Music Reviews

Jamaican reggae singer Marcia Griffiths performed as one of Bob Marley's backing singers — and is a remarkable solo artist in her own right.

Music & Culture

Shocking Omissions: Marcia Griffiths' 'Naturally'

10:01am November 15, 2017

by Erin MacLeod

The Jamaican music industry has always been more based on singles, but Naturally is a ten-song, album-length argument for why Griffiths is such a foundational artist in reggae and beyond.

Red River Dialect's Broken Stay Open Sky comes out Feb. 2.

Music & Culture

After 'Waves Of Sad-Joy,' Red River Dialect's 'Kukkuripa' Radiates Light

11:48am November 14, 2017

by Lars Gotrich

There's always been a hint of sorrow to Red River Dialect, but in the first single from Broken Stay Open Sky, the British folk-rock band is almost rhapsodic.

José James will tour a program of his favorite Bill Withers tunes, culminating in a covers record in 2018.

Music & Culture

Songs We Love: José James, 'Better Off Dead'

10:00am November 14, 2017

by Nate Chinen

The bleak pathos of Bill Withers' original is tempered in this arrangement, which José James bends into a funk jam.

Music & Culture

Taylor Swift Pushes Further Into Electro-Pop With 'Reputation'

2:28pm November 13, 2017

by Ken Tucker

Swift brings together pulsing drumbeats, surging keyboards and multi-tracked vocals on her new album. The result is a record that mixes passion and emotion with careful control.

Queue Listen Now

Brandi Carlile's By The Way, I Forgive You comes out Feb. 16.

Music & Culture

Songs We Love: Brandi Carlile, 'The Joke'

1:01pm November 13, 2017

by Ann Powers

The country-rock aria, from Carlile's new album, is dedicated to the delicate boys and striving girls born into – and, she insists, destined to triumph over – a divisive time.

A still from Bad History Month's video for "A Warm Recollection."

Music & Culture

Bad History Month's 'Warm Recollection' Of Love And Death

12:00pm November 13, 2017

by Marissa Lorusso

Songwriter Sean Bean says "A Warm Recollection," from the band's new album Dead And Loving It, is about "the high stakes of living life in the face of certain death."

CyHi The Prynce's No Dope On Sundays is out Nov. 17.

Music & Culture

First Listen: CyHi The Prynce, 'No Dope On Sundays'

10:52am November 13, 2017

by Rodney Carmichael

The Atlanta rapper's long-gestating debut album portrays a person at ease with their many, and divergent, aspects — here, CyHi tells the stories behind a breakout album.

Charlotte Gainsbourg's Rest is out Nov. 17.

Music & Culture

First Listen: Charlotte Gainsbourg, 'Rest'

10:38am November 13, 2017

by Jason Heller

The French singer (and actor) has made her first album in 7 years — a testament to the power of immaculate, effortless-sounding pop songcraft, even in the face of loss.

Irma Thomas (shown performing in 2008) is known as the "sweet soul queen of New Orleans."

Music & Culture

Shocking Omissions: Irma Thomas, 'Wish Someone Would Care'

10:00am November 13, 2017

by Alison Fensterstock

Thomas' 1964 album is not the usual entry point into her work for newer fans — but it's the album that introduced the local hitmaker to the world at large.

Taylor Swift performing on Saturday Night Live, Nov. 11.

Music & Culture

Taylor Swift, New And Old, Returns To 'Saturday Night Live'

11:12am November 12, 2017

by Sidney Madden

Across two performances the pop star presented two, not entirely conflicting, personas — the one she's currently cultivating and the one she's harvested for years.