Whenever the chugging intro to “Just What I Needed” or “My Best Friend’s Girl” plays, fans of adolescent drama pump their fists and say yeah.
Category: Music
The Disquieting Tranquility of Alternative Rock
New releases from Clairo, Oso Oso, Lindsey Stirling, and Tyler, the Creator.
The Pranksters of Pop
1000 gecs by 100 gecs should leave you feeling vaguely targeted and mocked.
The Enthralling Drone Music of Pioneer Éliane Radigue
Today 87 years old, Radigue worked within the tradition of La Monte Young and John Cage in the 1960s and ’70s, moving between Paris and New York City.
Lana Del Rey and the Gaslighting of American Culture
The singer has defied critics and graduated summa cum laude from the pop pantheon into the hall of legends. Her latest album proves she deserves the respect of legends like Joni Mitchell and Carole King.
Megan Thee Stallion, a Hardcore Master of Rap
What makes this music hardcore, a term that has meant many things to many genres, is technical mastery.
Chance the Rapper Ties the Knot, and You’re Invited
Chance the Rapper’s new release, The Big Day, is celebratory and playful, but also wheedling — he wants to convince you that marriage is a good decision.
Dive Into K-Pop With Five Essential Music Videos
Getting into the inexplicable sounds, powerhouse choreography, and high-concept narratives and visuals of K-pop can be intimidating. Here are some iconic music videos to help any newbie get started.
Jamila Woods and Her Ancestral Spirits
Woods’s new album Legacy! Legacy! is framed by the presence of a larger community — the enacted community of choir singing and an imagined community of Black artists.
Surface Buzz with Lizzo, Ariana Grande, Twice, and GFriend
The new albums by these artists all adapt R&B tropes to their own uses.
The Art Songs of Carly Rae Jepsen
If you’d told radio listeners in 2012 that the singer responsible for “Call Me Maybe” would in seven years be hailed as an eccentric avant-pop totem, nobody would have believed you, but here she is.
The Maximalist Dance Music of Valgur, Ibibio Sound Machine, Hama, and Steve Lacy
These new releases burn with creepy surprises, rubbery jitters, musical knots, and basslines that run into your arms.