Crimson staff writer
Andrew K. Choe
Latest Content
Listening to Change: Fall Music Vignettes
Here’s how The Crimson’s Arts Board grieves the summer and welcomes the cold.
Virtually Famous: Music Journalism in A Social Media World
With social media playing a larger role in determining the music we listen to — and music streaming platforms increasingly resembling social media with features such as followers and likes — artists have claimed greater control over how their music and narratives are communicated to the public
Close-Listening: Diving Deep into a Song’s Lyrics
Misheard lyrics can be a golden moment of serendipity. Despite their falsehood, these alternative listenings of a song can open up compelling new interpretations and personal connections to the music.
The Record Review Logs On: YouTubers as Music Critics
Content creators embrace the subjectivity of the genre by sharing the stage equally with the music and putting their passion and appreciation on full display.
Pitchfork’s Recipe for the Record Review
In this first installment, I start by assessing Pitchfork’s distinctive brand of album reviews — the bread and butter of music criticism — as the standard for what is both valuable and frustrating about the genre.
‘Blue Raspberry’ Review: Katy Kirby Crystallizes as an Exciting Indie-Folk Voice
“Blue Raspberry” showcases a developed, distinct sound that focuses on the hard realities and deceptions of love.
‘Simple Like 17’ Album Review: Sadie Jean’s Catchy Tunes from TikTok and the Teenage Years
“Simple Like 17” paints a detailed, personal portrait of teenage angst while displaying foundations of exciting sonic combinations to come.
AJR’s ‘The Maybe Man’ Album Review: A Joyful Reprise
Despite flashes of promise, the album doesn’t fully realize the new AJR it hints at, reverting to well-worn pop hooks and a child’s view of the world.
‘Will Anybody Ever Love Me?’ Review: Sufjan Stevens Searches for Devotion with a New Sound
With this stellar track, Stevens introduces a cohesive and compelling sound, one that sits with difficult feelings but still finds cause for celebration.
CompFest Brings Harvard’s Musical Voices Together
Emulating the casual energy of a coffeehouse performance was one of Leahy’s goals to make the Cabaret a welcoming space for diverse composers of all styles and experiences to present their work.
Harvard Authors Spotlight: Dr. Robert Waldinger and Dr. Marc Schulz
“Good relationships keep us healthier and happier. Period.”
A Tale of Two Stores: Trader Joe’s Trade-Off
Expanding its target consumer base may allow Trader Joe’s to be more inclusive in its offerings and store locations.
‘Ten Planets’ Review: A Philosophical Exercise of Cosmic Proportions
“Ten Planets” is neither warning nor prophecy — it is a compelling contemplation on the human capacity to find beauty in even the most dystopian settings, as well as its tendency to create instruments of oppression.
A Stranger No Longer: Phoebe Bridgers’s ‘Stranger in the Alps’ Turns Five
The eleven-track album unleashed Bridgers’s addictively cathartic blend of sorrow, humor, and anger on the world. It also opened up avenues for collaboration that would cement her role as not only the musical voice of today’s indie music scene, but also the embodiment of its spirit.
Album Review: Alex G’s ‘God Save the Animals’ Is a Revelation
On this masterful 13-track record, Alex G grows out of the frustration that dominated his past albums and instead marvels at the grace and beauty in his world.
