Annie Zaleski

In the last few years, PVRIS frontwoman Lynn Gunn has experienced significant ups and downs. The period around the release of the group’s second album, All We Know Of Heaven, All We Need Of Hell, was marked by her experiencing fatigue and vocal problems. In t...

Earlier today, pop-seared darkwave enthusiasts PVRIS released "Hallucinations," their second new tune in as many months. As with the band's previous single, “Death Of Me,” the dynamic song is full of tiny sonic detailing—oscillating guitars, wobbly electronic effects, shimmering percussion—and an explosive chorus, from which deep dance grooves and propulsive beats rain down like confetti

Plenty of bands draw on '80s new wave and synthpop for inspiration, but few do so while also crafting songs as solid as Kristin Kontrol, the project of Kristin Welchez, best known as the maestro of lo-fi garage-pop act Dum Dum Girls. X-Communicate, Kristin Kontrol's debut, is keyboard-driven pop of the finest vintage, married with modern-sounding production from Kurt Feldman (who has his own synth

The third Saturday in April means one thing. That’s right, it’s the ninth annual Record Store Day, where vinyl junkies and discerning collectors (as well as the inevitable POS eBay “flippers”) converge upon the nation’s remaining record stores to feed their turntables and hearts with exclusive collectable releases. If you’re deliberating over ... Read More ...

David Bowie, who passed away over the weekend right after his 69th birthday and the release of his new album, Blackstar, might not immediately seem like he has much of an influence on AP's universe. But without his fearlessness and curiosity, music as we know it would be radically different. Ev ...

In recent years, SENSES FAIL frontman BUDDY NIELSEN has become one of the scene’s most prominent proponents of equality, an outspoken critic of a culture rampant with sexual aggression and bullying, and of musicians using their position to take advantage of fans. Niel ...

The Maine have always been an industrious band, but their fall 2015 tour plans are ambitious even for them. Not only are they doing a series of shows where they're playing all of their latest LP, American Candy, the Arizona quintet are also in the middle of the "Free For All" trek, a no-cost, no-ticket-needed tour of unorthodox venues, including parks and mall parking lots. B ... Read Mo

Photo by Grizzlee Martin When Sum 41 stormed the stage at the APMAs, DMC wasn’t the only notable guest onstage: With no fanfare or advance warning, guitarist Dave “Brownsound” Baksh—who had left the band in 2006—bounded onstage at the end of “In Too Deep” and helped the group launch right into “Fat Lip,” Turns out, this was no mere one-off cameo: As heavily rumored, Brownsound’s appearance heralde

The Los Angeles band X, recipients of the Icon Award at the 2015 APMAs, were a staple of the late-'70s Los Angeles punk scene. The quartet––vocalist Exene Cervenka, vocalist/bassist John Doe, guitarist Billy Zoom and drummer DJ Bonebrake––played all of the cool clubs (the Masque, the Whisky a Go Go, Madame Wong's) with L.A. staples the Go-Go's, the All ...

Rob Cherry, a high school friend of AP founder/publisher Mike Shea, joined the magazine in 1990. A recent college graduate, he made some sacrifices to join the staff. "To show you how bad the economy was, and how small AP was at the time, I actually had to take a pay cut from my job stocking shelves at a local grocery store to join AP," he recalls now, "which I gladly did... Read Mo

Pete Wentz isn't the only member of Fall Out Boy who's a new dad: Vocalist Patrick Stump and his wife also recently welcomed a baby boy, Declan. This impending momentous occasion did have an interesting impact on the making of American Beauty/American Psycho. "Jake ...

It wasn't quite a sneak attack on caliber with Save Rock And Roll, but FALL OUT BOY’s November 24 announcement of their new album, American Beauty/American Psycho (due January 20 on Island/DCD2), and the debut of the album's spring-loaded title track were still a very pleasant surprise. Then again, ...

On December 2, 4AD is releasing PIXIES: Doolittle 25, a three-disc set featuring the original 1989 LP plus demos, B-sides and BBC Radio sessions. The first Pixies record helmed by British producer Gil Norton, Doolittle finds the seminal college-rock quartet—vocalist/guitarist Black Francis (aka Charles Thompson), guitarist Joey Santiago, then-bassist/vocalist Kim Deal and drummer/vocalist David Lo

ANDREW McMAHON has gone through many changes in the past few years: retiring the Jack's Mannequin moniker, striking out as an independent artist, moving back to Orange County from Los Angeles and becoming a dad to a little girl, Cecilia. (A ...

Call it beginner’s luck: Andrew McMahon’s first foray into writing musical theatre—he penned tunes for season two of the just-canceled television show Smash—landed him a Primetime Emmy nomination, for the song "I Heard Your Voice In A Dream." The former Something ...

Max Bemis is one of the hardest-working musicians in the business. Besides gearing up to release All My Friends Are Enemies: Early Rarities on January 22, he is recording the debut Perma album with his wife/bandmate, Sherri DuPree-Bemis. “We’re not treating like a side project; we’re treating it like a full-on band,” Bemis says, adding that the record is “tentatively” due in the fall. In additi

Record Store Day celebrates independent culture every late April, encouraging music fans to drive past the big box department stores and malls in favor of their local record dispensary, a vital component to any town's cultural makeup. But with the list of RSD exclusives swelling each year, sifting through it to find the good stuff can be overwhelming. Th... Read More ...

Over the next week, we'll be taking a look back at 2011 by unveiling our most popular Altpress.com features of the year—today, we share the 11 most-read reviews on Altpress.com of 2011 (and links to each in case you missed them—just click the album art to read). This is THE 11... Read More ...

Underrated Band of the Year: Yellowcard "Their music is amazing, and their lyrics are inspiring and honest." - Emma Borwick, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, UK (Photo: Nicole Zeno) It’s been a good year for Yellowcard. Returning from a hiatus, the band released When You’re Through Thinking, Say Yes in March, toured all over the world and gained a whole new crop of fans. These fans... Read M

(This list was originally printed in AP 282, which is on newsstands now and available for purchase here. That's the cover, right up there. —ed.) From splendid side projects to killer comebacks and brash upstarts to established acts hitting their high-water mark, 2011 was jam-packed with some truly incredible releases. Each of ... Read More ...