[Updated] The Christmas music season starts in October.
A couple from Clemson saw me taking notes and wanted me to know that they thought Voodoo was the best festival they had been to, and tha
Beck’s set at Voodoo Saturday night was a love letter to New Orleans.
Guns N’ Roses still deliver on their original promise.
Danny Brown isn’t interested in proving his maturity.
The Golden Hits of The Shangs sounds gorgeously anachronist
Protest songs and party anthems are two sides of the same coin. They’re both calls to action, and they’re about the moment.
“Goddamn, man child / You fucked me so good I almost said I love you,” Lana Del Rey begins her fifth al
Shreveport’s Seratones fell together in the way that musicians
Members of Generationals have spoken in interviews about not feeli
Midsommar is a beautifully stylized but standardly problematic slasher movie.
This past weekend, Essence Festival celebrated its 25th anniversary, and
[Updated] There are two key passages in the bi
Save Me feels like a 20-minute focus shift as
Anderson .Paak knows that his face is his money.
Tank and the Bangas treated their Jazz Fest set earlier
I started to write one review of Wednesday night’s Foo Fighters show at The Fillmore, but when I checked my review of their 2017 set at
It’s difficult to stop an audience in its tracks with an unrecorded song, but Lucy Dacus has done it both
I discovered TV Girl last year after the release of their third album,
Jazz Fest producer Quint Davis introduced the festival-closing set by saying that three acts had closed the fest on what is now the Acur
Reviews of Diana Ross and Tank and the Bangas at Jazz Fest Saturday, and picks for Sunday to close out the festival.
Lizzo has made her name for by loving herself and forcing everyone else to follow suit.
I was thinking a lot this weekend about things you never see at Jazz Fest, and I got two more on Sunday.
Music is only part of the story at Jazz Fest, which is part of why covering it is so interesting.
Bands have been trying for years to do what Moonlight Benjamin made seem
Think of Thursday at a test drive for this year’s Jazz Fest.
Last year, Sia and Gwen Stefani released Christmas albums, and in a naked nod to the commercial nature of the Christmas album concept, t
Mac DeMarco stood alone in a rusted gazebo in the center of the Music Box with a wide, lopsided stance, cigarette dangling at the corner of his gap
[Marisa Clogher, Kate Reed, Alex Rawls and photographer Erika Goldring contributed to this wrap-up.
Arctic Monkeys were the band everyone was supposed to know in 2013, but festival crowds today don’t se
[Updated] The last time Janelle Monae played Voodo
Travis Scott is a cultural curator.
Some celebrities would take a humiliating arrest and issue a public apology.
The legend about Buddy Bolden was that when he blew
Much of the writing on Delish da Goddess’
Kuwaisiana makes its purpose plain with its name.
There’s a school of cratedigger thought that equates rarity with quality.
The jam wave that followed Phish’s first appearance at Jazz Fest changed New Orleans’ nightlife during the festival, for years turning i
Trombone Shorty’s fest-closing set deserves to be the ritual that th
Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler clearly has no plans to grow old gracefully.
Friday at Jazz Fest was a lesson in context.
Terrace Martin’s set felt like it was just getting started when he brought it to
[Updated] This first weekend of Jazz Fest will be remembered—to the degree that it will be remembered at all—for its ex
Big Freedia received a rock star’s reception when she played Jazz Fes
Friday was as pleasant a start to Jazz Fest 2018 as you could imagine.
Friday's Pop-Up Magazine show at the Civic Theater was advertised only as a "live magazine," leaving the audience mostly in the dark about what to expect. After seeing the show, it's easy to see why.
[This is the first piece by new contributor Daniel Kelley]
Don't sleep on Spotify's Holiday Singles, Black Santa's Mixtape, Kaskade's late night Christmas, Bloodshot's irreverent holiday favorites-to-be, and new Christmas releases from Lindsey Stirling, Tav Falco and Sultans of String.
Critics love subtlety and nuance—two things Post Malone avoids like cooties.
When LCD Soundsystem’s James Murphy sang, “I can change, I can ch
According to photographer Steph Catsoulis, the rock band connected solidly with the audience when it played Gasa Gasa last week.
Flow Tribe has had a newsy week, not all of it good. Singer K.C.
Sweet Crude debuted its video for “Mon Esprit” from its new
Tuesday night, The Damned were all I could hope for.
Trombone Shorty’s last decade has been characterized by, among ot
Some Jazz Fest thoughts don’t fit in daily wrap-ups. Here are a few, some mattering more than others:
The annual nature of Jazz Fest makes it a perfect time to reflect on how things have changed--not just how the festival or the grounds h
On Saturday at Jazz Fest, Tank and the Bangas didn’t give an inch.
Writer John Swenson has argued that the change many feel in Jazz Fest has more to do with the passing of the generation of artists who d
[Revised] Men in the crowd Thursday at Jazz Fest envied Date Wats
After a soft Friday at Jazz Fest that included Trey Ana
First Friday felt more like Locals Thursday at Jazz Fest yesterday.
Mississippi Rail Company took a game stab at classic New Orleans R&B along with a number of related southern, piano-driven R&B s
The permission the Drive-By Truckers gave themselves to broaden
Brian Wilson’s appearances in New Orleans didn’t promise a lot before he playe
Buku made news Friday night when one patron had to be fished out
Last Thursday night, Toronto’s Austra played Gasa Gasa in support
The LEH's Brian Boyles saw his family's past in Willie Nelson's show at the House of Blues Sunday night.
[Thanks to photographer Steven Hadley for the photos and review.]
Historically, Christmas records served as a vacation from the artist’s career.
#Mellogang poured into The Republic on Thursday in full force to see Marshmello.
[Updated] Friday night, Anjunabeats artists Andrew Bayer
Saturday night, Dweezil Zappa brought the act formerly known as Zappa Plays Z
Sunday at Voodoo felt a little like the last day of high school.
Sunday frequently seems like Voodoo’s afterparty as part of Sat
Saturday was Black T-Shirt Day at Voodoo with a heavy rock lineup topped by
On Wednesday night, two of Australia's best electronic music producers came together at the Orpheum theater.
Four days of Lollapalooza is hard, but Sunday at Grant Park in Chicago was bittersweet.
I went to see Marissa Nadler at Gasa Gasa Wednesday night feeling a little
Yet again, rain is on the Chicago weather forecast on Friday, the second day of Lollapalooza
(New My Spilt Milk contributor Jessie Rubini saw Lord Huron Saturday night at the House of Blues. Here's her report.)
[This review from The Republic last week is the first from new contributor Raphael Helfand.]
My last days of Jazz Fest were as odd as the days themselves.
The consensus seems to be that Elvis Costello killed Thursday at J
[Friend of My Spilt Milk and publisher of Louisiana Cultural Vist
Seven Lions (Santa Barbara native Jeff Montalvo) was first recognized by the ele
Everything is relative. At a Lollapalooza or a rock festival, Red Hot Chili Peppers are funky. At Jazz Fest, they’re a rock band.
Best Coast’s Bethany Cosentino’s songs occupy a very specific emotiona
I got out of the year-end list business when I realized too much music came out that I didn’t hear for me to feel like my list had much
It was a shame to have Voodoo 2015 come to an early end with Sunday lost to ra
The annual grousing that accompanies a Voodoo lineup is partly the grousing th
Friday night at Voodoo, I found myself thinking about why England makes such g
Bantam Foxes (Friday, noon, Carnival) display a classic love of big,
On Sunday night, the Glitch Mob brought an outdated set to the Joy Theater, but its problems didn't end there...
The isolation that insulated New Orleans’ music for so long died with the Internet.
Miguel blasted onstage at the Joy Theater Tuesday night with the ener
Comedian Marc Maron has made the most of bottoming out.
Friday night, I reviewed the New Kids on the Block/TLC/Nelly show for The New Orleans Advocate, and much of my take on that surre
[Updated] Sunday afternoon, country singer Kacey Musgraves
[Updated] The attendance Saturday at Jazz Fest wasn’t a record despite the speculation of some outlets, which gives tho
Thursday was a true locals day, with short, friendly lines, and shows you could get close to if you wanted.
I reviewed the 40th anniversary reissue of Elton John's 1973 classic Goodbye Yellow Brick Road last year.
[Updated] Rain battered the Fair Grounds for a second day, and a prolonged midday rain turned
Friday at Jazz Fest ended early, more for the threat of rain than what actually show
“Your momma’s got nothing on me, your daddy’s got nothing on me, and the world that sleeps in its lunacy, it's got nothing on me,” John Gourley of
New Orleans is the biggest small town in America, but leaving your neighborhood can often sound as daunting as a drive to Missouri.
“Did I sing the Standard Oil verse twice?” asked Randy Newman.
Victoria Williams has probably always been an acquired taste.
In 1996, the release of Vampyros Lesbos: Sexadelic Dance Part
Since Foo Fighters' appearance at Voodoo, I've been riding Dave Grohl and Sonic Highw
[Updated] Thoughts that we didn’t get around do during Voodoo 2014:
It was bad enough that The Tontons couldn't play loudly enough to keep
[Updated] Saturday night at Voodoo was supposed to be about
The story Friday at Voodoo wasn’t so much
Sunday night, Beck played the House of Blues, playing a rare club show between weekends headlini
After two or three songs, a guy walked by me on the way out of Foxygen
On Thursday night, the female population of downtown New Orleans skyrocketed.
At this point, The Polyphonic Spree’s career has followed a familiar modern arc.
[Updated] “WE LOVE NEW ORLEANS!” Dominic Lalli of Big Gigantic screamed at th
When Rotary Downs concluded its Jazz Fest set with a cover of Gary Numan's "Cars," the choice
After the spectacle of Beyoncé’s high-tech production last year at Essence
Well before he took the stage shortly after 4:15 p.m., Saturday at Jazz Fest was about Bruce Springsteen.
[Updated] Most every Mogwai song follows the same formula.
Sunday’s final sets at Jazz Fest couldn’t have been more different.
Any fears that Phish fans would once again descend on New Orlean
Backseat drivers have many ideas about what Jazz Fest should do differently, some of which
The New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival presented by Shell starts Friday, and we’re cove
Tour reports from the Kings of Leon's "Mechanical Bull" told similar stories.
[Updated] Near the end of Broken Bells’ show at the Civic Theatre Wednesd
On Tuesday last week, photographer Patrick Ainsworth went to One Eyed Jacks to see the return of Cibo Matto on the band's
British guitarist and singer Jake Bugg performed at The Civic Theatre on Thursday to promote his
Prince isn't on tour, but that hasn't stopped him from playing one-off shows like the 2 1/2-hour jam he played last Friday night at the Mohegan Sun
It was hard not to become obsessed with Robert Smith’s head. Time and thinning hair has made his trademark tangle harder to pull off.
Reviews of new CDs by Meschiya Lake and The Little Big Horns and R. Scully's Rough 7 on the eve of their CD-release parties.
Last night at Tipitina's, I tweeted, "Trying to decide: is Dawes sensitive or patronizing to
Stevie Wonder wraps up a beautiful weekend at the Hangout Music Festival at Gulf Shores, Alabama.
Saturday's highlights from Gulf Shores' Hangout Music Festival.
Elephant 6 Collective member Julian Koster will tent The Howlin' Wolf on
Thankfully, the conditions stopped being a story at Jazz Fest Saturday.
Thursday's rain on top of last weekend's rain on top of this week's rain left the Fair Grounds such a mess that opening Friday was delayed an hour
It looks like we may be finished with the rain, but Thursday it took it's toll on me, partly in the constant donning and shedding of rain gear, of
Marnie Stern made her name as an indie guitar hero, but her most recent album, The Chronicles of Marnia, shows growth in her songwriting.
When I told a friend earlier this week that I was going to see The Soft Pack, he asked
“We want to try to circulate a chi,” Beach House singer Victoria Legrand announce
Rule Number One: No band should have three sport coats onstage unless it has a horn section to wear them.
Reviews of "Ingrid Lucia Presents New Orleans Female Vocalists," "The Cherry Thing" by Neneh Cherry and The Thing, and "Big Station" by Alejandro Escovedo.
All but the most cynical bands are labors of love. There's too much work for too little return to play music for anything but personal reasons.
This album of sea shanties from the Bywater makes me want a beer.