Strategems, gambits and wiles.
Shelly Ridenour penned an article for Qobuz on the stellar alternative albums from 1991. One observation that I found particularly poignant from having grown up during this period was around the change that Nirvana’s Nevermind brought to mainstream music with regard to gender dynamics.
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Everyone has been posting about the Aadam Jacobs collection. Since I love indie music from the 90’s, I’m certainly going to spend some time with the massive 10,000 live recordings collection. I went to the page on the Internet Archive and one of the first recordings I saw was neo-classical band Rachel’s at Lounge Ax. I bought The Lounge Ax Defense and Relocation compilation created to save the venerable Chicago club when it released. I’ve spun that disc hundreds of times. The song Rachel’s contributed to the comp, “Those Pearls…,” is probably my favorite by the band.
Immediate download. Let’s get this exploration started.
One of my greatest joys in 2026 has been the release of new material by British riot twee band Heavenly. I’ll admit I approached the release of this year’s brilliantly named Highway to Heavenly LP with a certain amount of skepticism. After decades of radio silence, it’s hard to know what to expect from a long-time favorite and easy to be disappointed.
read more…Charlotte Cornfield is the latest musician to put out something via Durham, NC’s Merge Records. Hurts Like Hell is also the first long player by the Canadian singer/songwriter since becoming a mother. The title track, “Hurts Like Hell,” wallows in a remembered sentimentality with the advantage of looking at difficulty in the rearview mirror. We all know what it’s like to try to gain perspective when in the midst of a tough situation.
The video immediately endeared itself to me because its protagonist is wearing a sweater just like one I purchased a couple of weeks ago. The guy looks like he’s kin to Ben Gibbard and plays a sympathetic character who appears to ingest some psychoactive substance along with a confection delivered from an anonymous sender. His enthusiasm for playing the video’s song at high volumes (with bass boost!) outside is a nuisance to his neighbors.
Charlotte Cornfield – Hurts Like Hell (YouTube)
Widowspeak has a new record coming this June and produced a video for the lead single, “If You Change.” I first heard the band when they covered Dire Straits’ “Romeo and Juliet,” a song that never landed with me previously. Widowspeak won me over with the wistful tenderness they gave their treatment of the track.
We all know by now that it’s getting tougher to make a living as a musician. While tools for producing music have gotten cheaper and more accessible, the ways to make decent money as a professional in the music industry have been drying up.
Alex Marshall and Joanna Yee write for the NYT about the members of acclaimed British indie act Field Music trying to pay the bills. Despite working regular jobs and playing in a band recognized by Prince, they were having trouble making ends meet. They decided they could put a few extra bones in the bank by… gigging as The Doors.
read more…The lead track and first single off Sonic Youth’s album Dirty felt like a big deal when it dropped. By 1992, the decade already felt like a dramatic break from the previous one, and videos like the one for “100%” played a big part in setting that perception. The sleek polish that had coated 80s cultural artifacts gave way to the grit and grunge of noise rock going mainstream and skateboarders tearing up the streets in grainy black and white.
“100%” is about the tragic death of Black Flag roadie and popular scenester Joe Cole, who was killed in a robbery outside the home he shared with Henry Rollins. Cole was shot in the face with Rollins present. Rollins still keeps a jar of the dirt that soaked up Cole’s blood in his house.
read more…Though I have to admit that I haven’t listened yet, Asheville NC outfit Wednesday’s latest album Bleeds just dropped yesterday. In support of that, I wanted to offer the video for the first single from album, released several months ago to critical acclaim.
“Elderberry Wine” leans into the more accessible elements of the Wednesday shoegaze alt-country formula. You could even see someone weaned on the thin gruel of contemporary country music developing an appreciation for the reverence of Americana in the song and video. With more hooks than a tacklebox, the song gets stuck in your head for days.
Wednesday – Elderberry Wine (YouTube)
In honor of Tops’ new album Bury The Key being released yesterday, I’m featuring one of the tracks, “Falling On My Sword,” as the Saturday Night Video this week.
“Falling On My Sword” is my favorite among the early singles from this LP and probably the one that most closely matches the 70’s prog rock-inspired cover art. It’s a bit of a left turn for Tops. Based on their previous work, you would think anything born of a seventies influence would be more in line with late-decade disco (and the remainder of the album features some of that).
read more…The occasion of Ozzy Osbourne’s death should not have been surprising. In fact, it wouldn’t have been surprising if the legendary metal singer had died twenty years ago. It was something of a miracle that he lasted this long, given the state of his health for the last few decades (who would have thought Prince Nelson Rogers would repose before the Prince of Darkness). Osbourne played his final show though—just weeks ago—which was by most accounts an impressive affair, and then exited this world gracefully as if he’d done what he came to do.
Recent events have provided the perfect opportunity for a reminder about Black Sabbath doom metal disciples Castle Rat and their new songs. Castle Rat’s upcoming album The Bestiary already has two publicly available tracks, “Wolf I” and “Wizard.” The tracks represent growth in complexity from those on their debut album as well as a more polished sound. On “Wizard,” guitarist Franco “The Count” Vittore finally gets to stretch out with an epic solo that brings to mind 80s metal maximalism.
Castle Rat – The Bestiary
King Volume Records | Bandcamp
The Bestiary is set to release on September 19, 2025.