five years of umaw—lots of wins, and a lot that has yet to be won members and organizers speak to me about their experiences battling the powers that be and why anyone who cares about music needs to take artists' rights seriously

it's always incredible when an artist exceeds your own sky-high expectations. dijon did that. i wrote about it.

it's a wrap

guaranteed catharsis + camaraderie at our summer party w/ infinity knives & brian ennals this thursday. tune in & show up!

we write. we edit. we report. we listen. we decide. we own our work. plz support us if you're able. thx!

spoke w/ the almighty yeule about the songs they want to soundtrack their funeral for our existential playlist series. (to be clear, we wish for all the artists featured in this series to live very long lives!)

spoke w/ one of my absolute favorite music critics, ben ratliff, about his new book 'run the song.' topics include listening as a superpower, describing as an act of faith, endlessness, Hendrix, Monk, and the aesthetic failures of jam bands

somewhere between what was, what is, and what will be, charli brought brat to brooklyn

a probing, of-the-times piece by @cushac.bsky.social about musicians who are opting out of streaming and finding other ways to share their art and commune with listeners

tried to put my embarrassing late-night TV consumption to good use

as it happens, i found the "happy" bon iver album to be kind of a bummer

clear-eyed, heartwarming, and just very real—an incredible personal essay by @jillmapes.bsky.social about music, and listening, as legacy

i wrote abt the jane remover album, which is incredible

i really enjoy talking w/ dan bejar—even if he told me he was "very disturbed by having to do" this interview

wrote about one of my all-time faves, tortured artists, near-death dramatics, fundamentals, permutations, and the eight versions of "spiders (kidsmoke)" on the a ghost is born super deluxe edition

oh wow, we're throwing our first hearing things party! music and merriment, offline and in person. it's going to be great. would love to see you there!

got a lil existential w/ magdalena bay for our new interview series abt funeral music—immortality, cremation, billy joel, we get to it all

many choice insights from malkmus & sweeney here, including: "When you would go see the Fall, you would be like, 'This guy has bad vibes, he doesn’t like me, and he thinks I’m a loser—but I’m still gonna copy him.' I don’t see that as much anymore. It’s like all the bands are forced to beg now."

so david lynch called me "baby" once, and you can hear it meanwhile i will be screaming like laura until further notice

at hearing things, we take pride in giving new artists the space and consideration they likely wouldn't receive elsewhere. in that spirit, i'm excited to present my profile on the wise and wary electro-pop-folk genius emory!

editable/addable spreadsheet of music industry folks who have lost their homes to the fires, along with gofundme links and immediate requests where applicable. for sharing docs.google.com/spreadsheets...

really love this review by @jawnita.bsky.social the summer truly can't come soon enough

if you are a fan of arts criticism and/or vampires and/or "love shack," wesley morris' 'nosferatu' review is a must-read that kicker!

some year-end thoughts about four artists of a certain age—millennial, geriatric—who released albums that made me think about what's next for our cursed ilk

this is the first time since the george w. bush administration that i'm not involved in pitchfork's year-end lists. it's weird. but also kind of nice! here are a bunch of things i enjoyed this year. i hope you find something new to like too.

ml buch's music helped me get through the pandemic with my sanity (somewhat) intact. i finally got to see her perform last night, and it helped me articulate a few things about her project overall and why it's such a balm.

resident gumshoe @cushac.bsky.social is on the case

turn my music high high high high-er 🔊 www.hearingthings.co