November 7 - the Snocaps record is such a pleasant surprise. New Mountain Goats wrecked me! And in local news, I'm really digging the new Color Palette and the solo drops from the Home Remedies folks (Sue Hudson Lives, Straphanger, Unlikely Animal Frienship)

What happens when you stumble into Halloween wearing sparkling, forbidden "plastic" clothes?

On air with a cool band from Philly! Listen at gutsyradio.org until 11 pm ET

Sitting in a coffee shop weeping openly @ the new Mountain Goats

For D.C. singer-songwriter Roba Djalleta, Virginia really is for lovers. Her new EP Lover’s Virginia documents the pivot between her teens and 20s—a time when she established herself in the local music scene and came out as transgender. Contributor Taylor Ruckle on Djalleta’s journey:

No fucking way

Many thanks to everyone who contributed to this piece (especially Sarah for the edit). Ambrose Nzams told me self-publishing is the coolest thing you can do, and after reporting this, I do agree

I liked Short n Sweet but new Sabrina is giving R rated Meghan Trainor

Really feeling the new Soul Meets Body record. Lotta bands these days name-checking MCR/P!atD/Paramore and comparatively few bands nailing the camp/theatricality soulmeetsbody.bandcamp.com/album/halluc...

Seriously if you know someone who books bands please tell them Perennial is good; my life is just emails at this point

Beats on this thing are soo crisp 🔥🔥🔥

Thinking about how casually K busted out the Crazy Train riff in the middle of a Spring Silver song last night. Nobody is doing it like them

Listen I'll go to a show no matter how late it runs but I loooove the DC library punk archive shows on a work night. 6:30 start time, three sets, home drinking ice water by 9:30, lfg

Writing about the Bad Moves farewell show for City Paper - fans & friends of the band, if you want to talk about what Bad Moves has meant to you and/or the scene, please get in touch!

Talked to Chad and Chelsey from Perennial about sculpture, collage, and expressionism in the making of their magnum opus, Art History...but mostly about how an art project can give shape to your life:

Cut-and-pasting the best ideas from their DVD and record collections, Connecticut band Perennial have perfected their encyclopaedic art punk.

On my hands and knees BEGGING indie pop producers to lay off the de-esser, I cannot handle another slow song where everyone suddenly has a lisp, I'm at my limit

Been thinking about the virtues and limitations of specificity in songwriting, so it was lovely to speak with Jensen McRae (brilliant storyteller that she is) about the emotional and autobiographical truths behind her new record. I hope to have understood her at least 85%!

If you were at the Atlantis tonight, you may have heard an ear-splitting shriek when Jensen McRae announced she would be covering "Love Love Love" by The Mountain Goats. That was me.

See you at Black Cat on May 9 to support healthcare for trans youth at Whitman-Walker and to grab a copy of this must-listen compilation of over 25 D.C. bands! Tell ur friends!

Home is Where is always releasing a song about some kind of fluid

As a teen/20-something, Born to Run was THE unbeatable best of the Springsteen catalog, no question. Last few years I'm starting to wonder if it's actually Darkness on the Edge of Town.

So excited to be joining Emily Schweich's Not a Phase on Gutsy radio tonight to talk music writing and share some favorite tunes!

Thank you to all artists and community members who contributed to this piece and to the many others out there making this scene what it is 💜

After an informal six-year hiatus, Glasgow sunshine purveyors Sacred Paws are back with the confidence to reconcile their silly, sunny side with the more sombre parts of being a grown-up, as they tell @taylorruckle.bsky.social

We asked local trans artists how to support the community. From speaking up at work to donating to someone’s top surgery fund, here’s what they said.

It was an honor to talk to the kind folks at WRGW about music writing (and surreal to be on the other side of the interview). Contains shouts out to DC's best emo of 2024, and...a sort-of defense of my less than glowing Glitterer review gwradio.com/honest-and-m...

Good morning! For bandcamp Friday we have: -"A Touch of Grace" by @nyxfears.bsky.social is $5! -Our '24 albums are NYP -We have preorders up for hodera's "old wounds" @ultradeluxe.bsky.social's "the floria wars", + @superdestroyer.diysky.xyz's "Hell is real" lonelyghostrecs.bandcamp.com/music

Today is Bandcamp Friday, which means all proceeds go to the artist Never been a better day to pick up a copy of our debut album, “pink balloons” 💞💞💞 ekkoastral.bandcamp.com/album/pink-b...

A true pleasure to speak with the always funny and earnest and earnestly funny Cheekface, who just put out an album you should listen to at least six times in a row today

Terminally cheeky, independent LA trio Cheekface use their surprise new record Middle Spoon to move past a year of health crises and breakups.

"I still wanna Live Forever, but I'm not the one you want." Is anybody up for this one? I talked to Bartees Strange about the chain of musical references that connects his albums and the fears (personal and professional) he faces on his newest, Horror:

Bartees Strange is the Jordan Peele of indie rock – an auteur who directs everyday fears into his shapeshifting music

My first Bandcamp Album of the Day is a record that caught me by surprise (as a casual fan of Ignorance (2021)). Really dynamic and exciting live arrangements here:

Maybe the biggest thing I've ever written, in scope. An overview of the musical life of Will Cullen Hart (or at least the parts of it you can find scattered across Bandcamp) and an update on the fate of the final Olivia Tremor Control album. RIP to an inspiration and a psych rock visionary:

JANUARY 10. Fake Fruit is an early contender for best album I missed in 2024. Starburned and Unkissed is the best song I missed obsessing over in 2024.

One of the coolest gig concepts EVER is happening tomorrow. 5-band bill meets 16 band charity basketball tournament benefiting the PCRF. I talked to the organizers, plus competitors like Pinky Lemon and Bartees Strange, for City Paper:

On Jan. 11, local bands hit the stage and the court for Mosh Madness, raising funds for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. WCP contributor Taylor Ruckle spoke to organizers about the “sheer goofiness of it all coming together.”

Hard not to feel like the new Clipping album was made for me specifically

She is helping me with king side attacks

The world isn't designed to be wired-headphone friendly, but that doesn't mean bluetooth is the answer. In 2025, we must abolish all knobs and armrests.

Gonna be a Strange day, iykyk

She's a gamer

Half Life 2 is still spectacular and with the new dev commentary I'm v charmed by how much of themselves they put into it. Hearing how they had to hack all these new systems together and navigate the adoption of GPUs, while walking you through...

ALL TIMER Tiny Desk youtu.be/-91vymvIH0c?...

Yasmin Williams' Acadia has such a powerful grounding effect on me every time I hear it, which I've been especially grateful for this fall. Here I am trying to work out why for Bandcamp Daily's Best Albums of 2024!

Ohh THAT'S benson boone. Song sucks so bad

"I can't relax, but I'm good for other things," like AOTY LIST SEASON 🎉 Here I am talking up my favorite lyrics of the year (Rosie Tucker) assessing the state of emo landmark iconography (Combat) and doing my best to eulogize the irreplaceable Ka

Fri Day Night

On the other app I've been keeping a thread for the movies I've seen for the first time in 2024...gonna pick it up here too with number 28, Escape From New York (John Carpenter, 1981)