Mannequin Pussy @ The Fonda [4/29/24]
Mannequin Pussy was unbridled sacrilege, defiant and rugged, teasing and contemplative. They took their audience to church, whipped them into a climactic frenzy, and left them on their knees.
The Sounds that Shaped Us: Titanic Rising
“The inferno of the living is not something that will be; if there is one, it is what is already here, the inferno where we live every day, that we form by being together. There are two ways to escape suffering it. The first is easy for many: accept the inferno and become such a…
Album Review: Unrecognisable
Written by Candace Fernandez For Estonian-born artist Alina Astrova, music is a channel for abstraction. Releasing solo tracks under the alias’ Lolina and Inga Copeland since 2014, as well as collaborating with Dean Blunt on Hyper Williams since 2011, the nonlocality of Astrova’s musical identity is mirrored in the indistinction of her sound. While her…
Album Review: Prelude to Ecstasy
Prelude to Ecstasy is massively successful as a debut, as much a period piece as a fourth-wave feminist dissertation. At times, overwhelmingly pop sonic qualities clash with lyrical norm transgressions, yet the album ultimately triumphs in its polished sonic qualities, catchy hooks, and punchy lyrics.
GROUND CONTROL TOURING PRESENTS: SECOND ANNUAL ABORTION ACCESS BENEFIT SERIES @ The Lodge Room [1/20/24]
Improvised, created on-the-spot EDM from Reggie Watts, synchronized hitch kicks from the “anti-rock” Faux Real, dramatized undulations from Actually Huizenga of Patriarchy as she ran her tongue over an unsuspecting mic stand. With a diverse lineup embodying the DIY, the avant garde, and the sensational, the artists of the Annual Abortion Access Benefit Series appeared to have taken Watts’ meditations to heart, utilizing their talents to directly or indirectly protest the United States government’s usurpation of women’s bodies.
Album Review: Rejected Fish
Written by Candace Fernandez I’ve never believed endings to be as finite as their temporal close. Rather, endings seem to work in emotional waves, where moments of memory and irrecollection evade our own realms of understanding and exist in a state of perpetual motion. For Åsa Söderqvist, the Swedish artist behind the musical project ShitKid,…
On Becoming Something More: SHILPA’s Debut Album ESSAR
On her debut album, Shilpa evokes her environment as she explores what it means to grow into our humanity.
An All-American Hit: Dissecting The Guts Of Olivia Rodrigo’s Sophomore Album
After over two years since the release of her staggeringly successful debut album, SOUR, pop megastar Olivia Rodrigo has finally given the people what they want: her highly anticipated sophomore album, GUTS, released on September 8, 2023. Make no mistake, I am a huge Olivia Rodrigo fan. As a fellow musician and melodramatic, overthinking, obsessive…
Columbo Album Review
I have been a listener of Bruno Major since his 2017 album, A Song For Every Moon. His ambient musical style allows a person to sink into each song, landing at least one of his songs on almost all of my playlists. Columbo is Major’s third studio album and is arguably the most minimalist member…
“Self Control”: Seven Years of Frank Ocean’s Soulful Summer End
Some days when the sun goes down and the night’s muggy air sits on my shoulders, heavy as a phantom embrace, I find myself lying down alone in my neighborhood park and listening to “Self Control.”