music – Page 10 – Vol. 1 Brooklyn

Infinite Musical Genres: An Event Celebrating Ian King’s “Appetite for Definition”

October 8, 2018 No Comments

As anyone who’s explored metadata, Wikipedia, or the hierarchies of self-created musical definitions can attest, music can be subdivided into a nearly-infinite array of genres, subgenres, movements, and styles. In his new book Appetite For Definition, Ian King delves into the history, aesthetics, and ups and downs of rock genres. As longtime admirers of King’s music writing, we’re thrilled to be co-hosting this event; Vol.1 Brooklyn Managing Editor Tobias Carroll will be in conversation with King.

Featured, Interviews, music

The Haunted Sounds of Distant Spaces: Helios on the Making of “Veriditas”

September 26, 2018 No Comments

To call Veriditas, the new album by Helios, immersive would be an understatement. Helios represents one aspect of Keith Kenniff ‘s musical output: you might also know him from his more classically-oriented work as Goldmund, or his work in the pop group Mint Julep. Here, he channels a decidedly nocturnal mood, blending sonic spaces with field recordings to create something wholly unpredictable. I asked Kenniff about the album’s genesis, his literary inspirations, and the experience of recording outdoors.

Books, Featured, Interviews, music

Inside “We Are The Clash”

August 22, 2018 No Comments

As you might expect from its title, Mark Andersen and Ralph Heibutzki’s new book We Are the Clash delves into the history of a certain beloved punk band–but it’s the period that they focus on that might surprise some readers. Specifically, Andersen and Heibutzki explore the complex dynamics of the band’s final lineup, the music that they made, and how this uneasily juxtaposed with the rise of reactionary politics. Between this and the upcoming release of a new Joe Strummer […]

Books, Featured, Literary Ephemera, music

On the Convergence of Songs, Images, and “The Orchid Thief”

August 9, 2018 No Comments

When Kevin Larimer, the editor of Poets and Writers Magazine, emailed and asked if I’d be up to take part in another “inspiration experiment” I instantly knew just who I wanted to invite. The first time we had tried this, two years prior, we worked with author Joyce Carol Oates. Oates kindly agreed to read her poem Too Young to Marry, But Not Too Young to Die, and then listen as a number of artists read and performed pieces written […]

Featured, Interviews, music

“The Best Critique is Self Critique”: Talking “Endless Scroll” and Alienation With BODEGA

July 19, 2018 No Comments

BODEGA‘s new album Endless Scroll is a spot-on distillation of a slice of city life circa now, from contradictory impressions of the larger world to frustrations over rampant consumerism and technologically-driven alienation. Add some minimalist, propulsive postpunk to the mix and you have a mightily compelling record. We talked with singer/guitarist Ben Hozie about Endless Scroll, media saturation, and more.

Featured, Interviews, music

Cycles, Distortion, and the Cosmic: An Interview With Dick Stusso

May 23, 2018 No Comments

Oakland’s Dick Stusso comes from a long musical line of off-beat singer-songwriters, with an unexpected take on the transcendental and a fondness for songs both harmonious and dissonant. In Heaven, his new album, jolts you whenever it seems too familiar; the resulting ten songs shift effortlessly from the comfortable to the surreal. He’ll be in Brooklyn next month, playing the Park Church Co-Op on June 8th as part of the Northside Festival. In advance of this, we asked him a […]

Featured, Interviews, music

The Making of “Hundreds of Days,” With Literature: An Interview With Mary Lattimore

May 18, 2018 No Comments

Hundreds of Days, the new album by Mary Lattimore, is a stunning, sprawling work abounding with moving compositions anchored by Lattimore’s distinctive harp playing. It’s the result of a residency at the Headlands Center for the Arts, located in northern California, and the result is Lattimore’s most moving work to date. Her tour of the US begins today–she’ll be in NYC on May 29th, at Union Pool, for her record release show, and will be back on June 28th for […]

Featured, Interviews, music

The Beatific Conundrums of Mishka Shubaly

May 17, 2018 No Comments

Since spotting him over twenty-five years ago, sitting on a bench in an oversized G ‘n’ R shirt, long curly hair tendrlling down over his acoustic guitar, I’ve treated Mishka Shubaly, despite him being only marginally younger, like a little brother, minus all the protect a support parts. For reasons best explained to a theoretical therapist that I really should get around to seeing one of these days, I’ve mocked Mishka, fought with him, whined when he chastised me […]