Vinyl or Spotify? Neither. Mercury Rev’s Jonathan Donahue is a cassette man
Alt-rock icons Mercury Rev are back after seven years with The Light in You, and while the musical landscape has changed, Jonathan Donahue’s lust for cassettes has not.
Grace Potter takes a sonic road trip (but leaves the vinyl behind) on Midnight
Grace Potter leaves the Nocturnals behind to visit every sonic style under the sun on her new album Midnight.
Geddy Lee on how Rush cranked back the clock one song time at a time on R40 Live
A band like Rush doesn’t just turn 40 – they do it with a twist. Vocalist and bassist Geddy Lee shares the making of R40, a retrospective tour that turns back time a little further with every song.
The Bee Gees are underrated and Spotify is overhated, say Chk Chk Chk
“You try to do as many different things as you can, because they all have a slightly different character.” Genre mixing can be a beautiful thing when it’s done right, as witnessed by the blissful sounds made by the Brooklyn-based jam-punk/indie-dance hybrid collective known as !!! (pronounced Chk Chk Chk). On their new album As […]
Vanessa Carlton on her music evolution since ‘A Thousand Miles’ made her a star
DT chats with Vanessa Carlton about how making her new album, Liberman, was as much about the sound of the record as it was the music itself.
Why Widespread Panic weaned off Pro Tools to cut their latest album live
Feeling a little too comfortable after playing together for 30 years, Widespread Panic threw away digital tools on their latest album, Street Dog, to record it live in a room.
After 8 years percolating in his brain, OMI’s hit Cheerleader was just the beginning
“My voice is different. It’s distinctive. There’s nothing to compare it to.” The summer of 2015 may be long-faded into the rear view, but some of its hot sounds remain as fresh now as when we first heard them — sounds like those of OMI’s ubiquitous Cheerleader, the tropical house ode to the person who […]
Public Enemy’s Chuck D is still fighting the man (but not Spotify)
Rap royalty Chuck D explains why Public Enemy’s new album Man Plans God Laughs runs only 29 minutes, why he’s not afraid of Spotify, and why he doesn’t believe in feeling pressure.
K-OS rapped into iPod headphones for his latest album, and you would never know
Canadian rapper K-OS redefined “lo-fi” by recording all the vocals for his latest album, Can’t Fly Without Gravity, on his iPod headphones. And you probably wouldn’t have even noticed.
Infinite loops: The electro-tunes of Battles never stop repeating, or evolving
Experimental electronic artists Battles carve winding, labyrinthine loops that evolve through the song and even from performance to performance, even if audiences only see them “pushing a button.”
Johnny Rotten: Kim Kardashian’s ass belongs in a gold Gucci wheelbarrow
John Lydon may not go by Johnny Rotten in his band Public Image Ltd., but the same surly, snarling persona remains. And in our interview, he’s as willing as ever to tell it like it is on everything from vinyl to Kim Kardashian.
Carly Rae Jepsen on the virtues of first takes, vinyl, and singing tired
After the ubiquity of 2011’s Call Me Maybe, Carly Rae Jepson returns with an 80s throwback on Emotion.
Klingande melds melodies with house-friendly beats to take Spotify by storm
French DJ Klingande explains the swell of enthusiasm behind melodic house, his meteoric rise from a single song mixed in his bedroom, the problem with WAV files, and why you can’t touch Nirvana.
Talking Beatles, hi-fi, and subwoofers with Strokes guitarist Albert Hammond Jr.
Once and future Strokes guitarist drops new solo album Momentary Masters, and the man is all about great sound and cool vinyl.
How a Norwegian DJ set Spotify on fire with a tropical Notorious B.I.G. remix
Norwegian DJ Matoma is one of Spotify’s most popular DJs thanks to his summery tropical house interpretation of The Notorious B.I.G.’s Old Thing Back.
Joe Satriani stops shredding to spin a story on Shockwave Supernova
Joe Satriani may be known the world over a guitar virtuoso, but on his new album Shockwave Supernova, the master steps outside his comfort zone to try something new.
Lee Bannon on ‘chair music,’ his name change, and sonic link to Keith Richards
Pattern of Excel finds Bannon twisting the cosmic knob of a futuristic radio station parked on the edge of an experimental ambient universe where bass and beats have been replaced by reverb-drenched intergalactic axe scrapings.
After a Jeep commercial and a hit single, X Ambassadors plant a lo-fi flag on VHS
The single “Renegades” rocketed X Ambassadors to number on alternative radio, and now the fledgling Ithaca, NY band is back with their first full-length album: VHS.
Ambient moodmakers The Orb know when to kick out tech to make room for music
Ambient house music pioneers The Orb are past their days of waiting for the latest and greatest synthesizers, and let their music take top priority on their spacey new album Moonbuilding 2703 AD.
What do Britney, Charlie XCX, and Sia have in common? The beats of Giorgio Moroder
Giorgio Moroder may not be a household name, but the beats from his 40-year career definitely are. On his latest album, Déjà Vu, Moroder pairs up with artists from Britney Spears to Sia on a fresh set of danceable tracks.
When it’s time to cut an album, The Darkness believe in a thing called digital
The Darkness built a career on over-the-top glam rock, but in the studio with producer and guitarist Dan Hawkins, subtlety and restraint reign as the band strives for the perfect sound.
Straight outta East Berlin: DJ Paul van Dyk remixes the politics of electronic music
Growing up in East Germany gave DJ Paul van Dyk a unique perspective that helps fuel the throbbing electronic beats of The Politics of Dancing 3, his latest album.
Steve Aoki on Neon Future II, his obsession with Wolverine, and DJing on Mars
We speak to DJ Steve Aoki on his passion for music, high-res audio, comic books, and why he’s so excited about the future.
Speeding down the Foo Fighters’ Sonic Highway
As the Foo Fighters explored eight different studios across the U.S., keyboardist Rami Jaffee used the Force (and plenty of Mellotron) to leave his own tire tracks on the new album, Sonic Highways.
For My Morning Jacket, The Waterfall just flows better in high resolution
On their new album The Waterfall, My Morning Jacket experimented with a number of different recording techniques to craft a different vocal treatment for every song, including Jim James’ signature “fish tanking” technique.
How Miami Horror sculpted a post-disco dreamfest on All Possible Futures
After the bubbly pop of 2010’s Illumination, Miami Horror returns with All Possible Futures, a Talking Heads-inspired discodreamfest that definitely belongs on your summer playlist.
Stripped down and reimagined in brass, Porcupine Tree takes on a whole new life
Gavin Harrison honed his craft as the drummer for prog-rock legends Porcupine Tree, and with Cheating the Polygraph, he’s returning to some classics to play them as never before.
Imagine Dragons chase the hi-res dragon, hate getting smashed on the radio
For their new album Smoke + Mirrors, Imagine Dragons created a studio from scratch to capture every nuance in high-resolution digital audio. Listening to it on the radio? Forget about it.
For chillwave maestro Tycho, effects are as much instruments as the ones you play
Sometimes beautiful music is a happy accident. For Tycho, also known as Scott Hansen, preserving the stumbling process that leads him there is as important as the intentional part.
The Crystal Method explain the art of the remix, why MP3s suck, and Satan Gas
Ken Jordan and Scott Kirkland have made a living remixing other artists as The Crystal Method, but on their latest album, it’s their work that goes under the knife as other mixers take the board.
How many Avett brothers does it take to salute Elliott Smith? One, and an indie prodigy
Indie icon Elliott Smith inspired a generation of songwriters before he tragically passed away at 34 in 2003. Now Seth Avett and Jessica Lea Mayfield are rekindling his memory with a touching tribute album.
Arcade Fire’s Will Butler burns short, bright and solo on <em>Policy</em>
Free from the constraints of Arcade Fire’s frantic sextet, multi-instrumentalist Will Butler explores everything from Americana to electronics music on his new solo album <em>Policy</em>.
Pushing the aural envelope with high-res audio evangelist Steven Wilson
Steven Wilson doesn’t just prefer the clarity of high-resolution recordings, he’s genuinely dumbfounded by artists that choose not to make them in 2015. And his new album, Hand. Cannot. Erase. , is a perfect showcase of what it can sound like.
For alt-J, recordings are a ticket to the afterlife (so don’t mess up)
After going from a tiny British electronic act to headlining Madison Square Garden, the guys behind alt-J are coming to their grips with their fame – but one thing remains the same: Recording quality trumps everything.
After decades propelling the B-52s with her throaty growl, Kate Pierson flies solo
On Guitars and Microphones, B-52s singer Kate Pierson gets a chance to break out of formation and fly solo – alongside Australian songwriter Sia – on a record that showcases unique vocals that could “cut through steel.”
After facing judges on The Voice, Michelle Chamuel faces the fire in the studio
After landing a runner-up position on The Voice in 2013, Michelle Chamuel steps back into the spotlight with Face the Fire, her first solo album and a hard-fought lesson in how to distill “the sound of emotion” in a studio.
Butch Walker is all about that tape, about that tape (no digital)
Butch Walker has produced talents from Weezer to Taylor Swift, but on Afraid of Ghosts, he gets personal, and lays it down unpolished, over the hiss of tape.
Slow down! The Ting Tings Katie White gets Super Critical about modern dance music
Katie White of the Ting Tings tells Digital Trends about the decision to go all-analog for the new album Super Critical, her club dreams of years past, and her Stevie Nicks obsession.