Every week, I'm faced with, and aware of, 10-14 different reviewable albums that, in a perfect world, I'd be able to pop a review out of. But I'm just one person who, while maintaining my sanity, can only do 5-6 reviews per week.
I'm not trying to rub shoulders with any record executives. If rubbing shoulders in the industry is what I wanted to do then I wouldn't be doing what I'm doing.
I don't really think reviewing music is something you're going to get famous doing overnight.
I always liked popping up in a place, inviting my fans out, and then having a discourse with them in person. That's what I try to do with 'The Needle Drop,' even though it's difficult to have a two-way conversation.
The Internet is the fastest way to get what you want and expose yourself to music you would never have heard otherwise.
There are so many artists, so many songs, so many producers, that it's hard to keep track of whose music is worthwhile.
Anybody could put their thoughts on a record out there. I think the world of reviews and opinions is now very much a meritocracy.
For all its reverb and defiant noise, the sound of Black Tambourine barely reached past the borders of Washington, D.C., in the early '90s.
Less is more' may be a cliche, but that doesn't mean musicians often heed that advice. Swedish singer-songwriter Kristian Matsson, who performs and records as The Tallest Man on Earth, follows it religiously.
In terms of sound, it's nothing huge, but when it comes to passion, The Tallest Man on Earth can be spotted from miles away.
Since reuniting in 2002, Mission of Burma has become the triumphant story of a band that time forgot.
The group disbanded prematurely in 1983, but its records made a sizable mark: Mission of Burma became a band's band; leaving noticeable impressions on the likes of Pearl Jam, R.E.M., Sonic Youth and Yo La Tengo.
Let's Wrestle would rather poke fun than point fingers, even if there's a problem that needs fixing.
Justin Broadrick's career isn't widely celebrated, but it's still shockingly uncompromising. From his place at the beginning of grindcore with Napalm Death to his role in Godflesh's expansion of industrial metal, the U.K. musician specializes in artistic hairpin turns.
For more than 10 years, Daniel Snaith has been playing mad scientist with pop and psychedelic music. As Manitoba, and more recently as Caribou, he's pushed the genres' limits with electronics and studio trickery.
With its distinctly rural feel, the New York band Woods makes an ideal soundtrack for balmy walks amidst mammoth trees and crunchy beds of dead leaves.
Mash-ups have gained a lot of credibility between the fall of Danger Mouse's infamous 'Grey Album' and the rise of Girl Talk's overwhelming mega-mixes. There's just something marvelous about hearing seemingly mismatched ideas work together, as two worlds collide to a heavy beat.
Rather than highlighting music's differences, Kids & Explosions' Josh Raskin mixes songs together based on their surprising common ground, making them blend rhythmically and melodically.
Gonjasufi may sound at first like a rambling hip-hop crackpot, but there's more to the California rapper and singer than mere eccentricity: What appears messy and thrown together is anything but.
The musical era depicted in 'Round and Round' may not be pop's brightest moment, but rather than abandon its ideas, Ariel Pink reclaims them for himself and holds on tight.
