[First published at ClashMusic.com, August 20, 2014] That Neutral Milk Hotel sold every ticket to tonight’s show at 48 hours’ notice shouldn’t come as a surprise. Before it was cancelled midweek, ATP’s Jabberwocky Festival was going to be the band’s triumphant return after a decade and a half away from the UK. Songwriter and ringleader Jeff Mangum broke the near-complete silence a couple of years … Continue reading Neutral Milk Hotel at Kentish Town Forum, August 15, 2014

[First Published at End Hits, June 11th 2013] With the release of MCII early last month, it became clear that Long Beach export Mikal Cronin had crafted a record that infused the garage-rock prototype of his peers with more heart than many of them could manage in a career beneath all the bluster. Whether or not they were favorable (they were, actually, always favorable), the comparisons with his friend … Continue reading Mikal Cronin at Mississippi Studios, June 6, 2013