Editorials
Weezer’s Pinkerton at 25: The Band Has Moved On, Though We Never May Do the Same
Weezer isn’t giving interviews about Pinkerton for its 25th anniversary. There’s no big press push promoting a deluxe vinyl reissue of the album celebrating its quarter-century of existence. (As of press time, you can’t even buy Pinkerton from the band’s merch store, though it is readily available elsewhere.) This relative silence about an auspicious milestone (which will officially occur on September 24th) for one of their best-loved and most influential records might seem a little odd. But maybe Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo, whose intensely personal songwriting drives this 10-song, 34-minute record, doesn’t feel like there’s any advantage to speaking further on the subject. Clearly, the band has moved on; though they took a five-year break after Pinkerton that was, at the time, commonly ...
Dirty Work Is a Weird Glimpse Into the Movie Career Norm Macdonald Almost Had
Norm Macdonald, who left us too soon at the age of 61 after living with cancer for a decade, was a comedian’s comedian. You can tell because so much of his greatest work is just him. There’s the opening passage of his special Me Doing Stand-Up, where he immediately pontificates about being haunted by the grim specter of death (“It’s good to be alive, isn’t it? That’s what I say. I find that to be the goodest thing there is, to be alive. And uh, the reason it’s so good, it’s cause it’s so bad to be dead. It’s not like life’s so fucking great, but compared to being smothered in earth…”). There’s his legendary ultra-clean roasting of Bob Saget, and his interjections on Conan O’Brien’s first Late Night show, where he couldn’t stop running down Carrot Top. Even the Saturday Night Live gig that ...
Up Yours! The Black, Queer, and Feminist Artists That Revolutionized Punk
Consequence’s Punk Week continues with an essay on the “outsider” artists who have succeeded in and revolutionized the genre, despite the odds being stacked against them. Keep checking back throughout the week for interviews, lists, editorials and videos — it’s all things punk, all the time. Flip through the annals of punk history, and consider the bands often cited as icons: The Clash, Sex Pistols, X, Black Flag, Fugazi, Ramones, Green Day, Rancid, blink-182. These artists certainly deserve their lofty status and every plaudit thrown their way, although you might notice that these acts (largely) feature lineups dominated by straight, white, cisgender men. On the surface, this seems counterintuitive. Punk is often positioned as a reaction against the mainstream, a way to include marginaliz...
Why Exodus Is the Perfect Eulogy For DMX
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-05-28T21:17:31+00:00“>May 28, 2021 | 5:17pm ET Posthumous albums are tough to judge; they’re effectively the last will and testament of a usually beloved artist. Now, calling DMX beloved is the understatement of the last two decades, so Exodus is more than just an album. X’s first album dropped in 1998, and in one calendar year, Earl Simmons became the biggest rapper in the world by more than a few country miles. He snatched the minds, hearts, and souls of anyone on this planet who considered themselves even a casual hip-hop fan. That part about “souls” is essential. DMX laid his spirit to bear in every rhyme he wrote and every bark he bellowed. We felt his joy, his pain, his triump...
J. Cole, Rap’s Middle Child, Comes of Age on The Off-Season
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-05-14T18:39:31+00:00“>May 14, 2021 | 2:39pm ET As with most middle children, one tends to forget about them in favor of their older or younger sibling. The Off-Season, out today (May 14th), sees J. Cole — aka hip-hop’s self-proclaimed middle child — finally accepting and embracing his place, and letting everyone know that though he may exist between generations, he still has plenty to offer. A typical middle child is constantly seeking approval from either or both of their parents, only to find themselves ignored (and therefore disappointed). Cole has garnered similar scorn from a large sector of rap fans — look no further than his shots at Kanye West on “False Prophets” or his cont...
Hip-Hop and TikTok Are Bringing Pop-Punk Back in a Big Way
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-05-04T18:36:48+00:00“>May 4, 2021 | 2:36pm ET Pop-punk has crept back onto the charts, and its latest takeover is well underway — without any live shows and long after the end of Warped Tour, a hallmark of the genre’s previous reign. In the past year, pop-punk has made its comeback, but with the help of some unlikely forces. The first of those forces are hip-hop crossovers, which have propelled pop-punk to the top of the charts. 24kGoldn and iann dior’s single, “Mood”, blended elements of pop-punk and hip-hop and went to No. 1. On the Alternative Airplay chart, All Time Low got their first No. 1 with their single “Monsters”, which featured hip-hop star blackbear. A remix featuring D...
Ramones’ Self-Titled Debut Sparked a Punk Movement That Would Span Decades
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-04-25T16:25:45+00:00“>April 25, 2021 | 12:25pm ET Editor’s Note: On April 23, 1976, four twentysomethings from Queens with shades, blue jeans, and leather jackets released their self-titled debut and started the punk rock movement. Our own Lindsay Teske takes a look back on those days as the Ramones’ first record turns 45. The 1970s were destined to undergo a cultural shift. The many effects of the Vietnam War had long been taking their toll, the bizarre circus of the Nixon and Ford presidencies had fatigued many and generated a deep sense of distrust in the government, and the cherry on top of it all was an ongoing recession that absolved the idea of stable employment for countless...
Rage Against the Machine’s Evil Empire Still Burns with Indignation 25 Years Later
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-04-16T21:10:08+00:00“>April 16, 2021 | 5:10pm ET Editor’s Note: Rage Against the Machine’s Evil Empire came out 25 years ago this week. Contributing writer Robert Dean looks back at how the album not only stirred his social conscience as a teenager but also how the music’s messages and, dare we say, rage feel as powerful and poignant as ever a quarter-century later. When you’re 15, there’s a ton of developmental burden. You take things at face value. There’s subtext everywhere and within everything – all of the time. Fifteen-year-olds are walking sponges. They feel things. When we were that young, we poured over lyrics, read into a band’s value system, and adopted their morals and i...
Modest Mouse’s This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About Distilled Suburban Angst into an Indie Rock Tour de Force
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-04-16T12:45:29+00:00“>April 16, 2021 | 8:45am ET Editor’s Note: Modest Mouse’s first album — that one with the really long title — came out 25 years ago this week and changed the landscape of indie rock forever. We welcome author Bryan C. Parker in his Consequence debut as he looks back at the sad, angsty beginnings of Isaac Brock’s Issaquah, Washington, outfit. Modest Mouse’s 1996 debut album, This Is a Long Drive for Someone with Nothing to Think About, mapped a blueprint for one of the most successful careers in indie rock. The wandering guitar line, woozy note bends, and staggering drums that announce the record, combined with frontman Isaac Brock’s gravelly bark, forged an inim...
Foo Fighters’ Wasting Light Remains a Late-Career Statement 10 Years Later
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-04-12T15:15:35+00:00“>April 12, 2021 | 11:15am ET Editor’s Note: On April 12th, 2011, Foo Fighters put out their seventh album, Wasting Light. At the time, Dave Grohl saw it as a chance for the band to get back to the project’s humble garage roots. Now, a full decade later, Grant Sharples examines just how successful the band were in achieving Grohl’s aim and what the record ultimately meant for the veteran band and their fans. Starting with 2005’s In Your Honor, alt-rock icons Foo Fighters have adhered to certain underlying concepts for their records. These aren’t narrative concepts but musical ideas by which Dave Grohl and co. creatively orient themselves. On their fifth reco...
Too Soon Gone: How the Life and Music of DMX Tell a Tragically Familiar Story for Black Men
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-04-11T15:15:47+00:00“>April 11, 2021 | 11:15am ET “I want Black men to grow old.” While scaling out to the larger population, away from the complexities of rapper Earl “DMX” Simmons’ untimely death, television writer Camilla Blackett simultaneously managed to home in on a core understanding. For Blackett and many others, the premature loss of Simmons labors as a frightening reminder that we, Black men, do not grow old, at least not nearly enough of us. Chadwick Boseman, Charlie Murphy, Bernie Mac, Nipsey Hussle, Prince, Heavy D, George Floyd, Gerald LeVert, Tupac Shakur, Notorious BIG, Prodigy (of Mobb Deep), J Dilla, Bernard Tyson, Fred the Godson. MF DOOM. These are an exceedingly...
Our Hate-Love-Hate Relationship with the New Captain America
<span class="localtime" data-ltformat="F j, Y | g:ia" data-lttime="2021-04-10T14:25:29+00:00“>April 10, 2021 | 10:25am ET Warning: Major spoilers for The Falcon and the Winter Soldier. He didn’t have to do anything for us to hate him. All John Walker (Wyatt Russell) had to do to earn our ill will was not be Sam Wilson (Anthony Mackie). Falcon relinquished the shield Steve Rogers gave to him out of an abiding respect for his friend, a sense that what the original Captain America accomplished was unique and personal. Handing that symbol of Steve’s accomplishments over to the Smithsonian was a sign that Sam intended to honor his friend’s legacy without taking on his mantle. So, when some random new guy assumes that mantle, replete with the shield Falcon re...
