“The 90s are in right now, the clothes, the fashion… In terms of physicality, the defense… This is some 90s basketball.” – Grant Hill on NBA on TNT, 5.13.24 I. Right This Way The 1990s are back, or so popular culture keeps telling us. They must be back if Grant Hill feels compelled to announce Read More
Essays
The Dawn (Richard) of a New Chapter
I. Dreamer/ I wanna love like you/ I wanna see the world/ Through your eyes (Sandstone) When I first see that Dawn Richard and Spencer Zahn will be performing Pigments in full with the accompaniment of the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra at the New Orleans Museum of Art during my winter break, I know in my Read More
U.S. Girls and the Politics of Women’s Work
When I saw U.S. Girls for the first time at SXSW 2018, it nothing short of changed my life. It was the last day of my last anticipated SXSW before moving to New Orleans and I was standing in the basking 5pm sun in the lot next to Hotel San Jose, waiting for U.S. Girls Read More
Fever Ray, Changing Bodies, and Musical (Gender) Queerness
Radical Romantics, the latest album from Swedish synth-y and experimental pop artist Fever Ray, opens with an apology of sorts: “First I’d like to say that I’m sorry/ I’ve done all the tricks that I can.” The opening lines are a campy wink, acknowledging the steel drums—and pitch shifting—that are hallmarks of Karin Dreijer’s work Read More
SZA, Warning Shots, and Answering Your Own SOS
SZA’s “SOS,” the title track and opening track for the album of the same name, begins with a call for help. After a morse code distress call beeps off, a group of women’s backup vocals harmonize to sing, “Last night I cried.” Sampled out of Gabriel Hardeman Delegation’s take on “Until I Found The Lord Read More