim, even winning a spot on Rolling Stone’s best albums of the […]
Featured in the Chris Rock movie Top Five, nominated for a 2014 American Comedy Award for Best Concert Comic and appearing 27 times on “The Late Show with David Letterman,” Brian Regan has distinguished himself as a clean comedian, earning praise from legends in the field such as Jerry Seinfeld. He finds mirth in everyday […]
When City Clay owner and artist Randy Bill started her business in 2011, she knew that her rented space on West Main Street wasn’t long for this world. Though the specter of the new Marriott loomed large, Bill refused to be daunted by it. “I knew it was the best location possible for visibility and […]
Confession: Without “The X-Files,” I wouldn’t be a professional writer. Way back in middle school, I thought I hated writing. At least, I hated writing dry, research-based essays for class. But every Sunday night I found inspiration in the form of Fox Mulder and Dana Scully, characters whose investigations into paranormal phenomenon inspired me so […]
Take a look at The Anatomy of Frank’s song catalog and one thing is immediately clear: These guys are really into geography. The group named its debut album Pangaea, after a supercontinent, and its forthcoming second album, North America, includes songs with titles such as “Occupy Anchorage,” “Vancouver (for child astronauts)” and “A Bridge Over […]
Lucero was born out of boredom during the spring of ’98, when a group of Memphis, Tennessee, buddies who were tired of the punk rock and metal that dominated the local music landscape decided to pick up instruments and pluck out edgy, country tunes. After a period of woodshedding and experimentation, the band grew to […]