Hank Shteamer
@darkforcesswing.bsky.social
writer, usually about music. Having a look around…
contact: hshteamer.writes@gmail.com
hankshteamer.com
contact: hshteamer.writes@gmail.com
hankshteamer.com
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Hank Shteamer's Creator Profile
www.tiktok.com
PSA: If you're contacted by anyone on any social media claiming to be me, & promising coverage in exchange for $, this is (obviously!) a scam. Pls report, block, etc. Latest fraudulent account — actively trying to get it deactivated but could take a while www.tiktok.com/@hank_shteamer
This week's drum-centric newsletter, in which I make the case for why Tyshawn Sorey's phenomenal trio (at the Vanguard this week!) are the best band in jazz, and delve into the genius of @jimwhitedrums.bsky.social, who plays TV Eye on Monday: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/gig-of-the...
Gig of the Week: 11/17/25
Two spellcasting drummers are playing in town within the coming days, and you should really go see both
darkforcesswing.substack.com
November 13, 2025 at 3:24 PM
This week's drum-centric newsletter, in which I make the case for why Tyshawn Sorey's phenomenal trio (at the Vanguard this week!) are the best band in jazz, and delve into the genius of @jimwhitedrums.bsky.social, who plays TV Eye on Monday: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/gig-of-the...
Thirty years ago, I read an album review, published in a DIY fanzine, that changed the course of my life. In recent days, I got to hold it in my hands - and thank the people who brought it into the world
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
'Infected by the Gods': A Zine Called 'FeH' and the Contagious Enthusiasm of Music Writing
Thirty years ago, I read an album review that changed the course of my life. In recent days, I got to hold it in my hands — and thank the people who brought it into the world
open.substack.com
November 3, 2025 at 1:16 PM
Thirty years ago, I read an album review, published in a DIY fanzine, that changed the course of my life. In recent days, I got to hold it in my hands - and thank the people who brought it into the world
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
Jack DeJohnette's art will live forever: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/27/a...
Jack DeJohnette, Revered Jazz Drummer, Dies at 83
www.nytimes.com
October 27, 2025 at 7:21 PM
Jack DeJohnette's art will live forever: www.nytimes.com/2025/10/27/a...
Every Thursday on Substack, I highlight one NYC gig for the coming week that I'm excited about, recap one from the prior week I loved and recommend dozens of other upcoming shows. It would mean a lot to me if you check it out and, if you like what you see, subscribe: darkforcesswing.substack.com
October 22, 2025 at 9:11 PM
Every Thursday on Substack, I highlight one NYC gig for the coming week that I'm excited about, recap one from the prior week I loved and recommend dozens of other upcoming shows. It would mean a lot to me if you check it out and, if you like what you see, subscribe: darkforcesswing.substack.com
Gig of the Week post for 9/8/25 - recommend shows plus recent happenings including a new piece on Wayne Shorter's public archives: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/gig-of-the...
Gig of the Week: 9/8/25
A peek inside the Wayne Shorter archives, appearances from two long-running avant-institutions, Andrew Cyrille on the web and more
darkforcesswing.substack.com
September 4, 2025 at 3:57 PM
Gig of the Week post for 9/8/25 - recommend shows plus recent happenings including a new piece on Wayne Shorter's public archives: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/gig-of-the...
DFSBP Gig of the Week (Joe Farnsworth live, RIP Brent Hinds and more)
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
Gig of the Week: 9/1/25
Goodbye, Brent Hinds; Neil on the Beach; Joe Farnsworth at Smoke; and more
open.substack.com
August 28, 2025 at 3:52 PM
DFSBP Gig of the Week (Joe Farnsworth live, RIP Brent Hinds and more)
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
On the upcoming return of progressive post-hardcore masters Dazzling Killmen, and why the band has kept me fascinated for 30 years and counting: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/beauty-in-...
Beauty in Ruin: Why the Dazzling Killmen Reunion Matters
On the return of the band behind 'Face of Collapse,' maybe the most fearsome and advanced post-hardcore record of them all
darkforcesswing.substack.com
August 18, 2025 at 7:20 PM
On the upcoming return of progressive post-hardcore masters Dazzling Killmen, and why the band has kept me fascinated for 30 years and counting: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/beauty-in-...
Many of my most enjoyable NYC live-music experiences in the past few years have one factor in common: Joe Farnsworth -- some thoughts and a new NYT profile: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/joe-farnsw...
Joe Farnsworth, disciple of swing
A new profile of the indispensable NYC jazz drummer is out now
darkforcesswing.substack.com
July 24, 2025 at 11:00 PM
Many of my most enjoyable NYC live-music experiences in the past few years have one factor in common: Joe Farnsworth -- some thoughts and a new NYT profile: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/joe-farnsw...
Quick PSA: No new music released in the past ~15 years has hit me harder emotionally than the output of Patrick Walker, the U.K. singer-songwriter who records under the name 40 Watt Sun. He’s playing a rare NYC solo show at the Meadows on Sat., July 12th, and there are still tix available. (1/2)
July 10, 2025 at 11:56 AM
Quick PSA: No new music released in the past ~15 years has hit me harder emotionally than the output of Patrick Walker, the U.K. singer-songwriter who records under the name 40 Watt Sun. He’s playing a rare NYC solo show at the Meadows on Sat., July 12th, and there are still tix available. (1/2)
PSA: If you're contacted by anyone on any social media claiming to be me, & promising coverage in exchange for $, this is (obviously!) a scam. Pls report, block, etc. Latest fraudulent account — actively trying to get it deactivated but could take a while www.tiktok.com/@hank_shteamer
Hank Shteamer's Creator Profile
www.tiktok.com
July 7, 2025 at 10:33 PM
PSA: If you're contacted by anyone on any social media claiming to be me, & promising coverage in exchange for $, this is (obviously!) a scam. Pls report, block, etc. Latest fraudulent account — actively trying to get it deactivated but could take a while www.tiktok.com/@hank_shteamer
I’ll be thinking about the final Ozzy/Sabbath show for a long while, but here’s some of what’s on my mind one day later, after streaming it from start to finish:
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
Ozzy and Black Sabbath's Farewell Show: 10 Thoughts Across 10 Hours
Observations on a historic day for heavy metal
open.substack.com
July 6, 2025 at 6:55 PM
I’ll be thinking about the final Ozzy/Sabbath show for a long while, but here’s some of what’s on my mind one day later, after streaming it from start to finish:
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
open.substack.com/pub/darkforc...
I’ve been a fan of Brandee Younger for a while, so it was an honor to profile her ahead of her new album - which I absolutely love - out Friday: www.nytimes.com/2025/06/11/a...
Brandee Younger Has a New Secret Weapon: Alice Coltrane’s Harp (Gift Article)
The harpist, composer and bandleader plays it on her latest album, “Gadabout Season,” a persuasive argument for the vast potential of her instrument.
www.nytimes.com
June 11, 2025 at 9:02 PM
I’ve been a fan of Brandee Younger for a while, so it was an honor to profile her ahead of her new album - which I absolutely love - out Friday: www.nytimes.com/2025/06/11/a...
Peter Evans’s Being & Becoming // @roulettenyc.bsky.social // Long Play Festival // May 2
Fantastic set. Dense, heady and at times (like here!) extremely hard-grooving. Joel Ross, Nick Joz, Tyshawn Sorey
Fantastic set. Dense, heady and at times (like here!) extremely hard-grooving. Joel Ross, Nick Joz, Tyshawn Sorey
May 3, 2025 at 1:54 PM
Peter Evans’s Being & Becoming // @roulettenyc.bsky.social // Long Play Festival // May 2
Fantastic set. Dense, heady and at times (like here!) extremely hard-grooving. Joel Ross, Nick Joz, Tyshawn Sorey
Fantastic set. Dense, heady and at times (like here!) extremely hard-grooving. Joel Ross, Nick Joz, Tyshawn Sorey
Some thoughts on the intergenerational refuge of so-called screamo -- a.k.a., how did all these kids end up at the Saetia show?
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/saetia-is-...
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/saetia-is-...
May 2, 2025 at 9:01 PM
Some thoughts on the intergenerational refuge of so-called screamo -- a.k.a., how did all these kids end up at the Saetia show?
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/saetia-is-...
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/saetia-is-...
I doubt there’s another writer alive who would think to compare Otis Redding and Keiji Haino. Just one among dozens of reasons why a new Ben Ratliff book is always a gift. ‘Run the Song’ is Ratliff at his most undiluted. Rambling by design (befitting its theme), it’s also startlingly lucid.
May 1, 2025 at 1:59 AM
I doubt there’s another writer alive who would think to compare Otis Redding and Keiji Haino. Just one among dozens of reasons why a new Ben Ratliff book is always a gift. ‘Run the Song’ is Ratliff at his most undiluted. Rambling by design (befitting its theme), it’s also startlingly lucid.
A marvelous experience to finally behold one of my greatest drumming heroes live. Absolute poetry; the sound and feel add up to an unmistakable fingerprint.
(Damon Che / Yesness / Mercury Lounge, NYC / April 25, 2025)
(Damon Che / Yesness / Mercury Lounge, NYC / April 25, 2025)
April 26, 2025 at 2:02 PM
A marvelous experience to finally behold one of my greatest drumming heroes live. Absolute poetry; the sound and feel add up to an unmistakable fingerprint.
(Damon Che / Yesness / Mercury Lounge, NYC / April 25, 2025)
(Damon Che / Yesness / Mercury Lounge, NYC / April 25, 2025)
Excited to see my name among the 2025 contenders for the Jazz Journalists Association's Robert Palmer–Helen Oakley Dance Award: jjajazzawards.org/2025-nominee.... Many of the greatest in the field have won or been nominated in the past, and it's a real honor to be in the running
2025 Nominees for Journalism & Media
2025 Photo of the Year nomineesThese are the finalist
jjajazzawards.org
April 20, 2025 at 12:37 PM
Excited to see my name among the 2025 contenders for the Jazz Journalists Association's Robert Palmer–Helen Oakley Dance Award: jjajazzawards.org/2025-nominee.... Many of the greatest in the field have won or been nominated in the past, and it's a real honor to be in the running
Billy Hart Has One Foot in Jazz’s Past and the Other in Its Future
www.nytimes.com
February 27, 2025 at 9:45 PM
Really enjoyed this one. Captures the chronology and important background context but also, crucially, the spirit of the subject. Made me feel the enormity of his loss all over again and sent me back to the music (lately: ‘Song Sentimentale’) with a fresh appreciation of his singular greatness
February 17, 2025 at 12:58 AM
Really enjoyed this one. Captures the chronology and important background context but also, crucially, the spirit of the subject. Made me feel the enormity of his loss all over again and sent me back to the music (lately: ‘Song Sentimentale’) with a fresh appreciation of his singular greatness
One of the best things I've ever read not just on Garth but on the Band, period. Look forward to multiple re-reads. Music writing of this caliber really gives me hope. (Thanks to @jonbern.bsky.social for the heads-up.)
January 24, 2025 at 1:05 AM
One of the best things I've ever read not just on Garth but on the Band, period. Look forward to multiple re-reads. Music writing of this caliber really gives me hope. (Thanks to @jonbern.bsky.social for the heads-up.)
My 10 favorite albums of 2024, all genres in play:
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
Best of 2024: Overall top 10
The best of the best, from where I'm sitting
darkforcesswing.substack.com
December 26, 2024 at 3:33 PM
My 10 favorite albums of 2024, all genres in play:
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
A rundown of my favorite heavy albums (metal, punk, rock, etc.) of 2024: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...
Best of 2024: The heavy stuff
Metal, punk, rock and more
darkforcesswing.substack.com
December 24, 2024 at 4:33 PM
A rundown of my favorite heavy albums (metal, punk, rock, etc.) of 2024: darkforcesswing.substack.com/p/best-of-20...