Breaking news! The Strokes’ new album Angles literally just came out: March 18, 2011 in Australia and March 22, 2011 in the US. When there were even rumors of this album dropping last month, The Strokes became a trending topic on Twitter faster than anything I’ve ever seen. And for good reason – the band…
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What is there to say about Sonic Youth? Unless you started listening to them after getting Juno‘s soundtrack, you love them. The band are as big of a staple in the “indie rock” repertoire as Joy Division, the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, or maybe even The Velvet Underground. The band has been making music for almost 30 years…
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Claire London is a singer/songwriter here in New York City who is on the verge of something big. Behind the pretty face lie powerhouse vocals, a polished and produced sound and an altogether talented woman whose ambition matches up. As evidenced by the singles “Color Me” and “Basket Case”, Claire’s sound is well produced, melodic,…
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On February 23, 2011, I went to Webster Hall to see Beach House and Papercuts play a sold out show to a crowd of adoring fans, myself included. I’m not sure when exactly Beach House exploded, probably when the song “Norway” became popular back in 2009 and helped usher in the chillwave movement that defined…
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On February 17, 2011, I headed to Brooklyn’s The Knitting Factory for Akron/Family’s kickoff performance in the tour supporting the February 8, 2011 release of their new album, S/T II: The Cosmic Birth and Journey of Shinju TNT . After listening to the promotional copy of the album non-stop for the past three weeks, I…
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Alternatively, Why You Should ALWAYS Say Yes When A Friend Asks You To Go To A Show. Last Tuesday night, February 8, 2011, I ventured out of Williamsburg to go to my favorite part of Brooklyn, Greenpoint. I had worked an especially difficult day at my job and was tired enough to the point of…
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Last Friday night, in Montclair, New Jersey, I witnessed a rebirth in the making. Call it a renaissance if you will: Lauryn Hill is back. Easily one of the most influential singers of all time after the phenomenal success of 1998’s The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, this five-time Grammy winner went on a true hiatus…
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I’ve been a fan of electronic noise-pop duo Sleigh Bells since long before that pesky USA Skins promotion. They became big last summer when I was working at an online record store in Brooklyn, thanks to a few key live performances and media spots, and suddenly I heard that infectious noise pop in every dive…
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I was perusing the options for my piece this week, deciding between Tame Impala’s Innerspeaker and Massive Attack’s Heligoland. Both albums are excellent and would’ve made my Best of 2010 piece had there been room. In the midst of combing my library, I came across Metric’s Fantasies and realized something pretty important. I spend so much…
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There is much more to Jen Hirsh than meets the eye. Out March 1, 2011, her album Myself in Two is influenced by folk, soul, jazz, funk and pop music. Beyond being an extremely gifted vocalist and charismatic performer, the young indie pop songstress has loyal followings on both coasts of the USA, expertise in…
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I ignored My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy for a long time because honestly, I’m pretty sick of Kanye West’s antics. Sure, I enjoy College Dropout and Late Registration every now and again and even saw him perform at my alma mater back in 2008. I used to bump Graduation with the best of them. I…
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This album is # 6 on my Top 5 Albums of 2010. It’s not what you think. I was never a huge fan of Deerhunter (until now). I thought their sound was a little contrived and at times, unoriginal. This opinion was formed when I was in Arizona and solidified when I moved to Brooklyn,…
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Now that Christmas is over, it’s that time of year to get nostalgic for something that hasn’t quite ended yet. I hate to sound like a broken record here, but most of the albums on this list I have already reviewed for this magazine. While that may somehow make me unoriginal – so meta I’m…
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I’d like to talk about something a little different this week. I’ve always known lipmag is a feminist publication by nature, or at least rooted in the idea, yet somehow my pieces don’t relate to that. I find it strange, because after two years of intense internal debate and a thesis that essentially proved this…
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