If I’m going to listen to a Christmas song on Christmas day, please let it be a tight, raucous punk tune with lyrics from Santa Claus’s perspective that include sentiments such as “Th Grinch/ He freaks me out/ I’m going … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Pom Pom Squad, “Hello Santa”

As we stumble to the end of this misbegotten year, it’s only right and proper that our holidays tunes are tinged with melancholy. In the opening lyrics of “Happy Holiday,” the new track from Diet Cig, Alex Luciano sweetly intones, … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Diet Cig, “Happy Holiday”

With a spectacular guitar riff, beautifully gnarled instrumentation, and vocals that slice like piano wire that’s been repurposed as weaponry, Editrix’s “Chelsea” is exactly the anti-capitalism pile-driver we need this holiday season. Tell Me I’m Bad, the debut album from … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Editrix, “Chelsea”

It takes diligence to track the minor shifts and major changes Tigers Jaw has experienced over the years. Formed in Scranton, Pennsylvania a decade and a half ago, the group has undergone significant roster changes and refined their sound along … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Tigers Jaw, “Lemon Mouth”

It’s a tricky time to be an emerging artist. Arlo Parks started 2020 with a headlining tour through Europe that couldn’t be completed because of public heath lockdowns, prompting the need to find other ways to keep her name out … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Arlo Parks, “Caroline”

“The Spirit Of,” the new track by Cloud Nothings, cracks open my id and sluices in everything my younger self ever wanted in a song. It’s guitars and drums and bass, and producer Steve Albini making a lovely smear of … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Cloud Nothings, “The Spirit Of”

It started with a promise: Well, it really started with a fan who posted a joking rendition of the Goo Goo Dolls hit in the style of Phoebe Bridgers, catching the eye of the artist herself. Then, on Election Day, … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Phoebe Bridgers and Maggie Rogers, “Iris”

This song shouldn’t still be relevant. When Tracy Chapman made a rare television appearance this week, performing on the eve of Election Day for Late Night with Seth Meyers, she selected a song she wrote over thirty years ago and … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Tracy Chapman, “Talkin’ ‘Bout a Revolution”

On “Angelina,” the new single from the L.A. band Kitten, they build a breezy pop sound and deploy a burrowing, irresistible hook to create a perfect song of summer. And why shouldn’t they? The summer never ends where they live, … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Kitten, “Angelina”

I worked at a little college in the mountains for several years, mostly working with a student crew to book shows and other programs into our little coffeehouse. Those students definitely had their favorites, and, because they had excellent taste, … Continue reading This Week’s Model — Mal Blum, “Nobody Waits”