I mean, you can forget the saxophone; you had me with that extremely punny name. Continue reading
Tagged with Music …
“The 25 Best Songs About New York City”
I had to drive all the way out of town and into another state to bring myself to contribute to this list. Continue reading
“5 New Releases We Love: Algiers’ Urgent Return, Georgia’s Perfect Dance Pop, And More”
Everything else may have gone wrong, but at least Bombay Bicycle Club’s first release in several years has gone totally right. Continue reading
“Diving Deep into Distraction with John Darnielle”
One easily distracted ADD person + one other easily distracted ADD person = a very good conversation about the endless intersections between the act of creation. Continue reading
Review: Cage the Elephant, “Social Cues,” 2019
What do you do when a band you’ve followed for years makes a new album and it’s…kind of bland? Continue reading
Review: Ex Hex, “It’s Real”
Remember, kids: If you can engage a thing you’re writing about more than once *before* you write about it, you should do that. Continue reading
Review: Rustin Man, “Drift Code”
It’s free association time, in which Andy compares Paul Webb to Tom Waits AND David Bowie and uses a bunch of flower space age language to attempt, and maybe fail, to describe the new Rustin Man album’s sound. Continue reading
Andy’s Best Things, 2018 Edition
Hi. I’m late writing this up. I had other plans for ringing in 2019. Honestly, snowboarding and beer are only part of it. If I think about it for a second, I don’t really have a lot to say about 2018; I’m sans a unifying statement to reconcile all of the pop culture I digested … Continue reading
Jump Little Children: Reveling in a Revival
Short version: We saw Jump, Little Children, whose members did jump but also are not little children, play at Boston’s City Winery at the end of September. They were great. Longer version: I was introduced to this group back in college and I’ve been a fan since, so watching them play a decade and change … Continue reading
Review: Gregory Alan Isakov, “Evening Machines”
Hello! I did another music review! This time, it’s Gregory Alan Isakov’s latest, Evening Machines, far and away one of the 2018 albums that’s gotten under my skin; the thing grows on me every time I listen to it. It’s wonderful. Frankly, I’m just going to cut off right here, except to say that if you’re … Continue reading
Review: Primaveras, Echoes in the Well of Being
Good day, lords and ladies! I did an album review! A California album review! Because, I’ve got to tell you: Primaveras’ first album, Echoes in the Well of Being, is either a love letter to California or a depressive picture of life dissatisfied in California, depending on how you choose to hear it. Regardless, I dig its … Continue reading
“Daily Dose: Amo Amo, ‘Closer to You'”
Today’s Daily Dose for Paste Magazine, brought to you by: Me! Okay, strictly speaking it’s brought to you by Amo Amo, a new band from Los Angeles enjoying the producorial talents of one Jim James, but I wrote a couple hundred words about the song. That ain’t nothing. It’s a good song, too, else I wouldn’t … Continue reading
“In Tender Tones, Erin Rae Reminds Us That Human Experience Wields Universal Power”
About me: I’ll happily wring two pieces out of one thing if I can, and you can’t make me feel ashamed about it, no sirree. That’s my little way of introducing my piece, for The ARTery, about Putting On Airs, the solo debut album from the great Erin Rae, who you may recall I interviewed for Paste Magazine … Continue reading
“Maxwell Bailey’s ‘In Between'”
This piece hit the web so long ago that I forgot to share it (“so long ago,” of course, means “sometime in early June”). But hey! I remembered! So here it is, my musings on “In Between,” a live EP from local singer-songwriter Maxwell Bailey, which he recorded in an Airbnb all in one shot. … Continue reading
“Daily Dose: Cornelia Murr, ‘Who Am I To Tell You'”
Y’know: If I’m writing for a series titled “The Daily Dose,” it probably makes sense to share on the day of the dose, right? Yikes. What a doink I am. Anyways, Cornelia Murr writes pretty darn good music, so I wrote about the latest single from her upcoming debut album, Lake Tear of the Clouds, for Paste Magazine‘s … Continue reading
Andy’s Best Things, 2018 Halftime Edition
June has arrived, and also it’s about to end, the month-long worldwide celebrations of my birthday winding down* as I settle into my new age-number and look ahead to the rest of the year**. Thus, this, my Best Things halftime report, expanded once more from merely a ranking of film and TV to include music, … Continue reading
“The Beautiful and Cathartic Words of Erin Rae”
A couple weeks back, I had the great pleasure of speaking with a young singer-songwriter out of Nashville, Erin Rae, on the strength of the interview I conducted with Lillie Mae out of Boston Calling last month. (Mae. Rae. Try not to get confused.) Like Lillie, Erin is a blast to speak with. Also like … Continue reading
“Lillie Mae: Music In Her Blood”
Boston Calling isn’t over yet! I mean: It is. But I still have coverage to share, so it sort of isn’t? Anyway, I wrote a profile of the very great, super talented Lillie Mae Rische for Paste Magazine after chatting with her about how life’s treated her since releasing Forever and Then Some in 2017, her … Continue reading
“Boston Calling Wrap-Up”
Well, I did it. I survived my first Boston Calling, which is my first music festival (covered as a member of the press), and also the second festival I’ve covered this year (of three festivals total, the third one being a beer fest coming up this July). There’s a lot to say about Boston Calling, … Continue reading
“Boston Calling Preview”
So: I’m writing about music now, too. Don’t give me that look. I know you ostensibly “visit my blog” to “read about movies and television,” and that “my brand is all over the fucking place,” but the reality is this: Freelancing about the movies is great, but really hard, because every asshole who’s sat through a … Continue reading
A Constant Visual Feast 