🚨 Captain Beyond Album Discussion — Join Our Meetup tomorrow! We’ve got a great host and a killer record, all set to go. All we need now is you! Meeting is at 4 PM eastern. Here’s how to join the fun: medium.com/the-riff/ann...

Join us to discuss The English Beat’s third album: ○ August 24th 1pm PST/4pm EST via Zoom ○ Hosted by @theriffmedia.bsky.social ○ Zoom link & details at the end of article Powerpoint is ready:) Newcomers welcome! We are a great, international group of friendly but discerning nerds. #TheBeat

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This is gonna be awesome, but it's be even better with you there. Join us!

"As majestic strings give way to a lush mid-tempo bounce, the track doesn’t so much command the dance floor as lure partygoers off the wall like a stylishly attired pied piper." @jthepisodes.bsky.social medium.com/the-riff/sou...

This is an incredible story from @robjanicke.bsky.social Sometimes truth really is stranger than fiction.

"Kurt hasn’t been with us for a while, and I had already bid on his Cardigan sweater from the Nirvana MTV Unplugged performance and wound up as the second highest bidder. " #Music #Writing medium.com/the-riff/the...

"At its core, Reasonable Doubt is both an origin story and a use case for the ethos that defines its through line. Jay-Z’s worldview is best summed up in the opening verse of the album’s centerpiece, “Can I Live”: “I’d rather die enormous than live dormant.” @jthepisodes.bsky.social #music #hiphop

"It’s not colour or shading, it’s the centrepiece that gives the song a feeling of perpetual movement that matches the frantic nature of the vocal. "

“American Doll” sees Rebecca sending a pointed message to all who wish women would play their roles like the titular doll brand churns out. Instead of something bright and sarcastic, Black opts for the oppressive crunch of thick synths and metallic beats." #music #albumreview

"Instead, she invites us to join her in the messy, wonderful, painful process of being human. Whether she’s singing about the heartache of youth or the quiet acceptance of adulthood, Lorde’s music gives us space to feel everything we might otherwise try to ignore." #Lorde #Music

"I couldn’t place a label on it or even an easy reference point, and this scared and exhilarated me." Want to share your thoughts about this record? Join us on Sunday! It's free, and all are welcome. Meeting links are in the article. #music #ViolentFemmes

📅 SAVE THE DATE: On Sunday, we'll be talking about "Hallowed Ground" by The Violent Femmes. Have some thoughts on the LP? Wanna just listen in? Join us! All are welcome. Meeting details are in the article. #music #ViolentFemmes

Because the moment calls for more than a #TikTok dance: 10 #HipHop #Protest Anthems to Spark a Righteous Fire in @theriffmedia.bsky.social on #Medium #music #rap #resistance #justice tinyurl.com/3hdjv46p

“By the song’s end, even the greenest newcomer would be hard-pressed not to understand the roles of rapper and DJ and how they work together to make musical magic.” @jthepisodes.bsky.social #music medium.com/the-riff/bac...

"Construção is a stunning achievement of musical arrangements and haunting melodies carried by Buarque’s brilliant wordplay and syllabic rhythms...that transcend the language barrier." Cool people talking about a cool record? You bet. Change your plans & join us! Details in link. 4 PM EST/9 PM GMT

"Perhaps Larrieux’s sound was a touch too ethereal for a genre characterized by earthiness. Maybe she conveyed more uptown cocktail lounge than downtown coffee house. Certainly, her musical DNA is more Sade Adu than Chaka Khan." @jthepisodes.bsky.social #music #writing #Medium

"I like the little injection of soul the Wurlitzer keys bring to his country diddy. Dylan’s voice holds tightly to the beauty of his surroundings to keep the lonesome blues from consuming him completely..." #Music #Writing #Medium medium.com/the-riff/alb...

"Despite its rather gristly subject matter, the song, featuring Levon Helm and Rick Danko from The Band and David Crosby of Crosby, Stills, and Nash, is a fan favorite. Neil fans, you see, like it dark. Oh, yeah. And it rocks." #music #writing

ICYMI:

For the 25th anniversary of #DAngelo's #Voodoo, I look back at the album where neo soul found its voice in @theriffmedia.bsky.social on #Medium #music #soul @rollingstone.com @pitchfork.com @albumism.com medium.com/the-riff/sou...

"He croons and belts, strums and tickles, taps and pounds in resistance to industry demands and audience expectations, pushing him toward the performance of soul as he grapples to connect with his soul, our collective soul, through sound." @jthepisodes.bsky.social

"The iconic photograph of Elvis Presley sitting at the piano flanked by Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins, and Johnny Cash has been written about countless times...but I’m also always surprised how many times it goes unmentioned what was being recorded that day." medium.com/the-riff/the...

Today's roundtable will cover everyone's top tracks of 2024. Bring your list and join us! medium.com/the-riff/sta...

Our friend @stevewlauden.bsky.social with a moving story about loss, recovery, and resilience.

"But Wu-Tang Forever is nothing if not bold and sprawling. If Wu-Tang Clan is the closest thing hip-hop has seen to the Avengers, the nearly 2-hour double disc set is their Infinity War. " Join @jthepisodes.bsky.social as he takes a deep dive into an underrated classic. #music #albumreview #hiphop

Spoiler Alert: #LUNACHICKS. #punksky #coresky #riotgrrrl #queercore #queerpunk @theriffmedia.bsky.social medium.com/the-riff/the...

"Wholly oppressive, stark, and atmospheric, this album brings more Nine Inch Nails to mind in its deviant nature and brutal soundscapes than the Lana Del Rey comparisons she garnered from her debut...." #music #albumreview medium.com/the-riff/alb...

Really excited to share my interview with Susan SurfTone, a guitar hero. Read about her amazing life: medium.com/the-riff/int...

"Streaming economics and the pressures of being a public company stopped Pandora in its tracks. The company was never able to execute a plan that I believe would have been good for the music industry, including indie, other relatively small artists, and music listeners and lovers."

"...40 years later, in retirement, you discover that one of those forgotten tracks has become a global phenomenon — ‘The Most Mysterious Song on the Internet.’ And the wildest part? The entire world has been searching for you..." #music #writing medium.com/the-riff/los...

My 10 Songs for 2024 - A most treacherous year embodied and overcome in song in @theriffmedia.bsky.social on #Medium #music #Top10 #BestOf2024 medium.com/the-riff/10-...

ICYMI:

“…we’ve entered a black-mirror reality where all that matters is “jiggy vines” (fly clothing), “sugar dimes” (beautiful women), and reveling in lavish spoils of the hustle, be they hard-earned or ill-gotten.” #music medium.com/the-riff/bac...

“Few would have thought after the electronically inclined exploration of sin that was aptly titled Abnormally Attracted to Sin that she would set her sights on reinventing traditional Christmas-related pieces through her lens. “ medium.com/the-riff/alb...

Tis the season #musicsky #music

“…Yet, limiting the list to 10 was the most difficult it has been in recent memory. That’s an encouraging sign that, despite Kendrick’s urging to “Watch the Party Die,” the hip-hop party is alive and well.” medium.com/the-riff/top...

"Each time I listened to a peyote music song, the sound was slightly different depending on the region or the tribe performing. The throughlines were the steady percussive presence and heavy emphasis on repetition." medium.com/the-riff/how...

⏰ Starting in a few minutes!! 🔽

"Uncle Sam’s Curse, the third long-player from gangsta rap’s perennial peripheral players, Above the Law, holds a singular place in the G-Funk canon. It’s a riveting hoo-ride down an alternate timeline offering a tantalizing snapshot of where G-Funk could have gone..." medium.com/the-riff/bac...

"She’s working against conforming to what everyone else is doing. After listening to this track, it’s no wonder this song took off as well as it did. It has a sound that is so unique to itself." #music #albumreview #writing medium.com/the-riff/alb...

"...By the time we got to her 2020 third album, I Disagree, metalhead Poppy had fully taken control of her sound, embracing noisy and aggressive guitar riffs, cut with dreamlike snippets of synthpop." #Music #albumreview #Poppy medium.com/the-riff/202...

"I’d watched so many David Letterman shows that took place right there. All of those musical performances happened on THAT stage. It was overwhelming to think we were now added to that list." #Music #BR-549 #Conan medium.com/the-riff/i-s...

Looking for an eclectic #holiday soundtrack for your #Christmas shopping and #gift wrapping? Check out @theriffmedia.bsky.social's Winter Holiday #Playlist and join us next Sunday, 12/8 for the discussion #music medium.com/the-riff/dis...

"Maybe you’re playing Whamageddon. Or maybe you're like me and were knocked out before noon on the 1st. Perhaps you wait all year to meet the final boss of earworms? Either way, we’ve got an exciting event happening this year—happening right now, literally as you read this." #music #Christmas

Christmas decorations are up. #music #Christmas

"She grabs your face, challenging you to continue your judgment of her ways to get the attention she so desperately desires..." #music #recordreview medium.com/the-riff/alb...

30 years ago today, #MaryJBlige dropped #MyLife on the world. Along with #TLC's #CrazySexyCool, it made 1994 the year #hiphop soul grew up. I look back in @theriffmedia.bsky.social #music #R&B medium.com/the-riff/tlc...

There’s a lot of cool people making cool shit, and there’s no better time to support them than today, retail’s high holy day. That gravy boat and whatever Temu is flooding your TL with can wait. #music #books #art open.substack.com/pub/thekevin...

“The goosebumps rose as I listened to something unlike anything I had ever heard before. It had a guitar hook to die for…” medium.com/the-riff/viv...