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The Tonearm
@thetonearm.com
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celebrating music journalism
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putting a needle on the cultural wax

an online journal of unexpected music + culture → thetonearm.com
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In the new episode of The Tonearm podcast, jazz bassist Linda May Han Oh reflects on 'familiar hells' versus 'strange heavens,' and connects the idea to her music, especially her work with her chordless trio. #jazzsky

Listen in to the full conversation: podcast.thetonearm.com/linda-may-ha...
November 18, 2025 at 3:03 PM
thetonearm.com
"Ghost-Note kicks off with 'JB's Out' and 'Move with a Purpose,' funk-soul songs that channel two of their biggest influences, James Brown and Sly & the Family Stone …"

Ghost-Note — Tiny Desk Concert: www.npr.org/2025/11/17/g...
Ghost-Note performs on the Tiny Desk Concert
November 17, 2025 at 8:45 PM
thetonearm.com
let's get this party started
November 17, 2025 at 10:30 AM
thetonearm.com
"Musicians from the worlds of folk, pop, rock and jazz talk losing their instruments, getting them back and preventing such gut-wrenching thefts in the first place."

How to Not Get Your Gear Stolen: tidal.com/magazine/art...
On the left, Alasdair Fraser and Natalie Haas with violin and cello, respectively. On the right, Leah Concialdi setated with a large saxophone.
November 17, 2025 at 6:45 AM
thetonearm.com
A black and white photo of Linda May Han Oh and the quote: “I thought being a double bass player would help my surfing. I was like, I don't want to be a professional musician; I want to be a pro surfer.”
November 16, 2025 at 9:30 PM
thetonearm.com
"Pianist and composer Kris Davis makes music that is modal and rhythmic; it's avant-garde, but inviting. At the Tiny Desk, her trio turns her layered compositions into a mosaic of emotional expression."

Kris Davis Trio: Tiny Desk Concert: www.npr.org/2025/11/11/g...
Kris Davis Trio perform on the Tiny Desk Concert
November 16, 2025 at 8:45 PM
thetonearm.com
"Welles says that for him, there's no use in trying to control how people perceive him or how they attempt to project partisan lines onto his music. His bottom line, he says, is radical nonviolence."

There's a new generation of folk protest singers on TikTok: www.npr.org/2025/11/11/n...
Jesse Welles, Jensen McRae and Mon Rovîa are three artists whose plainspoken protest music has resonated online.
November 16, 2025 at 12:45 PM
thetonearm.com
"We take a close look at The Dame’s 1960s and learn from friends, lovers and accomplices how David Jones invented the majestic creature mythologised as David Bowie. 'Everything David did in the ’60s led up to the ’70s…'"

The invention of David Bowie: www.uncut.co.uk/features/the...
A profile photo of a very young David Bowie.
November 15, 2025 at 3:00 PM
thetonearm.com
A profile photo of Lowli and the quote: "I wanted to create a journey and have a balance of dark and light. I think I've done that in a way, but . . . maybe there's more darkness in there than there is a kind of lightness."
November 14, 2025 at 9:31 PM
thetonearm.com
Eddie Lee’s Sligo Jazz Project transforms an Irish town into Europe’s most inclusive jazz education festival each summer. He's also a winner of the Jazz Forward Award + host Lawrence Peryer chats with him in the latest episode of The Tonearm podcast.

Tune in: podcast.thetonearm.com/the-inaugura...
A quote from Eddie Lee of Ireland's Sligo Jazz Project: "The great thing about a jazz repertoire and learning to play jazz is that you can walk into any room with a bunch of musicians and join them. You'll always have some tunes in common."
November 14, 2025 at 5:01 PM
thetonearm.com
"This was not an organized movement like punk or rave, but kismet. Musicians all over the country simultaneously decided to forge something new from the cultural ashes of their country."

The Synths and Electronic Gear of Krautrock: reverb.com/news/the-syn...
A very early photo of Ralf and Florian of Kratwerk playing live.
November 14, 2025 at 10:30 AM
thetonearm.com
"It's the kind of deadpan humor long found in the band's music, but also in their performance, as Cocker crooned, cooed and danced his way through four tracks."

Pulp — Tiny Desk Concert: www.npr.org/2025/11/13/g...
Pulp perform on the Tiny Desk Concert
November 14, 2025 at 4:00 AM
thetonearm.com
A photo of Nick Shoulders playing fiddle and the quote: "The idea that country music has always had this regressive streak or this antagonistically conservative core to it, I fundamentally reject it."
November 13, 2025 at 7:32 PM
thetonearm.com
someone needs to play "Hamburger Lady" for Geoff
headline: Portishead's Geoff Barrow: 'I can't think of any worse music to make love to than ours'
November 13, 2025 at 7:27 PM
thetonearm.com
Thomas Marriott’s Seattle Jazz Fellowship revives local jazz culture through community-focused programming. He's also one of the winners in the Jazz Forward Awards, and host Lawrence Peryer speaks with him in the latest episode of The Tonearm podcast.

Tune in: podcast.thetonearm.com/the-inaugura...
A quote from Thomas Marriott of Seattle Jazz Fellowship: "We need a community where the young musicians want to learn from the older musicians and the older musicians want to pass on to the young musicians."
November 13, 2025 at 5:01 PM
thetonearm.com
November 12, 2025 at 7:41 PM
thetonearm.com
"With Havoc handling the bulk of the production while trading verses with Prodigy, the duo always trafficked in street vulnerability – whether suss'ing it out or stripping themselves of it."

For Mobb Deep's Havoc, love for Queensbridge is 'Infinite': www.npr.org/2025/11/11/n...
GENEVA, SWITZERLAND - JANUARY 17: Havoc performs onstage during the Mobb Deep feat. Havoc, Big Noyd & DJ L.E.S. concert at Alhambra on January 17, 2025 in Geneva, Switzerland.
November 12, 2025 at 6:45 PM
thetonearm.com
Jesús Pérezagua’s Oh! Jazz streams live performances from the world’s jazz rooms to everyone. He's also one of the winners in the Jazz Forward Awards, and host Lawrence Peryer speaks with him in the latest episode of The Tonearm podcast. #jazzsky

Listen in: podcast.thetonearm.com/the-inaugura...
A quote from Jesús Pérezagua of Oh! Jazz: "A lot of jazz is happening every day in all these beautiful temples of jazz, the jazz clubs. And all of them—we are probably the music genre that is worse regarding promotion."
November 12, 2025 at 5:02 PM
thetonearm.com
"When Snider hears music she sometimes wants to eat it—that's how deep the desire goes. She's not traditionally religious, but she has come to see music as a mysterious, divine force within her."

Composer Sarah Kirkland Snider loves music so much, she might just eat it: www.npr.org/2025/11/04/n...
Composer Sarah Kirkland Snider internalizes music in unique ways. Her new opera, Hildegard, receives its world premiere this week at the LA Opera.
November 11, 2025 at 11:45 PM
thetonearm.com
A photo of Geoff Mann playing drums and the quote: I have this musical connection with my dad; we played together when he was alive, and I am finding myself missing that connection to his music now that we haven't played together in 22 years.
November 11, 2025 at 7:31 PM
thetonearm.com
Ed Trefzger from JazzWeek tracks radio play across North America, giving artists vital exposure data. He's also one of the winners in the Jazz Forward Awards, and host Lawrence Peryer speaks with him in the latest episode of The Tonearm podcast.

Have a listen: podcast.thetonearm.com/the-inaugura...
A quote from Ed Trefzger from JazzWeek: "If you're going to just be a jukebox, then you become irrelevant. But if you really reach where you broadcast and where you serve, then you should stay relevant."
November 11, 2025 at 5:41 PM
thetonearm.com
November 11, 2025 at 12:33 PM
thetonearm.com
… Host Lawrence Peryer speaks with Ed Trefzger from JazzWeek, Jesus Perezagua of Oh! Jazz, Thomas Marriott' from Seattle Jazz Fellowship, and Eddie Lee of Ireland's Sligo Jazz Project.

Tune in: podcast.thetonearm.com/the-inaugura...
November 9, 2025 at 1:32 PM
thetonearm.com
"As Eno himself said in ’84: 'I’m not all that interested in equipment. If I find a couple of things that I like, I am very happy with them, and I’ll just work with them.'”

Brian Eno's Most Surprising Music Gear Choices: reverb.com/news/brian-e...
An early-70s photo of a glammed out Brian Eno performing with Roxy Music.
November 9, 2025 at 10:31 AM
thetonearm.com
" 'I can’t hear too much Beefheart,' he says, detailing an enthusiasm that dates back decades. 'It’s like a really strong alcoholic drink. I can’t have too much of it, and I love it dearly.'”

XTC’s Andy Partridge Defends Captain Beefheart’s ‘Strictly Personal’: www.spin.com/2024/07/band...
A photo composite of XTC's Andy Partridge and the cover to Captain Beefheart's album Strictly Personal.
November 9, 2025 at 6:45 AM