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Finding Joy in A Broken World

by Baileigh Jane (Wilks)

Baileigh Jane (Wilks)
credit: Sydney Tate

It feels ironic to be releasing my song ‘Better’ at a time where it appears the world is, in fact, doing worse. Civil rights and liberties are being rolled back while our governments flirt with the idea of World War III, and yet, when I finished this song several years ago, I thought to myself, “I’ll release this when the world is better”. But as I’m getting older, I’m learning life is more nuanced than that. You can’t wait for the world to be better, you can’t wait for the world to give you permission to find your joy.

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How an Emo Rock Opera Saved my Life

by Tucker Coughlin a.k.a. In Luna’s Garden

Mina / In Luna's Garden


Desperation Breeds Creativity.

Mina vs the Pit of Despair is an album born out of desperation. I’ve struggled with chronic depression and suicidal thoughts since I was 11 years old. I’m sure many of you can relate to teenage years full of tumultuous emotions and searching for answers. My memories of high school and early college are filled with trips to the doctor, seven different therapists, countless medication modifications, and reading philosophy and religion, all culminating in a 3-month inpatient residency. No matter what I did, nothing could convince me that life was worth living. In a final attempt, I decided to construct my own thesis on why life is inherently good. This effort would coalesce over two years into my debut album, Mina vs the Pit of Despair.

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Living in the Now

by J V W N


JVWN — which stands for Just Vibing With the Now — is more than just a name; it’s a whole vibe, a way of life, and a philosophy that defines how we make music. We’re all about being present in the moment, letting the energy around us guide what we create, and finding inspiration in everything happening right now. Each of us brings something unique to the table, but together, our approach to music is one of freedom, expression, and constant growth.

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The Opposite Of Shapes

by Laura of Outer Shapes

Outher Shapes


“The Opposite Of Shapes” is a term I’ve coined for the sound I hear in my favorite songs – the one I strain my ears for, impossible to pick out of the mix, so loud and so subtle at the same time, until I just have to believe it’s the final instrument – the sound that bubbles in between all of the tracks, everything and nothing at the same time. The element that makes a song good or not, well mixed or not, a hit or a flop. Sometimes it’s a feeling, sometimes it’s an actual sound. When that final piece reveals itself in a song, I can float in it, become it, and insert myself into that mysterious and thrilling space. I feel like it’s been made just for me.

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Not Needing To Live Up To An Image

by Sound Furies

Sound Furies


Our story is that we have no story, at least not one that is interesting for a lot of people. We’ve always thought it strange that musicians need to have a story or an image for people to listen to their music when it is a purely aural art form. Our music as “Sound Furies” speaks for itself; it is its own entity that tells its own stories.

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Scene from an Art Heist

by Nick Stevens a.k.a. The Eighty Six Seas

Nick Stevens a.k.a. The Eighty Six Seas


The most vivid artwork I’ve ever seen was a series of blank frames.

The first time I walked into the Dutch Room at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum in Boston, I was gobsmacked. This room was the site of the most notorious art heist in history, where thirty-three years ago, two thieves disguised as police officers broke into the museum and stole half a billion dollars worth of masterpieces by Rembrandt, Vermeer, and Degas. I’ve never witnessed such a visceral display of the absence of art.

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Life Is Just A Mashup

by Alex Black

Alex Black


For those who don’t know my name is Alex Black, but I go by many names. I’m Alex Black. I’m Flash The Stampede. I’m Johnny Louisville. Hence the The Man With Three Faces moniker. When I practice martial arts I’m Three Chāoláng (超狼) LOL. My main creative persona is Alex Black, however. I’m an artist in every sense of the word. A dreamer, hard worker, flamboyant, charismatic, experimental. I’m gorgeous, and one of the most dopest people walking this planet. I’m one of one, I do what I want, when I want & how I want which confuses people.

I’ve said this somewhere else but people see a 6’5 dude from Brooklyn, muscular, with an androgynous pretty boy style, constantly rocking something flamboyant. They’ll see this dude pull up in a streetwear brand from London, or maybe he’s rocking some vintage designer clothes from the 80s and 90s, mixing it with crazy footwear and eyeliner. An eccentric human being, but his talent and charisma is undeniable. That’s who Alex Black is.

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Freedom’s Just Another Word For Nothin’ Left to Lose…

by Rachel Angel

Photo by Jayme Tauzer

Some of my favorite moments and memories consist of being out on the road wearing a hat over greasy hair and some of the same travel clothes for days. Stepping out of the van barefoot to see the sights, the wind blowing my clothes as I look out over the expanses, I feel free of earthly possessions, free of the need to control how I look and feel, and free of the expectations of the outside world. Truly anonymous in a hat, I travel from town to town in and out of diners and cafes with my face slightly obscured. I’m just a traveler blowing through, never promising anything to anyone. I’m a transient presence for a moment and then I’m gone.

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Life Our Own Way

by David Heatley

Life Our Own Way by David Heatley

I’d never been to Louisiana, never seen New Orleans, never been out on the Bayou. It was May of 2021 and here I was driving in the middle of the night to a town called Breaux Bridge, out past Baton Rouge, deep in the middle of rural Louisiana farmlands—what they call “Cajun country.” I arrived at a big, rundown house and was greeted by Mark, the producer of my new record (released Feb 11 2022 on Dream Puppy Records). We had only communicated by email and text up til this point and now here he was—grinning, talking a mile-a-minute, introducing me to the semi-stray cats, describing the armadillos that would come around if he left the cat food out over night in the garage: “nasty fuckers.”

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