If you are having trouble viewing this email, click here.

She loved Wagner’s 'Götterdämmerung,' and its finale, the Immolation Scene. We had a lot of conversations about Brünnhilde, and why it took a woman to save the world. That’s what she said: Only a woman could do it; only a woman could change the course of history. She did always love pieces where the woman was the protagonist.
Is this interest remix not displaying correctly? | View it in your browser.
Long bluegrass history: Tyler Childers in Indianapolis, Nov. 15, 2018.
(Keith Griner/Getty Images)
Monday - September 21, 2020 Mon - 09/21/20
rantnrave:// This is one hell of a concept for a concept album: eight old-time fiddle instrumentals as tracks one through eight, one of them, the first one, being STEPHEN SONDHEIM's "SEND IN THE CLOWNS," which, at 47 years old, is a tad young as old-time music goes, not to mention a tad coastal elite—it's from a Broadway musical based on an INGMAR BERGMAN film—but the thing about old-time fiddle music is, if the fiddles sound good, nothing else really matters, and the fiddles sound exactly as sad and lonesome on that one as they do on the Texas-circa-1900 "MIDNIGHT ON THE WATER," which is track five, so anyway, eight of those, some more upbeat, some more mournful, followed by the album's lone vocal track, a new, honky-tonkish country tune that looks at the America-circa-2020 BLACK LIVES MATTER movement, empathetically, through the eyes of a very non coastal elite "white boy from Hickman." "Could you imagine," the singer asks his fellow Appalachians, "just constantly worryin' / Kickin' and fightin', beggin' to breathe?" And then: "How many boys could they haul off this mountain / Shoot full of holes, cuffed and layin' in the streets / Till we come into town in a stark ravin' anger / Looking for answers and armed to the teeth?" That song—the language is so colloquial, so specific, so purposeful—is called "LONG VIOLENT HISTORY," and it's the title track and centerpiece from the stunning album Kentucky singer/songwriter TYLER CHILDERS' surprise-released Friday morning. Childers wrote the song in June, then decided he needed the eight traditional tunes that precede it on the album to set the table and provide context, and then decided he also needed this six-minute video message to provide context for the context. The video message is stunning, too. Together, all of this material makes for one of the most unexpectedly powerful Black Lives Matter musical documents in a year that's had so many of them, and the only one, as far as I know, teeming with fiddles and banjos. The video message is an explicit plea to "my white rural listeners" to put themselves in the shoes of Childers' fellow Kentuckian BREONNA TAYLOR and other Black victims of police violence, as well as the people protesting on their behalf, and it's argued so skillfully, patiently and clearly that you don't want to imagine anyone disagreeing with it, so feel free not to read the comments under the video on Twitter. Just listen to Childers ask, "What if we were to constantly open up our daily paper and see a headline like ‘East Kentucky Man Shot Seven Times on Fishing Trip?' and read on to find the man was shot while fishing with his son by a game warden who saw him rummaging through his tackle box for his license and thought he was reaching for a knife?," and then hear how that imagery, and the history and the pain behind it, is reflected in those American instrumentals and in the words Tyler Childers has chosen to sing today. More context on those old songs courtesy AMERICAN SONGWRITER. More details on the project itself on Childers' official site: click on the "Read the Introduction by DON FLEMONS" button. And a great review, from a Southern perspective, by NPR MUSIC's ANN POWERS. Tyler is donating all profits to underserved Appalacian communities... BILLBOARD is keeping a running list of Venues Closing Across America... And Billboard's DAVE BROOKS reports (paywalled) that, when the live circuit eventually opens up again, promoters LIVE NATION and AEG are planning to transfer some risk from themselves to artists, with "lower guarantees [and] earnings tied more closely to ticket sales"... KANYE WEST continues his recent streak of making complete sense on TWITTER, except for the part where he seems to think no one else has ever thought or expressed or even done some of this stuff... A booming BRUCE SPRINGSTEEN Rolling Stone cover story (also paywalled) by my friend BRIAN HIATT, in which we learn, among many other things, that Springsteen didn't demo any of the songs for his upcoming LETTER TO YOU album because he wanted the E STREET BAND to sound like itself instead of trying to copy him, and in which STEVE VAN ZANDT says it's about time his Boss came around to that way of working. "He's a little slow," the band's consigliere says. Springsteen also reflects on his own experience with ... JUSTICE RUTH BADER GINSBURG loved opera more than JOAN JETT loves rock and roll, and she really loved her NOTORIOUS RBG t-shirts, which she used to hand out as gifts. Here's a list of her favorite records, with a bit of commentary. RIP... RIP also PAMELA HUTCHINSON, LEE KERSLAKE, TAY WAY and DAVE KUSWORTH.
- Matty Karas (@troubledoll), curator
sludge river stomp
Rave New World
Rave to the Grave
by Michelle Lhooq
In search of redemption and revolution in the pandemic nightlife underground.
NPR
Whistleblowers Allege Culture Of Secrecy, Protection Of Powerful At Singers' Union
by Anastasia Tsioulcas
They point to a real estate deal that could drain two-thirds of the American Guild of Musical Artists' financial reserves and a secretive, failed deal with disgraced opera star Plácido Domingo.
Slate
What Makes a Pop Act a One-Hit Wonder, From 'Volare' to 'Maniac' to 'Macarena'
by Chris Molanphy
Why A-ha and Dexys Midnight Runners are one-hit wonders—but Vanilla Ice and Men Without Hats aren’t.
The New York Times
Ruth Bader Ginsburg Loved Opera, and Opera Loved Her Back
by Francesca Zambello
Justice Ginsburg was the art form’s “greatest advocate and our greatest spokesperson,” says a leading director.
GQ
Hit-Boy Talks About Bad Recording Contracts, His Issues With Kanye and His Hot Summer
by Frazier Tharpe
The producer explains his recent Instagram comments calling out his old mentor.
The Daily Beast
How Dancing—In the Moonlight—Has Helped Keep Me Sane During Lockdown
by Michael Zam
Emmy-nominated screenwriter Michael Zam loved dancing as a kid and young adult. Cooped up during the pandemic, he rediscovered the groove-and joy of letting go to disco at home.
Pitchfork
What Does Kanye Actually Gain (or Lose) From Sharing His Record Contracts?
by Noah Yoo
Lawyers offer insight into the ramifications of the star’s latest radical act of transparency.
Variety
ACMs Figured Out How to Do a Pandemic-Era Music Awards Show Right — Were the Grammys Watching? (Column)
by Chris Willman
The Academy of Country Music Awards' successful Nashville-takeover approach was a breath of fresh air after the VMAs' failed attempt to do the same in NYC. "Music's Biggest Night" could build on that in L.A.
Time Out
The Greenwich Village jazz scene is scrambling to stay alive
by Shaye Weaver
The Village Vanguard has seen and survived it all--wars, floods, fires, economic downturns, and the fallout from the September 11 attacks--but the current forced.
NPR Music
Tyler Childers Pushes Back On Southern Values And Our 'Long, Violent History'
by Ann Powers
The Kentuckian singer-songwriter wanted to be clear on the meaning of a surprise new song and album, explaining to his fans in a video that, among other things, "Black lives matter."
squirrel hunter
Billboard
Do the Right Thing: How Run the Jewels Took On 2020
by Carl Lamarre
After years as an indie group, Run the Jewels has a label deal, a Grammy-worthy album and a heightened sense of purpose -- when the world needs its voice most.
Vulture
Tekashi 6ix9ine Is an Unworthy New York Rap Villain
by Craig Jenkins
No other era could produce this character. No other era would stomach him.
BBC Sounds
Ecstasy: The Battle Of Rave
by Chris Warburton, Danny Brocklehurst, Emma Forde...
When Ecstasy and Acid House first swept Britain, a group of lives would be changed forever. One Story. Half real life. Half drama.
The Washington Post
In the streets and online, go-go’s drumbeat for social change remains a constant
by Chris Richards
Even with the local nightlife on hold, D.C.’s native funk music feels as resonant as ever.
The New York Times
The Met Opera Fired James Levine, Citing Sexual Misconduct. He Was Paid $3.5 Million.
by James B. Stewart and Michael Cooper
The terms of the settlement between the renowned conductor and the company he shaped have not been previously disclosed.
Florida Politics
Fort Myers rock radio station goes ‘Trump Country.’ Is it legal?
by Jacob Ogles
Experts in FCC and FEC regulations say the situation is virtually unprecedented.
CBS Sunday Morning
Lady Gaga, lost ... and found
by Lee Cowan
The songwriter-performer's sixth consecutive #1 album, "Chromatica," explores the private pain that colored her hugely successful career and a fame she grew to hate - and helped her reclaim the woman behind the persona.
Pitchfork
The Blatant Hypocrisy of the Sotheby’s Hip-Hop Auction
by Alphonse Pierre
Plus more highs and lows from the world of rap this week, including the rise of Mulatto and the return of the “Float On” sample.
The Trichordist
The MLC Posts its By Laws
The Mechanical Licensing Collective finally posted its "by-laws" that gives some insight into its operations. For a non-profit like The MLC, Inc., the by laws are essentially the operating rules of the corporation.
Billboard
This YA Novel Reveals What K-Pop Stardom Is Like
by Jessica Jung
A first look at former Girls’ Generation member Jessica Jung's debut YA novel, 'Shine.'
MUSIC OF THE DAY
YouTube
"Long Violent History"
Tyler Childers
Title song from his stunning new album, out now on Hickman Holler/RCA.
“REDEF is dedicated to my mother, who nurtured and encouraged my interest in everything and slightly regrets the day she taught me to always ask ‘why?’”
@JasonHirschhorn


REDEF, Inc.
NY - LA - EVERYWHERE

redef.com
YOU DON'T GET IT?
Subscribe
Unsubscribe/Manage My Subscription
FOLLOW REDEF ON
© Copyright 2020, The REDEF Group