Email Author Rob van Alstyne

2013 Stories by Rob van Alstyne

• Professor Blastoff

  published May 8, 2013

  Though the world of comedy podcasts tends to be insular and cultish, Professor Blastoff qualifies as a bona fide big deal. A key player in... More >>

• Joe Mande

  published May 8, 2013

  Since graduating from St. Paul Central High School in 2001 with a class-clown credit to his name, Joe Mande hasn't wasted any time making his... More >>

• Daughter

  published May 8, 2013

  Echoing a melody-minded crossbreed of Cat Power and the XX, buzzy British trio Daughter soundtracked steamy Grey's Anatomy scenes and... More >>

• Damien Jurado

  published May 8, 2013

  Though he releases records at a feverish pace, veteran folkie Damien Jurado creates songs that have always cast a slow-burning spell. Over the... More >>

• The Veils

  published May 1, 2013

  Fresh-faced Rough Trade records rookies a decade ago, London-based shadow-rockers the Veils have endured a near constant churn of members and... More >>

• Josh Ritter & the Royal City Band

  published April 24, 2013

  Written and recorded in the wake of the collapse of his marriage, Josh Ritter's latest album, The Beast in Its Tracks, is unsurprisingly... More >>

• Nick Drake's Musical Legacy with Haley Bonar, Mason Jennings

  published April 17, 2013

  British folkie Nick Drake's stature seems only to grow with each passing year since his tragic death in 1974 at age 26 from an antidepressant... More >>

• Joey Ryan & the Inks EP-release show

  published April 17, 2013

  Now five years and two albums into their ascent on the local scene, indie-pop quintet Joey Ryan & the Inks (whose frontman is employed here at... More >>

• Phosphorescent

  published April 9, 2013

  Matthew Houck's decade-long run as Phosphorescent has seen him set his cracked twang to both tried-and-true cowboy sounds with 2009's Willie... More >>

• Jamie Lidell

  published April 2, 2013

  A 39-year-old pasty Englishman with production skills and a soulful set of pipes, Jamie Lidell may not look the part of suave potential Prince... More >>

• Bethany Larson & the Bee's Knees

  published April 2, 2013

  For most people, heartbreak leads only toward paralysis, marathon cushion-cradling crying sessions, or, at best, an uptick in unproductive... More >>

• Thao & the Get Down Stay Down

  published March 27, 2013

  While Thao Nguyen and her backing band the Get Down Stay Down first wowed critics with a record featuring finely wrought folk-pop (2008's stellar... More >>

• Hayden

  published March 27, 2013

  A prized singer-songwriter in his native Canada, Hayden Desser boasts a significantly smaller, but feverishly devoted, cult stateside. Fans on... More >>

• Har Mar Superstar

  published March 27, 2013

  Alternately praised and dismissed for his decade-long run as an ironic, '80s-loving R&B lothario, Minnesota native and current NYC resident Sean... More >>

• Stars

  published March 20, 2013

  After rightfully breaking through to wider recognition on the strength of their excellent third album, Set Yourself on Fire, in 2005,... More >>

• Local Natives

  published March 20, 2013

  Arguably the biggest indie success story of 2010, Los Angelino quartet Local Natives won raves worldwide for the tribal-accented rhythms and... More >>

• The Evening Rig

  published March 20, 2013

  The Twin Cities music scene has long boasted a reputation for ragged-but-right country-rock even as the number of actual bands in the Land of... More >>

• Starfucker

  published March 20, 2013

  With a too-hot-for-the-FCC moniker like Starfucker, Portland musician Joshua Hedges clearly isn't too interested in courting the mainstream, even... More >>

• BOY

  published March 13, 2013

  Featuring a sleek and sophisticated indie-pop sound seemingly custom-made for cosmopolitan coffeehouses, Germany-based female duo BOY have slowly... More >>

• Caveman

  published March 6, 2013

  Sounding like the shaggier and stoned East Coast counterpoint to Local Natives, Brooklyn quintet Caveman likewise rely on tribal rhythms and... More >>

• Indians

  published February 27, 2013

  As Indians, Copenhagen one-man band Soren Lokke Juul makes spectral bedroom folk that cleverly combines organic and electronic instrumental... More >>

• Trust

  published February 27, 2013

  Ever wish Vincent Price had recorded an album of intoxicating disco-pop? If he had, it would likely sound something like TRST, the dark,... More >>

• Bethany Larson & the Bees Knees

  published February 20, 2013

  For most people, heartbreak leads only toward paralysis, marathon cushion-cradling crying sessions, or, at best, an uptick in unproductive... More >>

• Eels

  published February 20, 2013

  Now 17 years removed from his alt-rock radio hit "Novocaine for the Soul," Mark Oliver Everett and his chameleonic band Eels have the luxury of... More >>

• Ruby Suns

  published February 20, 2013

  Originally an inspired collision of African rhythms and psych-pop melodies, the Ruby Suns have since morphed into a decidedly less world-music... More >>