While her magnificent new album, Burn Your Fire for No Witness, may conjure the kind of specters that should be haunting the Ryman Auditorium

Despite what many might perceive, pop music of the ’80s wasn’t all Flock of Seagull haircuts and DX7 synths. Among those going against the proverbial

Throughout the band’s existence, Devo has been inextricably tied to the visual component of performance. From its beginning

As bassist for the Cocteau Twins, Simon Raymonde was involved with some of the greatest records ever laid to wax, though as evidenced in Facing

Bob Mould once explained to me how his getting in touch with being gay involved developing an interest in dance music. As such, I have to wonder

For many musicians, the trajectory of their career is a linear one. They move from one band to the next

"September girls do so much," goes the opening line on the Big Star classic, and the same could be said of the Irish five-piece taking their name from the song

Of all the bands to emerge in New Zealand in the wake of the punk explosion of the ’70s, The Verlaines may just be the most idiosyncratic

Favorite Albums

1. Ghost Wave, Ages (Flying Nun)
With Ages, Aukland five-piece Ghost Wave proved themselves the heir apparent to the Flying Nun legacy. Like The Clean, Verlaines, Tall Dwarfs, et al. before them, the band combines jangly guitars with pop smarts and VU overdrive. It all amounts to a debut that show the New Zealand label’s best days aren’t behind it.

2. Toy, Join …

It’s that time of year again, when it’s hard to miss the ubiquitous airings of familiar refrains either celebrating the holiday season or