Music Reviews

Music & Culture

Reissue Captures Nat King Cole Before He Broke Through To Mainstream

2:30pm November 05, 2019

by Kevin Whitehead

Early in his career, Cole formed a trio with guitarist Oscar Moore and bassist Wesley Prince. Hittin' the Ramp, a new 7-CD roundup, showcases the band that help catapult Cole to stardom.

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Music & Culture

Gang Starr's 'One Of The Best Yet' Is A Welcome Throwback To An Earlier Rap Era

5:51pm November 04, 2019

by Oliver Wang

Hip hop duo Gang Starr broke up in the mid-2000s and in 2010, MC Guru died. So fans were surprised by the announcement of a new, posthumous album called One Of The Best Yet.

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Jon Pardi's 'Heartache Medication' Offers A Healthy Dose Of Traditional Country

2:01pm October 31, 2019

by Ken Tucker

Country music has take a turn towards pop of late, but Pardi's new album goes back to the genre's roots, with a collection of excellent honky-tonk songs — many of which are about booze.

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Kanye West onstage during his Jesus Is King album and film event at The Forum on Oct. 23, 2019 in Inglewood, California.

Music & Culture

Kanye West's 'Jesus Is King,' Like Its Creator, Asks A Little Too Much Of Us

3:18pm October 28, 2019

by Oliver Wang

There are moments of inspired magic on West's gospel-flavored ninth album, and moments that sound ill-considered and slapped together. Those extremes feel like the story of his recent career.

Music & Culture

Lakou Mizik Explores Haiti's Centuries-Old Connections With New Orleans In 2nd Album

5:56pm October 24, 2019

by Banning Eyre

Haitian band Lakou Mizik is out with its second album — a dazzling set of collaborations with New Orleans musicians, celebrating the close musical and cultural ties between the two places.

Music & Culture

Indian Percussion Infuses 'Good Hope' With Complex, Crossfire Beats

2:34pm October 24, 2019

by Kevin Whitehead

Indian percussionist Zakir Hussain joins with saxophonist Dave Holland and bassist Chris Potter on a new album that that's clear and confident, with plenty of fire.

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Music & Culture

Music Moment: Summer Walker

5:10pm October 19, 2019

Singer Summer Walker's album, Over It, debuted earlier this month — and it's already broken records. Music critic Briana Younger of The New Yorker discusses some of the album's standout songs.

Caroline Polachek in the cover art from Pang (out Oct. 18), her first solo release under her own full name.

Music & Culture

A Pop Cyborg With A Human Heart

1:08pm October 18, 2019

by Sasha Geffen

As the voice of Chairlift, Caroline Polachek crisscrossed indie and mainstream tastes. Her solo LP adds digital flex to that voice, melding real and "enhanced" performance into one penetrating force.

Music & Culture

Angel Olsen, Master Of Solitude

12:20pm October 18, 2019

by Jenn Pelly

As she's grown upwards and inwards, the singer-songwriter's work has dramatically increased in scope and scale — a mirror reflecting the internal world she's working to conquer.

Music & Culture

Taylor Ho Bynum's 'Ambiguity Manifesto' Is A Playground For Jazz Improvisers

1:58pm October 09, 2019

by Kevin Whitehead

Bynum's album features nine musicians, including guitarist Mary Halvorson, a newly minted MacArthur fellow. Each improviser sings the tune — or sings around it — in their own way, in their own time.

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