Listen with caution: Canadian punk band PUP’s name may be an abbreviation for “pathetic waste of potential,” but don’t let that fool you—its fourth album, THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND, marks a clever new marriage between melody and chaos. And according to lead singer Stefan Babcock, chaos is where PUP feels most at home, saying “there […]
Listen with caution: Canadian punk band PUP’s name may be an abbreviation for “pathetic waste of potential,” but don’t let that fool you—its fourth album, THE UNRAVELING OF PUPTHEBAND, marks a clever new marriage between melody and chaos. And according to lead singer Stefan Babcock, chaos is where PUP feels most at home, saying “there […]
We love you, Willie: With a career spanning seven distinguished decades, 89-year-old Willie Nelson is still at the top of his game—writing, singing, and playing with the signature wit and wisdom that comes from a lifetime on the road. In recent years, Nelson’s released four albums, received his 5th-degree black belt in GongKwon Yusul, and […]
Can’t touch this: Michael Bisio is one of the most prolific bassists working today—he’s composed over 100 works, appears on more than 100 CDs, and can jump from classical poise to jazzy fervor in a heartbeat. His 2022 release, Inimitable, is an album of solo bass improvisations that showcases the range of the bass, from […]
Carrying a tune: Tim O’Brien went from singing in church and school in West Virginia, to being a Grammy-winning singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist of country and bluegrass music. His latest release, He Walked On, explores what it means to be American with intimate histories and stories told through eight new original songs and five carefully curated […]
Join together: Adam Granduciel is known for doing things on his own. Typically a loner in the studio, the frontman for American rock band War on Drugs assembles most of the group’s records by overdubbing pre-recorded tracks. It worked well for years, but in 2018 Granduciel was ready for something new—community. The band’s fifth studio […]
After over a year of empty stages, music lovers finally have something to look forward to. Last month, Governor Ralph Northam lifted all social distancing and capacity restrictions, meaning live music will soon be back at several Charlottesville venues. On June 18, the newly renamed Ting Pavilion will reopen with the return of Fridays After […]
Hear and there: It’s a question fans around the world are asking: Where does music go from here? As we navigate a reopening while keeping our distance, how do we commune around our favorite musical acts and enjoy concerts again? How do bands practice, record, and tour safely? What is the impact of our complex […]
Remember live music? Us, too. There’s reason to be extra grateful for recorded music right now (and for all the artists streaming sets into our living rooms), but it’s not the same as packing into a whatever-sized room with a bunch of other people to hear some tunes played just for you. Sweating, swaying, swooning, […]
Wayne Coyne is sitting in a hotel lobby in Indianapolis, polishing off three espresso shots from the adjacent Starbucks kiosk. “I always say, energy is happiness,” he muses after taking a sip. Doling out fortune cookie philosophies about something as mundane as caffeine intake is what you hope for from The Flaming Lips frontman, who […]
Greg Weaver has been playing video games since…well, since he can remember. Growing up, his family had an Atari system and his cousin had a classic Nintendo NES. One particularly exciting Christmas, the family got a Super Nintendo system. The Weaver siblings spent hours playing on the consoles, immersed in the worlds contained therein, but […]