Features - Permanent Records

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Neutral Milk Hotel made a brilliant record the first time around, too

Neutral Milk Hotel only made two studio albums, but the one that gave the band a cult following was its last. In The…

Tatiana Tenreyro

4/14/21 6:00AM

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20 years later, Azure Ray’s crushing debut reminds us that we’re never alone

It can take years, if not decades, for the saddest songs to reveal themselves as such. The symphonies of Sergei…

Randall Colburn

1/15/21 6:00AM

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Written off as frothy confection, Katy Perry’s <i>Teenage Dream</i> proved to be pop perfection

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

Written off as frothy confection, Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream proved to be pop perfection

By the time Katy Perry released Teenage Dream in August 2010, the album had already given us the summer of…

Patrick Gomez

8/24/20 12:00PM

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Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s <i>Lift Your Skinny Fists… </i>remains the band’s most prophetic work

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s Lift Your Skinny Fists… remains the band’s most prophetic work

The American release of Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s second full-length album, Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas…

Andrew Paul

8/14/20 8:00AM

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Deftones’ <i>White Pony</i> is the only nu-metal record you don’t have to be ashamed of owning

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

Deftones’ White Pony is the only nu-metal record you don’t have to be ashamed of owning

It seems every few months on Twitter another “four high school albums” prompt makes the rounds, inspiring…

Ashley Naftule

8/11/20 6:00AM

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With <i>Histoire De Melody Nelson</i>, Serge Gainsbourg composed a French sex god’s teenage symphony

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

With Histoire De Melody Nelson, Serge Gainsbourg composed a French sex god’s teenage symphony

On April 5, 1986, French singer Serge Gainsbourg told Whitney Houston on live TV that he wanted to fuck her. Looking…

Ashley Naftule

3/24/20 6:00AM

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They Might Be Giants defied the major-label curse with <i>Flood</i>

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

They Might Be Giants defied the major-label curse with Flood

In the fledging “alternative rock” world of 1990, the words “major-label debut” were greeted with a mix of…

Gwen Ihnat

1/20/20 8:00AM

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“Art meets the devil via James Brown”: The everlasting impact of Gang Of Four’s <i>Entertainment!</i>

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

“Art meets the devil via James Brown”: The everlasting impact of Gang Of Four’s Entertainment!

In the immediate months before Gang Of Four was about to make its incendiary debut album, Entertainment!, guitarist A…

Gwen Ihnat

9/26/19 10:00AM

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<i>The Soft Bulletin </i>still stands as The Flaming Lips’ trippy masterpiece

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

The Soft Bulletin still stands as The Flaming Lips’ trippy masterpiece

Starting with Hear It Is in 1986, Oklahoma City outfit The Flaming Lips had a pretty routine schedule in their…

Gwen Ihnat

8/11/19 10:00AM

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On <i>Silent Alarm</i>, Bloc Party said hello and goodbye to indie rock

MusicFeaturesPermanent Records

On Silent Alarm, Bloc Party said hello and goodbye to indie rock

The arc of music history is long, allowing us to find new favorites in the past or imagine a time when some…

Danette Chavez

5/08/19 11:00AM

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With Pyromania, Def Leppard made a pop-metal hybrid for the ages

In 1983, when much of the music world was turning toward “modern-sounding” synths and electronic music, one young…

Gwen Ihnat

3/12/19 6:00AM

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The slow and steady perfection of Galaxie 500’s On Fire

One of the best things about old records is the liner notes. Pick up a jazz or pop LP of a certain vintage and…

Ashley Naftule

2/12/19 6:00AM

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Panopticon’s Kentucky combined folk and black metal to take on the coal industry

In 1976, filmmaker Barbara Kopple released Harlan County U.S.A., a documentary delving into Kentucky coal miners’…

Andrew Paul

1/09/19 12:00PM

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One of punk’s true originals, Germfree Adolescents is as fresh today as it was in 1978

On her 2007 album How To Win!, stand-up comedian Maria Bamford tells a joke about her mother telling her she looks…

Katie Rife

10/23/18 11:30AM

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40 years after Are We Not Men? we’re just now starting to get Devo

Devo was finished. The quintet—brothers Jerry and Bob Casale and Mark, Bob, and Jim Mothersbaugh—had gotten about as…

Erik Adams

9/29/18 9:00AM

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Lauryn Hill’s Miseducation is more than a crossover—it’s a beacon

A baby and a breakup. The catalysts for one of the most celebrated albums of 1998 are of some the most difficult and…

Erin Osmon

8/21/18 6:00AM

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The Cars is so much more than The Cars’ greatest hits

There are one-hit wonders and one-album wonders. There are musicians who consistently craft top-notch singles, but…

Erik Adams

6/18/18 6:00AM

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The Thermals’ best album is relevant again, but that’s not what makes it so great

When The A.V. Club put together an Inventory of George W. Bush-era political works that still hold up, we couldn’t…

Danette Chavez

5/15/18 11:15AM

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20 years ago, Boards Of Canada made electronic music personal

Permanent Records is an ongoing closer look at the records that matter most.

Sean O'Neal

4/09/18 10:00AM

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Gang Starr ended one of the greatest hot streaks in hip-hop with its masterpiece

Permanent Records is an ongoing closer look at the records that matter most.

Clayton Purdom

3/26/18 3:00PM

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Features - Permanent Records

Neutral Milk Hotel made a brilliant record the first time around, too

20 years later, Azure Ray’s crushing debut reminds us that we’re never alone

Written off as frothy confection, Katy Perry’s Teenage Dream proved to be pop perfection

Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s Lift Your Skinny Fists… remains the band’s most prophetic work

Deftones’ White Pony is the only nu-metal record you don’t have to be ashamed of owning

With Histoire De Melody Nelson, Serge Gainsbourg composed a French sex god’s teenage symphony

They Might Be Giants defied the major-label curse with Flood

“Art meets the devil via James Brown”: The everlasting impact of Gang Of Four’s Entertainment!

The Soft Bulletin still stands as The Flaming Lips’ trippy masterpiece

On Silent Alarm, Bloc Party said hello and goodbye to indie rock

With Pyromania, Def Leppard made a pop-metal hybrid for the ages

The slow and steady perfection of Galaxie 500’s On Fire

Panopticon’s Kentucky combined folk and black metal to take on the coal industry

One of punk’s true originals, Germfree Adolescents is as fresh today as it was in 1978

40 years after Are We Not Men? we’re just now starting to get Devo

Lauryn Hill’s Miseducation is more than a crossover—it’s a beacon

The Cars is so much more than The Cars’ greatest hits

The Thermals’ best album is relevant again, but that’s not what makes it so great

20 years ago, Boards Of Canada made electronic music personal

Gang Starr ended one of the greatest hot streaks in hip-hop with its masterpiece