All Authors >
RICHARD BECK
Latest Articles
Joanna Newsom's masterful Have One On Me
People have always thought that Joanna Newsom was indulgent. At first, it was about her voice — the kind of nasal yelp that usually keeps a performer from getting on stage at all. Then, on her second album, it was about her vocabulary and her instrumentation.
Kaki King adds her voice to the mix
"Listen, I will go on record saying I love Feist, I love Neko Case. I love that music. But that shit's easy listening for the twentysomethings. It fucking is. It's not hard to listen to any of that stuff."
Mad Science (2009)
LA hip-hop has two threads, and DJ Quik pulls both of them. The first is g-funk, a production style that relies on deep, open grooves and an endless parade of funk samples.
Flipper (2009)
Flipper formed in San Francisco in 1979, and they're remembered three decades later because of a song called "Sex Bomb" that's one of the funniest pieces of music I've ever heard.
St. Vincent, live at the Somerville Theatre, May 19, 2009
There were not one but two clarinets on stage at the Somerville Theatre on Tuesday night, and that gives you some idea of how intricate Annie Clark's chamber-pop compositions can be.
Grizzly Bear try to break out of the blogosphere
It's become a commonplace to say that "indie" is too vague to mean anything useful, but that's not actually true.
The Sneaky Flute Empire strikes back
I'm on the phone with Damon Tutunjian, one founder of the Boston indie-rock band Swirlies, and he's helping me to understand the Sneaky Flute Empire.
Circuit bending with Jimmie Rodgers
Circuit benders are people who customize electronics (frequently toys) to make them sound bad.
The year in Auto-Tune
The year in Auto-Tune
A feast of heartbreak and isolated introspection
The crowd coming in from the cold was young, excited, and wrapped in flannel — as though the Wilbur Theatre had been given over to a village of wimpy lumberjacks.
West Coasts
Roc-A-Fella (2008)
No Age at the Middle East Downstairs, November 24, 2008
No Age are a punk duo from Los Angeles. A week ago Monday at the Middle East downstairs, their clothes helped explain what they were up to.
Girl Talk at Harvard Yard, November 20, 2008
Harvard is not a fun place. Girl Talk was going to change all that.
Toni Morrison's colonial America
Toni Morrison's colonial America
Calexico at the Somerville Theatre, November 16, 2008
The members of Calexico look like dads. They play a little like dads too.
Michael Eric Dyson changes the subject at Harvard
Nobody knows exactly what Obama means yet, but Dyson is having a great time figuring it out.
A somewhat revelatory documentary
There’s no explaining Arthur Russell. It’s best just to listen to his music. I hope Wolf’s documentary will encourage people to do precisely that.
Belated props to Arthur Russell
You would not guess, listening to his music, that Arthur Russell grew up in Oskaloosa, Iowa. In fact you might not guess that he came from anywhere.
Domino (2008)
Who is not glad to have Tricky around?
Roth goes back to college
We all know Philip Roth’s preoccupations.
Phoenix Media/Communications Group:
TODAY'S FEATURED ADVERTISERS
Copyright © 2012 The Phoenix Media/Communications Group
