Folk Memory, Living Sound — Zosha Warpeha's Resonant Rooms
Dark and light are a false binary; that's what I came to realize during my conversation with composer, fiddler, and vocalist Zosha Warpeha. In familiarizing myself with her work, perhaps drawing from my own macabre-leaning sensibility, I got so swept up in its details that could be construed as spooky that I nearly missed its truer focus. Though her recent album I grow accustomed to the dark indeed references darkness in its title, the emphasis is not to be placed there but on the "grow accustomed" part. Though Orbweaver, Warpeha's collaboration with Mariel Terán, may reference a spider, oftentimes considered scary, what is an orb-weaver but a small animal, its spiderly brethren strewn across the globe; one that builds intricate webs that catch dew and glow brightly in the sun; one that adapts to a changing planet and finds its ways to thrive?
Charlotte Cornfield's Hard-Won Reckoning
Charlotte Cornfield's album 'Hurts Like Hell' maps a songwriter's life from drink-ticket gigs in Montreal to the steadier ground of family, community, and creative confidence in Toronto.
Whitney Johnson, Lia Kohl, and Macie Stewart — Three Points of a Creative Shape
Longtime friends and Chicago scene veterans, Whitney Johnson, Lia Kohl, and Macie Stewart have turned 'BODY SOUND' into a record of real-time improvisation, physical tape manipulation, and an unexpected kinship with Yoko Ono's 'Grapefruit'.
Sibyl and the Unbroken Channel
Though their debut album as the duo Sibyl was only just released into the world in February of this year, Chloe and Lily Holgate have been singing together their entire lives, often at the bidding of their loving parents—"Girls, sing for us!" they would say. That's just the kind of thing sisters do, especially when raised by parents who have forged careers in the world of musical theater. The two fondly recount their vocal origin story with joy and gratitude, knowing that the early coaxing they experienced together has allowed them to tap into a deeply attuned state only accessed through harmonizing together, something Chloe describes as a "grounding and magical experience."
In Dialogue with the Forest — Isabel Pine's 'Fables'
The classically trained string player recorded her new album across 15 wilderness locations in British Columbia, embracing imperfection, improvisation, and the unpredictable feedback of the natural world.
A Chorus for the Complicated — Julia Steiner of Ratboys
Ratboys frontwoman Julia Steiner discusses how 'Singin' to an Empty Chair' grew from a grief practice into a collection of bright, aching songs that never settle for just one feeling at a time.
The Fair and the Fury — On the Lilith Fair Documentary and Feminist History Worth Keeping
Meredith Hobbs Coons and Carolyn Zaldivar Snow of The Tonearm compare notes on 'Lilith Fair: Building a Mystery,' the documentary film that turns feminist music history into something closer to evidence.
Liam Kazar and the Long Search for Home
After three years of touring more than 200 days annually, the guitarist and Jeff Tweedy sideman recorded 'Pilot Light' to recreate, musically, what constant travel had taken away.
Leilani Patao Bites Back — Pet Love and the Choice Against Streaming
The fiercely independent songwriter's EP 'daisy' honors their late childhood dog while exploring patterns of loyalty and mistreatment across romantic, familial, and pet relationships—all released exclusively on Bandcamp as an act of self-determination.
Life Among the Vowels—Kathy Kennedy and the Sounds We Share
The Montreal electroacoustic artist spent three decades distributing sound through pirate radio and public space performances before releasing 'Vowel Jams', an album that spotlights her personal vision over public appeal.
Poetry Kills—My Violence’s Chapbook of Sound
Silvia Ryder discusses her album 'Monday's Child', the unconventional instruments that define her music, and how leaving Sugar Plum Fairies led her to build a new identity from Omnichords and archival film.
Kirin McElwain and the Beautiful Harshness of ‘Youth’
Cellist Kirin McElwain's exploratory album 'Youth' turns toward crystalline feedback, chaotic oscillators, and intentionally harsh tones to express the feelings of desire and shame occupying the same cognitive space.
Prewn Weathers a World Riddled with Systems
On 'System', Izzy Hagerup aka Prewn builds maximalist songs alone in her home studio, using 'self-indulgent' cello and multitracked vocals to process the gravity of being trapped inside something much bigger than herself.
Ben Jones and the Patient Bloom of Constant Smiles
The Constant Smiles frontman discusses how 'Moonflowers' represents his return to fingerpicked folk after years of pushing against the Martha's Vineyard sounds that shaped him, and why he finally has the patience and skill to honor influences like Nick Drake.
The Ephemeral Becomes Audible on Erika Dohi's 'Myth of Tomorrow'
From the Fairlight CMI to the 1940s Ondioline, Erika Dohi built her sophomore album using rare instruments with distinct personalities, astrology as a compositional framework, and meditation practices that confronted loneliness.
Ordinary Music — Okkyung Lee's Useful Composition
The experimental cellist discusses her ambient album 'Just Like Any Other Day (어느날): Background Music For Your Mundane Activities', a four-year project born from isolation that turned memories of Korean cinema and cheap-sounding synthesizers into companionship for daily living.
Voice Without a Face — Aiko Takahashi's Tactile Sound Craft
The visual designer and composer behind 'Monologue' explains why they're moving toward greater compositional control, how cassette decks remind them that sound is physical, and what's missing in ambient music right now.