Fearless


  • Compton’s Finest: N.W.A.’s Explosive Debut and Its Impact on Music and Society

    When N.W.A. released Straight Outta Compton on August 8, 1988, it marked a seismic shift in music, culture, and the way America viewed hip-hop. The album was a raw and unfiltered portrayal of life in the streets of South Central Los Angeles, delivered with an urgency and authenticity that had never been heard before. Not…

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  • The Bone-Chilling Melody of the Aztec Death Whistle

    The Sinister Symphony of the Aztec Death Whistle In the pantheon of historical artifacts that both fascinate and frighten, few can match the eerie allure of the Aztec death whistle. Often misunderstood and underestimated, this small, skull-shaped instrument was a marvel of ancient sound engineering, capable of emitting a scream that could freeze the blood…

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  • Reviewed: Kamasi Washington’s Fearless Movement

    As an ambitious creator of new musical worlds, visionary saxophonist Kamasi Washington wants to understand and proclaim the power of love. He wants to come to terms with his mortality. He wants to make people dance. And he certainly wants people to stop hating on jazz. Mixing jazz horns with afrofuturist concepts, spiritual transcendence, and…

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  • Eddie Vedder’s Iconic Climb at the ‘Drop in the Park’ Concert

    On September 20, 1992, Pearl Jamโ€™s โ€œDrop in the Parkโ€ concert at Seattleโ€™s Magnuson Park etched itself into rock history, not only for its music but for a death-defying stunt by frontman Eddie Vedder. This free concert was a celebration of the bandโ€™s rapid ascent following the success of their debut album, Ten, which featured…

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  • Books, Beats, and Buds: Jimi Hendrix’s ‘Purple Haze’

    In the swirling, electric year of 1967, a groundbreaking track reverberated through the UK, soon to envelop the US in its mesmerizing sound waves. This wasnโ€™t just any songโ€”it was โ€œPurple Hazeโ€ by the Jimi Hendrix Experience, a sonic masterpiece that would redefine the boundaries of rock music. But beyond its revolutionary guitar riffs and…

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  • How Taylor Swift is Leading the Way

    Of all the reasons that Taylor Swift deserves to be Time magazineโ€™s first ever musician Person of the Year, none are bigger than her smashing victories over misogyny and the music businessโ€™s malign way of swindling artists and stealing valuable intellectual property. The particulars of her creative predicament are well known. Once a shy, teenaged…

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  • Sister Rosetta Tharpe: Rock’s Overlooked Matriarch

    Beginnings in the Delta Cotton Plant, Arkansas, 1915: Nestled amidst a sea of cotton fields, this town, where the Mississippi Delta begins its stretch, bore witness to the birth of Rosetta Nubin. It wasnโ€™t just any place; the Delta was the cradle of American music, a melting pot of African rhythms, field hollers, and church…

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  • Review: Little Feat / Sailinโ€™ Shoes and Dixie Chicken 2023 Reissues

    Both Sailinโ€™ Shoes and Dixie Chicken, freshly remastered, sound as relevant today as they did 50 years ago.

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  • JADE BIRD and GRETA VAN FLEET ALBUMS REVIEWED!

    The recent Jade Bird and Greta Van Fleet albums are a huge step forward!

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  • The Dawn of Pink Floyd: Celebrating ‘The Piper at the Gates of Dawn’

    On August 4, 1967, an English rock band known as Pink Floyd released their debut album โ€˜The Piper at the Gates of Dawn.โ€™ It wasnโ€™t just another rock album. It was an eclectic mixture of psychedelic whimsy, philosophical introspection, and avant-garde experimentation that signaled the arrival of a major new force in British rock music.…

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  • Sinรฉad O’Connor, A Tribute In Pictures

    Acclaimed Dublin singer Sinรฉad Oโ€™Connor, whose death was announced on Tuesday, released 10 studio albums, while her song Nothing Compares 2 U was named the number one world single in 1990 by the Billboard Music Awards. Throughout her music career, she cut a striking figure.

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  • The Cable Guru: An Introduction

    And yes, the title refers to me. I’m a cable guru, with a minor in tweaks and accessories which Iโ€™ll also be covering in this column.

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