Category Archives: Featured Articles
2022 Winter Music Preview ~ Ambient and Drone
We absolutely love this time of year at A Closer Listen. As we survey the musical landscape, we see over 200 new releases on the near horizon and our hearts are filled with hope. Artists continue to be inspired, labels continue
2022 Winter Music Preview ~ Ambient and Drone
We absolutely love this time of year at A Closer Listen. As we survey the musical landscape, we see over 200 new releases on the near horizon and our hearts are filled with hope. Artists continue to be inspired, labels continue
How to Get Noticed in 2022 ~ A Guide for Musicians and Labels
A flash of red stands out against a field of white. This photograph illustrates a basic concept: if you want to get noticed in 2022, you’ll have to catch the eye ~ or in this case, the ear. The musical landscape
How to Get Noticed in 2022 ~ A Guide for Musicians and Labels
A flash of red stands out against a field of white. This photograph illustrates a basic concept: if you want to get noticed in 2022, you’ll have to catch the eye ~ or in this case, the ear. The musical landscape
ACL 2021 ~ The Top 20 Albums of the Year
If 2020 was the most surreal year in recent memory, 2021 was the runner-up. A rollercoaster of emotion was supplanted by a mountain of malaise. And yet, many artists broke through with the finest albums of their careers. Some of
ACL 2021 ~ The Top 20 Albums of the Year
If 2020 was the most surreal year in recent memory, 2021 was the runner-up. A rollercoaster of emotion was supplanted by a mountain of malaise. And yet, many artists broke through with the finest albums of their careers. Some of
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Rock and Post-Rock
Sorry, friends, no folk or jazz made our top ten this year ~ 2021 was the year of rock and post-rock! With almost every major post-rock band releasing an EP or album in 2021, even some of the top performers
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Rock and Post-Rock
Sorry, friends, no folk or jazz made our top ten this year ~ 2021 was the year of rock and post-rock! With almost every major post-rock band releasing an EP or album in 2021, even some of the top performers
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Modern Composition
This year, we reviewed more modern composition albums than those in any other genre ~ not because more were submitted, but because their overall quality was so high. We read this trend early in our Spring Music Preview, and it
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Modern Composition
This year, we reviewed more modern composition albums than those in any other genre ~ not because more were submitted, but because their overall quality was so high. We read this trend early in our Spring Music Preview, and it
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Field Recording & Soundscape
The natural world existed long before the creation of instruments: music made by wind and waves, birds and beasts. During the pandemic, many people have rediscovered the aural joys of nature: music that is always playing, and that can best
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Field Recording & Soundscape
The natural world existed long before the creation of instruments: music made by wind and waves, birds and beasts. During the pandemic, many people have rediscovered the aural joys of nature: music that is always playing, and that can best
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Experimental
Our Experimental section boasts the widest dynamic contrast of all the fields we cover. From near-silence to curdled wails, children’s classes to looped drums, every nook and cranny is explored and excavated. Where else might one discover an examination of
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Experimental
Our Experimental section boasts the widest dynamic contrast of all the fields we cover. From near-silence to curdled wails, children’s classes to looped drums, every nook and cranny is explored and excavated. Where else might one discover an examination of
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Electronic
Due to lockdowns and quarantines, most of us have not gone clubbing for years. Thankfully, electronic artists have kept making music during the pandemic ~ although not all of it for dancing. They can imagine an alternate universe in which our
ACL 2021 ~ Top Ten Electronic
Due to lockdowns and quarantines, most of us have not gone clubbing for years. Thankfully, electronic artists have kept making music during the pandemic ~ although not all of it for dancing. They can imagine an alternate universe in which our
a closer listen 