Ann Powers, 21st Century Protest Music: Will There Be Another Dylan? Should There Be?: “Mostly, though, the music of Occupy Wall Street has been generated not by known performers or even people who necessarily call themselves ‘artists.’ It’s emerged from the cloud that’s spread on the ground. The same 21st-century style organizers who’ve been holding twice-daily meetings to come to consensus, privileging process over a … Continue reading Occupy Rock Criticism (ORC), II

Various rock critics grappling with the “Occupy” protests and/or the state of political/economic life in general. Frank Kogan, Getting people all in one place is amazingly hard: “I feel a bit hypocritical for not getting involved, since I’m the one who strenuously insists that the major flaw of my musicwrite world is its unwillingness to focus and follow through: that the people in it don’t … Continue reading Occupy Rock Criticism (ORC), I

In Russia, rock critics actually continue to matter — sometimes to potentially devastating personal consequences. Still, for all the weighty political implications of the case, there’s also this: “Troitsky, a dog lover and owner of a black Scottish terrier named Churchill, has defended his comments, saying he does not consider calling somebody a poodle to be an insult. “He has argued in court that poodles … Continue reading Russian Rock Critic Targeted In Slander Suits