“Many found the music offensive, the dancing objectionable, and the popularity of both with young people verging on a mental health crisis.” So writes music historian Susan C. Cook about ragtime, the heavily syncopated ancestor of jazz that arose in the late 1800s. Like all things, ragtime’s subversiveness faded over time, and, a century later,…

Whatever expectation or preconception exists around Chet Faker—whether through his recorded music or onstage—the individual behind it, born Nick Murphy, is consistently unexpected and disarming. When I interviewed him in 2019 for his debut Nick Murphy album Run Fast Sleep Naked, he showed up carrying fresh-pressed juices in a shoulder cooler bag. Six years later,…

Since Record Store Day’s debut in April 2008, its annual celebration of vinyl and the culture of independently owned record stores has only grown wilder: from its start in the U.S. to becoming an international event; from being held one day in April to the inclusion of a second event on Black Friday; from hosting…