“Kickball Katy” Goodman is perhaps best known for her work with Brooklyn lo-fi queens Vivian Girls, but on Sees the Light, her sophomore solo effort as La Sera, she shows off a softer side that’s more croquet than kickball. Album opener “Love That’s Gone” is a lilting, ’90s-style ballad full of melodic guitar lines and sweet, distortion-free vocals. “I Can’t Keep You in My Mind” is ... Read More

Despite her recent forays into poppier territory, Norah Jones still calls to mind the image of a young chanteuse churning out wise-beyond-her-years jazz tunes in a downtown club. On her fifth album Little Broken Hearts, she’s still downtown, but she’s traded the jazz club for a hip, hole-in-the-wall pub. After working with him on 2011’s Rome, Jones reteamed with Danger Mouse as her producer, and his indie, hip-hop ... Read More

Leave it to RuPaul to make a reunion special interesting. I’ve been watching reality TV since the original New Orleans season of Real World, when Julie the Mormon got kicked out of Brigham Young University for co-habitating with men. Yet I’ve only tuned in to a reunion special once or twice (and one of those occasions was when I needed to see what Teresa would say after she flipped that table on Real Housewives of New Jersey). ... Read More

RuPaul, of all people, should know the value of a climax. So why then was last night’s "finale"of RuPaul’s Drag Race so unbelievably anti-climactic? Because they didn’t announce a winner! Ugh, this show. I think we all sort of saw this coming, because the title of the episode was "The Final Three," but still. If the prospect of finally finding out what Willam did wasn’t enough to drum up an audience for the reunion ... Read More

The sisters of Swedish folk duo First Aid Kit are certifiable old souls. When Johanna and Klara Söderberg sing about loves lost and past regrets, it’s hard to believe they’re just 21 and 19, respectively. But they’ve been playing music together since before most American kids can drive, so it's safe to say that they know what they’re doing. Their sophomore album The Lion’s Roar (Wichita) debuted in January ... Read More