On May 6th, X-S takes place at Berlin's Marie Antoinette and Fitzroy. With the aim of reducing barriers, the party and panel talk focus on accessibility and visibility for disabled and neurodiverse communities. We spoke to Stella Spoon, who is part of the organizing team, about ableism in nightlife and strategies to make club culture safer and more accessible for people with disabilities and its intersections.
The Canadian pop veterans have endured the drastic transformations of the music industry for the past two decades and it is a little miracle they are still here, delivering one decent album after the other, most lately last year’s "From Capelton Hill". NBHAP authors Norman Fleischer and Andreas Peters share a mutual love of the group from the beginning of their career and sat down with Amy Millan on their recent Berlin tour stop to talk about about their life’s work.
The debut record by the singer and producer Sabrina Bellaouel explores her Algerian-French identity, and crafts personal memories into emotive songs. From euphoric pop to heavy techno-inspired house, singer-songwriter meets electronic distortion, "Al Hadr" is a chameleon of a record. This week, Sabrina shares insight into her influences and the formative aesthetic of Algerian music.
The unconventional artist Nuha Ruby Ra releases her second EP "Machine Like Me". A sonic experiment at its core, the music is driven by playfulness as well as the aim to deconstruct musical boundaries. We spoke to Nuha about the ideas behind the record and its making.
It is not hard to imagine French indie pop darlings Phoenix sitting in a room together. Ideas bubbling. Song sketches effortlessly turning into a bigger picture and the four longtime friends and (soul) brothers spending hours getting lost in the joy of playing music together. All while their music is doing the talking and a subconscious understanding kicks in. With their seventh album to date, Phoenix have returned with a refined and charming sound on "Alpha Zulu". A conversation about the value and stimulating effect of art, the privilege of recording inside a museum and the most rewarding moments of making music together after over two decades.
LA-resident Keeley Bumford is constantly shaping her artistic expression. With her solo project Dresage she taps into new territory and explores various sonic textures between organic and synthesized. We caught up with her to chat about the latest single 'Dancing On My Grave', struggles and changes of working as a female producer.
Hatis Noit is not a singer in the traditional sense of the word. She is an experimental voice artist merging various influences from different vocal traditions to a record full of surprises and emotions. "Aura" finds its music in the embodiment of emotions through vocals as sounds and not as words. We met the artist to speak about language, tradition, and her approach to music making.
Rants about Spotify and their questionable practices as the top dog of the streaming industry have become an established tradition of pop-cultural criticism, but rarely do comments lead to action. Following up on the Joe Rogan conflict with the Swedish company, NBHAP co-head Andreas caught up with musician and activist Joel Jerome from the "Union Of Musicians And Allied Workers" to find out more on the organisation and how to get involved.