NPR Music’s Tiny Desk Concerts are a way for recording artists to promoted their latest project. For Faye Webster, she has quite the discography to pick through, so during her Tiny Desk Concert performance today (January 31), the “Feeling Good Today” singer delivered a balanced mix of her goodies.
To kick things off, Webster played “In A Good Way” from her 2021 album I Know I’m Funny Haha. The whimsical opening laid the groundwork for Webster to usher in songs from her latest body of work, Underdressed At The Symphony.
Despite the limited performance space (hence the title Tiny Desk), Webster and her impressive backing band — composed of Matthew Stoessel on guitar and pedal steel, Nick Rosen on piano, Charles Garner on drums and percussion, Ellen Riccio, Danielle Wiebe Burk, and Annie Leeth on violin, and Stephanie Barrett on cello — delicately glided through tracks “But Not Kiss,” “Underdressed At The Symphony,” “Jonny,” and “Jonny (Reprise).”
There wasn’t much room for dialogue, but Webster’s piecing lyrics were more than enough to fill up the room. With Webster’s 2025 Underdressed At The Symphony Tour set to start soon, concertgoers are in for a real treat.
Watch Webster’s full Tiny Desk Concert above.
Underdressed At The Symphony is out now via Secretly Canadian. Find more information here.
The NBA is constantly tinkering with its format for the All-Star Game. This year, that means three teams that are drafted by the Inside the NBA guys, with the winners of the Rising Stars Challenge (which will be led by Candace Parker) earning a spot on Sunday. There will be a pair of games between two of those teams, with the winners of each game moving on to the final, where an All-Star winner will be crowned.
This came after the leage experimented with the Elam Ending. It’s experimented with a lot of stuff over the years — East vs. West, captains drafting teams, different jerseys — in an effort to make the All-Star Game a premium television product that they can use to get more money from a television network fun for the fans. It also has a bit of a problem in that there’s more talent than ever in the league, and just naming 12 All-Stars for each conference is very difficult.
So, today, in a fun little exercise, we decided to expand the rosters to 15 (which the league should do, anyway) and take a page out of Major League Baseball’s book, where each team gets at least one All-Star, by answering a question: If every NBA team only got one All-Star this year, what would that look like? Some of these were very easy, some of these were very hard because of who got left off, and some of these were very hard because a few teams don’t really have an All-Star caliber player. And it’s worth noting that there are some incredibly obvious limitations for this format — for example, the East has one guy who can play center in Giannis Antetokounmpo, while the West has a ton of centers. But regardless, here’s how we think that would look.
Eastern Conference
Boston Celtics: Jayson Tatum
A lot of the narrative surrounding the Celtics right now has to do with their mid-season slump, which isn’t exactly an uncommon thing for a champion to go through. Regardless, Tatum has been great all year, and earned a starting nod for this year’s game. No reason to change that, even if it comes at the expense of Jaylen Brown.
Brooklyn Nets: Cam Johnson
There’s a little part of me that wants to put Cam Thomas, because Cam Thomas was put on this earth to light it up in a game where defense is optional in the eyes of everyone except for Adam Silver, but Johnson has been legitimately good this year, to the point that a contender might (and should) part ways with a lot in order to acquire him before the trade deadline. We’ll put him here.
New York Knicks: Jalen Brunson
Like Tatum, Brunson has been great this year, and has already earned a starting nod. You can make a very strong case that Karl-Anthony Towns — who has been unreal in New York — deserves the spot over him, but the Knicks are built around Brunson, so we’ll go with him.
Philadelphia 76ers: Tyrese Maxey
As much as I would love to jokingly give it to Guerschon Yabusele and hope Sixers fans don’t get mad at me (which, they probably wouldn’t, as they love Yabu), this has to be Maxey. He’s kept them afloat while Joel Embiid continues to struggle to stay on the floor and Paul George does an admirable impression of Tobias Harris from his time on the Sixers, and would just be a fun All-Star player in general.
Toronto Raptors: RJ Barrett
Not much has gone right in Toronto this year, but we’ll show some love to Barrett. While Scottie Barnes continues to leave his fingerprints all over games and Jakob Poeltl is quietly one of the best two-way centers in the NBA, Barrett has continued to thrive since going home in the trade that sent OG Anunoby to the Knicks.
Chicago Bulls: Zach LaVine
Long viewed as an untradeable contract and a player who struggles to stay healthy, LaVine has been great in Chicago this year, as he’s been an efficient and dynamic scorer who sure looks like he can help a contender. Plus it’s Zach LaVine, and he’s the exact kind of explosive offensive player who tends to be a ton of fun in an All-Star Game.
Cleveland Cavaliers: Donovan Mitchell
One of the easiest selections on this list, as he’s already been named a starter and is the best player on the best team in the East. The Cavs are hurt by this exercise because they have four dudes who deserve All-Star nods — three of them (Mitchell, Darius Garland, Evan Mobley) ended up getting selected — but Mitchell is an obvious pick here.
Detroit Pistons: Cade Cunningham
The Pistons have been a pleasant surprise this year, while Cunningham has gone from a young dude struggling to find his way to a rock solid guard and a building block that Detroit should lean on. He deserved his All-Star reserve selection this year, and deserves this.
Indiana Pacers: Tyrese Haliburton
It’s awfully close for me between Haliburton and Pascal Siakam, but we’ll narrowly give the nod to the former, even though the latter was the one who got selected to be a reserve. The main reason: Indiana’s been really good over the last month and a half or so, and that coincides with Haliburton getting out of his early season slump and looking like an All-Star. I wouldn’t blame anyone for going with Siakam — he’s been more consistent, and again, the coaches picked him — but Hali’s play lately and how that has elevated the team as a whole seals it.
Milwaukee Bucks: Giannis Antetokounmpo
It’s Giannis. Well, I think we’re done here, let’s move on.
Atlanta Hawks: Trae Young
It almost feels like Young has gotten to be underrated — he didn’t even get selected as a reserve this year, even though he’s been great! His efficiency is down this season, but he’s done an awesome job setting up his teammates and still has a flair for the dramatic. He’s clearly Atlanta’s best player.
Charlotte Hornets: LaMelo Ball
A little part of me wants to put Brandon Miller here for no reason other than Ball would get in as his injury replacement, but even then, Ball’s been the best player for the Hornets and is a terrific All-Star Game player. It’s been a rough season in Charlotte, but they’re building around Ball and Miller, and one of those guys is healthy, so he’s going.
Miami Heat: Tyler Herro
This is by no means a knock on Herro, but I cannot believe on a team with Bam Adebayo and Jimmy Butler that he is the no-doubt choice here, and was the no-doubt choice for the coaches that picked All-Star reserves. He’s provided some much-needed stability and consistency while Adebayo struggles to snap out of a season-long slump and Butler, uh, yeah.
Orlando Magic: Franz Wagner
The Magic are a tough team for this exercise, as their two stars (Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner) missed extended periods of time with oblique injuries. Ultimately, we’ll give the nod to Wagner, as he’s played more and has generally been the better player.
Washington Wizards: Jordan Poole
I’ll be honest: The Wizards were a tough one here. I went with Poole because he’s their top scorer and watching him in an All-Star Game could be fun, but picking someone from an all-time terrible NBA team was not easy.
Western Conference
Denver Nuggets: Nikola Jokic
There’s this TikTok I once saw of Liverpool and Argentina midfielder Alexis Mac Allister getting asked who is the best player he’s ever played with and why. His answer, simply, was “Messi … do I need to explain why? I don’t think so.” That is how I am approaching putting Jokic here. Next.
Minnesota Timberwolves: Anthony Edwards
Anthony Edwards is, by some distance, the best player on the Minnesota Timberwolves. No one else has an argument here.
Oklahoma City Thunder: Shai Gilgeous-Alexander
Shai Gilgeous-Alexander is, by some distance, the best player on the Oklahoma City Thunder. No one else has an argument here. And to answer your question: Yes, I just copy and pasted the previous section and plugged in a different player/team.
Portland Trail Blazers: Deni Avdija
If you want to say Anfernee Simons or even Shaedon Sharpe, I won’t argue. But Avdija has done a really nice job — whether he’s coming off the bench or starting — ever since the Blazers acquired him this offseason. A lot of the advanced metrics like Advija a lot, too. Maybe Sharpe, Scoot Henderson (who has thrived when he starts games), or Donovan Clingan becomes Portland’s best player long-term, but for now, let’s reward Avdija for a strong year.
Utah Jazz: Lauri Markkanen
Unlike most of the other extremely bad teams, Utah’s an easy one for this exercise. Markkanen is a legitimately good NBA player who has continued to be productive, even as the Jazz are doing everything they can to make sure Cooper Flagg or Dylan Harper starts their career in Utah. He’s not putting up numbers like he did during his first (and only) All-Star appearance, but he’s still had a nice year. Walker Kessler quietly has a shout here, too, and if he took on a larger offensive role, I’d have plugged him in.
Golden State Warriors: Steph Curry
Even as Curry has shown that he can’t reach the heights on a nightly basis that he did earlier in his career, he’s still been great this year, one of the bright spots in an up-and-down year for Golden State. There’s no chance an All-Star Game in San Francisco can happen without him, but still, he’s the no-doubt pick.
Los Angeles Clippers: Norman Powell
I’ll be honest: I had James Harden here, as he’s kept the Clippers afloat without Kawhi Leonard to an extent I did not know he had in him at this point and the coaches picked him as a reserve. But you know what? Norman Powell has been incredible this season, scoring at a career-best clip in what seems like pure spite towards Paul George for leaving. Harden is also deserving, but let’s have some fun here and go with Powell.
Los Angeles Lakers: Anthony Davis
Not going with LeBron James hurts my heart — he’s starting the game, while Davis is not — but Davis has just been flat-out better this season. He’s been his usual, menacing self on defense, while he’s putting up some of the best numbers he has during his time in L.A. The Lakers have said for years that they want it to be AD’s team, and now, it’s happening.
Phoenix Suns: Kevin Durant
You can go with either Durant or Devin Booker, and I’ll give Durant a slight nod as he’s the team’s leading scorer on some absolutely ridiculous efficiency numbers — he’s at 27.3 points per game on 52.7 percent shooting from the field and 40.2 percent shooting from three. Durant also leads the team in blocks per game, is tied for third in rebounds per game, and is third in assists per game. He’s aging like a fine wine, let’s send him to All-Star in this exercise.
Sacramento Kings: Domantas Sabonis
Part of this is because it’s unclear if De’Aaron Fox will be on the Kings at the All-Star break. But also, Sabonis has been terrific this year, as he’s the NBA’s top rebounder while leading Sacramento in assists. Fox scores more, but Sabonis scores more efficiently. We’ll go with him, but if you wanna say Fox, it wouldn’t be outrageous.
Dallas Mavericks: Kyrie Irving
Luka Doncic is the better player and has been awesome when he’s played this year, but he’s missed so much time due to injury that we’ll go with Irving, who has been no slouch in his own right. He continues to be one of the most magnetic guards in basketball, and his ability to win when he plays 1-on-1 fits right into an All-Star Game.
Houston Rockets: Alperen Sengun
The Rockets are the best story in basketball, and frankly, you can go in a few different directions here. I’ll say Sengun, who the coaches picked as a reserve and has played very well this year. Howeber, the thought of Amen Thompson playing in an All-Star Game and being the most athletic guy on the floor who catches lobs from Jokic is very exciting, while Jalen Green getting scorching hot in this environment would be fun.
Memphis Grizzlies: Jaren Jackson Jr.
The highs that Ja Morant can reach are higher than anyone else on the Grizzlies, but between the amount of time he’s missed and how incredibly consistent Jackson has been this season, we’ll go with him, just like the coaches did. This is the best year of Jackson’s career, too, and it’s good to reward guys like that.
New Orleans Pelicans: Trey Murphy III
We here at Dime have long been fans of Murphy, and amid a really, really, really bad year for the Pelicans, he’s been a major bright spot. He’s shown that he is more than just a three-and-D wing, and while New Orleans tries to figure out what’s going to happen after this year, they can take solace in knowing he’s sticking around.
San Antonio Spurs: Victor Wembanyama
Feel free to reuse this section from now until the moment he’s retiring or leaves the Spurs: Wemby is a monster, one of the faces of the league, and will have his name written in ink on All-Star rosters going forward. He’s the pick here, and he will continue to be the pick here.
A year after pleading guilty to racketeering, Atlanta rapper YFN Lucci has been released from prison, according to WSB-TV. Although he would have been sentenced to 20 years on the charges at hand, his plea deal halved his sentence to 10; with credit for time served, he was eligible for parole in May 2024. However, the gears of the justice system grind fairly slowly along — just look at the racketeering case against Lucci’s onetime rival Young Thug, the longest in Georgia history — so it’s no surprise he’s only just now getting out. Lucci will serve the duration of his sentence on probation.
Prior to his arrest, YFN Lucci was a rising star in the Atlanta trap rap scene, earning recognition for songs like “Key To The Streets” and “Rolled On.” His last official release was the 2020 mixtape Wish Me Well 3, which featured the single “Wet” with Latto, so expect to hear new music from him sooner or later.
Back in September 2024, Nardo Wick promised fans his officially follow-up to debut album, Who Is Nardo Wick. Sadly for supporters of the “Back To Back” rapper, the previously teased Wick project was ultimately stalled without explanation. Today (January 31), that body of work’s rollout has seemingly been revived.
To support his latest single “I Wonder,” Nardo Wick circled back to give the track an official music video. In the visual Nardo shows off his gentler side echoed in the song’s lyrics. With fellow rapper Lakeyah serving as the video’s leading lady, the record’s Bonnie and Clyde theme is fully realized.
“I wonder what I did to make her like me so much / She feelin’ me a lot now, but it started as a crush / I wonder if it’s love, or I wonder if it’s lust / It might be my swagger, it might be the way I hunch,” raps Nardo in the chorus.
The first verse’s opening line (“I be tryna play it hard, can’t lie, got feelings for her too”) solidifies Nardo’s reluctant yet tender vulnerability. Although Nardo Wick did not share any updates about Wick‘s expected release date, at least he gave his audience something to hold them over.
Watch Nardo Wick’s official video for “I Wonder” above.
It’s music’s biggest night! Or it will be this Sunday when the 67th Annual Grammy Awards are held at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles.
You can check out the full lists of nominees and performers, but ahead of the ceremony, we’ve also offered predictions for The Big Four — Album Of The Year, Song Of The Year, Record Of The Year, and Best New Artist — as well as a few other major categories. Will Beyoncé finally win Album Of The Year? Could Chappell Roan make some history? Is Drake about to have two bad weekends in a row? Let’s find out!
Best Rap Album
Common & Pete Rock — The Auditorium Vol. 1
Doechii — Alligator Bites Never Heal
Eminem — The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce)
Future & Metro Boomin — We Don’t Trust You
J. Cole — Might Delete Later
Will Win: Alligator Bites Never Heal Should Win: Alligator Bites Never Heal
The eligibility period for the 2025 Grammys was from September 16, 2023, to August 30, 2024. If the timeline had extended to November 22, Kendrick Lamar’s GNX would have been an easy pick here. Instead, this is a tricky one: the hyper-talented and charismatic Doechii had a standout year, and it’s been too long since this category went to a female rapper (Cardi B’s Invasion Of Privacy back in 2019). But you can’t rule out The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce) since Eminem has won Best Rap Album a staggering six times, or The Auditorium, Vol. 1. Remember, last year’s Best Rap Album went to Killer Mike, an industry-favorite veteran just like Common and Pete Rock. Still, Alligator Bites Never Heal deserves the win (even if it’s not technically an album).
Best Alternative Music Album
Brittany Howard — What Now
Clairo — Charm
Kim Gordon — The Collective
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds — Wild God
St. Vincent — All Born Screaming
Will Win: All Born Screaming Should Win: Wild God
Best Alternative Music Album has been around since 1991 (the first trophy went to Sinéad O’Connor’s Do Not Want What I Haven’t Got). In the following decades, Beck, Radiohead, and The White Stripes are the only three-time champs in the category. St. Vincent would tie them with a win for All Born Screaming, a very good, very evocative album (especially compared to the emotionally distant Daddy’s Home). But the grief-struck Wild God is mesmerizing. The aged creak in Nick Cave’s voice makes his lyrics hit even harder. Or Cave himself put it, “There’s no f*cking around with this record.”
Best Rock Album
The Black Crowes — Happiness Bastards
Fontaines DC — Romance
Green Day — Saviors
Idles — Tangk
Jack White — No Name
Pearl Jam — Dark Matter
The Rolling Stones — Hackney Diamonds
Will Win: No Name Should Win: No Name
Of the five nominated bands for Best Rock Album, only two (Idles and Fontaines DC) have formed since 1990. This category could use an infusion of youth — but a blistering album from Jack White (the only solo artist) will do, too. No Name is his most White Stripes-sounding album since he and Meg went their separate ways. It’s heavy; full of raw, ripping guitar solos; and sounds like it was bashed out during a single recording session (complimentary). Fontaines DC will get their Grammy some day, but not yet.
Best Pop Vocal Album
Ariana Grande — Eternal Sunshine
Billie Eilish — Hit Me Hard And Soft
Chappell Roan — The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess
Sabrina Carpenter — Short N’ Sweet
Taylor Swift — The Tortured Poets Department
Will Win: Short N’ Sweet Should Win: The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess
In the National Football League, the Offensive Player Of The Year Award rarely goes to the NFL MVP, even though the NFL MVP is almost always an offensive player. Make sense? Great. I bring this up to point out that Album Of The Year and Best Pop Vocal Album occasionally overlap, like the past two years with Taylor Swift’s Midnights and Harry Styles’ Harry’s House, but not always.
For instance, Dua Lipa’s Future Nostalgia won Pop Vocal Album in 2021, but it lost Album Of The Year to Swift’s Folklore… which was also nominated in the pop category.
With such a stacked category of heavy hitters, Short N’ Sweet seems like the Offensive Player Of The Year since I fear too many voters only know “Espresso” (and are therefore depriving themselves of the irresistible “Juno”) — could The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess be the MVP?
Let’s get this out of the way now: yes, it’s very funny that Sabrina Carpenter and Khruangbin, who both released their debut albums in 2015, are considered “new” artists. Let’s also acknowledge that winning Best New Artist isn’t the curse many people consider it to be (see: Megan Thee Stallion, Dua Lipa, Billie Eilish, etc.). So, Chappell Roan, one of this year’s newest “new artists” following her remarkable rise, has nothing to worry about.
Song Of The Year
Beyoncé — “Texas Hold ‘Em”
Billie Eilish — “Birds Of A Feather”
Chappell Roan — “Good Luck, Babe!”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Lady Gaga & Bruno Mars — “Die With A Smile”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Please Please Please”
Shaboozey — “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”
Taylor Swift Feat. Post Malone — “Fortnight”
Will Win: “Birds Of A Feather” Should Win: “Good Luck, Babe!”
Only once in the past 20 years has Song Of The Year gone to a song with more than four songwriters (Bruno Mars’ “That’s What I Like” in 2018). That scratches out “Die With A Smile” and “Texas Hold ‘Em” from the jump. Taylor Swift (with help from Post Malone and Jack Antonoff) is probably out, too. She’s never won in this category despite eight nominations and her Album Of The Year domination, and it would be curious if “Fortnight” was the one to break through. “Please Please Please” is sneaky good, but it’s not “Espresso.” “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” would have a stronger chance in Record Of The Year.
That leaves Billie Eilish, Chappell Roan, and Kendrick Lamar. “Birds Of A Feather” is tempting since Billie and Finneas are two-time winners, including last year, but only one songwriter in the long history of the Grammys has taken Song Of The Year twice in a row (D’Mile for “I Can’t Breathe” in 2021 and “Leave the Door Open” in 2022). Instead, this is where I think Roan should take it with the only song she officially released during her breakout year.
Record Of The Year
The Beatles — “Now And Then”
Beyoncé — “Texas Hold ‘Em”
Billie Eilish — “Birds Of A Feather”
Chappell Roan — “Good Luck, Babe!”
Charli XCX — “360”
Kendrick Lamar — “Not Like Us”
Sabrina Carpenter — “Espresso”
Taylor Swift Feat. Post Malone — “Fortnight”
Will Win: “Espresso” Should Win: “Not Like Us”
“Not Like Us” wasn’t technically the biggest song of 2024 (by Spotify streaming numbers, it was “Birds Of A Feather”), but it felt like it. Kendrick Lamar’s diss track unified generations against a Degrassi: The Next Generation star; if he played it five times in a row during his Super Bowl halftime show, would anyone complain? (Well, one person might.)
All that being said, “Not Like Us” might be too incendiary — too daring — for the Grammys, especially with all the lawsuits swirling around the song. The correct “safe” pick is Sabrina Carpenter’s exquisitely crafted “Espresso.” In recent years, this category has frequently gone to songs (er, records) that have a retro quality to them — think: Lizzo’s “About Damn Time,” Silk Sonic’s “Leave The Door Open,” Bruno Mars’ “24K Magic,” Adele’s “Hello,” and Daft Punk’s “Get Lucky.” 2024’s retro-pop Song Of The Summer certainly applies here.
But there’s one thing to remember: Record Of The Year is given to the overall recording, including the work of the producers, recording engineers, etc. Would anyone be surprised if the award went to the stitched-together “final” Beatles song?
Album Of The Year
André 3000 — New Blue Sun
Beyoncé — Cowboy Carter
Billie Eilish — Hit Me Hard And Soft
Chappell Roan — The Rise And Fall Of A Midwest Princess
Charli XCX — Brat
Jacob Collier — Djesse Vol. 4
Sabrina Carpenter — Short N’ Sweet
Taylor Swift — The Tortured Poets Department
Will Win: Cowboy Carter Should Win: Brat
They can’t keep getting away with it, “they” meaning Grammy voters and “it” being not giving Album Of The Year to Beyoncé. It should have already happened in 2017 for Lemonade, which lost to Adele’s enormously popular 25 — is this the year for Cowboy Carter?
Don’t overlook Brat. The album finished No. 1 in our critics poll, and it made Charli XCX “even my boomer mom has heard of her” famous. There’s also Grammy favorites Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish (Swift has won this category a record four times), but this doesn’t feel like their year. Jacob Collier and André 3000 are the surprise “it’s nice to just be nominated” selections, while pop titans Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan risk canceling each other’s votes.
If it comes down to Cowboy Carter or Brat, Beyoncé will get her “AOTY.”
The 2025 Grammys air on CBS and Paramount Plus on February 2 at 8 p.m. ET.
In the music industry, there are certain benchmarks commonly applied to determine when an artist has “made it.” These criteria once included getting your song played on the radio or landing an album on the charts. Now it’s having a viral hit or surpassing one million monthly listeners on Spotify.
For a jam band, there is another undeniable sign of prestige: Headlining (and then selling out) the most famous arena in the world, Madison Square Garden. Earlier this month, the so-called “next great American jam band,” Connecticut’s own Goose, accomplished that very feat, quickly moving every ticket for a concert scheduled for June 28.
It was the latest career highlight for a band that has emerged as a legitimate heir apparent to the aging lions of the scene, Dead & Co. and Phish, still going strong on the concert circuit several decades into their respective careers. But when I caught up this week with Goose’s twin frontmen, singer/guitarist Rick Mitarotonda and multi-instrumentalist/singer Peter Anspach, they were steadfast about talking about the concert as an exciting pitstop on a larger journey. Which might be true, but come on: This is MSG. It’s a big deal.
“It is pretty wild,” Mitarotonda conceded. “In a certain respect, from a numbers’ perspective, it’s not too far off from what we did last summer at Forest Hills. But the air to it is just a whole different animal. So, it feels like a really significant thing, and it feels like the right time, and we’re just really grateful that we have the opportunity to do it.”
What makes the MSG concert doubly impressive is Goose’s status as a literal indie act. Their label No Coincidence Records — which will put out their newly announced, sprawling album Everything Must Go on April 25 — is a relatively small operation out of Denver, and they have stuck with the same management team from their earliest days as a little-known club band. But while their business infrastructure remains modest, their music is more grandiose than ever. Everything Must Go is a 14-track behemoth that clocks in at 90 minutes, enough to fill out three vinyl LPs. Many of the songs will be familiar to fans as setlist staples for the past few years, including “Red Bird,” “California Magic,” “Silver Rising,” “Feel It Now,” and the first single “Give It Time,” which has a music video that premieres today.
“Give It Time” typifies the sound of the album. Goose’s primary influences (aughts-era indie pop like Vampire Weekend, Fleet Foxes, and Bon Iver as well as, of course, prime-era Phish) are readily apparent, as is the beefed-up production courtesy of long-time collaborator D. James Goodwin. But unlike Goose’s previous studio LP, 2022’s Dripfield, “Give It Time” also affords ample space for jammy instrumental interludes. (All of the tracks are at least five minutes long.) The result is the band’s heftiest and most satisfying studio effort yet.
Sessions for Everything Must Go began in May 2023 and extended into 2024. Part of the reason for the album’s size — and the three-year gap between records — was that they kept booking studio time to record newly written songs. (Though one track, “Your Direction,” originates with Mitarotonda’s pre-Goose band, Vasudo.) And then there was the matter of replacing founding drummer Ben Atkind, whose departure was announced in December 2023.
Anspach estimates that the album is “about half and half” recordings pre- and post-Atkind, with some of the older sessions augmented by re-tracked drums. Both musicians gingerly hinted that the “tension” of 2023 and the subsequent hiring of current drummer Cotter Ellis acted as a kind of “through line” for the album.
“The atmosphere of the band is super light currently,” Anspach said. “And it just feels like we’re in a really good place, just as a group of people.
The first time I wrote about you guys, I talked to the CEO of Nugs.net, who likened your potential arc to Phish’s career path in the 1990s. And it’s interesting to note that Phish headlined MSG for the first time 11 years after they formed. And you guys are headlining MSG for the first time 11 years after you formed. As a career landmark, how big is this in your own minds?
Peter Anspach: For me, still feeling inspired to make music as a band is what I’m chasing, as opposed to just playing this venue. I am super humbled that we’re playing Madison Square Garden and it’s sold out. That’s crazy. But if we were to play Madison Square Garden and that was it, I would be like, “What? That’s not what I wanted!” It’s more about the long game, where if we can continue to be inspired to play together and write music and create, that’s the ultimate goal. It’s all about just being present and enjoying that aspect of the band.
Rick Mitarotonda: Sometimes I feel like I could do better at smelling the roses every once in a while. Sometimes the scenery is wild and sometimes certain scenery, it’s like, “Holy shit, how did this happen? This is weird.” I try my best to be grateful and do the best we can with it. But at the end of the day, it is just scenery and what Peter’s talking about is the real thing.
You made this new record over the course of two years, and the sessions spanned the transition period from your founding drummer departing the band and the hiring of current drummer Cotter Ellis. How did that change the band, and how did you navigate that period?
PA: There was a lot of tension, so the release of that tension is very freeing. And we did some recording in 2024 that I think put a different spin on the record than what it was feeling like in 2023. And just introducing Cotter into the recordings was really fun. All the sessions we did last year really brought a good positive spin for us, and the experience was great. So the record really finished with a high note, after it started in somewhat of a weird place.
RM: It was this bridge through the whole process. I think it holds a really cool place because of that. As Peter mentioned, the tail end of that, the recording that we did last year with Cotter on it, really set a tone. And to me at least that is indicative of a very bright path forward. We kept adding songs to the record because there were new things that were popping up that we were excited about, and that’s part of what delayed it so much. We kept booking more recording sessions to add those songs and work on and refine things from earlier.
This is a jammier record than Dripfield.
RM: Going into that one, there was more of an intention to subvert our thing. The intention here was to embrace it, those aspects of what we do live, and also to embrace some of the newer things that we’ve picked up along the way.
Most of this record will be familiar to fans that have seen you play live in the past few years. How many unrecorded songs do you still have in the coffers?
RM: There are many different categories of backlog, and shit takes time. We don’t stop grinding. I often fantasize about what it would be like to be one of these bands that puts out a record, tours for a year or two, and then goes dark for however many years they need until they put out another 10-track album.
That is certainly an interesting dynamic with being a jam band as opposed to a “normal” band. Most bands put out a record and perform the songs live for the first time after that. You did it in reverse order. Did that influence your approach to recording the songs?
PA: I feel like it did more on Dripfield. It was like, “Oh, well, we do this, but let’s do this instead.” I feel like this time it was a little bit more of, “How can we fully represent the song the best way we’ve been playing it?” A lot of the tracks ended up being a lot more similar to the live arrangement. We weren’t trying to reinvent the wheel, we were just trying to capture it in the best possible way.
RM: There was no heady agenda around it. If something felt stale, then we’d explore something different. But if it felt fine the way we were doing it, it should be captured that way just for posterity alone.
My main takeaway is that this is the biggest and most muscular-sounding album you’ve made.
RM: Post-Dripfield, post 2022, there was a lot of growth. Reaching cruising altitude from that was subconsciously definitely a difficult process, and in a lot of ways, we are still doing it. But the songs that came out of that year, that time, felt instantly like a core part of the band. The songs you’re talking about that we’ve been playing since that year, they felt like staples of the band right out of the gate. I think that this record, a lot of the intention was to honor that, capture that, salute that, as opposed to making a move for something really different or new. It’s like trying to capture the bigger picture of the thing at this point.
PA: I feel like the collection of songs is just incredibly strong through the entire 14 tracks. A lot of that has to do with the feeling of just the way when we are playing them, they feel like they really are telling a good story. There’s a lot of good arrangements. Just looking at the tracklist, I was like, “Damn, this album looks sick.” [Laughs.] And that was a cool feeling. It has a lot of weight to it.
Rick, you said these songs felt like staples right out of the gate. What gave you that feeling? Was it the audience reaction? Or was it more of an internal, instinctual thing?
RM: “Give It Time,” for example, that one was in the wings for a number of years between Matt [Campbell, his co-writer] and I. And then we were rehearsing for the Capital Theatre shows, our first shows with Cotter. And that song, for whatever reason, was poking at me. It was just popping back up. We had tried it in the past. We had tried fleshing it out, and for whatever reason, it didn’t feel like it found itself. And then that time, it just rose to the surface. I remember the arrangement came together very quickly during those rehearsals.
In the past, there was always this question of should it be the more introspective and quieter, or should it be the more jubilant? I always liked the idea of it being both but never found a way to do it. It’s simple enough, but connecting those dots, it all just felt right at that period. So, to answer your question, sometimes perception of things is surprising or impacts those types of things, but for the most part, it doesn’t at all. I think it’s our own perception of “This is working, this is great, let’s keep working on it.”
I think there’s a natural assumption about that song in some way commenting on what was going on in the band as you were making the record. I know this is probably awkward to discuss publicly, but can you give me a sense of how you worked through that?
PA: The tough thing was communication, just not being on the same page about music and direction and stuff like that. It was a really hard thing to talk about, and that was in a lot of ways somewhat stifling in terms of rate of growth. So that was the really challenging part that immediately once we started working with Cotter, it was pretty much the floodgates were opened in terms of it being really easy to talk about music and direction and how we wanted things to feel. And he’s such a good team player and such a positive dude. He’s having such a good time playing music, so he’s pretty much up for anything, and that kind of attitude just felt amazing.
PA: He definitely doesn’t take himself too seriously, which is perfect. He’s in a Led Zeppelin cover band where he does a John Bonham drum solo with his hands. He does all these weird, crazy videos. So, he’s got this whole history of just being a silly dude who’s great at music. It’s kind of awesome.
How has the success of the band affected you? I imagine that must have also added to the tension you’re talking about.
RM: There’s a lot of subconscious aspects to that, and there’s a lot of weird things that you don’t really foresee. Relational-type things, but also just personal things, subconscious ways that affect everyone differently. Consciously, it doesn’t seem like that was a major factor of the whole thing. To me, the big thing was just the need to evolve, the need to keep growing and the way that that is pressured sometimes, albeit self-imposed, by external success and things like that. Personally speaking, that breeds a desire to keep moving and keep evolving and working on what we’re doing, trying to get better within our scope. So, to Peter’s point, communication and the ability to be on the same page and understand a common goal is pretty critical.
Before I let you go, I must ask about your pretend rivalry with King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard.
PA: [Laughs.] Did you write an article about that?
I did! Because I saw both bands within a week or so of each other, and it was a good excuse to write about these comparisons that I see come up a lot in the jam band corners of social media. On one hand, it makes no sense, because your band has nothing in common with King Gizzard. On the other hand, however, you do occupy the same context in terms of your audience. So, I’m curious: Is this faux-rivalry something you’re aware of?
RM: The only piece of that that we got was when they fucked around on that interview and did the whole green room thing. I was like, “We didn’t ask for any green room!” But as far as the band, they’re badass, they’re wild, they’re hilarious. We did go see them at Red Rocks that night, and, man, they were so funny. Just wild energy, saying ridiculous shit. That was my biggest takeaway, was how much fun they were having and how wild they were on stage. I was like, “Man, that’s got to be insane to be in that band. That’s got to be a fucking wild feeling.” But I don’t think about that too much. They’re cool, we’re cool.
PA: I’m definitely a fan of those guys. I got to meet them last year, and they’re super awesome, very nice. They apologized about the green room thing, which was great. I wasn’t expecting it. They were like, “Oh, dude, we were just trying to say something funny.” I was like, “Well, you know.”
Everything Must Go is out 4/25 via No Coincidence Records. Find more information here.
After releasing 2021’s best indie album, Japanese Breakfast’s Michelle Zauner moved to South Korea and took language courses at Sogang University in Seoul. Ahead of the release of new album For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women), she discussed her progress in an interview with SSENSE.
“Honestly, it’s been a challenging journey,” Zauner said. “When I first came, I thought my Korean was better than it actually was — I could read and write, sure, but my vocabulary was small. I quickly realized how little I knew.” The Crying In H Mart author started at level one in her Korean classes, but after a year aboard, she’s now a level four.
Zauner was also asked about which K-pop artists she would love to collaborate with. “I think RM is possibly the most compatible musician I’d be interested in working with,” she said about the BTS rapper. “I really loved the Indigo album — it left a strong impression on me. RM seems like a great guy, and I’d love to collaborate with him someday.” Zauner also named New Jeans (“They’re definitely one of my current K-pop favorites”) and (G)I-dle’s So Yeon (“Her personality and character shine through in the way she produces for her group and works with them individually, especially during vocal takes”).
For Melancholy Brunettes (& sad women) is out 3/21 via Dead Ocean Records. Find more information here.
Yesterday (January 30), dozens of musicians and thousand of music lovers came together to raise money for the Los Angeles County wildfires. While the FireAid benefir concert lineup was filled to the brim with star-studded entertainers, one moment has users online giddy.
Two of the evening top-billed acts, Billie Eilish and Green Day, decided to sneak in an onstage duet. As the band geared up to play their beloved 21st Century Breakdown track “Last Night On Earth,” Eilish shocked viewers by picking up a microphone ahead of her set.
With both the group’s leader Billie Joe Armstrong and Billie Eilish giving their all to the power track, supporters online have praised the link-up as the “Billie reunion” they did not know they needed.
Although Eilish is known for her catchy pop tunes and Green Day’s punk discography was not out of reach for the Oscars winner. But does this mean the recording artists have a secret collaboration tucked away? Probably not. For now, fans of both entertainers are reveling at the moment. As a bonus, it certainly could have directly helped to increase donations for the night.
Watch the full FireAid benefit concert above, courtesy of Netflix.
Today (January 31) is a massive day for The Weeknd. He just released Hurry Up Tomorrow (his last album as The Weeknd?), and now he has followed that by announcing a new leg of the After Hours Til Dawn tour for 2025, alongside Playboi Carti and special guest Mike Dean.
The new shows will feature “never-before-seen production,” per a press release, and it includes stops in Phoenix, Detroit, Chicago, Montreal, Denver, Las Vegas, Seattle, Vancouver, Miami, Atlanta, Toronto, Los Angeles, and more.
For tickets, the sign-up for the artist pre-sale is active now until February 4 at 9 a.m. ET. The pre-sale then starts on February 5 at 10 a.m local time and runs until February 6 at 10 a.m. local time. The general on-sale starts February 7 at 10 a.m. local time. More information is available on The Weeknd’s tour website.
Find The Weeknd’s upcoming tour dates below.
The Weeknd’s 2025 Tour Dates: After Hours Til Dawn
05/09 — Phoenix, AZ @ State Farm Stadium
05/24 — Detroit, MI @ Ford Field
05/30 — Chicago, IL @ Soldier Field Stadium
06/05 — East Rutherford, NJ @ MetLife Stadium
06/10 — Foxborough, MA @ Gillette Stadium
06/14 — Minneapolis, MN @ U.S. Bank Stadium
06/21 — Denver, CO @ Empower Field at Mile High
06/25 — Inglewood, CA @ SoFi Stadium*
06/26 — Inglewood, CA @ SoFi Stadium*
07/05 — Las Vegas, NV @ Allegiant Stadium
07/08 — Santa Clara, CA @ Levi’s Stadium
07/12 — Seattle, WA @ Lumen Field
07/15 — Vancouver, BC @ BC Place
07/19 — Edmonton, AB @ Commonwealth Stadium
07/24 — Montréal, QC @ Parc Jean Drapeau
07/27 — Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre
07/28 — Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre
07/30 — Philadelphia, PA @ Lincoln Financial Field
08/02 — Landover, MD @ Northwest Stadium
08/12 — Nashville, TN @ Nissan Stadium
08/15 — Miami, FL @ Hard Rock Stadium
08/21 — Atlanta, GA @ Mercedes-Benz Stadium
08/24 — Orlando, FL @ Camping World Stadium
08/27 — Arlington, TX @ AT&T Stadium
08/30 — Houston, TX @ NRG Stadium
09/03 — San Antonio, TX @ Alamodome
The surviving members of Nirvana — drummer Dave Grohl and bassist Krist Novoselic, as well as touring guitarist Pat Smear — reunited for the first time in five years at the FireAid benefit concert.
The trio played a ferocious four-song set at the Kia Forum with four different lead singers: St. Vincent on “Breed,” Kim Gordon on “School,” Joan Jett on “Territorial Pissings,” and Grohl’s daughter Violet on “All Apologies.” (Notably, this is the first time Grohl has performed in public since he revealed that he had “a new baby daughter, born outside of my marriage.”)
Nearly every time Nirvana has reunited since Kurt Cobain’s death, including a performance at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame ceremony, it’s been with female lead singers. “We thought, ‘Wait, it has to be all women. Don’t even ask anyone else. If we can fill the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame performance with these incredible women singing Nirvana songs, then we’ll have achieved our own revolution.’ It also added a whole other dimension to the show,” Grohl explained to Rolling Stone in 2014. “It added substance and depth, so it didn’t turn into a eulogy. It was more about the future.”
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