[rating=4]
Released March 19, 2002
Mirah’s third album, Advisory Committee, is imaginative, gripping and totally unexpected.

“Mirah’s way with words at times feels like an internal monologue, describing the things we talk ourselves through when alone, the things we never got to say and reliving moments that have passed. “

I’ll Eat You Last.

Intimatchine talk to Andrew Darley about how they want their music to make listeners somewhat uncomfortable, and their EP I’ll Eat You Last.

“We are particularly interested in themes of androgyny, pandrogyny, and cross-gender identity as part of our creative content and process. There is an aesthetic and feeling that go with tapping into one another’s social construct.”

[rating=2]
Cert: 15 • USA: 123 min • Exclusive Media, Cross Creek, Imagine Ent • January 27, 2014

Rush ebbs between some decent moments to scenes that would feel more at home in The Fast and the Furious franchise.

“The film is held back by Chris Hemsworth’s performance, which appears deliberate and self-conscious in adopting the cocksure persona. He seems unable to relax into the role, overcompensating to the point where character is superceded by a nauseating caricature.”

Angel Guts: Red Classroom.

Xiu Xiu’s frontman Jamie Stewart about his relationship to music, being a queer artist and how he sees the future of the band.

“I always felt pretty unwaveringly and confidently bisexual. Fortunately I grew up in a big city so there wasn’t a cultural bias towards me, to a degree.”

Music listened to but not written about in 2013.

There are more new albums to listen to every week than one person can listen. Here Andrew Darley selects 10 that we listened to but didn’t write about in 2013.

Call To Arms.

Andrew Darley talks to Classroom Battle’s lead singer Tigrane Minassian about the band’s debut EP, This Week’s Question.

“It’s a great privilege to be living in the era of digital music and social media. I know it doesn’t sound very ‘retro’, and I love physical CDs more than anything, but the reality is that without the internet we wouldn’t be where we are today.”

Submission and power.

Following a 5 star review of their debut album, Dominae, Andrew Darley spoke with Leanne Macomber, one half of the synthpop duo Ejecta.

“Ejecta is a mysterious creature. She finds herself on earth after being reborn, or reanimated, or perhaps as a ghost who has just passed over into the next realm. Maybe even an alien. She is always depicted nude to allude to this displacement. Naked, she bears no signs of her culture or class. She is a timeless every woman in this sense.”

[rating=5]
Released November 15, 2013
Dominae is an accomplished album built on the tension and insecurities of relationships. It sparkles.

“Something special exists in the sincerity of the words and how they come together with the backdrop of synthesizers and drumbeats. It’s an energetic and uplifting event that feels like receiving a reassuring hug from your closest friend following a bad experience.”

What My Mother Taught Me.

Laura White talks about her EP What My Mother Taught Me, and her decision to release it independently after her time on X Factor in 2008.

“Amy Winehouse was quite a vulnerable person and used her music to be honest about it. If people can hear her in my music that is fine with me because she was an amazing artist.”

[rating=4]
Released September 29, 2013
Lady Gaga’s mission to bring art into popular culture continues on ARTPOP.

“ARTPOP epitomizes the intent of Lady Gaga’s career and how she frames herself as an artist in the world. Her approach makes one wonder whether she has made a deal with devil in choosing to be a mainstream artist.”