Published in ArtMagazine·Feb 7, 2020Member-onlyAlbum Review: Trixie Mattel — ‘Barbara’Two long years after her acclaimed album One Stone — but a mere two months after her documentary-accompanying EP Moving Parts: The Acoustic Soundtrack — drag and music powerhouse Trixie Mattel is back with eagerly awaited new material. This time, she’s taking us out of the countryside of Wisconsin straight…Music6 min readMusic6 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Dec 7, 2019The Best Songs of 2019 (According to Moi)It’s fair to say music had its ups and downs this year. The absolute brilliance of new and old artists like Lil Nas X and Taylor Swift was balanced out by yet another play of “Señorita” and that god-awful “it’s true la la la” line. Let’s take a completely objective…Music8 min readMusic8 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Sep 21, 2019Mika’s “My Name Is Michael Holbrook” is shaping up to be his best album yetIt’s been four years since English singer-songwriter Mika released his last album No Place In Heaven, a sublime record filled with growers that gave us what is possibly his career-best song in “Good Guys”. Now, with its long-awaited successor My Name Is Michael Holbrook set to drop on 4th October…Music5 min readMusic5 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·May 5, 2019EP Review: Leah Haworth — ‘Midnight Loneliness’As mainstream popular music is slowly, tentatively rediscovering folk and country influences, a whole wave of upcoming artists continues to breathe new life into the much-loved genres. Among them is Leah Haworth. Born in Darwen, UK, and now residing in London, the singer-songwriter is stepping into the spotlight with her…Music4 min readMusic4 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Dec 23, 2018The Year 2018 in MusicWhat a year it has been. Christina Aguilera returned . . . and no one cared. Lady Gaga returned . . . and people cared a little too much. Cher released an album of ABBA covers. Ed Sheeran didn’t release an album at all (thank God). Country music sneaked back…Music7 min readMusic7 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Dec 16, 2018The Real Queen of Christmas is Not Mariah CareyThere’s no denying that “All I Want For Christmas Is You” is the ultimate festive pop song. Or, is it? It was exactly ten years ago that two Brits got together to concoct a heinously catchy and appropriately tacky Christmas song. One of them was comedian Peter Kay, the second…Music4 min readMusic4 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Aug 11, 2018A Subjective Top Ten — The Best ABBA Songs“Mamma mia, here we go again…” From the irresistable energy of “Waterloo” and “Super Trouper” to the captivating lyrics of “Fernando” and “Slipping Through My Fingers”, ABBA’s music has made people dance and cry for decades. …Music8 min readMusic8 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Jul 12, 2018How Kacey Musgraves Quietly Became The LGBTQ Champion We NeedIn the current political climate, it’s more important than ever to have famous artists publicly standing up for disenfranchised minorities. When it comes to the relationship between LGBTQ people and music, the role of the classic “gay icon” is usually played by flamboyant, camp pop divas. And while vocal allies…LGBTQ6 min readLGBTQ6 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Jul 10, 2018How the Aquaria vs. Bebe Rexha Feud Exposes Pop Music’s Star SystemIt was one of the minor pop culture controversies of the year, but it exposed how songwriters are neglected and discredited in pop music. Let’s recap what happened: singer-songwriter Bebe Rexha met the final four contestants of the reality TV behemoth RuPaul’s Drag Race, season 10, backstage at the VH1…Music7 min readMusic7 min read
Published in ArtMagazine·Jul 4, 2018Ranking the Music from RuPaul’s Drag Race Season 10 ContestantsEver since Jinkx Monsoon called her debut record The Inevitable Album and Kim Chi dropped her infamous “Single”, it’s become a rule that almost every drag queen on the reality TV behemoth RuPaul’s Drag Race releases music the moment they get kicked off. Some of their singles are amazing —…Music6 min readMusic6 min read
