January 4th, 2021 | by Stephen Slaybaugh | published in Features | Leave A Comment »
To put it bluntly, 2020 can suck it. There have been few years that have been so catastrophic to so many people as this past year. If the coronavirus pandemic and the hell that it wrought weren’t enough, we also had to endure police brutality of an unprecedented level and the trashfire that occupied the White House and threatened to undermine our democratic process this …
July 14th, 2020 | by Stephen Slaybaugh | published in Features | 5 Comments »
Though their jangly guitars and penchant for pop melodies bore some of the hallmarks of the so-called C86 sound, more than anything else what united the Close Lobsters with the other acts on the NME’s legendary cassette compilation was an ethos of self-made ingenuity. Born in the Scottish town of Paisley (about 10 miles east of Glasgow) in 1985 out of a surprisingly thriving punk …
June 9th, 2020 | by Stephen Slaybaugh | published in Features | 1 Comment »
We’ve interviewed dozens of artists here on The Agit Reader, some more than once, and there’s no one that we have spoken to more frequently than Pere Ubu’s David Thomas. While we no doubt have a soft spot for fellow Ohioans, this fact is more a reflection of Thomas’ unwavering ability to create music that is always challenging and enthralling, not only with Pere …
February 6th, 2020 | by Staff | published in Features | Leave A Comment »
1. Oso Oso, Basking in the Glow (Triple Crown Records)
2. Prince Daddy & the Hyena, Cosmic Thrill Seekers (Counter Intuitive Records)
3. Mannequin Pussy, Patience (Epitaph Records)
4. Pup, Morbid Stuff (Rise Records)
5. Big Thief, Two Hands (4AD)
6. Glass Beach, The First Glass Beach Album (Run for Cover Records)
7. (Sandy) Alex G, House of Sugar (Domino Records)
8. Westkust, …
February 4th, 2020 | by Staff | published in Features | Leave A Comment »
#10I find myself spellbound when taking in Komachi, Meitei’s delicately crafted mix of nostalgia and loop-making science. It rewards unbroken attention, wrought as it is with quiet details, gentle moods, and subtle changes. The simple act of listening carefully will reward you, even if, like most of us, you have no reference point for what the artist is trying …
May 29th, 2019 | by Stephen Slaybaugh | published in Features | Leave A Comment »
Born in 2014 as a continuation of sorts of the ideas singer Dan Boeckner was exploring in the Handsome Furs, Operators has developed its own set of aesthetics and a sound as distinctive as any of Boeckner’s other previous projects (Wolf Parade, Divine Fits). While Operators rely on a largely electronic palette, there is nevertheless no shortage of human emotion in what they create. As …
January 18th, 2019 | by Staff | published in Features | Leave A Comment »
1. Parquet Courts, Wide Awake! (Rough Trade Records)
2. Beach House, 7 (Sub Pop)
3. Snail Mail, Lush (Matador Records)
4. Soccer Mommy, Clean (Fat Possum Records)
5. Joyce Manor, Million Dollars to Kill Me (Epitaph Records)
6. The Armed, Only Love (Throatruiner Records)
7. Infant Island, Infant Island (Middle-Man Records)
8. The Beths, Future Me Hates Me (Carpark Records)
9. Gulfer, Dog …
January 15th, 2019 | by Staff | published in Features | 1 Comment »
#10It started out as a gimmick prompted by a politically incorrect dare. Manuel Gagneux, a musician of mixed race and Swiss-American citizenship, asked the notorious 4chan message board what genres he should mash up. He took the uncouth suggestion of black metal and “n*gger music” as a challenge and under the moniker of Zeal & Ardor became …
June 4th, 2018 | by Brian O'Neill | published in Features | Leave A Comment »
Blueprint, a.k.a. Printmatic, a.k.a. Albert Shepard, wears more hats than he has names. He emerged from Columbus, Ohio in the late ‘90s to create some of the most enduring underground hip-hop albums of the first decade of the new millennium as a producer with Greenhouse Effect, as a rapper with Soul Position (a partnership with RJD2), and also as a solo artist with 10 albums …
January 26th, 2018 | by Staff | published in Features | Leave A Comment »
1. Run the Jewels, Run the Jewels 3 (self-released)
2. Kendrick Lamar, Damn (Interscope Records)
3. Björk, Utopia (One Little Indian Records)
4. LCD Soundsystem, American Dream (DFA Records/Columbia Records)
5. St. Vincent, Masseduction (Loma Vista Recordings)
6. Julianna Hatfield, Pussycat (American Laundromat Records)
7. Sinkane, Life & Livin’ It, (City Slang)
8. Syd, Fin (Columbia Records)
9. Rapsody, Lailia’s Wisdom…