Of Note 021 shipping out! In this issue, I highlight writing from: Rachel Rascoe sharing farewell letters from Austin musicians @ryandombal.bsky.social on the Heavyweights theme @dadadrummer.bsky.social on Why Sound Matters

Howdy! It's been too long! I'm trying to get another newsletter out on time, but here in The Vacation Void, it may take the rest of the week. Thanks for your patience!

Of Note 020 went out last night! Highlighting work from November including: Grayson Haver Currin @imleor.bsky.social Tom Piazza @nikostratis.com @paranoiacs.bsky.social Click through, give 'em a read, support the authors!

S/O @ofnotenewsletter.bsky.social for recommending my Hallogallo feature buttondown.com/of_note/arch...

Yes! The newsletter is late. I’m working on it!

wonderful monday surprise to get an nymag cosign for Don't Rock The Inbox via the inimitable @yaydylan.bsky.social!! perfect timing with our cyber monday sale - 40% off all week, $48 for a year of DRTI! nymag.com/strategist/a...

ESS does a lot for artists here in Chicago and abroad. Space and opportunity to perform, resources to create, education to grow, and they also do the important work of archiving and maintaining our history. They've got that real Chicago spirit of just getting things done. Any amount helps!

As y'all (especially here in Chicago) think about your year end giving, consider right now the Experimental Sound Studio (ess.org). There's a lot going on and arts orgs can get left out, but we need art, especially challenging art Until 11/21, there's match on new donations so your $ goes further

The team at Broccoli have put together a new music magazine, Heartbeat. I’m excited to check it out. They always do beautiful work. broccolimag.com/products/hea...

i wrote a lil thing about Rosalía's Lux and Catholicism, finally putting the 17 years i spent in CCD to good use. my mom is still mad i don't go to Mass anymore tho

For years, advertising has been how Stereogum made money to pay its writers. While we made progress moving away from that model, Google AI search has decimated the business almost overnight. Today we relaunch with a greater focus on subscription. We’d love your support: stereogum.com/2478838/ster...

“What makes good ambient music is that the creator of it does not think of it as ambient music. They think of it as something much grander—something that you would not want on a playlist that somebody falls asleep to.”

We're running a special promotion right now to mark our 5th anniversary! $5/month newfeeling.ca/nfisfive $55/year newfeeling.ca/nfisfive360 The annual rate also earns you a copy of our forthcoming print anthology, featuring some of our favourite articles over the last 5 years.

For the morning crowd looking for about 4,000 words on contemporary youth subculture

Of Note 019 is out! Highlights include: @natalieweiner.bsky.social on Amanda Shires @jawnita.bsky.social on Sudan Archives @ericdharvey.com response to "Such Great Heights" @carynrose.bsky.social on Electric Nebraska @stevenhyden.bsky.social on Taylor Swift LLC & Alex Farrar Jeff Tweedy on himself

Of Note 019 is out! Highlights include: @natalieweiner.bsky.social on Amanda Shires @jawnita.bsky.social on Sudan Archives @ericdharvey.com response to "Such Great Heights" @carynrose.bsky.social on Electric Nebraska @stevenhyden.bsky.social on Taylor Swift LLC & Alex Farrar Jeff Tweedy on himself

I interviewed billy woods for CABBAGES. You can read a healthy preview for free, but the full interview (kind of a long one) is for paid subscribers. I hope you'll consider becoming one for as little as $5. www.cabbageshiphop.com/billy-woods-...

hello friends, loved ones, and haters, I wrote a long piece about the last 25 or so years of "indie," inspired by @chrisdeville.bsky.social's fine new book open.substack.com/pub/ericdhar...

This is an incredible story from Courtney Kueppers from @wbez.org

DRTI is worth it. I could include links from them in the newsletter every month.

Great cause and opportunity to be of service in Chicago from one of the best labels going right now.

D'Angelo speaking out about the physical and emotional burden of maintaining a nearly unobtainable physique and sexy image as a Black male artist should be taught in labor studies. It absolutely impacted how I analyze pop culture.

10 years ago, I stayed up all night with D’Angelo, two nights in a row. R.I.P. to a straight-up genius. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-...

he's even on record stating his thoughts on this www.theguardian.com/culture/musi...

wrote about some classic songs by D'Angelo with my colleagues here. huge, irreplaceable loss in music www.rollingstone.com/music/music-...

"[Neo-soul] was never just about melody or groove, but it was about community, collaboration, and communion. These were artists who... turned vulnerability into power ... intellectual and sensual, political and personal, sacred and messy all at once."

Indeed,this was a great one.

D’ANGELO wapo.st/3KSHRUU

My colleague Sheldon Pearce's obituary for D'Angelo www.npr.org/2025/10/14/n...

still proud of this piece, which attempts to complicate one of the things d'angelo was (unfairly) best known for

In light of D’Angelo’s passing, today feels like the right time to revisit his genius. My BFF’s @faithp.bsky.social book honoring Voodoo is a heartfelt tribute to his artistry. www.bloomsbury.com/ca/dangelos-...

Welcome to Chicago @chrisdeville.bsky.social! Live in conversation with @jackriedy.com at the Gman Tavern.

I’m settling here at the Gman. Still time to read my interview with Chris before watching an interview with him! buttondown.com/of_note/arch...

"Of the modern style of songwriter, there are a lot of people that I admire, and Lana Del Rey is my favorite." – Jeff Tweedy

"Added Dimensions’ new one could be the last great album of the year, and at this rate, the whole damn empire as we know it." It's @helloabbondelo.bsky.social in conversation with Sarah Everton about what she learned from the Bleeding Rainbow days, her excellent new album, and much more.

Rob Sheffield interviews Greil Marcus. www.rollingstone.com/music/music-...

This is all I’ll post about it: One thing I do enjoy about occasions like this is getting to read the best writers go in. www.newyorker.com/magazine/202...

ICYMI Of Note 018 The first original interview in Of Note. I spoke with @chrisdeville.bsky.social about his book "Such Great Heights: The Complete Cultural History of the Indie Rock Explosion. Read our conversation here and stick around for Chris's picks for recent music writing worth reading.

It really means a lot to me for Chris to say this. I do this because great music writing needs more enthusiastic support. I don't have a lot of subscribers. I have little to offer in impact for him. So if you follow me, buy his book, check it out at the library, subscribe to his newsletter.

I had one of my favorite conversations about SUCH GREAT HEIGHTS so far with @jlweber.bsky.social, who really understood what I was getting at with the book, for @ofnotenewsletter.bsky.social

Of Note 018 is sent! A first: An interview! I spoke with @chrisdeville.bsky.social about his great survey of the rise of modern indie "Such Great Heights." We covered his approach, shared experiences, and some things from the cutting room floor. Really enjoy this. Thank you, Chris!

The US Government may shut down but Of Note 018 will still come out in the morning! It's one you don't want to miss for sure. Subscribe to make sure you get it right in your inbox. Otherwise, keep your eyes here for when I post the link in the morning. buttondown.com/of_note

TWO SOUTHERN JEWISH GALS WALK INTO A BAR....I spent AmericanaFest with Karly Hartzman (aka "goth Dolly Parton," thanks Missy Dabice) and profiled Wednesday for GQ. And yes, the album is as good as everyone says it is www.gq.com/story/wednes...

Tweedy got blurbed by George Fucking Saunders.

I love this quote. I love the approach from Jeff. We are going to be seeing more and more of this in response to algorithms and AI flattening everything.

Amanda Shires spent an afternoon introducing me to Lubbock and a small portion of those very fun hours is now chronicled in Texas Monthly ahead of her new album :) gift link: www.texasmonthly.com/arts-enterta...

My newest Reader music feature is all about Pancho Garcia, a vital part of Chicago’s south-side hardcore scene who plays in several bands and books a ton of shows—in basements, on the street, and at a taqueria

Love Josh’s newsletter, he does it the right way, great vibes and even better recommendations, please subscribe.

Working on something for over half a year and then seeing it go live is always a treat. The piece I'm most proud of writing this year, and major thanks as always to @thequietus.com for accepting this joint @davidbowiereal.bsky.social and #ScottWalker swing-for-the-rafters. Hope you enjoy.

Haram's ليش الجنة بيتبلش في الجهنم؟ Why Does Paradise Begin in Hell is an AOTY contender. @porican.bsky.social spoke with Nader in Brooklyn about the album's optimism, the FBI investigation's family-fracturing consequences, the state of Arabic punk, and not fucking with corporate venue life.